The trail is melting out nicely. A little muddy, but that's to be expected. Snow gets deep after Slide Camp (3.5 miles in). Postholing is never really that fun, so after going a bit further, we turned back. No tracks in the snow past Slide Camp. We did see 1 cougar print in a muddy section.

Staircase Rapids trail is one of those hikes that you choose because you want a beautiful "stroll in the wilderness." The drive is long and the miles short, so be prepared to enjoy the scenary without the expectation of bagging a peak. The hiking guides state that the trail is a 4-miles loop, however, over 10 years ago the bridge was damaged and the loop is no longer a posibility. We met a new ranger at the trailhead and he informed us that the planning is on the way to replace the brige, finally making the trail a loop hike. So our hike yesterday gave us 3.25 miles in and out. We stopped at every possible photo op, the Big Cedar, Dolly's Pool, "the bridge," Beaver's Flat, through the Beaver burn area then finally to a rocky spit on the river for lunch. Although it was cloudy in town, the sun was in full force on our hike. This trail is usually crowded, but in the off season it is a pleasant walk - we ran into maybe 15 people. The ranger also informed us that soon the elk will be coming down so wildlife sighting is a possibility. This area usually closes during the winter but will remain open this year. What an awesome idea for a winter hike. If you want to add more miles to your hike, you can add the North Skokomish trail which goes on for miles and miles with little gain. That trailhead is on the right side of the ranger/information center; Staircase is to the left. After the hike, we went into the town of Hoodsport and had ice cream and coffee at Hoodsport Coffee (open daily). Happy Hiking.

Trail in great condition out to Madeline Creek. Ranger reported it had just been cleared out for 10 miles, and the trail lived up to his report as far as we could see.

OOPS! We had read about the Staircase Rapids trail in Foghorn Outdoors "Washington Hiking" by Scott Leonard. It says, "the trail starts at Staircase Ranger Station on the west side of the River." Unfortunately, we followed signs to "trailhead and parking" and ended up at a well-signed trailhead saying "Staircase Rapids 1.0 mi" and started off - on the east side of the river. What we didn't realize is that while in theory this is a loop trail, the bridge connecting the east and west sides of the river, and hence the loop, is out and has been out for about 10 years. So we never saw the rapids, nor did we see the Dolly Varden Pool, nor the "Big Cedar" tree, nor the famous old growth forest or the Beaver Burn. Sigh. But we got a nice, easy walk in the woods, there were some big trees, and we did have a snack on big rocks overlooking the Skokomish River before turning back. Make sure you start on the west side of the river, not the trailhead where Wagonwheel Lake starts out.

This hike is still a great hike for the winter months. With the road closed at the park boundary this will add another 2.5 miles to the round trip. Still a very doable hike for kids. The hike to Four stream was cut short about 150 yards from where it should have ended. Looks like a large slide had occurred sometime in the past and no new trail was created around it. It just ends at the cliff. You can still see Four stream merge with the NF Skokomish.