It was a beautiful day on the Kelly Butte trail! Arrived just after noon, and took our time on the way up to the firewatch station. Only 3 other hikers on the trail, lots of privacy! We enjoyed the beginning wildflower blooms, and spent over an hour just sitting at the station, reading and watching the wildlife. A golden eagle soared by at a leisurely pace, we also spotted a mountain goat sunning himself on a rocky outcrop. Many marmots and lizards on the way back down. Rainier was obscured by clouds, but it was still a perfect day!

The good news - the road is in great condition all the way to the TH, minimal potholes and any vehicle with average clearance should have no problems. The bad news - Lots of ticks on the butte. We had an easy drive up the gravel roads to the TH and found only one other car there at about 11 AM Saturday, snow free all the way, including the trail. We took the new trail, but did a quick check of the old trail and found that he ropes are still in place. The weather was perfect, and we were down to t-shirts soon after we started up the rocks, but that had a downside which we discovered later. The views were terrific while we had lunch at the lookout. It was then that we found the first tick. From that point on we were as careful as we could be, but when we got back to the trailhead we found three more, all hiding in our hair. Not much in the way of wild flowers yet, at 5,800' Spring has just begun.

Hike is just as described. I missed the trail sign where the old road ends at the rock face because it was a clear day and Mt Rainier was out in all her glory. Saw the path to the old rope and was too scared so I took some pics. Thankfully some people came down the switchbacks thru the rock wall and I was then able to see the trail. Chatted with a volunteer who took the rope path and I set course up the switchbacks. Not being in the best of shape I didn't think I would make it but I got to the top of the rock wall within 20 minutes take a small rest every 3 switchbacks. The rest of the trail consists of short switchbacks in the open until you reach the trees. The open tree fields had soft snow that was quickly melting but deep if you stepped on the side of the trail. Clear day. Could see the top of Mt Baker over another peak. At the lookout I found a tick on my pack. Found a few more ticks on me on the way down. By the time I reached my car I had 2 ticks in my hair. Wear light colored clothes and check often.

There are big sections of snow and ice on the road from the T at 11.9 miles from hwy 410. Our old, low clearance, Subaru wagon was dragging bottom through it. Had it been frozen hard we might have turned around. Four wheel drive and some clearance recommended. There are also some washed out trenches that also require some caution to get through. The road walk from the parking area to the actual trail is mostly snow but easy walking. The lower, most steep and rugged, part of the trail is snow free. The last .75 or so is mostly snow. There is a good boot path which limited post holing. I, being over cautious, wore micro-spikes but hubby was fine without them. The deepest snow is about a foot and a half. Up at the top there are just a few inches. We sat on the deck of the lookout for about an hour enjoying the view and soaking in the sunshine. It was wonderful! We were the only people there all day. WARNING- There are TICKS here! I found two on me and my hubby found one. Last June we got them here too.

Well we came to this trail under-prepared...we had no idea there was going to be snow! We couldn't make it all the way to the trailhead in our Honda Civic due to the icy snow (and deep ruts/pot holes) on parts of the dirt access road further up. You could have made it in a Subaru, or anything with 4 wheel drive. We found a good place to pull over and park on the access road and hiked about 2 miles to the trailhead. Along the way there is intermittent snow but very doable without special gear. I would highly recommend ski poles, however. One we got to the trailhead, the trail is only 1.7 miles to the top but the switch backs were very narrow and slippery. Be careful -- this is where ski poles would come in handy (which of course we didn't bring...). Once at the top, the snow is deep, maybe a couple feet, but it wasn't fresh snow. There was already a path made from previous hikers so it made it easy to follow their steps. Overall the views were SPECTACULAR!! It was bright and sunny, a perfect PNW day. Bring warm clothes for the top though - that wind has a bite!