Lovely early spring day with sun peaking through the trees. Huckleberry buds were turning pink. Streams were running high with water, but we were able to cross them all keeping our feet mostly dry. Took about 4 hrs 45 minutes to hike to camp comfort and back with a lunch break. Road is now paved all the way to the trailhead!

Yet another beautiful, quiet, and gloomy day out on the Lower Skosh, my favorite go-to hike when I a) don't want to drive too far from Olympia b) want to bring my dog and c) don't want to deal with questionable snow and/or roads. Saw one car parked at the lower TH on my way up to Lebar (why put yourself through those initial switchbacks?) and hiked out to Camp Comfort and back, crossing paths with only one other party and saw another from afar. Spring is definitely in full swing in the South Sound, but it's still a few weeks away in the Nat'l Forest - no trillium or other wildflowers as of yet, but the bugs are definitely starting to stir. There was a bit of snow on the trail after the first camp, but it was mostly gone on my return and is unlikely to remain for much longer, so I'm clicking the snow-free checkbox. The big blowdown at around 3 miles out now has a companion of near-equal size (see pic), but both are easy to go around and all of the other messes I encountered back in November have been nicely tidied up. The sun valiantly tried to break through over the course of the morning, though it was all for naught and the clouds won the day with zero complaints from me or the dog -- we're always happy for a long, grey walk in the woods.
One last thing of note: the long-standing log bridge out to the spit/island at the first camp has accumulated a bit of extra flotsam (see pic). It's always been a bit sketchy/slippery on a good day, but it was absolutely a hard pass for me today, especially with a dog in tow. I'm sure an alt-route is possible, just be forewarned if that's your destination.

The directions to the trail head need an update to be more clear but you can find it. Pay attention to the Forest Road #'s. The road was good with a few icy spots in shaded areas. Parking at trailhead was good. Vault Toilet Closed or closed for the season. Must bring potty kit and be prepared to carry out any used items or garbage. Trail in good condition for the most part. Stream crossings were challenging in areas but not impossible. Weather was great with abundant sunshine. Previous work done by WTA was great but more is needed in a few areas due to a very large tree down across the trail and an old bridge washed away at a stream crossing. This was the only stream crossing that could be potentially hazardous.  Hiked 3.85 miles out and didn't quite make it to the described bridge just before the old camp. Next time!   Great winter hiking trail! 

A pretty river hike with impressive old growth dougs and cedars, plus some nice stands of maples and alders. The road is paved all the way to the trailhead, which is at 600ft elevation, so this trail is accessible and snow free almost all winter. A worthy addition to your rotation of non-summer trails. 

At the 4.9 mile mark you can easily access the river, which is a good place for lunch before heading back. Note you'll see the riverbed from the trail, but have to walk a short distance over rock and sand to get to the water. 

Hiked on 1/25, which was part of a unusually dry stretch of weather for January. There were four creek crossings (none overly challenging) and a few short muddy stretches. If you do this in more normal (wetter) winter weather, you'll definitely want to have waterproof footwear. Hopefully WTA will get an opportunity to work on this trail as simple foot log bridges would be sufficient for all the crossings. 

Overall this is a relatively flat hike, although it starts with a 300+ foot climb from the trailhead, and then an immediate descent back down to the river. 

Trail is in wonderful shape! It's apparent a lot of work has been done on this trail, used to be so muddy. We had the best weather ever hiking here, too.
We went 4.2 miles in & passed only one other couple on the way back.
The large moss covered trees are breathtaking!