Myself and two friends started at the White River trailhead and took the 0.2mi connector to the start of the Palisades. Hiking the Palisades on a clear day is a must. There were several lookouts to catch a beautiful angle of Ranier. Most of the trail stays cool and covered, only going out into the open for the views. A couple downed trees on the path that were very easy go over/ around. Other than that, the path is very nice packed dirt. This whole loop is obviously a popular mountain biking spot as that was about 75% of the folks we saw on the trek. There are a bunch of gnats and sweat bees (flies?) that will follow you every now and then, and watch out where you sit as there are plenty of ants in the drier areas.
We brought 2L of water each, which turned out to be just a tad more than necessary; the intersection of Palisades and Ranger Creek trails is right where Ranger Creek starts. Great water to filter from. On the suggestion of some bikers, we continued past this intersection onto the Dalles Ridge trail. About 0.5 mi before we hit Noble Knob there was some very slick snow melt going across the trail. With backpacks and no traction some of us (me) were not able to cross it.
We turned around and made camp back at the intersection of Palisades and Ranger Creek. This was a good spot for one or two tents. Had a nice little fire pit with a small wood stack that is dry-ish if there isn't recent rain. The temperatures were perfect to sleep in this time of year: 50s once dark hits and mid 40s as the night goes on.
In the morning we were met with some classic PNW mist-and-drizzle. Not much to complain about as we went down Ranger Creek trail, which is almost all tree cover. Took a pitstop at Little Ranger Peak, which may be a good view point on a clear day. We continued on until we were once again on White River. We followed it until the beginning of Snoquera Loop.
The climb back up was not very fun after so much downhill, but it was good exercise. Snoquera Falls was crowded but well worth the detour. Theres a nice little rock scramble up to the actual falls that only a fraction of the crowd attempted for some reason. It wasn't easy, but a couple of 10ish year olds in front of us got up and down.
We followed the loop until it hit White River trail once again. From there it was a very short sprint back to our car.
Overall a fantastic loop that could be done in a day if you're looking for a challenge, or two days if you're looking for a fun overnight trek.
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