Our group of eleven senior hikers in their 60's, 70's and 80's met at the Iron Horse State Park trailhead near Rattlesnake Lake outside of North Bend for a five-trail loop hike around Cedar Butte. After gearing up we headed up the Palouse to Cascades Trail on the former Milwaukee Road railroad grade, now just a gravel road going to Snoqualmie Pass. The last train came through back in 1980. We hiked the trail 2 miles up to the junction with the newer Olallie Trail opened in 2017. Only took us 40 minutes. There is a kiosk at the junction with a map of the trails in the area. The Olallie Trail cost $1.168 million to build by State Parks with help from the Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance. This wide trail switchbacks up the hillside with a moderate grade that goes to Change Creek past Mt.WA. When we arrived at the unsigned junction with the old West Ridge Trail, we met a young woman who was out putting in game cameras. Most people would hike on by and never notice this trail junction. We then headed down the West Ridge Trail where we had to get over a fallen tree. A little further along we crossed an old logging railroad grade used by the North Bend Timber Company when they logged this area back in 1905 to 1923. Their sawmill was down by Rattlesnake Lake. Still going downhill, we got to the Southside Trail where the trail makes a sharp turn to the left. We had to step over some fallen trees before getting to the ponds along the trail. They are now dried up with Bracken Ferns growing in them. Past the ponds the trail makes another sharp turn to the left and goes up hill very steeply for about 50 yards. Then the trail has some ups and downs before coming out at Saddle Junction on the Cedar Butte Trail.
When we arrived at the junction it was about lunch time. Pete and I decided to stay at the junction for lunch while the rest of the group went up to the summit of Cedar Butte. We had been up there many times before, so found a couple of fallen trees for a lunch time bench at the junction. You have to sit on the ground at the summit as there are no seats. While eating we had to battle the skeeters trying to have us for their lunch. Three young women showed up going to the summit and one needed some bug spray. After lunch we decided to head down the Cedar Butte Trail to get away from the bugs and not wait for the rest of the group. Two sections of the trail are on old NBTC logging railroad grades. Once we got back down to the Palouse to Cascades Trail the bugs were gone, and a nice breeze came up for the 1-mile hike back to the parking lot. The rest of the group showed up a short time later.
This makes for a nice loop hike around Cedar Butte with no crowds. Did not see any wildlife on our trip, just the four other hikers and one mountain biker on the Olallie Trail. There are some wildflowers along the way. The Cedar Butte Trail below Saddle Jct. could use some brushing. The West Ridge and Southside Trail could use some brushing too, as well as a few trees cut out. George
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