Pretty sure this was my favorite hike of 2023 so far 🥾!
Knowing that this is a very popular trail, we arrived at the trailhead at ~6AM on a Friday. And surprisingly there was only 1 other car in the lot. (I expected more - we have tons of daylight and it was going to be nice out - I'll take it!)
As several others have mentioned, the forest road to the trailhead is in great shape. Any type of car will be able to make it. I only saw 1 pothole the entire 3 mile drive in.
#Alwaysreviewthetoilet ... definitely bring your own supplies. The privy itself is in decent shape - but don't count on any 🧻.
The trail is just gorgeous! It's like the sweet spot between seasons right now. No mud, no snow, not so dried out where it's dusty. Goldilocks. The wild flowers are in bloom - paintbrush, trillium, and my favorite, the bear grass. (And many many more that I can't identify 😉).
It was very clear today - on the way we had peek-a-boo looks at Mount Kent, McCellan Butte, and the Duke & Duchess of Kent.
But once Rainier popped out, it stole the show.
The lake was completely quiet except for some fish nibbling on surface bugs. And speaking of bugs - the only time I noticed any was when I stopped walking, and even then it was minimal.
So ... perfect trail conditions + no bugs + clear skies + wild flowers = 🥾❤️⛰️
When we returned to the parking lot ... it was full and folks were starting to park down the side of the road at 9:30AM.
Oh! Just one thing ... the forest road going to the trailhead is in super good shape, so good that you might encounter some people cruising along at a pretty good clip. So take it slow & watch those limited visibility curves.
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