Update on Mt. Jupiter access. Pope Resources has decided to scale back the logging in the area of Mt. Jupiter for the year 2008. This means the road leading up to Mt. Jupiter trailhead will be open for the summer. Please check with the Quilcene Ranger Station for when the gate will open in the spring.

Mt. Jupiter Trail will be closed to all from Sept. 30th 2007 until Spring 2009 due to logging traffic on road. Check with the Quilcene Ranger station around April 2009 for possibly opening of the gate.

This was my first time up the Mount Jupiter trail. The trail is nice except for the first 1/2 that has been logged and is covered with logging debris. There are a few blow downs in the lower wooded part of the trail too. Trail is getting a bit overgrown with salal in spots and my pants got soaked from the dew. I hiked in the fog and the rain and did not get to see the views. http://mosswalks.blogspot.com

07-07-07 and it was 77 degrees when we got back to the car. Where's the LOTTO ticket? After last week's ""burn"" hike in the Pasayten (//www.nwhikers.net/forums/viewtopic.php?t=7960693) today it was ""slash"" in the Olympics. There have been a couple of trip reports recently on this trip - but what folks don't mention is the start of the trail. It can be confusing. First of all, the road to the trailhead is well marked. The most difficult part is finding the turn-off from 101. If you are coming from Quilcene (from the north) and are heading south on 101 - it's just south of Brinnon and about a 1/4 of a mile south of Mile Marker 309. There is a definite road on your right, but the little road sign that says ""Jupiter Mountain"" doesn't jump right out at you - so just be aware. Once you make the turn off of 101, it's easy. However, the ""parking area"" for this hike is minimal. There is a little additional parking up and around the corner in front of a gate. To get to the trail head, walk the road a little to the west and you will see the trailhead bulletin board. As you are looking at the board, the trail starts just to your right. Don't be discouraged, because for the first 3/4 of a mile along the clear cut area, you have to negotiate at lot of ""crap"" on the trail. Note: you are totally in the open and on a south slope, so it can be toasty! Once you get part way up towards the ridge, you do enter some trees, but that lasts only for about another 1/2 mile or so and then you break out into the open again until you reach the ridge and then the next almost five miles is in the trees - with some ups and downs. Remember, although the books say 3600' of gain for this hike, add another 800' for the up you have to do on the way out! It's a 4400' day to this peak and back. The best part today was all of the flowers once you are above the clear cut. We were surprised. And, they just got better and better the higher we got. The rhodies even are in bloom almost all the way to the summit. I didn't capture all of the flowers in bloom (lupine is pretty much gone, so is the Vanilla Leaf and False Solomon Seal), but we did see a lot. We were so busy snapping a lot of pics - that's probably why it took us 3:40 to get to the summit! It was a veritable pink pathway to the summit through the rhodies. It wasn't until we were about 3/4 of the way up the trail that we ran across someone. Susan had started from the trailhead about 8:30 a.m. - about 45 minutes ahead of us and made the trek early - wanting to beat the heat, too. We had a nice chat and shared with her hiking info available online. She was kind enough to find the driver's sunglasses that had jumped off my head and onto the trail and she left them on my car for me. Thanks, Susan!! We told her there are several hikers in the Hood Canal area and to check the nwhikers.net board for possible hiking partners. The bugs were circling us as we stopped - but they were nothing like they had been in the Pasayten. We moved on. Above, we saw a couple of ""companions"" - two lovely bald eagles just enjoying the views and the thermals. Soon, our destination was in sight and as we got closer, we even saw some snow on the north face. There also are some lakelets to the east of Jupiter and below the ridge. Once on top, the views were stunning - albeit hazy. We couldn't see to Seattle initially, but in about an hour as we were heading down, it would become more visible. We had our lunch and wandered around the top of Jupiter (the driver wanted to know where the rest of the mile-wide peak top was - since that's what we had up in the Pasayten!) We even spied the little tarns of Jupiter - which are about 900' below (not on a beaten path) and on the northwest flank of the mountain. The heat was most tolerable - in fact, a windshirt was needed on the summit - but the breeze kept the bugs to a minimum. From here, we could see the bumps and ridges we had come up (all 7+ miles of them!). So we headed down - be aware, that there's lots of that loose, pebbly stuff on the way down. The trail is in good shape - with just a few blowdowns that you either go over or, in some cases, under. For the most part, the trail is quite pleasant and about mid-way through, you move into the wilderness. We were amazed, however, that given the recent trip reports, the great summer day and the end of a holiday week, that there were only three of us on the mountain this day! Take water if you're going. There isn't any along the way - take extra if you have a 4-legged friend with you. Stats: 3:40 up/2:40 down 14 1/2 miles roundtrip 4400' gain poles are a good idea - especially on the downclimb off of the summit.

A few fine friends and I went up Mount Jupiter yesterday. The rhodhies are peaking along with alpine flowers above the tree line. At the top we were teased by brief but spectacular views through holes in the clouds. Well worth walking through the clear cut, 14 miles and 3700 feet of gain. brief report The Mount Jupiter road is in good shape. New laminated signs keep drivers headed in the right direction. The trailhead kiosk is in good shape. For the most part the trail is in very good shape once hikers get above the clear cut. It's surprising considering the closures. Between 2,600 and 4,000 feet light brushing would return the rhododendron portion of the trail to excellent condition. This was a good day for blooms! Above the tree line there are several spots where erosion narrows or cuts the trail and loose rock make the footing tricky. Snow sits on one switch back at 4,800, almost gone. Trail details The lower part of the trail through the clearcut is buried under tons of slash. At times the trail is hard to find. In several places hikers have to pick their way over large slash piles. It would've been nice if Pope had used their equipment to move most slash off the trail. The trail tread in this area is still ok. At 2,500 feet the trail goes through a forest stand next to the clearcut. There are about a dozen downs forcing hikers off the trail. The trail leaves the stand. At this point a long erosion chute cuts across the trail. Foot prints show hiker are using the erosion chute to short cut the downs. Most of these downs could be cleared by a volunteer crew. At 2,650 feet the trail enters the forest and switch backs to the ridge. Light brush is encroaching the trail up to 3,200 feet. Along the ridge to 4,000 feet three or four downs force hikers off the trail causing erosion. Most downs could be easily removed with hand saws. Above the tree line at 4,400 feet erosion affects the trail width or cuts the trail in several locations. Erosion and loose rock get worse until the trail gets close to the summit. The top is in great shape.