Evans Creek Preserve

Twin Falls by North Bend - Beautiful 5 mile reverse hike

Twin Falls, off of the Ollalie Trailhead, is a 5 mile "reverse hike" with wonderful views of several water falls.

Zoe and the Swamp Monster (Tiger Mountain)

After Jake & I completed a nice little hike on the "Around the Lake Trail" and returned to the High Point Trailhead on Tiger Mountain, I saw a sign for the "Zoe and the Swamp Monster Trail."  Although I had seen this hike listed before and thought the idea sounded fun, I'd never been on it before.  Although Jake & I were dragging a little, I figured we had enough energy & time for a cute .3 mile interpretive experience.  I decided that since we were right there, we'd check it out.

While it wasn't the worst hike ever, I won't be back. 

The Not Great:
1. First of all, the mileage on the signs is a total lie.  At the entrance, there's a bold sign that say, "Zoe and the Swamp Monster a self guided adventure .3 miles."  To the side, there's a brown sign that says "Swamp Trail (right arrow) Big Tree Trail 0.7 miles."
From this, I figure that the Swamp Trail is past the right arrow, it starts at the unusually bright turquoise sign, it's .3 miles long, and that the "Big Tree Trail" is about 0.7 miles away.  Right?  Wrong.  These signs actually mean that the 1st interpretive sign for Zoe and the Swamp Monster appears in .3 miles.  This left us walking in the woods for about 5 minutes while Jake wondered what the swamp monster would be like.  The actual trail is 0.7 miles long each way, but it's an out-and-back trail, so what I thought would be a .3 mile add-on interpretive experience after our "Around the Lake" excursion turned into a mile & a half hike! It only took us about a half an hour to go out and back, so it wasn't a big deal for us.  However, if this is someone's first hike, or if they're bringing a young child for a .3 mile experience that takes a mile and a half, it could lead to frustration. 

2. The theme of "swamp monster" is a little scary.  When we started out, we knew nothing other than the title said "swamp monster."  I wasn't worried since I had seen it advertised for young kids, but Jake definitely showed some concern.  I told him that there was no swamp monster and that we'd likely find out that it was a turtle or a stump in the swamp.  Jake has a flair for drama, and was hamming it up a little bit, but even after telling him a dozen times flat out that there is no monster, he was still a little nervous/excited to see the beast. 
It struck me as an odd topic, though.  When introducing kids to the woods, it seems like playing up unfamiliar noises as a possible monster could backfire for some families. Ultimately, the story is about meeting new woodland friends.  With a target audience of preschoolers, it seems like a friendly & exciting title, like "Friendly Adventure Explorers" or something like that would be less likely to make kids afraid of the woods on their first time out.  Fortunately, Jake is robust & got over his worry pretty quickly.
3. After the 1st two plaques talking about a fear of a rumored swamp monster, one never appears!  Jake was so disappointed!  I kind of expected them to come across something or someone that looked like a swamp monster, then after confronting their fears, the friends learn that the only fear is fear itself & they'd discover how adventures lead to new friends & fun.  Or something like that.  When Jake asked a bunch of times when we would read about the swamp monster, I told him I'm sure we'd see what they were afraid of soon, and that he would see that there was no swamp monster.  However, the critters all just go through the forest, meeting new friends until their parents come home.  Jake was really annoyed that after the initial excitement, the story never produced anything like a swamp monster, even for a moment. 
So, this trail started off by creeping Jake out, then disappointing him with no pretend beast, then learning that at .6 miles we were only halfway & needed to turn around and walk by the signs, reminding him of the fact that none actually had the swamp monster.
4. This trail is geared for little kids, but it's not a particularly great trail for little kids.  It's mostly flat, but there is one hill at the beginning (and end) that is steep for the littlest of legs & would be annoying with a stroller.  It would have been better to do this on the flatter "Around the Lake" trail.  In addition, there are no streams, bridges, outlooks, or things really exciting to little hikers.  Finally, there are no benches along the way in case a little one needs a break or a snack.  There weren't even any nearby fallen logs that would work as makeshift benches.  Once a family starts on this 1.4 mile hike, be ready to finish it!  The whole trail looks like this, without any real variation:

The Good:
1. Overall, it is an easy trail.  Besides one hill at the beginning and end, it is very flat.
2. While it is not paved, it is flat enough that it would be possible with a stroller, once you deal with the first hill.
3. Despite not loving the story, Jake did love the signs on the way out and thought they were something fun & different from regular hikes.

4. If you do the "Around the Lake Trail" and have an extra 30 to 45 minutes to burn, this would be a good add-on.

I took photos of all of the plaques.  If a parent better prepared their child and told them that the story has nothing to do with swamp monsters & is just about forest animals finding new friends, it may be less disappointing.

Trail Map:

Before you go:
1. Make sure you have a Discover Pass.  There is no way to buy one on-site and this busy lot is heavily patrolled.
2. The High Point Trailhead is very busy.  Try to avoid Saturday mornings 9-10, or any weekend morning.  If the lot is full, there is often street parking down on High Point Way, but even this can fill up.
3. Read about the trail on WTA: http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/swamp-trail?searchterm=swamp+monster
4. There is a pit toilet (porta-potty) on site, but it's never guaranteed to have TP.  It's wise to pack a roll to keep in the car, just in case.

Getting there:
There isn't a great street address, but this is an easy trailhead to find. 
1. From I-90, take exit 20.
2. At the offramp, head south and then take a right on High Point Way.
3. You'll likely see cars parked along the side of the road, but continue on, past where the pavement ends.
4. The gravel road ends at the parking lot.  There are good number of handicapped parking spots.  If the lot is full, go back out to High Point Way and try to find street parking.

Around the Lake Trail - Great Beginner Hike on Tiger Mountain

Since it's been a while since Jake & I have hiked the "Around the Lake Trail" on Issaquah's Tiger Mountain, I took us there for a flat and easy little 1.3 mile hike.  It's actually more of a walk than a hike as it's completely flat. 

When I started introducing Jake to nature walks at 1 years-old, I called any stroll in the woods a "hike."  When we do the .5 mile Treefrog Loop Trail in the Redmond Watershed Preserve, I call that a "hike" although there's less walking there than going grocery shopping.  When we check out the woods behind Taylor Playground in Duvall, that's always been a hike, too.  20 minutes on the Snoqualmie Valley Trail?  Hike.  I want him to grow up associating hikes with fun times in the woods rather than something intimidating only done by folks on REI posters. In high school, I thought that all hikers were pretty much ready to climb Mount Rainier, and since I knew I couldn't do that, I figured I wasn't a hiker.  It wasn't until my amazing college roommate & her friends started hiking all over the place that I realized that Western Washington has all kinds of trails easier than the Mt. Rainier summit!  I want Jake to grow up thinking of these amazing places as part of his big backyard!

So, while this is really just a flat little walk in the woods, to me & Jake it was a hike and it remains one of my absolute favorite trails for new hikers!  If you are thinking of getting a Discover Pass, please do so & check out this trail! 

After putting our Discover Pass on our dashboard, we started on our way.  From the porta potty house, we headed right towards Tradition Lake.  At the first sign, we turned left towards West Tiger #3 Trail. 

Immediately after, we turned right towards "Around the Lake Trail."

  

While there is cell service on this trail and I had access to an online map if needed, it's always nice when there's a big trail map for Jake to check out.  I could show him where we were & how we would follow the path clockwise around Lake Tradition.

 

*Wheelchair & stroller option* One thing to note is that while this trail isn't paved, it's wide, flat, and wheelchair (and stroller) accessible.  The red trail on the map above highlights the wheelchair accessible part of the trail.  While we made a full loop, the final third was on a pipeline trail, which is always pretty boring.  If you have a family member who uses a wheelchair or want to bring a stroller for one of your first hikes, it would be a great option to go out to the observation deck at the 4th diamond in the map above, turn around, and come back.  It would be about a mile that way and you wouldn't miss out on anything!

Within a minute or two of the trail map sign, we came across this bench next to a little upright log with the number 1 on top.  I didn't see these markers on the map & still don't know what they're for.  However, it was fun for Jake to check these out every couple of minutes.

Something that I love about this trail is that even though it's short, there are lots of benches along the way.  I didn't count, but it seemed like there was either a nice log or an actual bench every 5 minutes or so.  In addition to being totally flat, the abundance of benches makes this trail welcoming and approachable for kids of all ages and abilities.

 

 Since this trail is so flat and easy, I let Jake run as much as he wanted.

 He stopped running to check out the numbered markers along the way.

Within 10 minutes, you get your first change of scenery with a peek-a-boo glimpse of Tradition Lake.  The power lines on the Puget Power Road trail are visible across the lake.

Near the end of the wheelchair accessible part of the trail along the south side of the lake, there's a wooden deck that looks out across Lake Tradition.  The view is a little obscured by trees, but it's a great place to stop and check out the scenery. 

 In case you hadn't guessed yet, Jake dressed himself today.  He's wearing one of his favorite shirts backwards (on purpose) and some 4T sweat pants that only reach mid-calf on him so they kept slipping up to his knees like capris.  Jake is actually a pretty skinny preschooler (95% for height but only 20% for weight), but he has a total toddler bubble butt in these pants! I seriously don't know where it's coming from.  Note to self: if Jake somehow has a bubble butt here, I should never, ever wear Gap sweat pants!

While there is no official beach access for Tradition Lake, just below the deck we saw a well worn trail down to the beach.  We had to hold on to some tree roots & climb a little dirt wall, but it was totally worth it!  We spent about 20 minutes or so throwing sticks & rocks into the water.

Once I pried him away from the beach, we saw one of several interpretive signs along the trail.  Since I know there are Seahawks fans out there, I thought I'd post this osprey pic.

One of the things I love about this trail is that there are lots of tree stumps and logs along the way.  Jake loves exploring textures, bugs, and alternatives to the main pathway, so these small diversions kept his interest up.

Near the southwest corner of the trail, the accessibility part ends and the "Around the Lake Trail" veers to the right.  If you need to bring a stroller, it is possible to finish the loop with one.  I took Jake in our Bob jogging stroller several years ago.  However, the trail is much more uneven until the pipeline trail section, at which point it becomes a little boring.  If you have a stroller, I recommend turning around here & heading back to the parking lot - you really won't miss out on anything!  If your group is all walking, continue to the right for some new scenery.

We saw another bench around the corner.  There are at least a dozen places to sit down on this short trail.  With Jake, I never need them, but I love the accessible options for everyone.  Whether you have a kid in a diaper with an emergency blowout situation & you need an impromptu changing station, or whether you have a new little hiker that needs to take a moment for some encouragement & snacks, I think these benches are wonderfully family-friendly.

Although the path changes from flat crushed gravel to a little more of a rocky path, it didn't slow Jake down any and he loved the change up.

How cool is this tree?

As we rounded the western part of the trail, there was a large area with benches & logs.  I imagine it'd be a great place for a group to get together to hear a story.  Behind the seating area was a fence overlooking another small beach.  Rebelliously disregarding the "don't go past this fence" sign, we darted around the fence to throw more rocks in the lake.  Throwing rocks in water is apparently one of the awesomist things for kids to do.  The rainbow shaped ripples in this picture are evidence of a recent splashy toss.

More fun tree stumps to explore:

As we left the woods and hopped on to the Puget Power Road back to the parking lot, Jake found some good jumping puddles (although, honestly, what puddle isn't good for jumping?)

Halfway between the "Around the Lake Trail" and the parking lot, there was another seating area that overlooked the lake.

Just before we reached the parking lot, we saw this sign for "Zoe and the Swamp Monster a self-guided adventure."  Although we were both a little tired, we thought this was a .3 mile experience so we checked it out before heading home.  It ended up being another 1.4 mile walk with some story boards along the way http://dotsonstories.blogspot.com/2015/03/zoe-and-swamp-monster-tiger-mountain.html.

Before Going:
1. Make sure you have a Discover Pass.  The busy trailhead is heavily patrolled and there is no way to buy one on site.  While it's possible to buy a day pass online here for $11 (make sure to select year 2015 if you choose this option as it still defaults to 2014): http://www.discoverpass.wa.gov/, it's totally worth the $30 for the annual pass.  You can pick one up at the Duvall True Value, REI, or vendors on this list: http://wdfw.wa.gov/licensing/vendors/county/King/.

2. There is a porta-potty house on-site, but it's never guaranteed to have TP.  It's wise to pack a roll & keep it in a Ziploc bag in your car.
3. Check out WTA for recent trip reports if you'd like.  The road and trail are always in great condition, though: http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/around-the-lake
4. The High Point Trailhead is very busy.  Try to avoid Saturday mornings 9-10, or any weekend morning.  If the lot is full, there is often street parking down on High Point Way, but even this can fill up.

Getting there:
There isn't a great street address, but this is an easy trailhead to find.
1. From I-90, take exit 20.
2. At the offramp, head south and then take a right on High Point Way.
3. You'll likely see cars parked along the side of the road, but continue on, past where the pavement ends.

 

4. The gravel road ends at the parking lot.  There are good number of handicapped parking spots.  If the lot is full, go back out to High Point Way and try to find street parking.

Bear Lake & the Verlot Ranger Station

Holi Festival

Mt. Si!