Blewett Pass is snow free, with few bugs. Birding is pretty good. Few butterflies or wildflowers to speak of. There is a great 360 degree view with 2 wood benches at Post #20.

A short but rewarding day: http://alpinelakesaficionado.blogspot.com/2010/12/swauk-ridge-4205-12710.html

Swauk Discovery Trail is a wonderful 2 mile loop on Blewett Pass. The trail is mostly flat and is a nice educational and scenic walk through a variety of habitats – thick north facing forest and open hot south facing forests with a variety of trees etc. In the early summer it is a wildflower smorgasbord. I think this trail is hiked a lot for ecological studies with Central Washington University. If you want a break on the drive from Seattle to Wenatchee, check it out. My dogs especially liked this outing thanks to the very recent elk tracks leading the way. Trail is in good shape and you could hike it in flip flops if you wanted. Turn south off highway 97 at Blewett Pass and drive up about ¼ mile to a large parking area. NW Forest Pass is needed.

This is my first trail report post – I hope I get it right! I wanted to see if I could get down into the Colockum State Wildlife Area from Blewett Pass, so I studied Green Trails map 210, and then took a solo day hike, setting my goal for the end of the Naneum Creek trail, #1381. Since FR9712 is blocked by a down tree between the FR9716 and FR35 intersections (plus I don’t think my Prius could go too far on those roads), I decided to try a XC ski trail “shortcut”. I drove to Blewett Pass, turned south onto FR9716 and drove about ¼ mile to the trailhead for the Swauk Forest Discovery Trail. (Pit toilet at the trailhead.) I followed the loop trail “backward” – clockwise - about a mile then branched off to the left onto a trail labeled “XC-15”, which headed up to a saddle between Diamond Head peak and another unnamed peak. It’s probably easier to ski XC-15 than it is to hike it – there were several down trees, a rockfall, and some of the blue blaze markers were hard to find. There are also patches of snow on the upper portions. But I did OK until I got to the final portion, which requires a steep climb up a difficult rockfall. It wasn’t easy but I made it up to the blaze that tells you to head to Haney Meadows or FR9712. I chose the latter because it got me off the rockfall sooner. Once I got off the rockfall the hiking got a lot easier, although there were still patches of snow. I soon arrived at FR9712 and followed it south (through more snow patches) for about ½ mile to the intersection for the Naneum Rim Trail, #1234. This trail was a joy to hike – no snow, lots of wildflowers and great views of Table Mountain and down into the Naneum meadow. When I dropped into the meadow (picking up Naneum Creek trail, #1381) I found that the snow was melting fast, and so there were lots of streams going across the meadow, some quite large and fast-flowing. I almost turned around here but after lunch I did a bit of scouting and found a place where I could jump across the largest stream. I hiked another mile but eventually found almost continuous deep snow under the trees. I got as far as the Howard Creek trail (#1372) intersection and then started losing the Naneum Creek trail under the snow, so I turned back. I didn’t want to tackle that rockfall again so I just hiked back down FR9712 and 9716. The weather got warm, as predicted, but a steady breeze, the occasional cloud, and being in shady forest most of the time kept me from getting too hot. And I had great solitude – there was no one else on any of the trails or road. Maybe due to that down tree on FR9712? I would like to try this set of trails again, once the snow melts, but I would rather start at the Naneum Rim trail, which would make it easier for me to reach the end of the Naneum Creek trail, and get back, in one day. If I can’t drive there on FR9712 because of the down tree then maybe I can take a bicycle, or just come up FR35.

We did the long loop. We needed a short hike to do before returning home and this was a perfect choice! It was hot, but there was a heavenly breeze to make the heat tolerable. We saw 3 elk (2 cows and a calf) near the beginning of the hike where Mt Rainier first comes into view! The 2 3/4 mile loop goes through forest and open areas with views and is esp beautiful in the fall when the larch are golden! There weren't a lot of flowers blooming except for some beautiful branched red paintbrush.