The dog & I went for an overnight at the lookout at Kelly Butte. There's a lot of FS road to drive to get to the trailhead but most of it is paved & what isn't is in decent shape. The trail is short & the only tough part is a set of switchbacks in the middle. There were plenty of dayhikers on the trail but no one else was staying at the top so I had the lookout to myself for the night. It was a beautiful hot sunny afternoon & evening with Rainier to the West, Baker & Glacier & the Stuart range to the North & Olympics just visible to the Northwest. The last dayhikers left around 8. That evening some nasty weather came in with strong winds & rain from the West. I'm glad I wasn't in a tent. The shelter held up fine, though it did shake & rattle in the wind. In the morning I could see my breath & was socked in, with visibility down to about 20 feet. A nasty wind was whipping up the ridge. I had a coffee, packed up & we headed out. Once we got off the ridge the weather calmed down & the views opened up a bit. I didn't see any hikers on my way out, which wasn't suprising considering the low clouds & wind.

Despite the driving this is a great trail with a big payback for not a lot of effort. The fact that the lookout was available for the night was the cherry on top.  Thanks to whoever is keeping it maintained! 

It took a little bit to get to this hike but my gps took me to the right spot. When you pull up there is just a brown board with some information about how to avoid bears but no mention of the trail. I had to walk down an old service road and once at the end you will see a plaque to the right that says Kelly Butte and on the left is the sign for the trail to start. I am not an experienced hiker by any means so this hike was hard for me but I loved every second of it because the view the entire time was breathtaking. I went when there was some cloud coverage so I can only imagine that on a clear day it must be even prettier. You will hike up a steep hill for the first part of the hike and then the second half will be few the trees and to the lookout. The first half is the toughest part because you are gaining the most elevation here and there are a lot of rocks to climb over. It is well worth it though if you love hikes with a view. Once you arrive at the old fire lookout you can see to several different mountains. The lookout has a notebook inside to sign or document your journey, as well as some hiking necessities like sun tan lotion and bug spray, and a few cots to rest. Overall this hike was amazing and even though it was tough for me I'd do it again in a heartbeat.