Tiger Mountain Train Wreck Site

Total Training miles today - 14.8 miles

Since Patti is still out wandering in the beautiful Chelan area, Debbie and I decided to walk on Tiger Mountain. And, since she had never been there, I decided to go to the Tiger Mountain train wreck site.

I have previously blogged about this, so if you are interested in driving directions and trail locations, check my previous blog.

I picked up Debbie at 5:30 and we were to the trail head by 6 AM. Debbie now has everything she needs in her pack. I told her to leave out the two liter water container, since it just adds another four pounds, and there is plenty of water where we are going.

There were a lot of low clouds on the way, but they appeared to be breaking up as we started up the trail. The trees looked awesome in the fog.

Trees in the fog!

This is a good hike because it challenges you with some uphill walking right at the start. And, just as you are getting tired and out of breath, it levels off and then gently heads down for another mile.

Debbie reaches the end of the Iverson Railroad Trail

We reached the West Tiger Road and walked the road to the Tiger Mountain Trail. We just barely squeezed through the gate with our packs. The gate is supposed to keep the mountain bikers and horse riders off the trail, but there is another trail that skirts the gate for those who don't want to obey the rules.

We arrived at the train wreck site and checked out all of the artifacts. We were tempted to follow the artifacts trail up the hill, but it was blocked by a number of blow downs.

Instead, we headed up the hill to an area that is supposed to have good views of the valley. Unfortunately, it was too foggy.

We headed back and met several others who were just heading out on their hikes.

It took us just over two hours and was a great way to start the morning!

I am so glad to have Debbie hiking with me again. She is eager to train for her trip in August up the Eagle Creek trail in Oregon. I'll have to find some good trails for us to follow!

Bob and Debbie on the trail

If you are interested in some of the history of the Train Wreck, check out this good summary here.

Tiger Mountain - Poo Poo Point Trail

Walking Time: 4 Hours
Miles: 10.2

It's Memorial Day and I have time to get in another hike.

Today I chose a popular hike on Tiger Mountain. The hike is to Poo Poo Point. It is a funny name, but it is the cleared area high up on Tiger Mountain where the hang-gliders launch themselves.

Poo Poo Point Trail (using the High School Trail)

There are two trails to Poo Poo Point. One follows the Chirico trail from the hang-glider landing strip. It is a shorter trail, but steeper. The other starts near Issaquah High School, and follows the High School trail and thence to the Poo Poo Point trail.

I expected that there wouldn't be too many hikers today, because, like many Memorial Days, the weather was cloudy and threatening rain. I found the small parking lot just off 2nd avenue in Issaquah, but there were already five cars parked there, so I found a spot along the road and headed up the well used trail.

Junction with Poo Poo Point Trail

The first half mile of trail was a bit muddy due to the rain overnight. The High School Trail then starts a slow but constant climb, first following an old logging road, and then winding through dense forest with ferns and mossy trees.

Beautiful ferns and mossy trees

There were a few wonderful streams, and one with a very well made bridge. At about mile two, the trail begins to climb in earnest, and I had to pause many times to catch my breath. It didn't help that the tread was muddy in places, so I had to be careful not to slip.

One of the several bridges. My face was red due to the constant climb.
This was a good excuse to catch my breath!

The trail finally leveled out at the junction with the West Tiger Railroad trail and the One View Trail. Both of these seemed to be climbing higher, so I was excited when I saw that the trail to Poo Poo Point began to descend!

Junction with West Tiger Railroad Grade and the One View Trail.
Poo Poo Point is about one-half mile away.

Within a half mile the trail emerged to the road which led to the Poo Poo Point hang glider launching area. One note, the last half mile of trail goes through dense Salmon Berry bushes. When it has just rained, it is impossible not to get a soaking.

When I first arrived, the clouds were hugging the ground and there was no view.

Socked in and no view - but I was there at Poo Poo Point!

Solar panel and other equipment.

Wind sock at top of tower

Hang Glider Launch Pads

Fortunately, as I stopped to change my shirt, the clouds began to thin giving me some fabulous views of the Issaquah valley and Lake Sammamish.

Lake Sammamish in the distance.

Issaquah valley from Poo Poo Point

The hike back was no picnic either. You need strong legs and good shoes and socks, as the descent is relentless as well. Those with poor-fitting shoes would likely get blisters, so we aware.

I made the round trip in four hours. I spent about 30 minutes at the top getting a bite to eat, taking pictures, and changing clothes. The map indicates that it would be about 8 1/2 miles round trip, so I assume my measurement includes some of the hiking around Poo Poo Point. This is a great training hike. I met a number of people who were running up the trail! I'm not sure how well they did in the muddy areas, but it sure is a good trail to gain endurance.

Tiger Mountain Loop - 16 miles

I noticed on the map of Tiger Mountain that it would be possible to do a loop hike, IF I was willing to walk a few more miles.

Me, walk more miles? Give me a challenge, new trails, and time, and I'm off!

I arrived at the trail head at 6:30 and headed out on the Northwest Timber Trail. The grade was easy and the forest was spectacular. Over several of the streams there are sturdy wooden bridges. Birds were flitting from branch to branch. At one point the trail breaks out with a view across the valley.

There are several areas with moss-covered limbs.

I stood under an ancient stump.

One of the many wooden bridges over rushing streams.

Views of the surrounding hills from the Northwest Timber trail.

The Northwest timber trail exits onto the Tiger Mountain Road. I headed north, walking for almost two miles. The road is an easy walk (mostly level) with only one climb. There are several new trails heading up the mountain from the road, but they were not marked.

I finally arrived at the Preston Railroad Trail, which was well marked.

Start of the Preston Railroad Trail. 

I followed the Preston Railroad trail for three miles. It switch-backs up East Tiger mountain with an easy but steady grade. This is a popular trail used by mountain bikers, who travel down the trail. I saw five bikers who were all very friendly.

View while walking up the Preston Railroad Trail.

At the top, the trail exits onto the Main Tiger Mountain Road. I headed west on the road and then headed up a spur road about a half mile to where the Middle Tiger Trail starts.

Spur road leading to the Middle Tiger Trail.

There were some good views across the valley to West Tiger Mountain. Along the top are many cell and radio towers.

View of West Tiger Mountain.

 The Middle Tiger Trail joins to the Tiger Mountain Trail. I had walked this section of the trail last week and it goes by the train wreck site and then exits to the West Side Road 1000. I headed down the road and took the Iverson Railroad Trail back to the car.

Headed up the Iverson Railroad Trail

 The map below shows the route I took (blue line).

The loop route (blue). I walked it counter-clockwise. The distance is about 16 miles.

This hike was mostly easy walking, with a few steep sections. I was pleasantly surprised that the Preston Railroad Trail was an easy grade. The Middle Tiger Trail is the only one I would consider difficult, especially coming down from the top of Middle Tiger to where the trail meets the Tiger Mountain Trail.

South Tiger Traverse Trail to Tiger Mountain Trail - 8.5 miles

Tiger Mountain has a host of different trails and multiple access points. Today, I chose to start at the southern end of the Tiger Mountain Trail. The trail-head is not incredibly well marked. There is a small area to park along Tiger Mountain Road SE. I walked up and across the road to the start of the trail.

Start of the Tiger Mountain Trail just across the road from the pull out.
It is not very well marked.

 Just up the path about 50 feet, this is the sign marking the start of the trail.

Southern end of the Tiger Mountain Trail.

The route I took today was to follow the Tiger Mountain Trail (TMT) to where it meets the South Tiger Traverse Trail. It is not marked on the map, but heads directly north (and up), past South Tiger summit and meets up again to the TMT. I plotted my hike on the map in blue.

TMT to South Tiger Traverse Trail and back via the TMT.

The trail has a moderate but very steady grade from the very start and doesn't level out until near the South Tiger summit trail. Be aware that it is a good cardio workout for the first three miles. At the junction with the South Tiger Powerline trail, there are some spectacular views across the Covington and Kent valleys.

South Tiger Traverse trail meets up with the South Tiger Powerline Trail.

View of the Covington and Kent valley.

 The trail continues uphill through dense forest, with interesting old trees intermixed.

Old tree with woodpecker holes.

 Occasionally the trail crosses small streams.

Bob on a bridge over one of the several small streams along the way.

Most of the trail had tall salmon berries along each side, which reached above my head. If you walk the trail, I suggest wearing long pants and a long-sleeve shirt, because there are some healthy stinging nettles along the path in many areas.

Much of the trail has tall brush, with salmon berries, stinging nettles and ferns.

 This is an interesting snail making its way across a mossy log.

Snail on a mossy log

 Although the loop route passes by Carkin's Cliff, I found it more like just a very steep slope, rather than a cliff. Perhaps if there wasn't so much brush I could have seen the cliff?

TMT as it passes by Carkin's Cliff. I couldn't see the cliff, just a very steep hillside.

 Many of the plants are blooming. This one was especially pretty.

Many of these plants are blooming along the trail. Not sure what it is.

 There are several small ponds and pools as well. This one had pretty reflections of the vine maple.

Vine maple reflecting in a pond.

 The devils club were very healthy as well. This one had leaves back-lit by the sun.

Devils Club leaves in the sun.

The hike took me almost exactly three hours to complete the 8.5 mile loop. I would rate the first three miles as moderately strenuous, since the trail climbs steadily from the road. The rest of the trail is easy as there are a few ups and downs until you reach the TMT.

Be aware that, although the map shows a trail to the top of South Tiger, I did not see any sign marking the trail. At one point there is an unmarked trail heading in the direction of the summit, but it did not look very well used.

The TMT on the return trip is easy to follow, and generally heads downhill.

It was a very enjoyable trip and I especially liked the sound of distant streams and a beautiful forest drenched in sunlight.

Tiger Mountain - Iverson Railroad Trail to Middle Tiger Trail - 9.5 miles

It's Monday. Back to the grind... but WAIT, what's this? I looked outside. It was a picture perfect day. I have lots of vacation, so I headed home at 8 and was on the trail by 9:30.

I decided to walk the Iverson Railroad Trail. This is a moderately easy trail with a few ups and downs, but nothing extreme. The following map shows the route I took today.

My route: Iverson Railroad Trail to Middle Tiger to Tiger Mountain Trail and back.

Start of the Iverson Railroad Trail

The Iverson Railroad Trail is about 1.8 miles long and goes through beautiful second-growth forest. There are several bridges over the larger streams, and it was very pretty in the filtered sunlight.

I am standing on one of the wooden bridges. Very pretty in the filtered sunlight

The trail comes out onto the West Tiger Road. I saw the trail the last time I walked on Tiger Mountain, but the trail doesn't have a sign where it meets the road. Now I know what trail it is, and where it goes!

I followed the West Tiger Road about two miles. There is one intersection where the West Tiger Road is not marked. One branch heads up hill; the other heads down. The West Tiger Road heads DOWN. Fortunately, I chose the correct road. I came to the Middle Tiger Trail and headed up. After a very short distance, the trail branches. I was tempted to take the Hobart Middle Tiger Railroad trail, because the sign gave the distance to the site of the curved trestle. It sounded very interesting.

Instead, I took the Middle Tiger Trail, which runs for one mile and then meets the Tiger Mountain Trail. I should have learned my lesson from the last time I took the Middle Tiger Trail. One mile means, "one mile straight up". This one really worked my leg muscles. It took most of an hour to make it to the top.

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 At one of my frequent stops on the way up, I did manage to capture some of the pretty trees in the sunlight.

On the way up the Middle Tiger Trail. Very pretty trees in the sunlight.

I was tempted to take the Hobart-Middle Tiger Trail to check out the "site of the curved trestle".

Not sure what these flowers are, but they were very pretty. Again, a picture taken at one of my many rest stops.

The trail goes like this for one mile. It doesn't look steep, but it is relentless.

 At the top, the trail joins the Tiger Mountain Trail. I took a break, took off my socks and shoes and ate a Snickers bar. While I was there, another gentleman came up the Tiger Mountain Trail (TMT) and we talked for a bit. He had a GPS unit and a map. I told him that the Middle Tiger Trail went down to the road and up to the top of the hill. He seemed confused, but since he had a map I presume he finally decided which trail he was going to take.

Junction of the Middle Tiger Trail and the Tiger Mountain Trail. I rested here to eat and re-hydrate.

I took the Tiger Mountain Trail back, since this was the same trail that I hiked a few days ago. There were lots of pretty white flowers along the trail.

Pretty white flowers along the Tiger Mountain Trail.

As I headed back along the Iverson Railroad Trail, a little chipmunk posed for a picture. The red-eye makes the little guy look evil.

Chipmunk stopped long enough for me to get a picture.

I would recommend this hike to anyone wanting a good mix of easy, moderate and strenuous trails. Round trip is about 9.5 miles, which took me about four hours, including about a half-hour break for lunch.

Tiger Mountain - Train Wreck Site and Middle Tiger Summit - 9 miles round trip

I have discovered Tiger Mountain.
Sure, it's always been there. And, just about everyone else in the Seattle area has hiked or biked there.

Now I'm hooked.
I found a map on the Siwtchbacks.com site and read an article about a fatal train wreck on the mountain and a trail that leads to it. I couldn't resist.

I got to the trail-head at 6:40 AM and drove to the upper parking lot. I was the only one there!
There was a map of the trails on the mountain, and I have annotated it to show where I was headed.

My starting point (You are Here), the train wreck site, and Middle Tiger peak

 The sun was just rising, and was beautiful through the forest. The first part of the hike was two miles up a gravel road. There were several splashing streams along the way, many wildflowers, and birds singing in the trees. It was magical!

Sun peeking through the trees

 At just over two miles, I found the turn off to the Tiger Mountain Trail. It was well marked. In another half mile, I came to where the trail made a sharp left turn. About ten yards ahead was a small sign on a tree identifying the Artifact trail.

Artifact trail sign - it's not very big and would be easy to miss.

 Just ahead lies the wreckage, or what's left of it. There are iron wheels, twisted metal and further on, the remains of a rail car, although twisted beyond recognition. The story goes that the train was carrying a load of logs and lost its brakes. At this spot, the tracks turned and crossed over Holder Creek. The train was traveling too fast and flew off the tracks, killing one man. Most of the wreckage was salvaged, but it still is interesting to look about and imagine what it must have been like almost 100 years ago.

Wheels from one of the train cars.

I made a short video at the site.

Heading back to the Tiger Mountain Trail, I decided to head on up since it was still early in the morning. The trail crossed a logging road and there were views of the Kent valley. It was too hazy to see much detail, but on a clear day, it would have been fantastic.

View NE towards the Kent valley.

On the way, there were a few views of Mount Rainier through the trees.

Mount Rainier in the distance

 I then came to the Middle Tiger Trail. At only 1/2 mile, I figured it would be a quick trip. What the sign DIDN'T say, was that it was 1/2 mile straight UP!

Middle Tiger Trail - only 1/2 mile

Well, I was here to do some body conditioning, and body conditioning I got! I drank almost a liter of water on the way up, which took me forty minutes. I obviously was not moving very fast. At the top, I was disappointed in that it was completely forested. No view. There was, however, a tepee of sorts, built from branches.

Tepee at the top of Middle Tiger

I took a break, pulled off my shoes and socks, and let my feet cool. I was midway through with eating my Snicker's candy bar, when I thought, hey, I could make a quick video. Memo to self: don't try to narrate a video with food still in your mouth! Also, get the name of the mountain right. It's Middle Tiger.

As the wind was beginning to pick up, I headed back. 

I only saw six people during the entire hike, and they were on cross-country bikes, and were just riding up the road about a mile from the parking lot. It was a great day and I am excited to explore more trails at my next opportunity.