Anxious to get near Rainier, if not actually in The Park, we decided to give Little Ranger Peak a try. It's a pretty good early season bet, as it's south facing and tends to melt out decently in early spring. Since today was the first day of spring, that counts!

Logistics: we parked at the Camp Sheppard lot, which is large and equipped with two passably clean, stocked outhouses. Arrived at 10:30 a.m., when it was 36 degrees. The lot has some ice, but negligible--a non-issue for any car. We hiked about five hours today, we also but explored beyond the trail and took our time .When we left at 4:30 p.m., it was a balmy 46 degrees.

Our route: We took the White River Trail from the parking area, and followed it till we hooked up with the Little Ranger Peak/Dalles/Palisades trail. Mileage today: 10.5, but we took a few detours . . . If you just go to the Little Ranger viewpoint and back, it's about 9 mi RT.

Trail conditions: the White River trail is dandy--dry, and only a couple easily navigable blowdowns (well, one is a sit-and-spin if you're short). Little Ranger has about 8 blowdowns, 3 of which require hoofing it around or sit-and-spin (see pic). 10 blowdowns total on the two trails. While there is little snow, there is some compact, slippery ice starting about a mile before the Little Ranger Peak viewpoint. We were mindful of our foot placement on the way up, and used poles on the way down. If The Melt continues, this should be a non-issue in about ten days. If it snows again and the nights are freezing--well, grab yourself a groundhog and give him a good talking-to. We brought spikes, but they're no use; the ice is too sporadic.

Features of the route: big, beautiful old growth trees right out the Camp Sheppard parking lot. More tremendous trees all along the way--I'd wager 200 years old, many of them. The ones near Sheppard look truly ancient. . . Like, 500 years. The view from Little Ranger is quite nice, and there's a great promontory for snacking (see pic). Also, there are yew trees here and there along the trail, if you know what to look for. We saw not a soul today. Happy and safe hiking, Everyone!

Parked along 410 and caught the White River Trail to Ranger Creek. Trail is mainly snow free up to the viewpoint. Just a dusting of powdery snow which must have been overnight as the ground below was frozen. Poles did manage to grip and even stick a bit in the hardened terrain. A few minor obstacles along the way - one tree had a notch cut in it which made footing great.  Didn't expect to see anything from the viewpoint today but we stopped anyway. A big blowdown right above the viewpoint requires a diversion above the exposed roots - maybe 25 feet off trail. The snow begins in about 0.3 and by 0.5 miles is several inches deep with ice below. We didn't use traction and had no issues heading up. The snow is hard and you stay mostly on top - no snowshoes needed. Water was dripping onto the trail from the branches then we experienced frozen rain, and finally snow. We turned around 0.7 from 1198 junction, but not because of the trail. Heading down we slipped several times on the snow-covered ice, but never fell. Poles were helpful and spikes would've been unnecessary.

There would be fabulous views on a clear day above the Palisades cliffs. Unfortunately, this day was overcast with a touch of light drizzle. We could only see the other side of the valley, and further up the valley (most of the time). The cool weather did make the uphill hiking more pleasant than on a hot summer day. At the last viewpoint, 2 of us decided to continue with the loop on the Ranger Creek trail for a total of about 14 miles.

Shortly after the last viewpoint we entered the burn area with acres of damp fireweed and some new douglas-fir seedlings popping up. Thank goodness for quick dry pant legs. The (Norse Peak) burn area is mostly along a ridge line with some steep drop-offs on the right side. Probably not a good place for overactive children or unleashed dogs. There were numerous downed trees even though there were just as many cut earlier this year. So they are still falling and it would be best to always be aware and avoid on a windy day.

We saw a couple elk prints on the trail and some scat (maybe bear). No other hikers, or cars at the trailhead.

We thought of using 2 cars to avoid the 3 mile hike back to the Palisades trailhead but I was not clear where the Ranger Creek trailhead is located. A real trail is a short walk NW of the Buck Creek road/NF7160 that you should use. There is also a cheater trail directly opposite Buck Creek road. Take an extra minute to use the real one please.

We did this as a one-way hike with a shuttle, starting at Ranger Creek and ending at the Palisades TH.  12 miles, ~2700' gain. Coralroot orchids were abundant along the entire route, as well as other saprophytic flowering plants such as Candystick, Indian Pipe and other species of coralroots. Many other wildflowers especially anywhere there was a streamlet and sunshine. This is primarily a forested hike.

Our vehicle at the Ranger Creek TH was parked in the Skookum Flats TH lot, but there's also parking off the shoulder on Hwy 410. The tread and grade going up the Ranger Creek trail is easy on the feet and legs with few rocks/roots; except for the last quarter-mile or so of the trail right before the junction with the Palisades trail. Here the switchbacks have apparently been washed out and/or grounded out by mountain bike tires leaving these steep turns slippery due to the loose gravel and minimal purchase for boots. Other than that small section, the entire route was great tread and easy to follow. We didn't encounter any other hikers until reaching the last ~1.5 miles of the trip.

On the Ranger Creek trail, the forest is drier as compared to the Palisades trail. Where the trees have been denuded by the 2017 Norse Peak wildfire, the slopes are dense with Fireweed plants (not yet in bloom).

On the Palisades trail, panoramic views of the White River valley, top of Crystal Mountain & surrounding peak and top portion of Mt Rainer gradually diminish from view until reaching the north viewpoint where the view is primarily of the river valley.

Decided to avoid the crowds today and hike towards the top of Ranger Creek trail.  Saw some reports on Noble knob and wanted to see if it was reachable from Ranger Creek Trail.  My wife and I usually stay between 8 to 12 miles.  I knew this would exceed our distance, so we went up with an open mind to try and reach the summit.

Parked along 410 around 1145 and headed up the Ranger Creek Trail.  All the blowdowns had been cleared, especially after the Little Ranger Peak viewpoint.  We continued for about 4.5 miles before reaching the split with Palisades trail.  We stayed to the right where you enter into a completely different environment.   Lots of burnt forest.  Lots of green growing up around the old trees.  In less than a mile you will see another split with the Dalles Ridge trail.  We stayed to the right for another 1.25 miles until we reached the fork with Lost lake trail to the right and Noble knob to the left.  We stayed in the middle and the peak is about .75 miles up.  We did encounter a few patches of snow but easy to walk over or around. Peak is around 6,000 feet and snow free.  View was still incredible even with some heavy clouds.  You could see George Lake and Lost lake in the distance.  Looks like you can drive within a few miles of Noble Knob instead of the route we went, but why when you can enjoy all of nature.  

Hike down was a little grueling after we started hitting our wall of 12 miles.  We made it down around 1830.  Total miles was over 15 and our furthest.  Garmin said about 4,700 in total gain but it wasn't that bad since it was gradual.  If you want a long summer hike and away from the crowds, this is the one.  Maybe saw a total of about 6 other hikers and one bike.  Remember to bring lots of water because the forest opens up and lots of exposure on top.  There are a few water sources on the Ranger Creek trail.  We also saw lots of Coral Mushroom along with signs of bear grass starting to bloom.  

Be safe and Happy Hiking!