The directions mention Forest Service Road 116, but the trailhead road is signed "Hex Mountain Rd.". We never saw a FS116 sign. Maybe we just missed it.

We parked at the small paved pullout near the fire station and made the short walk to the trailhead rd. The closed gate has a "Private Rd." sign on it which can be off-putting, but once we started up the road we soon saw Nature Conservancy signs and knew we were in the right place.

Otherwise the hike is just as described. It's steep but the view from the top is really nice. Plenty of bugs at the top today. Not crazy bad yet, but enough to be an annoyance. We had the trail and the top to ourselves.

Absolutely gorgeous hike today. Hit the trail around 9:00am and we were the only ones. Mind you, this trail is straight up the whole way. Basically a steep stair climb. Varied and beauty the entire route. Stunning views of Cle Elum lake. Vast contrast in lush new growth, wildflowers galore and interesting textures, shapes in burned, charred, barren trees. Stopped often to take in the views on the steep ascent. This is no hike to rush. Although I witnessed some hard cores descending in running gear. For me, it was a good two hours to the top. As many have reported the 360 view is just incredible. However, I have a healthy fear of heights and didn’t attempt the summit. Happy to sit at its base in the shade of a barren tree. Be sure to have good traction shoes. The journey down is steep and slick at times. I took it slow and had no mishaps. Sure was a gorgeous day! 

Rain was in the forecast on the west side, so we decided to head east of the mountains and enjoyed a lovely, partly-sunny day heading up Hex Mountain. There's plenty of parking along Salmon La Sac Road as you get to the trailhead. 

The first half of the trail is on a dirt road - several trucks passed us early on our way up, and we did see and hear dirt bikes, but they were all on other roads. The road is a nice grade, but once you get to the trail, it is quite steep. No snow at all, and the wildflowers are out! It even felt like summer :)

It can get pretty windy as you get closer to Hex, but once at the top we were surprised at how pleasant it was with just a gentle breeze. Great views even on a semi-cloudy day. Note that there are no creek/stream crossings on this trail, so bring plenty of water especially on a hot day! 

Great hike. Half of this hike is on a forest road, but it's pretty nice to walk along. Second half is on trail. Beautiful views of the lake and changing landscape between the Pass and eastern Washington. We tried to make this a "loop" by following a trail we noticed on CalTopo... be warned, CalTopo users, this "loop" trail doesn't exist. The trail does seem to work at first, but it veers off towards another forest road that doesn't connect with the starting point. We ended up bushwhacking a bit to cross the creek. Turned out OK. All in all, great hike, with great views.

No more snow on Hex Mountain. There's some blowdown to navigate but nothing major. The trail was dry with lots of wildflowers popping.  

Far fewer people on this trail than when I came here in Winter to snowshoe - I guess it's more popular as a snowshoe route. In Winter the sno-park pass is required (no longer needed) and I had read there was a lot of tickets being issued to vehicles not parked in the designated area across from fire station.

This time most cars parked on the road by the trailhead. There is no signage anywhere indicating where the designated parking is, and no 'no parking' signs on the road either. Parking here is kind of confusing, but I think across from the firehouse is safe and anywhere else is a risk (in my opinion it's worth it to walk the extra few minutes to the trailhead for the peace of mind).