We drove down to the north end of the Jupiter Ridge Trail (south of Randle) to see how far we could hike on this last day of spring. This is a multi use trail. We did come across some dirt bike riders, all very pleasant. I'm not sure how long the trail is, but we hiked to Jupiter Peak (at 3 miles out), Sunrise Peak (7 miles out) and Jumbo Peak (a bit under 9 miles out). Overall we hiked 17.8 miles with 6,700+ ft of overall elevation gain (there is a lot of ups and downs). Fantastic views and lots of wildflowers!
The trail starts in the woods, and climbs up 1,900 ft to the top of Juniper Peak over 3 miles. Along the way, we found an opening and were able to see parts of Juniper Ridge andMt Adams in the distance.
Looking south: Mt Adams on the left, tiny appearing, pointed Sunrise Peak, Juniper Peak in the center and Mt St Helens to the far right). There is a boot path on the far side of Juniper Peak, leading to the top.
Pano from atop Juniper Peak going north to southeast: Mt Rainier, snowcapped Goat Rocks and Mt Adams
Pano from atop Juniper Peak going southwest to north: Mt St Helens and Mt Rainier
Descending from Juniper Peak, the trail headed out along the ridge to Sunrise Peak (4 miles along the trail), Mt Adams to the left, Mt Hood to the right.
We enjoyed the wildflowers in bloom along the ridge.
The trail descends about 860 ft to a large pond where we heard many croaking frogs.
the trail then climbs up 1,080 ft to the top of Sunrise Peak (pictured here)
There is a spur trail leading up to Sunrise Peak, we found one very large icy snow patch on a steep portion of the trail
The last bit to the top was very steep on the rocky surface, I was glad there was a railing to hold on to.
Pano from atop Sunrise Peak going northwest to east to southwest: Mt Rainier, Goat Rocks, Mt Adams, Mt Hood (very tiny) and Mt St Helens
As we were getting ready to descend Sunrise Peak, we could see Jumbo Peak (with snow on the sides): our next destination.
The trail descends about 1,000 ft, down into a wooded valley, before climbing about 1,100 ft to the top of Jumbo Peak
As the trail climbs upwards, we were again in open meadows.
We crossed one large snowfield before reaching Jumbo Peak. From this angle, it looks like an easy route up to the top.
We found a boot track on the south side of Jumbo Peak, followed it to a large snow patch, and then only found what appeared to be a goat track up. The top section is steep and rocky. This is one of the easier sections
On the way, we saw a small group of mountain goats hurrying over the side of Jumbo Peak.
zoom of mountain goats
Pano from atop Jumbo Peak southeast to southwest: Mt Adams, Mt Hood, Mt St Helens
Pano from atop Jumbo Peak southwest to northwest: Mt St Helens, Mt Rainier, Goat Rocks
Pano from atop Jumbo Peak northwest to south east: Mt Rainier, Goat Rocks, Mt Adams
We had a very short break atop Jumbo Peak, as we had 8+ miles and lots of elevation to go before it got too dark. Looking down from Jumbo Peak toward our route along Juniper Ridge (Sunrise Peak is the sharp pointy peak in this picture)
Watching the sun going down as we neared Juniper Peak
the last of the sunlight hitting Mt Rainier to the north west and
Mt Adams to the southeast (and the Juniper Ridge trail we have been hiking on)
Sun setting through the trees
Beautiful colors reflected on Mt Adams during sunset
A few of the many wildflowers we saw in bloom today:
We found a boot track on the south side of Jumbo Peak, followed it to a large snow patch, and then only found what appeared to be a goat track up. The top section is steep and rocky. This is one of the easier sections
zoom of mountain goats
Beautiful colors reflected on Mt Adams during sunset
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