11/10 Saturday, sunny, cold. When I left home at 6am it was about 29°F. When the 4 of us arrived at the trailhead ~8:30, it was about the same temperature. A tent, ~3 cars in the parking lot.The first ~3-4 miles is in the trees, going N-NW following the Lahar, with occasional view of St. Helens to the NW. An advantage of hiking this late in the season, is that we could see the east valley (road 26? Clear Water Creek) through the now mostly bare branches. Thick fog hanging low. Mt Adams looming above. Last September when I hiked here, slightly better colors in leaves, but east side was all blocked by trees.
At the junction with Loowit Trail, we took our first short break. Can see Rainier, Adams and Hood from here. 360°. Found a seismic station. Not sure exactly which one is ape canyon, somewhere here. There were some deep chasms. Continued ahead on Loowit Trail, going over a short crumbling ditch, then on to Plain of Abraham. Still dusted with snow from a week ago, absolutely beautiful. Short patches of thin ice on the trail. Priya spotted the first goat on Pumice Hill. As we approached the unnamed creek, we saw more goats. Maybe they hung out here because of the water source. We had Lunch by the creek. Couldn't decide in which direction should I sit. About 7 goats each on Pumice Hill to the south, and on the unknown butte to the north. Mt. St. Helens sprawls large to the west.
Last September, we turned around here. Today, we continued on, until the trail departs from Loowit Trail. At the junction, we scrambled east on to a 4882' hill. On the way, saw another seismic station. View from the top is fantastic. Can see the Mt Margarett backcountry (dusted with snow), Hwy-99 snaking along, Rainier, Goat Rocks, clouds were forming around Adams, and Hood.A fabulous day. This is definitely a keeper for a late autumn hike after some snow, before the road is covered by snow. In fact, Google decided that the road was blocked, and route us an extra 2 hours detour from north of the mountain. Odd. I'd assume when the road is snowed in, probably the other way around won't work either.
I'm glad that Susan didn't bring her dog, as she will definitely chase the goats. More bikers than hikers today. There're about 8 cars when we returned ~4pm, so didn't visit Lava Canyon next door, as the sun set today ~4:40pm.
Had a great time. We chatted non-stop all the way to and from the trailhead.
