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Trip Report

Oxbow Loop Trail, CCC Road: Upper Trailhead & Garfield Ledges — Saturday, Jun. 17, 2023

Snoqualmie Region > North Bend Area
The Oxbow Loop Trail. Viewpoint is on the spur trail to the main trail.

We camped at the Middle Fork Campground over the weekend of June 15th-June 18th and hiked a few of the trails nearby during our stay. We hiked the Oxbow Loop Trail on June 16th and hiked both the CCC Trail and about .5 miles of the Garfield Ledges Trail on June 17th. 

The Oxbow Loop Trail is a fairly self-explanatory loop around Oxbow Lake. The best views are available from the .2 mile spur trail that is accessible from the overflow parking area (the second signed parking area if you are driving in from North Bend). The trail has a good variety of up and down but is currently overgrown in several areas and could use some brushing. Other than that, I did not observe any  obstacles of note. There is access to the shore of the Snoqualmie River and we decided to stop there for lunch. 

Since we were staying at the campground, we used the CCC Trailhead access near site #13. The CCC Trail can also be accessed from the Middle Fork parking area by walking directly across Middle Fork Road. This section of the CCC Trail is about 3 miles long and ends at another trailhead along Middle Fork Road. This section of the CCC Trail is in good shape with no obstacles to note. Much to our surprise, all the creek crossings were bone dry and therefore easily crossed. Thanks also to the WTA crew on the CCC Trail doing some brushing, bridge cleaning and rock projects! 

Lastly, we hiked to the first viewpoint about .5 miles in on the Garfield Ledges trail before inclement weather blew in late Saturday afternoon. The trailhead is located at the end of Middle Fork Road. The last bit of the road to the trailhead is not paved and crosses a bridge before you arrive at a large parking lot and picnic area. There are several large potholes on this section of the road, but if you don't want to deal with them, you can park at the paved Middle Fork parking area and follow the Middle Fork Connector Trail located at the NE corner of the parking area. That trail will lead you right up to the bridge and you just walk over the bridge to the trailhead. 

The CCC Trail.
The second creek crossing on the CCC Trail, starting from the campground.
Viewpoint on the Garfield Ledges Trail.
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