07-03-26
This
is the sixth straight year that I have done a saprophyte hike on Tiger
Mountain. I have several sights that usually have lots of saprophytes
in early to mid July. Saprophytes are plants that do not get energy
from the sun. They grow in open forests with little sunlight. They are
not green but come in some bright colors. I look forward to seeing them
each year. Everything seems to be early after our low snow winter. I
saw some Indian pipes ten days earlier. This seemed to be about the
time for a full tour. I had a tough hike planned for the middle day of
the Fourth of July weekend so this short easy hike fit in well for
Friday. The forecast was for a cool overcast but dry day. I was on the
road later than normal. I did not expect a crowd on my route. It was
cloudy at home but the chance of rain on Tiger was nearly zero. As I
passed I-405 my wipers went on. It was light rain off and on to
Issaquah. Tiger was in clouds and it was steady drizzle at High Point.
I pulled out my umbrella to start off.
My loop route is about 5.5 miles with the option to add more distance on the Tradition Plateau near the end. The trails are not brushy though the wet brush hung onto the trail. Wet pants were unavoidable. I headed up the High Point Trail and turned off on the Lingering Trail. This is where I saw the Indian pipe (ghost pipe) earlier. The bright white ghost/Indian pipe grows right on the edge of the trail. It is hard to miss if you are looking for it. I found it with no trouble. I was afraid it might be past prime as it was coming up ten days earlier. That was not a problem. Some of them were near prime and others were still coming up. Now I was worried that the higher and larger display might not be up yet. These first Indian pipes were fewer than earlier years. Those on the left side of the trail were about normal. The patch on the right side was non-existent. I took quite a few photos and continued on. The trail crossed Dwight's Way Trail and later turned onto the Tiger Mountain Trail (TMT).
I turned right and crossed Murat's Bridge heading west. For a trail that has no views it was busier than I expected. I saw hikers and runners going in each direction. The trail passes the K-3 junction and crosses two bridges close together. The route climbs slowly. Near the highest point is the second saprophyte site. I headed uphill on the steep open slope. It seems to be bare but slowly I started to see saprophytes. The variety was good but not the best I have seen. The quantity was pretty good. There were lots of pinesaps and I soon found some slightly past prime Candy Sticks. The start out with bright red and white vertical stripes. As they age they turn darker and darker. These were dark but not well past prime. I found one bunch about 18 inches tall. I found some more ghost pipes too. I could see hikers and runners going by below me. None of them stopped to look at some very colorful saprophytes alongside the trail. I arrived at 10:08 am and left at 11:48 am. The time went by fast. Saprophyte colors can be hard to auto-focus. I end up with more blurry rejects than perfect shots. I need to get down on the ground to get a steady shot. The ground was very wet. I ended up with very dirty pants. The wet steep slope was slippery as well. No matter, I managed to see a lot and get some good photos.
Near the end of my time there I walked back along the trail to where I first headed up the slope and found two big ghost pipe clumps, more pinesaps, and a mostly bright red plant. I think it was another pinesap though software called it a snow flower. I also saw several wintergreen plants. Once I was done there, I headed west on the TMT. I was now hiking much faster as there were no more saprophytes, well almost none. At the end of the TMT I went over to the Bus Trail continuing west. I was only a minute away from the High Point Trailhead and parking lot. I decided to bring my mileage up to seven. I went to the gas line and turned around. on the way back I noticed another clump of ghost pipe just off the trail. I missed it coming in. I took the Around The Lake Trail back to the parking lot. From there it was just .30 mils on the Connector Trail to the gate near the start of the Cable Line Trail. The rest of the loop was on the road back to High Point East where I was parked. I finish up at 1:03 pm.
My timing has been pretty good each year as I have seen lots of saprophytes on each annual trip. I run into one or two types of saprophytes during the year but these on Tiger are more prolific and I have the timing down pretty well. I look forward to next year's trip.
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Trips - 2026
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My loop route is about 5.5 miles with the option to add more distance on the Tradition Plateau near the end. The trails are not brushy though the wet brush hung onto the trail. Wet pants were unavoidable. I headed up the High Point Trail and turned off on the Lingering Trail. This is where I saw the Indian pipe (ghost pipe) earlier. The bright white ghost/Indian pipe grows right on the edge of the trail. It is hard to miss if you are looking for it. I found it with no trouble. I was afraid it might be past prime as it was coming up ten days earlier. That was not a problem. Some of them were near prime and others were still coming up. Now I was worried that the higher and larger display might not be up yet. These first Indian pipes were fewer than earlier years. Those on the left side of the trail were about normal. The patch on the right side was non-existent. I took quite a few photos and continued on. The trail crossed Dwight's Way Trail and later turned onto the Tiger Mountain Trail (TMT).
I turned right and crossed Murat's Bridge heading west. For a trail that has no views it was busier than I expected. I saw hikers and runners going in each direction. The trail passes the K-3 junction and crosses two bridges close together. The route climbs slowly. Near the highest point is the second saprophyte site. I headed uphill on the steep open slope. It seems to be bare but slowly I started to see saprophytes. The variety was good but not the best I have seen. The quantity was pretty good. There were lots of pinesaps and I soon found some slightly past prime Candy Sticks. The start out with bright red and white vertical stripes. As they age they turn darker and darker. These were dark but not well past prime. I found one bunch about 18 inches tall. I found some more ghost pipes too. I could see hikers and runners going by below me. None of them stopped to look at some very colorful saprophytes alongside the trail. I arrived at 10:08 am and left at 11:48 am. The time went by fast. Saprophyte colors can be hard to auto-focus. I end up with more blurry rejects than perfect shots. I need to get down on the ground to get a steady shot. The ground was very wet. I ended up with very dirty pants. The wet steep slope was slippery as well. No matter, I managed to see a lot and get some good photos.
Near the end of my time there I walked back along the trail to where I first headed up the slope and found two big ghost pipe clumps, more pinesaps, and a mostly bright red plant. I think it was another pinesap though software called it a snow flower. I also saw several wintergreen plants. Once I was done there, I headed west on the TMT. I was now hiking much faster as there were no more saprophytes, well almost none. At the end of the TMT I went over to the Bus Trail continuing west. I was only a minute away from the High Point Trailhead and parking lot. I decided to bring my mileage up to seven. I went to the gas line and turned around. on the way back I noticed another clump of ghost pipe just off the trail. I missed it coming in. I took the Around The Lake Trail back to the parking lot. From there it was just .30 mils on the Connector Trail to the gate near the start of the Cable Line Trail. The rest of the loop was on the road back to High Point East where I was parked. I finish up at 1:03 pm.
My timing has been pretty good each year as I have seen lots of saprophytes on each annual trip. I run into one or two types of saprophytes during the year but these on Tiger are more prolific and I have the timing down pretty well. I look forward to next year's trip.
 The Lingering Dragon |
 A Red Flower |
 Indian Pipe Emerging |
 Small Clump |
 Very White |
 Nice Contrast |
 TMT Bridge |
 First Pinesap |
 First Candy Stick |
 Multiple Candy Sticks |
 Older Candy Stick |
 Dark & Past Prime |
 Close Up Candy Stick |
 Tall Candy Sticks |
 Another Pinesap |
 A Bunch Of Pinesaps |
 Second Site Ghost Pipe |
 Another Bunch |
 First Wintergreen |
 Colorful Wintergreen |
 Wintergreen Close Up |
 Another Wintergreen |
 Almost Last Wintergreen |
 Pinesap Clump |
 Macro Pinesap |
 Very Fresh Candy Stick |
 Closer Look |
 Big Indian Pipe Clump |
 Lots Of Indian Pipe |
 Down At Ground Level |
 Unknown Saprophyte |
 Best Pinesap |
 Last Pinesap |
 Last Wintergreen |
 Fungal Guttage |
Trips - 2026
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