With the Cascades looking wet and cloudy, my friends Lee and Shelley, and I headed up north to Skagit County and the southern end of the Chuckanuts. We headed up the PNT to the view point up at the Oyster Dome. The trail switch backs up though second growth timber for a mile, then goes into an old DNR clear cut area that is growing back up with small conifers. Here you get your first views out over the water to Mt. Erie and the San Juan Islands. Once into the trees, the trail gets muddy and steep in places. At 3.5 miles you come to an old logging railroad grade, then it is only a half mile further to the Oyster Dome and some great views. This area was originally logged between 1912 to 1928 by the Samish Bay Logging Co. who had a sawmill at Blanchard on the bay. With the wind blowing cold at the Oyster Dome, we had a quick bite to eat and then headed down. A little over a mile back we took a side trail to the Bat Caves which gives you a view of the face of the Oyster Dome from below. There are a lot of large stone blocks piled up and making some caves. There is a warning sign telling of all the bad things insides the caves. Rock climbers can do some crack climbing up the Oyster Dome on different routes. We lucked out with the weather, as it didn't start raining until we got back down to the car, as other were still going up. And some of them did not have any rain gear. We did see two Eagles flying around and making lots of noise. The hike is describe in the book ""Winterhikes in Puget Sound & the Olympic Foothills"". 3-25.

Samish Overlook via Blanchard Hill (PNT) Pacific Northwest Trails have done a lot of work on trails around Chuckanut Drive and Blanchard Hill. Everytime I've hiked in the area I've found more evidence of their efforts and it is now possible to string together a bunch of ""little"" hikes to create longer hikes. I chose Samish Overlook because it was a nice day and I wanted a view without having to deal with snowshoes. Drive I-5 north and exit at Alger (exit 240). Go left over overpass and a short distance to Barrel Springs Road, turn left and take a right (west) onto a dirt road (1.5 miles from the freeway). It is signed Blanchard Hill. Drive to the lower trailhead (marked Lily & Lizard Lakes) at 1.6 miles or to the upper trailhead at another 1.6 miles. The trailhead is down the road a bit from the parking area. The trailhead at the upper end of the parking lot descends to the trailhead at the lower parking lot. The trail is mostly in forest and parallels Road B-2000 for about a half mile. There are few views out toward the water. At 1.5 miles reach a junction for the Samish Overlook trail and turn left and at 2.3 miles reach another junction (stay straight). Follow the trail through a rather muddy section and cross Road B-2000. Pick up the tread again as it heads toward the overlook. When conditions are right this a favorite spot for the hang-gliders but today they were sitting in the sun waiting for a breeze that never came. (You can also drive Road B-2000 to the overlook, but it's more fun to hike). There are views to the San Juans and several islands, Samish Island, Mount Constitution and if you walk a little further up the road you can get a look at Oyster Dome, another excellent winter hike. Some sections of the trail are signed PNT (Pacific North Trail) and from Samish Overlook there is a PNT trail that connects to Oyster Dome for those wishing a longer hike. Its about 5.5 miles round trip with less than 700 feet elevation gain, a hike just about anyone can do. For a shorter hike walk Road B-2000 back (turn left when you reach the access road) and walk a short distance back to the parking lot.

I left the parking area around 9:00 am, with only a couple of cars parked on the side of the road. The day was perfect - sunny and cool. Not far up the trail I ran into several Pacific Trail Network folks working diligently on the trail. The path up was muddy, but not excessively so, and I ran into only a few people on the path. The Bat Caves were a good place for a lunch break, and the views from the Oyster Dome were nice - jewels of islands floating in the blue sea beyond the land. I tried to go further to Elephant Peak but the path was lost in a few inches of snow, so I went on to Lily Lake. An inner tube fisherman was complaining about too many people on the trail (what did he expect on a Saturday'). I had run into a woman who told me about a loop trail that I could take back to the road, and I tried to follow her directions. I got slightly lost at two unmarked intersections, but followed my instincts, and found myself on a very muddy and new looking path that brought me back to the cutoff to the Overlook that I didn't take when hiking up the trail in the morning. If you are going to wander around I would advise a map unless you like the sensation of wondering if you are on the right trail (I kinda enjoy it, as long as I know I can always backtrack). The PNT people were walking out looking pretty tired as I was heading back down the trail, seven hours later. Good of them to give their Saturday to keep the trail in shape.

The trailhead is on the Chuckanut Drive, just past mile post 10. If you reach the Oyster Bar Restaurant, you've gone too far. Monday was an extraordinarily beautiful day for the first of December. We started up the trail while the fog was still lifting. When we reached the first clearcut area, the view of the San Juan's emerging from the fog was mystical. The trail winds upward to a junction, left to the Bat Caves, Oyster Dome, etc., and right to the Samish Overlook. We went right, and continued upwards. At 2.3 miles, you reach the overlook. The view from the top was truly spectacular. there was spectacular. The fog had lifted and the water was bright blue, all the islands were visible. It felt like a summer's day! We continued beyond the overlook a little over a mile to Max's Shortcut, but decided not to continue up it to Lily Lake since it was getting late. We never saw a soul, until on our descent, we passed one person. But then we looked up and saw over our heads, a brightly colored hanglider against the blue sky. A great climax to a wonderful hike!