We arrived around 7 am on Saturday morning to beat the rain. 

Lots of fall colors and beautiful leaves right now! Not much of a sunrise or view at the summit. It was very windy, and it started to sprinkle. 

We saw quite a few people coming up on our way back down. Always a good work out when the weather isn't the best.

Walked the Rattlesnake Ledge trail up to all three ledges Monday morning in the sunshine.  Parking is free at the main lot or you can park at the adjoining Palouse to Cascades state park lot with a Discover Pass.  Restrooms are open and functional though the one this morning takes the award for stinkiest bathroom of 2025 by quite some margin.  The trail is in really quite good shape, no damage, nothing blocking, no brush, etc.  Interestingly there was high wind warning signage at the base of the trail that I hadn’t seen before - pretty good idea given how exposed the ledge is on top, (though it was dead calm today.)  One other quick bit of info - Rattlesnake Lake looks to be even a little bit lower than when I was up at the end of September so it’s still a great time to go see the Moncton ghost town bits if you are looking for a spookier experience.  

Not an overwhelming variety of wildlife out today, a couple raven, some loud bluejays seemingly gloating over the Mariner’s loss…, a bunch of little brown squirrels but also a fair number of little chipmunks out as well.  The fall color is pretty good, some yellow in the big leaf maples and a bit more red in the vine maples especially higher up the ridge.  One quick humorous bit - there was a young woman with her significant other just in front of me as we made the final climb to the first ledge.  It was her first time up and as she crested the top she let loose some colorful language expressing her surprise and amazement how really awesome the views are up there.  I tongue in cheek commented to watch her language but honestly no need to apologize, it’s a gosh darn awesome view.  A relatively easy and approachable hike with super big payoffs on a clear day.  

Found Phone!

Found a phone near the lake. Please comment if you are missing your phone!

We arrived to a nearly empty parking lot on this rainy, windy Sunday. Privies and portable toilets available. 

We happened to begin our hike when the rain was at its heaviest, but nothing our rain jackets couldn't handle. The downpour produced small streams flowing down the trail and sizable puddles to hop over. Despite the rain, no obstacles on the way up.

We have done this trail many, many times before, but something about this outing felt different. We noticed more stumps along the path and the forest seemed to have thinned out. 

As expected, not the best day for views at the top. It was impressive to see how fast the clouds were moving through the sky with the winds. We stayed back a ways and did not venture out onto the ledge due to the wind.

Always a reliable trail.

Have done this hike several times in the past but never this late in the season. This was a great experience and something, I would highly recommend.

Comparatively fewer people on the trail than normal, and maybe 15 other people and 2 chipmunks on the ledge when we got there.

The trail was 100% fine. No mud, no snow and very doable for the 3 hiking virgins we brought with us. 

Main surprise was how retracted the lake was. That was a very unexpected view. Definitely make sure to stop by the lake before or after going up. You can see all the old tree stumps usually hidden by the water and enjoy a rare quiet here.