Came up from Olympia (approx 1 hr drive). Road is mostly paved or good gravel. Arrived at 10:30 to…read morestaircase with plenty of parking. Pit toilets at the main lot, 2-2.25 mile trail for staircase rapids loop - very kid friendly and a good distance for 4-6 yr olds (or younger with parent help). Kids liked throwing rocks in the stream after and relaxing by the water. Interesting trail post fire scenery. Rangers around if you have any questions.

Information on documents from September 2024…read more Beautiful location. Great for people of all ages.

Came here with my church for their annual summer outing to this location. Very pretty! Big enough…read morefor a day trip adventure, but small enough to feel safe if something happens because the distances are not too far off from other mini bodies of land, if you paddle board, swim, or kayak at this location. $20 for an overnight pass. Otherwise, day passes only last until 2100 or 9PM. Know your camp site number so that you park at the correct place as listed on your pass. Do not want a ticket. Anyway, got to stargaze at the end of the night where not many people were around, despite coming here on a summer weekend. Really made for a peaceful time. Hiking is around here, too, but I did not get to partake because I met with the people from my church later in the day after coming from work

Generally my family heads out to Lake Chelan and i was invited out to visit at Lake Cushman this…read moresummer. There are so many beautiful pockets to take in the views & nature'The drive in is beautiful and not too far out, depending where you're staying (vacation residence, campgrounds). Beautiful lake, cold temperatures due to it being a glacier lake - the water is so clear ! Would love to go on some hikes and spend more time out there. Im so grateful that theres so much to see and do in out here in the pnw!

A walk in the forest and along the wetlands is like a dream of another world or time. Choice of a…read moreshort woodsy walk or an all day wetlands walk, right through the middle of a delta and tidelands to the saltwater canal. Where it's swampiest there'll be raised wooden trails. No elevations so even those of us who're elderly can manage, and mostly accessible to wheelchairs and baby carriages. Theler is one the most beautiful places in Mason County that you can get to easily. Famous for birding. There's a community center with many events; sign up to keep informed. There are exhibits (including a whale skeleton). Their one fault is you can't bring your dog even for a leashed walk, which is to their everlasting shame; not dog friendly is simply wrong to be. But if you hate dogs too, you'll appreciate that little extra feature. It's named for Mary E. Thaler (1901-1950; she died relatively early in an auto accident). She was born right in Belfair and lived most of her life there, as leading citizen, postmistress, general store operator with her husband, scout-mistress and regional promoter of the Girl Scouts, etc. Widower Sam Thaler (1895-1965) attempted to provide for the wetland's preservation in her name into perpetuity. Alas there have been some ongoing threats the intent, as insufficient trust fund, financial troubles, incompetent management, lawsuits, lapsed non-profit status, and evil bankers' attempts to sell parts of the property and its buildings, have all collided with continued preservation. The future of the place seems likely to suffer further threats from time to time, but so far, it has overcome every foe.

Stumbling upon this place was a pleasant surprise! I saw a sign for nature trails and pulled off…read moreand parked the car. I wasn't sure what to expect really, but I was blown away with what I experienced today. I saw very few people out and about on the trails, which made the experience even more enjoyable. The views are breathtaking and what really takes the cake is the ease and accessibility of the trails- really makes for a nice afternoon walk/outing. If I'm ever in the area again, I would certainly like to explore every nook and cranny and possibly see some wildlife!

What?! 3-stars? For...nature?…read more Yeah, I did it. If this were a hike in Indiana, or Ohio, or Kansas, it would easily be 5-stars. But, for Washington? Home to THREE National Parks, the largest glaciers in the lower 48, temperate rainforests, and hundreds of miles of coastline? Nah. This is an A-OK hike. It goes to a lake surrounded by forested hills. It looks like many lakes in WA and OR that are surrounded by forested hills. There aren't sweeping views of the Olympic Mountains, there aren't craggy cliffs overhead. There's lots of forest, and a pretty big lake. If you're super into lakes and trees, you'll dig this. But, you can find prettier lakes (Flapjack Lakes) via Staircase: https://www.yelp.com/biz/staircase-area-olympic-national-park-hoodsport And you can find prettier forests via Hoh River Trail: https://www.yelp.com/biz/hoh-rain-forest-visitor-center-forks If you're more into mountains and scenic vistas, Ellinor is much more rewarding and relatively close-by: https://www.yelp.com/biz/mount-ellinor-hoodsport SIDEBAR: this is the trailhead you climb "The Brothers" from. I can't really recommend climbing this mountain. The trail starts to fizzle out past Lena Lake and eventually becomes a full-on bushwhack. Route finding starts to take more time than actually moving. You'll second guess your every move, mutiny will be in the back of the mind for you and your comrades. The route up the mountain is also kind of winding and confusing. In early season, watch out for avalanches! One of our people got swept away by one while on this mountain, luckily she only had a sprung (It's my mission to make this word the past tense of sprang) ankle.

This hike is perfect for an beginner-intermediate hiker. It's easy to get to & even has a paved…read moreroad up to the trailhead as opposed to the primitive roads often near trailheads. They have vault bathrooms at the beginning of the trailhead near the parking lot. I checked the bulletins and signed the registry and headed up. I instantly noticed a difference from other trails I've been on in that the majority if not all the trail is shaded so even though it was like 85+ degrees when I went, it felt much cooler and there was even a breeze at times so the heat/sun wasn't an annoyance. The trail is a general medium uphill travel. I loved that it was gradual and not just a sharp incline with a huge amount of switchbacks like other trails. It's only about 1200-1300 elevation gain total. This trail allowed me to pace myself and not stop too much to take a breath. I was able to just keep going. I also liked that the trail was wide enough in most places where 2-3 people and pass each other at one time as opposed to having to yield. I also liked that even though I went on a Saturday around 10:45am the trail was practically empty. Such a difference from the trails near Snoqualmie and North Bend. Nobody appears to want to come down toward the Hood Canal to hike. You can hear the water throughout your trek uphill so it's a relaxing hike....is that even possible? I had seen a wooden sign about a mile before the lake that said Lena Lake but what I didn't notice was the word Upper in front of Lena Lake. I actually passed the lake because I didn't see the lookout point to my right and I actually went another 1.5 miles before my intuition told me to stop. Upper Lena lake is about another 7-8 miles past Lower Lena Lake, and I was definitely not ready for that plus the hike down. I will say that the bugs get a lot worse the higher up you go, or at least they did for me. I passed two huge wasp/hornet nests and they just don't leave you alone no matter how much you swat. I also ran into some friendly grouses. No bears or mountain lions this time thankfully. Anyway, on the way back down to the lake I went off the trail a bit toward Lena Creek and there were a lot of campers and people filling up their water. You can also cross a log bridge which I believe takes you to the Brothers trail. FYI: The lake is on your right about 3.5 miles up from the trailhead. Then if you want, you can trek a mile or two down hill to get closer to the ground level of the lake as opposed to peering out over it on the rocks. My hiking app kept telling me the lake is called Olympic National Forest Pond. There were a few rowdy tubers on the lake that were disturbing the peace of the outdoors, but to each his own. Overall though, I will definitely be doing this trail again as it was the perfect length and also has the nice treat of the lake once you get to the end. Definitely take a reasonable amount of water (I took 1.5 Liters) and some food/snacks and even some swimwear. Please take your trash and doggie doo bags out with you. I did notice a few spots where there was dog feces directly on the trail or doo bags throw into the ground cover. Be a responsible dog owner please. Also as of 8/20, there were some downed logs laying across some of the Upper Lena Lake trail so you may need to crawl and climb over wet/muddy areas if you go up further.

This place is a hidden gem! It has a very isolated feeling to it. The falls flow steadily into a…read morebeautiful oasis of crystal clear water that outlets into a peaceful creek. The hike to the falls is less than a mile from the trailhead with a 200ft elevation gain. Bringing your whole family to appreciate its beauty shouldn't be much of an issue. I'm almost hesitant to write this review based on some of the disrespect I've seen for the nature in surrounding areas ie; Trash left behind by visitors and people engraving their Initials and other things on the trees/earth. Im hoping my review brings people to want to visit this great spot that our national parks/Forests have to offer! Map: Green Trails Grisdale No. 198 GPS GRID: N 47 21.227 W 123 33.912 Directions: - travel north on Forrest Road 22 "Wynoochee Road" -Turn right on Forrest Road 23 and take for 17 miles - the trailhead sign "spoon creek falls" will be on your right. PLEASE Practice "LEAVE NO TRACE"

Great place to clear your mind with all the beautiful natural landscape. I would recommend wearing…read morea long sleeve/pants while doing the hike down due to overgrown bushes and maybe water shoes. Today I didn't get my feet wet but previously we went during rainy times and we had to cross path in water to reach the waterfall. Kinda hard to find since not a lot of signs but my phone navigation got me there. Not much or no cell service. So if needed print it out. Just past the entrance to the waterfall is a fire pit area for possible day camp. Today someone had a tent in this location.Beautiful waterfall with such clear water. Very peaceful and quite.

I would totally give this hike 5 stars. I would REALLY like to see some updates on the wta.org…read morewebsite though... I feel like I was NOT ready for what we did! We started at the LPL (lower parking lot) which is not really a parking lot, you just kinda pull off to the side and park or if there is no space just squeeze as far over to the side as you can. We hiked from the LTH (lower trail head) to the UTH (upper trail head... you get the drift here) with really no issues. It was nicely covered in the forest and the breezy/foggy day made it perfect for my not experienced hiking self and my husband not experienced fitness self. I kept comparing it to Si, and how Si was hell on earth, never ending, this was nothing comparative, my auntie could do it, etc. etc. etc..... WHOA SHUT YOUR MOUTH SISTER! When we made it to the UTH, my hubs was winded and sweaty but pumped to keep going (he brought his new Kenetreks and poles to break in before Elk season...) and I was on a roll. We only had 1.9 miles left right... come on.... Those 1.9 miles had to have taken us 1.5 hours.... (don't tell him this but I coulda done it quicker...) It was pretty much straight up through a ton of rocks, loose gravel and insane steps! The trail was fairly well marked, and well maintained (never felt sketched out bc of the trail, more bc of the heights and scrambling on my hands and knees) We made it to the top and chilled out for a bit. Sadly the fog did not clear while we were on the summit, so we did not get to see the incredible views... but hey we did it and that's what counts. I would highly recommend this trail to experienced hikers and plan for a day trip if you are traveling from Tacoma (it takes 2 hours to get there for sure...) Lots of people brought dogs, poles, and packs with water and snacks (this is a must!) TIP: Bring packs with water/snacks, take lots of rest breaks, if you are only interested in summiting start at the UTH, DO NOT CUT OUT AT THE UTHPL and walk down the dirt road to the LPL. We did this, and it adds on .6 miles (we also got count in a down-pour, and at one point thought we would never find our car... mind you at this point it was getting dark). This is NOT a hike for young kids. While we will not be doing Ellinor again (I know I know even though we did not get to see the views...) I suggest doing this and for all my poop talking... sorry Mt. Si has NOTHING on this summit scramble (and yes I'm talking about BIG Si).

Such a good hike! My husband and I loved it. Definitely go in the winter. When it's snowing you can…read moreglissade down the hill. We weren't the only ones. We saw a few people bring a snowboard. Haha

Wish we would have found out about this place years ago…read more The owners are absolutely the best, and go out of the way to make sure that you have a great time. The cabins, restrooms, and sites are out of this world. The sky is the limit on the amount of activities within arms reach of this place. Thanks a ton again for the memories and we cannot wait to see you again soon!!!!

What an awesome spot! So cool to have a place that is toy friendly and has flushing toilets in…read moreheated bathrooms. Owners are super chill and friendly and enforce the rules (in a cool way). We cannot wait to go back!

Amazing camping location. Highly recommend this location to fishermen and families alike.read more