Gobblers Knob — Sunday, Jul. 1, 2007

Mount Rainier Area > SW - Longmire/Paradise

Trail to Goat Lake has 10 trees across the trail and one that has fallen parallel with lots of branches crossing the trail (between the Lake Christine trail junction and Goat Lake). The trail around Goat Lake is decent except for a severe blow-down at the southeastern corner. The trail is muddy in places and you do have to cross some snowfields, but it is in a lot better condition than one would think. Once you pass Goat Lake, there is one spot just outside the national park boundary where two large trees are blocking the trail. Some hikers have begun to hike around this by venturing south and veering around the trees. Aside from this blockage, the rest of the trail is free of anything major until you cross the saddle. Once over the saddle, there are still about 5 different sections where snow is covering the trail. The snow is unstable in places and poles and/or an ice ax might be helpful if you are carrying a big pack. At the Gobbler's Knob spur, there is a lot of snow. Once you pass this though, the trail is clear to the top of the lookout. However, the lookout is in extremely bad shape with lots of broken glass from the windows shattering and tree limbs crashing through the structure.