Olney Falls on Nov 30

Over the holiday weekend I really wanted to get the family out for a hike. It's been cold here so we haven't stretched our legs properly in a while. Eric was working but I decided he would be joining us too. So we needed a. short drive b. short hike  c. not popular  . We were racing

I decided on Olney Falls, which is in Startup and not too far from Wallace Falls. We were racing the setting sun. The trail head is just a gate on a logging road but we were able to fit two vehicles out of the way directly at the gate. There is also a pull off further back along the road that could fit more cars. You don't need a pass for this, since you're on logging property but you are allowed access. We saw two bikers returning from a trip up to Wallace Lake and otherwise we were alone.

 The hike is all gravel road and flat until the end. Once you reach the second gate it's either all uphill or all downhill. The trail is wide with good footing. Our friend with us had thinner soles on her sneakers and could feel the large road gravel underfoot. Not enough to be totally painful, but definitely noticeable.

 There were lovely peekaboo views of the surrounding peaks.

Second gate at 0.8 miles and the climbing starts

Quickly fading daylight

 We reached Olney Falls without much incident. You hear it before you see it. Eric had done this trail back in June and found it lackluster, but the water flow was much greater on this trip. Don't do it in the summer if you want impressive falls. It needs a bit of rainy season to be worthwhile but I could see this being a great winter hike in general.

 We returned in the dark but with enough ambient light of dusk that pulling out cell phone flashlights weren't necessary. Plus the footing is secure enough to be traversed in the dark. It was lovely, cold and relatively short at 3 miles round trip.

Oxbow Trail Middle Fork Snoqualmie from October 6

Back at the beginning of October I had a weekend day where Eric was working a weekend and I wanted to get out with the kids. The weather was fantastic through most of October and it felt like a waste to not get the kids into nature. Since we were visiting a friend out in the Snoqualmie region, I picked something that felt pretty kid friendly for me solo parenting and was a short drive from my friend's house.

 This trail did not disappoint in the slightest! The falls colors were pretty near peak and the sky had just wisps of clouds. Since the last time I'd been out on the Middle Fork Snoqualmie road, they have paved it!  I was pleasantly surprised. I did park at the first lot I saw and wished I hadn't when I realized that the pit toilet was at the second lot. 

 Oxbow Loop Trail is exactly what it promises, a loop. There's very little trail that you traverse twice, which is nice mentally with little kids.

 There's also some great views along the trail!

 And little benches made from the fallen trees that the girls absolutely loved.

She didn't want to leave the river.