Started hiking around 8:30am. Parking lot had plenty of space available when I arrived and when I returned back the lot had filled up a bit, but still many spaces available. Road in has a few nasty pot holes but can be easily avoided.

The trail was a bit slippery and muddy on the start but dried out as you gained elevation. There were numerous trees blown down across the trail that required you to either climb over or duck under. I counted about three large blown down trees and four smaller saplings. The worst blown down tree required you to go a bit off the trail to climb over due to its size.

The trail becomes very icy and snowy near the top. The boulder field is particularly icy and snowy so I used micro spikes to traverse it. If you want to go past the boulder field towards the haystack the trail is packed but entirely snow covered with icy sections. I would recommend bringing micro spikes to avoid slipping in this last section even though it’s only a small fraction of the entire trail.

I attempted to climb up the haystack with a climbing helmet and micro spikes. The scramble is half covered in ice and snow and is very slippery. It gets warm enough in the day that snow and ice melts down the haystack, so a lot of the exposed rocks are wet with running water which makes getting a good grip difficult. I noticed some ice falling off the haystack. I went about half way up to the saddle point. At the half way point I realized I wouldn’t have the energy to return after climbing up and slowly descended back down. Four other climbers attempted the haystack while I was there. One aborted at the beginning of the haystack. A couple in trail runners (?) made it to the saddle point and turned around. Another climber made it up somewhere but I didn’t stay around to see how far he went.

I had a nice lunch at the base of the haystack looking towards Seattle, the Olympic mountains and Mount Rainier until I was harassed by several gray jays. Very clear day with no wind and great visibility.

Summary: Took the new trail up to the Haystack basin - it turned out to be a beautiful day and the views were amazing! We explored a bit around the numerous rocks and crags, but didn’t attempt the Haystack scramble. We took the old trail down, connecting to North’s Road and back to the trailhead.

Snow: The trail is snow free until the last few hundred feet up to the first viewpoint. Some of the rocks in the Haystack basin are snow covered and slippery. I would recommend spikes and poles, especially if going beyond the first overlook, but you could probably manage without.

Blowdowns: Multiple trees down on both the new trail and old trail, but all were easily passable. More trees down on North’s Road, but again all were passable.

Overall a wonderful hike - this is a great time of the year to attempt Mount Si as there isn’t much snow and few crowds.

Mount Si? Never heard of it. 

I got to the trailhead at 9 AM. Surprisingly, the parking lot was less than half full. This is remarkable for a sunny Thanksgiving weekend, where I found occasional bursts of solitude. 

Another pleasant surprise: most of the blowdowns from the recent storms have been cleared. The trail is impeccably maintained, with very few muddy areas. The snow begins above 3,000 feet, which is navigable without spikes – just be careful. 

I reached the false peak just past 11 AM. I lounged there for a good hour enjoying some coffee and the album Peripheral Vision by Turnover. I shared the summit with a dozen other hikers. 

I made it back to the parking lot after 3 PM, exhausted and with blisters. Now would be a good time to make a typical joke about how Mount Si is harder than Everest. 

My watch clocked in exactly eight miles round trip with 3,190 feet of elevation gain. Average moving pace of 24 minutes per mile.

Mount Si is the traditional & cultural land of the Snoqualmie peoples, and all Coast Salish tribes. As a visitor, I am grateful for their stewardship of the land since time immemorial. I’m humbled by the resilience of the First Peoples and the land itself. 

Mount Si was not looking too bad after the windstorm.

Parking lot: there are some potholes but not terrible. Made it fine with my Honda Fit. No "car-eating" potholes yet.

The trail did still have several blow-downs on it, but most were easy to get over or under. There is one larger blow-down near the half-way point that took a little more work to navigate.

Regarding snow/ice there was only snow and ice on the top section. I did put my microspikes on because it was fairly slick. At the lookout area at the top, there is snow on the rocks.

Overall the trail is in good shape. Some debris from the storm, but easy to navigate.

The trail had plenty of debris, with small branches scattered along as expected after the storm. Several downed trees blocked the path, but most were relatively easy to navigate around, except for one large tree that could be challenging for some hikers. Overall, the trail was in good condition.

I also noticed a few freshly cut trees, a clear sign that someone or a group had been working to clear the blowdowns. A big thank you to those who helped make the trail more accessible!

Starting around milepost 3.5, a thin layer of snow covered the trail and continued up to the boulder field. By the time I reached the boulder field, the wind had picked up, and light snow was falling. I chose not to go any further, quickly snapped a few pictures, and made my way back down.