Rainy rainy day! It poured on us the entire hike, but it was still a lot of fun! New bridge is very nice! Full trip report and pictures here: http://www.stumpystray.blogspot.com/2013/04/staircase-rapids-loop.html

We drove out to check out the new bridge at Staircase. The rain ceased as soon as we started hiking, so we decided to continue for a few miles on the North Fork Skokomish trail, which is in GREAT condition! There is some debris from recent storms and a few minor blowdowns, but nothing serious.

Definitely hike up the trail on the west side of the river first with nice views of the rapids. From the main parking lot, cross the cement bridge and follow the signs. (The sign to the trailhead by the ranger station is where the return trail comes out.) The new bridge is delightful. The return trail on the east side of the river is wide and easy to walk but has no views of the rapids. We continued up the river valley on the Four Stream trail. We were able to climb over the small trees fallen over the trail. A cascading stream over the trail with no bridge was a nice place to turn around.

Big news up the Staircase - the long-awaited bridge to reconnect the loop is in place! Our group went up the rapids trail on the west side of the river, which is in good condition. The new bridge is impressive, a 200' heavy-duty suspension bridge that is higher above the river than the old bridge. We crossed to the east side of the river here, then continued upstream toward Spike Camp. The trail upstream from the bridge hasn't yet been maintained this spring, so there are a number of small blowdowns to cross, nothing difficult, and there's water across the trail in a couple of places. We begin to encounter snow on the trail, & turned back a bit short of Spike Camp after getting into 3-4' snow. The return trail down the east side to the trailhead is in good shape. We also walked the pleasant Maple Lane trail downstream from the ranger station. Harlequin ducks are in the river along this trail, a lovely sign of spring. THEM, Olympia

Great hike today at Staircase Rapids. Love that it's now a loop thanks to the beautiful new suspension bridge. The trails were covered with debris from a recent wind storm. We also encountered a few spots of snow and mud. Great day to be out. We saw a few folks, but the parking lot didn't get full until we started eating our lunch around 1pm.