Went with my family and one other to hike the grove of the patriarchs. In total we had 8 children in our group. The trail was fairly easy. We had a stroller with us so there are a few spots we had to lift and carry it over rocks, roots, or stairs. The trail was dry and even. We saw a few wildflowers starting to bloom and the berries are starting to come out. They are still a long way from being ripe though. We didn't have any issues with the bugs and the temperature along the river was perfect. This was nice considering the day got up to 83-85 degrees. The only bad thing was the amount of people in the trail with dogs. We ran into 5 of them and the trail is clearly marked "no pets." This is an easy, enjoyable hike to do with small children. A great beginner hike.

I spent the day driving around the Mountain, just checking things out. As expected, it looks and feels like July up there. Everything below 5000 feet seems to be very, very dry. We may be in for a disastrous summer. The Ohanapecosh campground is still closed, so the only way to access the Silver Falls loop is from the Eastside Trail head near Grove of the Patriarchs. Most of Stevens Canyon road is closed due to a rockslide that is still being cleared. The small parking lot was overflowing, but there was hardly anyone on the Silver Falls trail. The falls are full and glorious right now. I continued on to Grove of the Patriarchs, which by that time (2pm or so) had mostly emptied out. Overall, it was a beautiful early-season excursion to Rainier, but I am very concerned about the potential for forest fires this summer. Get out and enjoy those woods while you can!

Hiked this trail with my 7 year old son and my mother who is in her 50's.

Experience the Redwoods-style hike here in Washington!

The Grove of the Patriarchs Loop was a very nice excursion to go on with my three children. (one of whom is three years old) You can very easily see the trailhead from the road, it is right after the Stevens Canyon Entrance to the State Park. There were many groups on this trail but there were enough parking spots for all of us. There are multiple garbage cans, picnic tables, and nicely kept restrooms at the beginning of the trail. The trail walks along a creek and across a fun suspension bridge. Then you reach a boardwalk loop which leads you around many old growth cedars which my son was amazed at. The boardwalk was very well kept. Once you finished the boardwalk loop you would return to the trail and cross the suspension bridge a second time. This hike was very enjoyable but my children wanted to see some waterfalls so I took them to the Silver Falls Loop. The Silver Falls Loop is a few minutes further down the road past the Grove of the Patriarchs hike. You will find a paved pullout across the street from the trailhead. You follow the trail down to the water. My kids loved this trail because of the many waterfalls that can be seen very easily from the trail without risking climbing down to rocks. There was a lookout with a guard rail and then a sturdy wood bridge to see the biggest waterfall. We took many pictures of the beautiful clear water and the picturesque moss on the ground around the trail. (It almost looked like grass) Overall this hike was very easy and provided a fun daytime hike for my children and I.