Snuck this one in just before the rains came on Sunday. As others have said the road leading up to the hike is pretty rough shape, although I will point out that long stretches of it are perfectly fine gravel road, its just patches of potholes the size of the Puget Sound that make things difficult for short streches. Any car should be able to do it with some careful maneuvering. Also be careful on the first 10 miles of paved road; higher speeds might be tempting but there is some serious road damage, easily avoidable at if you see it in time, but could be bad if hit when going a bit too fast. 

Not too many people out. I only saw 1 group on any of the trail-heads (at buck creek) for the whole 20 miles of NF road. Ended up seeing one other group on the hike who must have come in after me and several others on my drive back

Started seeing signs of bear on the trail sometime after the switchbacks and ended up running into the bear itself at about mile 2, just sitting on the trail 20 feet or so in front of my dog. Didn't seem scared of my dog at all (who was wearing a cowbell no less) but when I got there he started moving away pretty quickly. Didn't see him again the rest  trip but from his tracks it looked like he stayed on the trail ahead of me for a mile or so before he must have turned off. 

Trail has been meticously maintained for about the first 2-2.5 miles, after which there are multiple blowdowns that make things difficult but not impossible. Some bigger trees and at least one boardwalk taken out it'll probably need a good bit of work. All the creek crossing were doable but the third major creek was a little sketchy, definitely had to get the boots wet a couple of times. 

Ended up reaching the campsite at mile 6 (the end) and deciding to turn back to the first one with a nicer fire pit and not so close to river. I know some people love the sound of a loud river for sleeping but being 10-15 feet from two very loud spring rivers was a little to much for me. 

All in all a great hike for some old growth, river viewing and a couple of nice views at the end. 

Let me say right up front that Downey Creek is one of the nicest old growth trails I have been on in about 35 years of hiking the North Cascades.  Not just for the (in some cases) gigantic Douglas Firs, Hemlocks, and Cedars, but for the "open" feel of the forest: In many places I could see a few hundred yards above and below the trail which traverses the steep eastern flank of Downey Creek.  

Add to this a gorgeous carpet of wildflowers - Bleeding Hearts, False Solomon Seal, Yellow Violet, Bunchberry, Wild Ginger, and many others I couldn't identify - PLUS the solitude and it made for a very enjoyable hike.  

My hiking partner and I made it about 2.5 to 3 miles up the trail (which goes much further) but he, who was a little ahead of me, came back down the trail saying he had reached a tributary that he didn't feel safe to cross.  So, we had lunch and returned to the trail head.  We saw two other hikers coming up, and another group of 4 just about to embark near the trailhead.

The negative to this hike is getting there: the 10-mile dirt section of the Suiattle River Road is severly pot-holed in some places, though I think any standard automobile with normal clearance can make it.  Just expect some wear and tear on your shock absorbers.  :((

Finally, 3 cheers (Cheer! Cheer! Cheer!) for the excellent trail work, some of which must have been difficult, that our own WTA has done on this trial.  Altogether now...

What a great way to celebrate Mother's Day with a hike on Downey Creek! This was my first time on the trail and I hoped to go a lot further than I did, but I ran into a problem with my boots and had to come out early. The only people I saw on the trail were the WTA workers and they have done an amazing job shoring up the trail and getting rid of some of the winter tree fall.  Honestly, the most difficult part of the day was driving the 20 some odd miles to the Trail head over so many potholes. I wish I had brought more water and better shoes. I went about three miles in before turning around. Start early because the drive to the TH is looong. 

This is a very pleasant old growth forest hike near the Suiattle River.  What makes this place special is that the entire valley, starting at the relatively low elevation of 1400 ft, is all old growth forest.  The trail is in good condition overall except for a few large blowdowns that have you have to negotiate.  The forest is beautiful but there aren't very many large trees.  Most of the old Doug Fir are 3-5 feet in diameter.  The largest tree that I measured was 7.6 feet in diameter and was just a couple hundred feet from the road.

I turned around at the 3rd creek crossing.  It was definitely doable but probably would have required submerging the boots. The trail apparently goes on for 6 miles but gets a lot rougher further up stream.

A WTA team was on the trail cutting out a massive cedar windfall.  It looked like an enormous task.  They thought that the job would take a few days.  I let them know their efforts were much appreciated.

5mi RT, 1100 feet elevation.