Gobblers Knob

 We drove up Forest Road 59 outside of Ashford to head up to the Glacier View Wilderness and hike out to Gobblers Knob in Mt Rainier National Park. The trailhead and parking area are at the end of FR 59. View of Mt Rainier along the road.
This hike is 8 miles round trip with about 1,900 ft of overall elevation gain.








After filling out the Wilderness Self-Issue Permit we hiked up about 0.1 mile to the Puyallup Trail #248 and headed south (went right at the T).

The hike is mainly through a beautiful forest.

We saw many types of fungus along the trail.

Surprised to find ripe huckleberries along the trail so late in October! A little tart, but delicious!!!

 About 3/4 mile along the trail we reached the Beljica Meadows. Lots of frost this morning.

 view of Mt Beljica

 Lots to see in the forest. About 1 mile from the trailhead, the Puyallup Trail is joined by the Lake Christine Trail. To stay on the Puyallup Trail we headed north (went to the left).

The trail continues through the forest for 1.5 miles to Goat Lake, dropping 600 ft in elevation.

 Nice morning reflection at Goat Lake.

 There is a little bit of fall color along the way.

 Another 1.5 miles to Gobblers Knob. The trail from Lake George climbs 1,200 ft

After crossing into Mt Rainier NP, the trail opens up through a meadow for a short portion along the side of Gobblers Knob. If we continued on this trail, it would eventually lead down to Lake George. After the trail starts to descend, watch for a side trail off to the left heading back up to the top of Gobblers Knob (about 0.4 mile spur trail).

 a brief glimpse of Mt Rainier through the trees on the way up Gobblers Knob
















another view of Mt Rainier








Here we can see the lookout atop Gobblers Knob with a view of the top of Mt Rainier

The lookout on Gobblers Knob was boarded up for the winter

 Mt Rainier stood above the widespread haze. The Puyallup and Tahoma Glaciers are the two large ones seen here.

 There were several gray jays at the lookout.
Because of the haze, we could not see any of the distant volcanoes that are usually in view on clear days.










Goat Lake down below us

 Gobblers Knob is a lovely spot to take a break and enjoy the views.

 back down at Goat Lake, the water was very still today.












some of the many fungi we saw along the trail today: