Deer flies (some may call them horse flies) were buzzing us most of the trail. These are large flies that usually won’t bite, but can. Our iWatches showed it was 7+ miles round trip. A dip in the lake afterwards is glorious and a must!

Arrived at 7:15am on a Saturday, and the parking area was nearly full. Toilet at the trail head was in desperate need of servicing. Trail was very dry, lots of dust and gravel, so quite slippery in areas. Poles recommended! Lots of bugs, but mostly just annoying and not biting. A few wildflowers. Our GPS registered just over a mile more than the distance listed here, and our total time was 6 hours including a nice long break at the summit. Enjoyed a swim in Lake Cushman afterward! 

I was the first car in the lot at 6:40AM on Wednesday July 12th. There is a portapotty at the trailhead stocked with TP and relatively clean. It was cloudy when I began but the sun quickly came out. The uphill on this trail is relentless! Do not recommend for the faint of heart (or legs, or lungs). Tbf I only hiked it because of reports of eyelash cup fungus on trail and happily I was able to locate them, along with a ton of devil's matchstick lichen!!!! :D Because the going was so slow I didn't make it to the summit until around 10AM. Shortly after I headed back for the trailhead it began to rain and continued until I got back to my car. I only saw 8 other people. My knees are going to hate me tomorrow.

A nice cool weather 50s_F - 60s_F ramble, "Lollipop" Loop of Mount Rose;  ~(06:15 - 11:30) this MON 10jul2023 .

The tails were in good condition, and generally well maintained - many thanks to the Mount Rose Trail Crew and volunteers 👍👍👍

Lots of loose small stones on a few sections of the trails, and a few times, i slipped and almost fall when descending .. fortunately for me, i was saved by my Trek Poles    

Nice view of the surrounding mountain peaks "floating" above the fog blanketing Lake Cushman.

Spotted only a few wildflowers though that's enough to make me happy 😊 

i was the first to arrive at the Trailhead parking at ~06:10. Didn't see any other person until i was on my way Back; ~1 mile to the TH, i encountered a total of 4 people coming Up. We exchanged greetings, chatted for a minute or two. 

The first was training for his (with his son and a group - led by Guides) climb of Mt Rainier next month. The second and third were a pair just having fun coming Up. The fourth was training for his "next" week climb of Mt Baker. Everyone was courteous and friendly 👍

Happy Trails Everyone 🌈

GaiaGPS "Lost GPS Signal" for a few minutes; as such approximate stats: (P) -to- (P): ~6.96 miles / Ascent 3506 (-3459) ft / Moving Time 4:44 / Stopped Time 0:45

Incredible journey up Mt Rose. I got there around 7:30 and was the 3rd car in. Had a chat with someone from the trail maintenance crew. Super nice guy and was so happy to get to thank him. Love how amazing these trails are kept. 

This trail is straight up and much harder than i anticipated. I am a runner and thought i would jog most of it... oops, no. After running a mile and being beat i took a long break. There came my new buddy from the trail crew. We spoke a bit and he and I took the trail together. He gave me one of his poles to use and the conversation was great. We got to clear the path of a blow down with his saw. I was grateful to get to help.

Long story short, this anonymous fella is awesome and pretty much got my butt up that mountain. I am grateful and wish i could sing his praises but thats not what he is about. Awesome day for me today, I learned alot and I truly appreciate all the effort that goes into keeping these trails beautiful. 

#WashingtonTrailsDay