Joined a nice group for a conditioning hike today. The plan was to hike up the Elbo Creek Trail until the snow got too deep (no snowshoes today). The hike is a 10 mile trek with the majority of the elevation gain in the first 2.5 miles. We got close to 2.5 miles with 1,860 ft of gain before turning around because the snow was a good foot deep. This is a hike in the woods if you don't make it to the end. This trail is across Hwy 101 from Mt Walker south of Quilcene on the north end of Hood Canal.
The first part of the trail was snow free through a nice forest. I was told in the "old days" that this was the 30+ mile hike to Mt Townsend from Quilcene, with a couple of cabins they could stop at along the way.
We reached snow more than 1000 ft up with a set of footprints ahead of us marking the way. The snow was fresh so we did not need to use traction.
We had some peeks of Mt Walker through the trees and
a glimpse of Mt Baker (zoom)
We were close to where this trail joins an old FR for the rest of the hike (up to Buck Mountain) when we reached snow of a good foot deep and decided to turn around here.
We turned around where there had been a large blowdown and good see Mt Townsend to the northeast.
A nice workout today!
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