03-24-23
It
rained most of Saturday. Sunday looked to be better. I was out the door
at 7:35 heading for Issaquah. I had some sun overhead in Northwest
Seattle but it did not last long. When I pulled into the lot off Sunset
Way it was cloudy. I could not see any of Tiger Mountain on the drive
in. I was on my way at 8:12 am. I was not feeling very strong on the
hike up to the Tradition Plateau. I started feeling better when the
trail grade eased. I took the Wetlands Trail to the Adventure Trail and
took it to the High School Trail. I as out for 2000' of gain and it
took two extra gains. The Adventure Trail drops about 150' to meet the
High School Trail. That was the first extra climb making up for the
descent. I took the Poo Poo Point Trail from just past the powerline
corridor. I hoped to see some wildflowers. On Tuesday I saw my first
yellow violet and coltsfoot blooms on the north side of Tiger Mountain.
The west side is sunnier and I hoped for more flowers. Part way up the
PPP Trail it was still flower free. I finally saw a few very small
purple flowers.
With recent rains there was a little mud but the trail is brush free and was dry. I saw a few runners coming down and going up. Mostly it was very quiet. The one sound of spring was the song of the varied thrush. I heard a lot of them. The first half of the trail is on an old road bed. It has a steady climb but is not steep. Along here, I saw my first blooming trillium of the year. At the big bridge, the flow was strong and noisy. I stopped for a few photos of the creek. After the bridge the trail used to go straight up the fall line. Now it has a set of switchbacks that add some distance and made the grade much gentler. Part way up there is a big log across the trail. It is right before a switchback and hikers are climbing straight up the hillside. I climbed over the log both ways. The boot path takes out the ground cover and leads to more erosion. I hope the log is cut out soon.
As I neared the turn off to Poo Poo Point, I had a decision to make. The old trail climbed up to the old railroad grade and soon descended to the Poo Poo Point. The new trail just heads straight for the Point. It cut off about 200' of gain going in and out. Combined with the Adventure Trail a hike to the grade brings the trip up to 2000' of gain. I decided to get the added climb out of the way on the way up rather than down. That 200' is among the steepest on the current trail. It did not take long to reach the railroad grade. It as very foggy there. I quickly descended on what is now an addition to the One View Trail back to the Poo Poo Point Trail heading for the Point. One hiker coming up beat me to the junction and I followed him the last part of the trail.
On that trail section I saw a partially blooming coltsfoot and several salmonberry flowers. There were only a few leaves on the salmonberry bushes. Coming down I saw a patch of several coltsfoot in bloom. I arrived at Poo Poo Point at exact;u 10:00 am. I hiked a little over 4 miles in 1:48. The one hiker ahead of me was the only person at the upper Point. More came soon enough. I could see down to Issaquah but much of Lake Sammamish was blocked by low clouds. I could see much of Squak Mountain but clouds/fog descended to the valley floor in places. It was 46F at the start and did not feel much warmer at Poo Poo Point. I had a nice break and took photos on top. My break was short. At 10:10 am I headed down. I soon started to see hikers coming up. There was a steady stream with some long breaks in between. The mostly gentle grade of the trail makes it good for descending. I did not bring poles and I did not need them. Try as I might, I did not see a single yellow violet. I did see a lot of bleeding heart plants but no flowers. I made good time coming down.
The hiker who was ahead of me at the summit started down three minutes ahead of me. He stopped across the big bridge and I went by. A couple runners passed me going down but no hikers. At the bottom of the Poo Poo Point Trail I turned right on the road next to the power lines. I turned left onto the Wetlands Trail and passed Round Lake. The trail winds all around with some ups and down before descending to the Adventure Trail junction. From there I tracked my uphill steps back to the trailhead lot. The lot was less than half full in the morning When I arrived back there at 11:34 am it was almost full. Just before descending from the plateau and just after, I saw some more trillium in bloom. My descent took 1:26.
This was just the trip I hoped it would be. It was cool on the way up then the thick clouds lifted enough for some views from PP Point. The wind was light and there was no rain. I saw few people on the way up and more going down but it was never crowded. The Chirico Trail to Poo Poo Point is shorter and much more crowded. I got in an 8 mile hike with 2000' of gain and was still home to see some of the NCAA basketball tournament by a little after noon. The wildflower season is just beginning and should get a lot better in the next few weeks.
Click on thumbnails to get
larger pictures.
Trips - 2024
Home
With recent rains there was a little mud but the trail is brush free and was dry. I saw a few runners coming down and going up. Mostly it was very quiet. The one sound of spring was the song of the varied thrush. I heard a lot of them. The first half of the trail is on an old road bed. It has a steady climb but is not steep. Along here, I saw my first blooming trillium of the year. At the big bridge, the flow was strong and noisy. I stopped for a few photos of the creek. After the bridge the trail used to go straight up the fall line. Now it has a set of switchbacks that add some distance and made the grade much gentler. Part way up there is a big log across the trail. It is right before a switchback and hikers are climbing straight up the hillside. I climbed over the log both ways. The boot path takes out the ground cover and leads to more erosion. I hope the log is cut out soon.
As I neared the turn off to Poo Poo Point, I had a decision to make. The old trail climbed up to the old railroad grade and soon descended to the Poo Poo Point. The new trail just heads straight for the Point. It cut off about 200' of gain going in and out. Combined with the Adventure Trail a hike to the grade brings the trip up to 2000' of gain. I decided to get the added climb out of the way on the way up rather than down. That 200' is among the steepest on the current trail. It did not take long to reach the railroad grade. It as very foggy there. I quickly descended on what is now an addition to the One View Trail back to the Poo Poo Point Trail heading for the Point. One hiker coming up beat me to the junction and I followed him the last part of the trail.
On that trail section I saw a partially blooming coltsfoot and several salmonberry flowers. There were only a few leaves on the salmonberry bushes. Coming down I saw a patch of several coltsfoot in bloom. I arrived at Poo Poo Point at exact;u 10:00 am. I hiked a little over 4 miles in 1:48. The one hiker ahead of me was the only person at the upper Point. More came soon enough. I could see down to Issaquah but much of Lake Sammamish was blocked by low clouds. I could see much of Squak Mountain but clouds/fog descended to the valley floor in places. It was 46F at the start and did not feel much warmer at Poo Poo Point. I had a nice break and took photos on top. My break was short. At 10:10 am I headed down. I soon started to see hikers coming up. There was a steady stream with some long breaks in between. The mostly gentle grade of the trail makes it good for descending. I did not bring poles and I did not need them. Try as I might, I did not see a single yellow violet. I did see a lot of bleeding heart plants but no flowers. I made good time coming down.
The hiker who was ahead of me at the summit started down three minutes ahead of me. He stopped across the big bridge and I went by. A couple runners passed me going down but no hikers. At the bottom of the Poo Poo Point Trail I turned right on the road next to the power lines. I turned left onto the Wetlands Trail and passed Round Lake. The trail winds all around with some ups and down before descending to the Adventure Trail junction. From there I tracked my uphill steps back to the trailhead lot. The lot was less than half full in the morning When I arrived back there at 11:34 am it was almost full. Just before descending from the plateau and just after, I saw some more trillium in bloom. My descent took 1:26.
This was just the trip I hoped it would be. It was cool on the way up then the thick clouds lifted enough for some views from PP Point. The wind was light and there was no rain. I saw few people on the way up and more going down but it was never crowded. The Chirico Trail to Poo Poo Point is shorter and much more crowded. I got in an 8 mile hike with 2000' of gain and was still home to see some of the NCAA basketball tournament by a little after noon. The wildflower season is just beginning and should get a lot better in the next few weeks.
 Moss Show Begins |
 Green Mossy Arch |
 Mossy Tree |
 More Moss |
 Bent Tree |
 Poo Poo Pt. Trail |
 Tiny Purple Flower |
 Trillium |
 Big Bridge |
 Creek Under Bridge |
 Moss Above |
 Railroad Grade |
 Green Forest |
 Hiker Ahead |
 Salmonberry Flower |
 Poo Poo View |
 Cloudy Squak Mt. |
 Cloud Shooter |
 Fern Shadow |
 Mud & Moss |
 Nice Color |
 Coltsfoot |
 Round Lake |
 Green Arch Again |
Trips - 2024
Home