The small waterfalls at Cougar were perfect for seeing some interesting ice formations. The temp at sunrise was a chilly 12 degrees F.  Fortunately there was minimal breeze.  Strong winds are forecast further east in the Cascade foothills so it was nice to be far enough west to avoid them.

The best ice formations were at the base of Coal Creek Falls and at Far Country Falls.  To see the best ice at Coal Creek Falls you have to scramble on the right side of the creek to the base of the falls that is obscured by some recently fallen trees.

The trail surface was excellent and did not require any traction devices. Snow was less than 1/2 inch deep.

RT 7.6 mi, 1300 ft

   Our RWHG had a great winter hike in Cougar Mountain Park today.  My group met at the lower Licorice Fern TH at 9:15.  Note there are no facilities at the trailhead so plan to “Green Door”. It was 36 degrees with overcast skies.  We dressed in layers and warmed up quickly. The entire hike was spent with clothing adjustments, take a layer off and then in 10 minutes you were cool and would put it back on.  Our 9 mile hike followed Licorice Fern, Indian, Far Country, Shy Bear and Deceiver trails to Longview overlook and back.  The entire trail system is saturated soil but mostly well drained.  There were only a few muddy spots. Since my last hike here in spring 2023 great trail improvements have been made on first 1/2 mile of lower Licorice Fern trail. Thanks to all trail work crews for making these much needed trail improvements. All trails have small branches and boughs littered everywhere from recent winds.  There were a couple deadfall tree trunks across the trails, all easy to step over.

  We took the side spur down to check out Doughty Falls and the most water I have seen here was pouring over the rock face drop. A few late season mushrooms and fungus were looking good.  Wildlife sightings were limited to a few bird species flitting in the understory.  Just after noon we spread out at the Deceiver / Longview trail intersection to eat lunch and take a short rest break.  We all cooled down quickly and repacked and were back on the trail at 12:45.

The hike back had a few hail showers, sun breaks and rain showers.  When we drove away from the trailhead just before 3:00 a heavy rain shower started.  Another fantastic day out in nature with friends.

This prime time to visit waterfalls.  The three waterfalls on Cougar are all looking quite attractive right now with all recent rain.  

We started at the Red Town trailhead. Lakemont Blvd is closed at Coal Creek so you can only access Red Town from the north right now.

Deceiver Ridge is one of my favorite places on Cougar. It feels remote.  The forest here is virgin(never logged).  The trees are probably around 200 years old and likely grew after a fire.  I assume that the loggers passed over this area because the trees were too small 100+ years ago when Cougar was being logged.

Doughty Falls is flowing better than I have ever seen.  This waterfall is often a disappointment even after heavy rains.  This year is exceptional.

The trails are very well maintained.  I've been impressed with the excellent trail up keep by the crew under the leadership of Steve Wilkinson.   I'm especially impressed with the emphasis on keeping the waterbars cleaned out and functioning.  This is one of the least sexy, often neglected, but by far the most important task for keeping trails from eroding.  

7.1mi loop, 1200 ft

This last Wednesday I hiked an out-and-back combination of seven Newcastle and Cougar Mountain trails to visit Far Country Falls and Doughty Falls. My mission was to create spherical panoramic images at both falls.

I hiked from the Terrace Trail trailhead, located at 144th Place SE and SE 97th Street in Newcastle. The Terrace Trail switchbacks up past a bench at Boulder Grove and connects with the East Cross Town Trail which passes through several Madrone groves to connect with the entrance to Cougar Mountain Regional Wildland Park and the De Leo Wall Viewpoint Trail which also passes through several picturesque stands of Madrones. 

The De Leo Wall Trail eventually intersects with the Indian Trail. Turning right, hike about a tenth of a mile to a marked trail to Far Country Falls. There is an earlier unmarked trail to the headwaters of the falls. This magical waterfall gorge could well be in Rivendell, the sanctuary of a magic Elvish otherworld. Far Country Falls is intermittently shrouded by sword ferns and mossy fallen tree branches as it meanders down through a garden of moss-covered boulders.

I took three panoramas and continued to Doughty Falls. Heading south on the Indian Trail, I took the Far Country Trail, the Shy Bear Trail, and finally, the Deceiver Trail down to the Doughty Falls overlook. Doughty Falls was not as dramatic as the Far Country Falls, but I had to see them both. I took one panorama and headed back. This last leg doubled the miles traveled.

One of the benefits of hiking in the Cougar Mountain area is that there are a great many trails that intersect with each other so you can create various routes and loops by combining them. This route, while only-an-out and back, combined seven trails: Terrace, East CrossTown, De Leo Viewpoint, Indian, Far Country, Shy Bear, and Deceiver Trails

The overall hiking distance was 8 miles with 1,760 feet of overall elevation gain. This hike is varied and visually interesting and I can recommend it. The links to the panoramas are below. Be sure to click the full-screen icon as you roll over the upper right of the photo for the best viewing.

King County Parks provides a detailed downloadable map with trails in the Cougar Mountain Regional Wildland Park in PDF form. https://aqua.kingcounty.gov/gis/web/VMC/recreation/BCT_CougarMtn_brochure.pdf

Headwaters, Far Country Falls, Cougar Mountain, WA: https://www.360cities.net/image/headwaters-far-country-falls-cougar-mountain-wa

Mossy Kingdom, Far Country Falls, Cougar Mountain, WA: https://www.360cities.net/image/mossy-kingdom-far-country-falls-cougar-mountain-wa

Enchanted Forest, Far Country Falls, Cougar Mountain, WA: https://www.360cities.net/image/enchanted-forest-far-country-falls-cougar-mountain-wa

The Overlook, Doughty Falls, Cougar Mountain, WA: https://www.360cities.net/image/the-overlook-doughty-falls-cougar-mountain-wa

Rating:  4 of 5 stars (for an off-season hike), less for a summer hike
Snow:  None.
Time: This trail took us (two 65-years-olds) 4 hours for the loop, including trips to Far Country Falls & Coal Creek Falls (both recommended!).
Views:  De Leo Wall Lookout is not worth it.  However, if you do the Viewpoint Trail (which runs parallel to the De Leo Wall Trail), the views are worth it.
Parking & Road Conditions:  No problem getting to the parking lot with any type of car.  No snow on the road.  Many parking spaces left around 10:30 on a Thursday at the Red Town parking lot. 
My opinions:  This was a fun “first of the season” hike. 
There are nice forest paths and nice small waterfalls.  Today there was snow and hail alongside the path.  Very beautiful!  Not a problem to hike on.
Trail conditions:  Great overall.  There were some muddy areas and the coal creek bridge was icy, but nothing bad.

Specifics on the hike (different from the WTA directions):  The hike from the Cougar Mountain Regional Wildland Park’s Red Town Trailhead to the De Leo Wall Peak is pretty straightforward: 
Follow the signs for Wildside Trail (W1) to the Marshall Hill Trail (W6) which becomes the De Leo Wall Trail (W9) after crossing a paved road. 
Also, after crossing the paved road, there is a sign that says,
DE LEO WALL TRAIL (up or “straight ahead” arrow)
CROSS TOWN TRAIL (right arrow)
VIEWPOINT TRAIL
Go right (and downhill).  Stay on the VIEWPOINT TRAIL.  There are a few places that the trail is pretty narrow.  Keep vigilant and you should be fine. 
The views along this trail are nice, much better than the De Leo Viewpoint. 
When you get to the Viewpoint, it is a disappointing view; however, the trail to the viewpoint is nice.
When you get to the sign for the Viewpoint Trail (0.2 miles) and De Leo Trail, go right. 
Next, connecting the De Leo Wall Trail (W9) to the different waterfalls is where the hike got really interesting. 
Continue down W9, pass W1 (Wildside Trail) on the left.  This trail will go back to the Red Town Trailhead.
W9 (De Leo Wall Trail) dead-ends on Indian Trail (W7), at a T intersection.  You can get to two waterfalls from here.
The first waterfall is a quick trip.  Go right on Indian Trial (W7) to Far Country Falls.
Go down W7 about 0.2 miles.  The top of Far Country Falls will be on your right.  There is an un-signed path to the top of the falls.  Nice place to look.    Continue on W7 for another 0.1 mile and there is a signed turn-off to Far Country Falls.  There is a great place for selfies with the water falls behind you.  Worth the trip!
For the second waterfall (Coal Creek Falls), go back to Indian Trail (W7) and turn left, back-tracking where you originally came from. 
Pass the De Leo Wall Trail (W9) and go about 0.6 miles to the Quarry Trail (C6) on your right. 
Climb up Quarry Trail (C6).  You will pass interesting boulders, going uphill for about a ½ of a mile and turn left on to Coal Creek Falls Trail (C4). 
After passing Coal Creek Falls, continue on C4 until you come to Cave Hole Trail (C3) and turn left. 
When there is a sharp left to stay on C3, go straight on C2, to see an old dam (Red Town Dam Site). 
When you get to Military Road (N2), turn left and follow the signs to the Parking Lot (.2 miles).
I printed these directions out when I hiked and they helped a lot!
About a 6 mile loop!
It’s worth studying the map on line before you go.
https://aqua.kingcounty.gov/gis/web/VMC/recreation/BCT_CougarMtn_brochure.pdf