Pretty straightforward trail, well maintained. Would not take small children due to exposure on the landslide section, although it has lately seen trail work and poses little real hazard. Forest is interesting. Below the ridge crest, it's a Douglas-fir forest that burned almost completely a couple hundred years ago with a moderate severity burn maybe 80-100 years ago. Steep barren cliffs along the south margin of the ridgetop make it relatively fireproof, so up there are some very old trees (Alaska yellow-cedar, for instance) and some very unusual ones, like krummholz western yew. The severe winter climate on the ridge means that montane species like yew and western hemlock adopt a subalpine appearance. Views from the lookout (which appears to be mostly a replica, with very few bits dating to the 1940s) are quite good thanks to some tree-cutting by NPS. Good view of the landslide that created Lake Crescent.

This trail feels much longer than 7 miles RT. It took us about 3 hours and 20 minutes RT. The slide area is VERY sketchy. It’s extremely loose and in some sections there is nothing to hold on to. I hugged the wall and took it slow but it could have gone south real quick if the sand beneath my feet gave - which I half expected to happen. The trail is as wide as one shoe in a couple areas, and again, extremely loose. Tiny rocks and debris were falling from above as we crossed. I’m surprised the trail is open, it would make a steep fall. We only came across 4 people during our hike. I recommend at least a half gallon of water on a warm day. 

Great hike for a warm Summer day since your in the shade 95% of the time.It's been probably a year since my last trip up here and found only one new obstacle that is not terrible to get through but combined with the old log that's crossing the trail made it hard for shorter legged folks. About 1/3 of a mile after the start you will find this combo (photo below). Very few bugs today, trail in good shape to the top. The slide area is worse than my last trip, and should not be crossed by those without respectable footwear. A hiking pole is another great tool for safely crossing the slide. As usual not many other folks on the trail and a quick dock jump after the hike was just the ticket for today!

My hubby and I decided to ride our bicycles along the Spruce Railroad Trail with intent that on our way back we would stop and hike the Pyramid Peak trail (Rather than driving all the way around the lake from PA to the parking for this hike, note that this trail is also accessed 5 miles down paved trail from the parking lot for Spruce RR trail- so if you drive around you will cross Spruce trail to access this hike.) We locked our bikes up and headed up the trail. At about .5 mile in, there is a new tree down with a thick trunk you can straddle over fairly easily but hopefully will be cut thru soon for you to pass more easily. At first the grade is gradual (like a mountain bike trail) thru a nice thick moss forest! We noticed salal berries and orange lilys. Note that the trail is dry and dusty but in good shape, until you hit that washout zone, yep, it is legit hairy, it's loose scree and pumice,with a foot wide trail for about 100 yards with shoots straight down the mountain for 100s of feet should you fall. We saw several turn around here and without poles, they aren't wrong! We felt good with proper hiking shoes, poles and slow stepping, flattening piles of pumice and pebbles out in each step. We had a few small loose rocks fall as we were crossing so we wondered about our choice to pass here. All is well again for the most part once you cross the slide area. The trail starts climbing more like a switchback hiking trail up the side of this peak, you gain elevation fast and get a few peeks of Lake Crescent along the way on this forest hike. There were about 3 more blowdowns with 1 additional (somewhat) hairy crawl over a downed log, as the dirt on the ledge where the log is resting has some loose dirt, step carefully, mindful is the key here again. Near the top there are 2 peeking tom trails for those anxious near the top but just keep going. (Note this felt longer than 3.5 miles up) Once at the top you are rewarded with a cool lookout structure and 360 views of Lake Crescent, the Strait and glacier carved foothills. A shoutout of thanks to the family that headed back ahead of us, as the path across the scree was flattened down and seemed much easier to cross on the way back, also on the way back thru this section, you are heading uphill which definitely makes for easier traverse and foot placement. A very adventurous day with a nice bike ride and rewarding hike, if you bike you can also stop for a swim in the lake!

Great hike with a wonderful view. It has a nice steady incline. The trail was great minus the washout. I’ve hiked this a few other times and the slide area is definitely getting worse. Loose dirt and rocks make it sketchy. Only one other hiker on the trail.