Anyone up for a Western Washington UL GGG?

"Mt. Si would be a fun day-hike near here."

With that potential number of people, it might be well to spread the day hikes out a bit. There is an alternate trail on Si starting at the Little Si parking lot that is much less traveled and steeper, a very nice hike. There are also excellent day hikes on Mailbox and Teneriffe via the SW ridge for those who like their exercise in stronger doses. Allow an extra post hike beer for those who choose either of the latter. ;0))

Edited for grammar.

As luck would have it Doug, I have one you can borrow.

A couple other thought and notes….

Thinking late August or early September.

Unless a better idea is suggested, I'll probably just pull the trigger on one of the two campsites and hope for the best turnout wise

May add on a three day hike on the PCT and/or Goat Rocks Wilderness immediately following. Not sure of any official limitations on group size by statute but I think four or five would be max. In case of massive rain, I have another hike in mind where we could set up a base camp and get some awesome day hikes in but still be close enough to town for beer, pizza, and dryers.

I'll wait to hear from Dale before I go too far down this road but absent any other guidance, this is the direction I'm leaning towards.

"With that potential number of people, it might be well to spread the day hikes out a bit. "

Yeah I wouldn't suggest or recommend subjecting any trail to a 40 person mob. At Henry Coe, small groups of 4-6 broke off on their own and hit the trails.

I've never been there but Tiger Mountain isn't too far away.

"I've never been there but Tiger Mountain isn't too far away."

Tiger Mtn tends to be a mob scene on weekends, but there are a couple lesser used trails that allow you to avoid most of the crowds. Granite Mtn off Exit 47 from I-90 is also a great hike, but also tends to be crowded on weekends; best to get an early start on any of them. Mailbox can also be somewhat crowded, but not as much so, and Teneriffe is the least crowded of all(with good reason), but has limited parking. Another good option on the easy and less crowded side(with an early start) is the Rattlesnake Mtn trail starting from Exit 27 off I-90. There, you can hike anywhere from 4 to 20 miles, out and back on a gentle trail, with great views at miles 2(Stan's Overlook), 4(Grand Prospect), 6(East Peak). There's a little something for everyone, depending on what folks are in the mood for.

Which King Co. park are we talking about?

This one is in Carnation, WA… home of the Seattle Mud Run. NE from Issaquah if memory serves.

Sent to and received from Dale a PM. He's looking at other options. If he gets something going, then I'll bow out and let him take the lead.

I'm thinking of something with some pizzazz: Mt Rainier, Mt. Baker, Olympics, North Cascades— old growth somewhere. There are lots of group camps. I'll get to work on it soon, but I'm setting up for an epic garage sale this weekend (I'll post in Gear Deals).

Soon after Labor Day would be easier I think. All the kiddies will be back in school and the crowds shrink. I don't need to "take the lead," but I will have opinions :)

Ian – that location is just below the Falls. Not sure you could get any closer to my place, so I'm all in if that's the case. Heck, I could bikepack there as there's a trail that connects to the Iron Horse Trail that cruises right to there. Fun!

Dale has a good point that there are a lot more spectacular locations, however. Many state parks have large group sites. Might be one at Owyhee near Pete Lake up by Salmon La Sac. That's a cool little camground that's walk-in, so at least you don't have cars in the campsite. Also very central point in the state for East and West siders. Tons of amazing hikes around that area.

Depending on timing I'll try to make it work! Got a 9 day Glacier NP permit for the first part of September, though, and I'm not giving that up for anything :)

I did the Seattle Survivor Mud Run up there but I'm not sure how far it's from the campground. The area is pretty but not miles away from town like Henry Coe is.

I don't doubt that there are other one which are prettier and further into the wilderness.

My thoughts on the first one would be to just keep it simple. Once we get one in the books and get some feedback from the membership, we can make adjustments from that feedback for PNW GGG part deuce.

I'm good with whatever. Let's just do something.

I picked up this thread late but… I've stayed at that campground in Carnation, and it's decent, but still a drive from any trailheads. I live right in PA and would of course, vote for the olympics!! There are so many great CG's around here, the Elwah, Sol Duc and Heart O' The Hills are all less than 10 Min from being on the trail. Salt Creek is another really great local campground, it's a little further away but right on the water and has amazing views. It's a little last minute, but it would be great to get some people together for a last hurrah of the season! Plus, sicne it's past labor day, most of the CG's will be cleared out for the most part. Just some thoughts :)

Having easy access to trails is nice but not necessary imo. I've only been to one GGG so don't claim to be a subject matter expert but this is more of a camping social and an opportunity to check out some gear than anything else.

While the trails may not be within walking distance of this park, there are a few opportunities within 15 minutes or so.

Edit to add: And I agree, the peninsula would be nice.

I also just noticed this thread. I'm be in on an event.

Separately, a few of us BPL members in Seattle try to coordinate trips together. If you are interested in joining in just PM me your email and I can expand the informal group and share with you the email list (just 4 of us now).

We've done a number of short and longer trips this year already, including a couple snow camping adventures.

Bumpity bump.

Well 2014 was a bust but let's make GGG/PNW a reality for 2015.

I've nominated Carnation for this event. Olympic Peninsula was suggested.

I think for the first year, 35-50 would probably be ambitious but I think that's a good number to work with.

Spring can be wet so I'm thinking summer or fall.

Discuss.

OK how about this….

Let's put it to a vote to narrow down the region.

1. Mt. St. Helens
2. Olympic Peninsula
3. East of Seattle in the Issaquah/North Bend area

Then vote for time frame:

1. July
2. August
3. September
4. Other

Polls close two weeks from now on November 18th. Vote by responding to this thread.

2. Olympic Peninsula

4. Other – May/June so as not to conflict w/other summer plans

Now do I get a sticker?

(no I don't, because Oregon has mail-in ballots)

My votes:

Other – June so as not to conflict w/other summer plans

(First choice) East of Seattle in the Issaquah/North Bend area
(Second choice) Olympic Peninsula

Location: Write-in suggestion – The Teanaway. Good campgrounds (some are free) and a great variety of hiking trails.

Time: July

Polls are still open but here's some weather data for Olympic National Park. If this is the direction the group would like to go, we'd really need to look at one of the drier months.

http://www.weather.com/weather/wxclimatology/monthly/graph/WANPSOLMP:13

Christy mentioned Sol Duc. Here's NPS' description of it:

Sol Duc
This group site, managed by the National Park Service, can accommodate groups of up to 24 people, with a 7 day maximum stay. Minimum group size is 9 people. This site is for organized groups only. The site can accommodate up to eight head of stock.

There is no running water but pit toilets are available. Water can be packed in from the Eagle Ranger Station or filtered from a nearby stream.

Reservations are accepted by phone only. Call the Storm King Ranger Station at (360)565-2955.

There is a $20 non-refundable reservation fee, plus a $1 per person per night camping fee.

http://www.nps.gov/olym/planyourvisit/group-camping.htm

Kathleen,

I haven't hiked in that area but I see those mountains every time I drive over to Seattle. Looks like a beautiful area and well worth consideration.

Just saw this thread today for the first time, I don't browse this forum often. I'd be down to meetup wherever and whenever as long as it doesn't interfere with other commitments. So, the sooner we nail it down the better.

I vote for late spring/early summer, prefer West side of the state since I live in Puyallup.

After everyone has voiced their opinion on when/where to go by the 18th, I'll reserve a campsite.

I'll get a chance tomorrow to look at options and get a vote in; thanks Ian.

If it was around St. Helens, or in the Olympics, I'd be up for it! Work availablity depending, I am on call 1-2 week-ends a month, and can't come out to play.

Bump to solicit suggestions. Polls close tomorrow for location for region and then we'll narrow down the exact campsite and date soon afterwards. I hope to reserve the campground in the next couple weeks.

I hope to make this one myself. Anywhere.