The Goose Rock trail breaks off into multiple paths to take. Tere were nice views of the small islands and water, Trail wasn't very rough and nice and wide paths. Awesoeme view around the island once at the top of the summit. I'd say good for a family hike.

My ankle was hurting me so I decide to minimize my up hill climbing and stick to a lower hike so I head out to Deception Pass State Park to try and hike all the trails within the park on my Hike#33. I hiked all but the isolated part of the park called Hoypus Point. I did hike all of Hoypus Point last year and found minmal views of water or mountains just lots of forested areas. This hike today was a lot harder then I expected. I started at Rosario Head Trail at the far northwest corner of the park working my way on the Bowman Bay Rosario Beach Trail to Bowman Bay. This is a nice section to hike with minimal up and down and great views of Bowman Bay. After hiking out the pier I headed to Lighthouse Point Trail out on the Pennisula. This area gives you great views of both spans of Deception Pass Bridge. After finishing off this whole trail I headed over to the Lottie Bay Trail for some great pictures just below the bridge. I then back tracked up the trail that leads over to Pass Lake and took the trail that heads back behind Pass Lake toward Ginnet Hill. I wish the trail went all the way to Campbell Lake since it would seem there is land within the park boundary that leads all the way to this lake. I then back tracked and over another trail that goes back down toward Rosario Head and around back to Pass Lake following a trail that runs along the road on the hill. This finished off all the known Deception Pass Park Trails on Fidalgo Island side of the park. I did hike the bridge trail over to hike the old trail leading up Bowman Hill out to the cave on the northeast side of Highway 20 but found that it is off limits now by the signs I read so I headed backdown to my truck to moved it over to the Whidbey Island side of the park. I moved over to West Beach on the Whidbey Island side and hiked The Sand Dune Trail which led me back to the truck. I then proceeded up the Nature Trail which lead up toward the park entrance. I then walked over and hiked the north end of Cranberry Lake Trail. I then walked down to North Beach and walked west back to west beach and the parking lot where my truck was. This is a really nice hike with great views of Deception Pass Bridge and the Inlet Passage. I then moved my truck to north beach parking lot where I headed uphill to the bridge and hiked south to north across the bridge to Fidalgo Island and back the other side north to south to Whidbey Island. I then headed down under the bridge. I proceeded to hike the Goose Rock Perimeter Trail around and headed up to the summit of Goose Rock. I then headed downhill on the south side of Goose Rock to Coronet Bay and hiked the Discovery Trail to the Interpretive Center. I then back tracked up and hiked the lower summit trail and back up the Summit Trail on the northside taking a short cut down to the Goose Rock Perimeter Trail again and around by the bridge back up summit trail to the downhill trail leading to Discovery Trail to the tunnel that goes under Highway 20 and backdown the trail on the west side of Highway 20 back to North Beach. My ankle did hurt a lot during this hike but I am determine to finish what I planned so I will need a break to recover now. All and all I believe the total trail distance hiked was 11 miles but a lot of these trails do not have their length listed. Checkout my youtube channel at "lmm3181" of over 200 hikes I have done in Washington State or checkout the twelve videos I did of my hike through Deception Pass State Park today and you will see different parts of the park and the spectacular views they have to offer. You can click on these direct links to this hike down below. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMHalIOdSn0 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tMbm-__CE4Y http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=89GTK7UP_2s http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wNkR4-cvFQw http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3QgQIWLDctU http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MlMHpqhq4Kk http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cy0JtZrrwIk http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MiZpnhtvUhg http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rIMiW9_aTW4 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DlCjuGWRwws http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXUvhw81BRk http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wRbFVL3HZOM As always get out and see this beautiful state and enjoy your hiking! Take Care Mike

Walked the full perimeter trail then up to the summit of Goose Rock early on a Monday. The Deception Pass pullout was packed but there wasn't a single other soul on the mountain when I was up there. The view from the top really is amazing - one of the best bang for buck effort to view ratio in the state. I parked at Deception State Park north lot to avoid the traffic up on hwy 20. The trail is short enough to walk the bridge and walk down to the west beach or over the Cranberry lake once coming down. Great little hike.

I took this hike early in the day because I knew the parking area would be less crowded, and also because we have reached our warm summer days, and I looked forward to a walk in the cool mist that had developed overnight. The area directly around Deception Pass can be quite busy, but it doesn't take long to escape the tourists, as most will not walk more than the few feet it takes to snap a picture of their family against the stunning backdrop of the bridge. I walked the Goose Rock Summit trail today, and I met only 3 other groups of hikers in the 2 hours I was there. As early as it was, there was noise from Highway 20, though that quickly faded as I ascended into the forest. The trail is in very good condition. It is steep in some places, and occasionally rocky, but I am not in the best physical condition and I managed it without much resting. The view at the top was obscured by that mist that I welcomed for its coolness, but there was enough visibility to appreciate the view. It would be stunning on a crisp fall day. I was surprised at the wildflowers still in bloom, most notably Indian Pipe. I even saw some flat-spurred piperia at the top. Along the way, there were many gorgeous Pacific Madrones, stunning in their scarlet orange. The top is a study in growth and destruction, with some amazing twisted, bleached trees, victims of wind and lightning. I can see myself up here for hours with a good book and a sack lunch, as the top is full of balding areas to sit and contemplate. I came back down to my car, taking a last moment to people watch. Visitors do such strange and dangerous things in their efforts to get a unique photo of themselves at the bridge.

We chose to hike the NW Goose Rock Summit Trail today. This is a well maintained trail and a nice short hike with a bit of elevation gain (over 400 feet in .4 mile, according to the guide). It shouldn't be too difficult for children to hike, despite the elevation gain. Even younger children should do fine with enough rest stops. For about 1/3 of the hike you can hear noise from the highway which is a bit distracting. Once you get past that though, it's quite peaceful (except for the occasional jet noise from Whidbey NAS). At the top of the summit you are greeted with lovely views, even on a cloudy day. You can see more of our hike at: http://1retromama.blogspot.com/2012/07/deception-pass-state-park-nw-goose-rock.html