Caution: its a 9 mile hike and you get into it a good 6 miles before you realize that the last 3 are a very difficult adventure. Trail #8 is in high need of repair from recent weather. That being said, I would happily do it again, only in reverse of the route shown. This way I could navigate the difficult stretch on fresh legs and feet. I did this with an infant in a back carrier. Had a great time, love the trail. Just think that people should be warned that after 6 miles of decent hike you encounter... lets call it Nature at its Best.

Took the dog out for a beautiful afternoon trail run. Lots of blowdowns from the January storm along the Mima-Porter #8 portion of the trail. No maintenance has been done on the trail since. Segment #20 and Green Line #6 portion of the trail was free of blowdowns. We were able to get around and climb over the blowdowns just fine. Made for a fun obstacle course. The blowdowns created some drainage issues along the trail. Water current was running down right along the trail on portions of Mima-Porter #8. Skunk Cabbage and a few trillium were in bloom along the trail. Fun and muddy if your able to get around all the blowdowns.

A pleasantly underrated hike through a beautiful section of Capitol Forest, myself and two others backpacked this seemingly miscredited loop. According to the above report, this hike is the "Sherman Creek Valley" trail. Instead, we could only find D.N.R. markers labeling it as the Mima-Porter Trail #8. This confusion made us wonder if we reached our intended destination, or were settling for another hike based on directions acquired and convenience. The directions listed are somewhat incorrect, you will probably still find the not-so-clearly marked trailhead following them, but not without doubts. you can easily web search directions to Bordeaux Rd. and from there take a right at the first fork you come to, drive less than half a mile, turn right onto D-4000 (look closely for the road sign on a large tree), and then park at the intersection of that gravel road with D-4400. From there you will start the trail heading in the westerly direction (or on the driver's side if your car is on D-4000). Look for a D.N.R. marker labeled Mima-Porter trail #8 and you are on your way. A few short minutes into this hike you will be provided with an option, the path forks and there is a sign indicating you can go left 6 miles to Falls Creek Campground, or right 3 miles to Falls Creek Campground. This is due to the fact the trail is an oval-shaped loop with the longer portion going left (or southward). There are good and bad points to this hike as follows. The trail itself is secluded, but on a nice weekend (like Labor Day wknd for example) you will encounter a few people. This trail seems to be far more popular with mountain bikes and equestrians than it is with backpackers. As such you should not be surprised to have to yield to these faster and more momentous trail users often. Also, watch out for road apples. The scenery is very nice, you forget that you are in a heavily-logged forest because this stretch is essentially untouched by chainsaws. The trees provide welcome shade for 90% of the hike, and you are walking along a small creek for at least half of the trip. Being an avid fisherman, I was disappointed in the waters--no real places to dip a line to speak of. I did spot a couple of pan-sized trout, but 99% of the waters are realy unfishable. Another disappointment was the lack of suitable campsites. I enjoy seclusion when backpacking, and did not attain that on this trip. Camping is discouraged most everywhere, with the exception of improved and boisterous campsites. Despite our best efforts, we had to settle for a spot a few feet away from a logging road with some traffic. On a positive note, there were lots and lots of edible wildberries (huckleberries--both pink and blue varieties, little wild blacks, thimbleberries, salal, etc.) All-in-all, not a regretable hike, but if you are accustomed to the glory of the Olympics, this hike will not imrpess you. However, for an overnight getaway, very near town, it is surprisingly beautiful. Happy trails!

I can confirm the former entry: "We actually found it at the junction of the D-4000 and D-4400 lines. We marked the spot with our GPS at N 46 55.228, W 123 06.927. From that spot the Mima Porter Trail No. 8 also goes south to Mima Falls. This hike goes north across the road down to Trail No. 20." You will find a little parking area right at the trail head. Trail right now is very muddy - met some mountain bikers that gave up. This is not a spectacular hike with grand views, unless you consider massive clear cuts as such. Although not a short hike, it is easy with no strenuous elevation gains (took me less than 4 hours). Multiple streams are crossing the trail and further into the summer, you might want to bring mosquito repellent. Most of the way you are covered by foliage, so sun blocker is not a must. I heard a lot of shooting practice at the beginning and end of the hike, but most of the times, it is very peaceful. The Lost Valley Creek part is the definitely the prettiest part. This is surely one of the better hikes in Capitol forest.

This is a fine little hike in the Capitol Forest. Check out the Hiking Sawtelles' Feb. 2010 report for some useful details. It has been raining for days, now, so the creeks were high. Sherman Creek, in particular, was roaring. All of the bridges were intact, but nearly all of the trail was a puddle. The Lost Valley Creek segment is especially pretty, featuring a number of active beaver dams. I think I'll come back in the spring.

What an awesome hike. We found this in the Day Hiking, Olympic Penninsula book and decided to make a go of it. The directions to the trailhead were a bit confusing and we think that the road names may have been altered since the book was published. The book says to find the trailhead at the junction of the D-4000 and D-5000 lines. We actually found it at the junction of the D-4000 and D-4400 lines. We marked the spot with our GPS at N 46 55.228, W 123 06.927. From that spot the Mima Porter Trail No. 8 also goes south to Mima Falls. This hike goes north across the road down to Trail No. 20. The wife, dog and I really loved this trail and the variety of environments. That first breakthrough into the cut area was magnificent. Once we got down to Sherman Creek, the soothing water sounds stayed with us all the way around and back to the No. 8 and No. 20 junction again. Quite a bit of the trail was muddy, but not too bad. We especially enjoyed the last leg along Lost Valley Creek through what looked like a tree tunnel.