I didn't hike this trail recently--but I wanted to point out that the trail is open per the forest service:

https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/olympic/recreation/recarea/?recid=47883

https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/olympic/recarea/?recid=48063

This trail is closed about 2.5miles before the trailhead. It is posted private property for Rayonier Hunting and permits are required. We turned around at the closed gate and on the way down saw an altercation between two trucks stopped on the road. An old man who lives on the road was arguing with another couple who were trying to head up the road and he was saying to road is private property and access to Mt. Jupiter is closed. It was a very tense situation. I would advise avoiding this hike and it’s possible the same level of passion is what lead to the flat tires of the previous post.

Mount Jupiter was a lovely and challenging day hike that presented a few logistical challenges.  The start of the hike is on private gated logging road for 2.5 miles.  We packed bikes for that section and it worked great. The views are well worth the effort and there are many wild blueberries and huckleberries along the way.  The bugs weren’t bad, but spiderwebs were prevalent along the narrow wooded parts of the trail.  I would do it again for the view on a clear day.  rocky exposed trails at the top could be difficult in bad weather that can change quickly. 

The most important piece of information to be reported on this trail is that expect to walk a lot more than what is reported (according to our devices) with the gate closed, over 2 miles were added each way also. Next, have in mind there is NO source of water nearby. Carry a lot of water. We had 5,6 liters and hopes of finding streams. You need at least 6 liters per person if it is NOT hot.

We gave up reaching the summit as we ran out of water and still had miles left to walk. Also the paths were extremely risky and trail was not maintained in MANY areas. Worst of all, I would like to report that after returning from 22 miles plus hiking, and having been completely out of water in the last 4 miles of it, we encountered a note on my car. The tree cutter hired by the forestry (also known as the gate keeper currently) had deflated everybody's tire and not only that, he took out the valves so we couldn't pump air. There is a note posted on the gate, warning about tree cutting there and no parking to block the gate as of August 1st. None of us had blocked the gate. This was also on a weekend. Even if I broke the law, he had no right to vandalize everyone's car. I was lucky I ran into a mountain biker who also knew this guy and tried to help us. We were miles away from highway 101 if we had to walk it down since there is no cellphone reception.

Stay away - the gossip we heard was forestry knows how crazy this dude is, but they won't do anything about it. I will be reporting this to the Mason county sheriff as well.

Most of the peninsula was completely covered with clouds so I decided to try heading up to Mt. Jupiter for a view of potential cloud inversion. The road up to the gate is in good shape with no potholes/washboards and can be used by all vehicles as long as you drive relatively slowly. I parked at the gate at around 8:30am. For the record, I saw the land management sign indicating that "Rayonier Hunting and Rec" access is permit only between August 1st and December 31st, but considering that I was only "using" the land to access public Forest Service land/trails through road walking, I thought I didn't need a permit to walk through Rayonier property. I knew about the perils of a long road walk, so I came prepared with a library of downloaded podcasts (I actually had cell service for most of the 3-mile road walk). After an hour long road walk in overcast, I joined the trail at the top of the ridge and started walking on tread! The trail is in great shape with no obstacles and the gradual grade climbing the ridge is quite forgiving. I finally made it above the cloud layer at the Brothers Wilderness boundary and the views were stunning. While most of the ridge is lined with secondary-growth trees, there are outcroppings that provide views into the Duckabush valley, The Brothers, and Hood Canal. The trail breaks out from tree cover at around 4800' and navigates up/around the classic craggy rock formations of the Olympics. The views are pretty amazing and the hike overall is pretty relaxing. The road walk back down to the gate was rough, but the overcast weather cleared and I was offered good views of the Dosewallips and Dabob bay.

Annnnnnddd here is the part that gives the hike a bad wrap. I returned to my car to find a note reminding me to buy a permit to walk through this private property. You need a permit for All Access. It was just a warning (I guess) but this is quite frustrating. Why do I need to buy a $100 "Rayonier WA Non-Hunting Recreation" permit to road walk 3-miles to access National Forest lands and a trail that's managed by USFS? I understand the purpose of limiting/regulating hunting access, but for road walking? Maybe I'm turning into a grumpy old 29-year-old man, but this seems like an overreach to me. Use this trail at your own risk, I guess.