Gobbler's Knob

Day 357: The "shoulder season" of autumn is my favourite time of year, and good weather is not to be wasted! I lost sleep last night trying to figure out if I wanted to take another kayak trip or go for a hike in Pack Forest, and got up this morning with the issue still undecided. A light frost gave me a little more time to think because I usually wait until the thermometer hits 40° before heading out, and by the time I was ready to leave, Pack Forest had won the argument. Or so I thought. As I put my hand on the doorknob, I said, "Y'know, I could go up Westside Road. That would give me a lot more options. I could go up to Indian Henrys via the old Tahoma Creek trail, or I could go up to Round Pass and then decide if I wanted to go to Lake George or go up to South Puyallup Camp and the Colonnades." Before my alarm system could tell me I'd held the door open too long, I grabbed the Park map from its niche in my hutch desk, one decision made and others pending.

At the parking area at Dry Creek, I was still undecided. Nothing for it but to put the pack on the shoulders and let my feet take me where they would! I was surprised to see a brand-new bridge over Fish Creek hefty enough to support trail crew's trucks, even more surprised to find the rocks, ruts and potholes beyond it nicely smoothed out. At the Tahoma Creek trailhead, I said, "Nah, I don't feel like climbing over root balls today...maybe some day when I can get an earlier start." At Round Pass, Lake George beckoned, but I had forgotten that it was only a mile up. "Too early to turn around," I mused, "but do I have time to make it another 1.6 miles to Gob Knob?" Even with the trail getting steeper, I figured I'd just make it in time to be back at the car by 5.

The fire lookout at Gobbler's Knob (lovingly referred to as "Gob Knob" by all Parkies) is no longer manned, but houses a repeater station for our radios. We sometimes have issues with break-ins, so I was happy to see that everything was secure. I spent about fifteen minutes on top, taking the obligatory photos, and then beat-feeted it back to the car. Total distance: roughly 12 miles. Elevation gain: 2700'.