Since it's been over a month since the last trip report on this trail, I figured I should share what I found there today July 7.
Summary: A rough and challenging trail, with plenty of solitude and a pretty nice payout.
Road: I would recommend a car with a little clearance. The road is long, bumpy, and has large potholes in sections. Our Prius goes on most roads but we took the Jeep for this one!
Trail conditions: No snow, with a few blowdowns. Most of them are easy enough to go around/over, except for one large tree near the top forested section of the trail which is pretty awkward, but still doable. I had to crawl under it on the way up and almost got stuck.
Difficulty: Though this trail isn't very long, it's rough nature makes it feel more like a 7 mile day to me. It's very rocky in the beginning across the old road bed, and once in the woods it's rooty and steep pretty much the rest of the way. Many tripping hazards, so take your time.
Water: None until you are about half a mile from the pass, where there is a small stream flowing all summer, as far as I know.
Wildlife: Swainson's thrushes and hermit thrushes abound! We were expecting to see a bear today due to the frequent sightings on this trail (we saw one or two when we were here a couple years back) but there were none today. In any case, be prepared! There were a few skeeters around in the wooded areas, but not too annoying.
Wildflowers: Not too many yet, but the mountain heather is blooming in small patches at the top, with lots of bumblebees around. There were a few tiger lilies sprinkled in some small sections. Plenty of cute woodland flowers to peep.
Other folks: Saw one other fellow and his dog during our 7:45 am to 1 pm trip.
Happy hiking :-D
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