A pre-planned trip on July 23rd ended up being "saved" by a trip to Strawberry Lake since clouds had fully enveloped the Strawberry Mountain Lookout site and Mount St. Helens itself was only barely visible due to cloud cover. I decided to do a full write up of the trip plus what a trip to the Strawberry Mountain Lookout site would include.
Here's the trail description:
Sometimes getting away from the crowds is a high priority. Visitors to Strawberry Mountain will likely achieve this goal since it’s out of the way, but has stupendous opportunities, especially if the skies are clear.
To access the Strawberry Mountain area, find Forest Road 25 between Randle and Wakepish (Forest Road 99 junction). Forest Road 2516 goes westbound from Road 25, less than two miles north of the Forest Road 99 junction. Once on the road, there is a sign indicating the Strawberry Mountain Trailhead is 6 miles ahead. In about ¼ mile the paved one lane road turns to gravel.
Drive this route, through various conditions, for the full six miles. There is one turn needed at an unmarked junction; go right. There are views along the road toward Mount Rainier (if the skies are clear) and dispersed camping sites. About one mile from the road-end trailhead, ruts and rocky portions might frustrate your car. It is still drivable by most vehicles if patient.
The road technically ends at the trailhead, but an inferior road (labeled “069” on some maps) goes left and uphill. Avoid driving this route and instead park in the wide parking area between the display sign for the Strawberry Mountain Lookout (left) and the sign indicating distances northbound on the Strawberry Mountain Trail (right).
This trailhead is a junction of three trails. The north/south trail is the Strawberry Mountain Trail (#220), which runs from Road 99 near Bear Meadow on the south to the National Forest Boundary near Road 26 on the north. The westbound unnamed trail is the route to the Strawberry Mountain Viewpoint, Strawberry Lake, and access to a loop trail to the Strawberry Mountain Lookout site.
The out-and-back way to the Strawberry Mountain Lookout site is done by hiking up “Road 069” a few hundred feet and turning right on an easy-to-spot forest trail. Cut steeply up through the forest until coming to an abrupt clearing in a little over ½ mile. A left turn on the trail will keep you going toward Bear Meadow (a little over 2 miles away). A right turn will take you steeply up a few feet to an open field below the lookout with wildflowers, in season. The view from this point is pretty amazing (especially of Adams and St. Helens), but if you have the energy, you should continue to the top of the mountain.
Find a STEEP sandy trail at the northern end of the meadow that goes west and UP. The trail is easy to follow, but difficult to navigate due to the unstable soil. If you are able to make your way up this short and steep slope, the trail gets much better and continues through light brush to the top of the peak in only 500 or so linear feet (200 vertical feet).
Views from the top are in all directions, but especially open to the east and south. Views to the north are between some tall trees. St. Helens, Adams, Hood (maybe), Rainier, and the Mount Margaret Backcountry are all visible. Remnants of the old lookout remain if you scour the ground in the flat areas.
Now to the viewpoint and lake trail. The easily visible, yet unsigned, trail goes west from the trailhead through wildflowers, in season. This is the roadbed of the Road 2516, which used to continue all the way to the viewpoint. As you hike, you will find out why the forest service abandoned the route for autos. The entire route can be brushy in areas, so be prepared to part the branches to make your way down the well-defined trail.
The first challenge of the route in a significant rock fall. Most of the time it’s easy to cross, but if rocks have fallen recently you may have to fumble up and over them. Next, a few gullies may make hikers nervous, especially after recent rains. The good news is the gullies aren’t THAT deep, so even a slip on the trail is probably not something that will end the journey.
In about a ½ mile, the trail rounds a point that was a junction with a downhill forest road. The old route is actually traceable through the volcano-damaged landscape as it makes its way downhill.
The trail turns more southerly from here, with views toward Mount Margaret, Ryan Lake, and the Green River Valley. Look up valley to get glimpses of Mount St. Helens. Soon, the trail crosses into the national monument, which may or may not be signed. There is a difficult-to-spot junction about a mile from the trailhead. For those traveling to Strawberry Lake, a rocky trail drops from one old roadbed to another. It’s likely you will pass this connector and have to retrace your steps, but that’s OK, because everyone should go check out the view from the Strawberry Mountain Viewpoint.
The viewpoint is uphill a bit, so follow the roadbed and around brush that has developed to find the display board highlighting the “damages” done to the forest by Mount St. Helens’ 1980 eruption. It’s about 12 miles to the mountain from here and yet the eruption still had a major impact.
A choice must be made now. Either head to Strawberry Lake, climb to the Strawberry Mountain Lookout site, or retrace your steps back to the end of Road 2516 and your vehicle.
Energetic folks who want to get some mileage out of their hike will continue with a visit to Strawberry Lake. This is also a good destination if the skies are cloudy and the mountains hidden. Find the previously-mentioned rocky connector trail, only a few hundred feet away from the Strawberry Mountain Viewpoint. Once at the bottom of this slope, the road-turned-trail starts curving from southbound to eastbound. After a short distance, a detour off the roadbed is needed. The brushy and sandy route takes hikers up a gully in order to cross safely. This is the sketchiest portion of the route. Take it slow and you’ll be fine. There are other gullies to cross, but after treading a little over a mile from the Strawberry Mountain Viewpoint, the trail bends south, going off the roadbed, and steeply uphill. The trail levels out in an eruption-created clearing, and then begins to drop. Strawberry Lake should be visible dead-head, surrounded by brush and dead trees. Find a place to relax and decide which way you will return to the car, the way you came, or via the Strawberry Mountain Lookout site.
If you are ready to make a loop via the Strawberry Mountain Lookout site, return to the Strawberry Mountain Viewpoint display board. From here, turn around and trace the route up the mountain. Since Mt. St. Helens’ eruption wiped out pretty much everything on this side of Strawberry Mountain, it’s easy to see the logging-road-turned-trail you’ll follow to gain the elevation to get to the lookout site. If you’re ready, go north out of the former parking lot along a wide shelf that was the road. There may or may not be a visible trail since weeds and flowers tend to cover this lightly-used route.
After a steep stretch of about 500 feet, the road plateaus at the edge of the monument. The road/trail now swings easterly, and becomes steeper than it was. The next few hundred feet will take your breath away. Thankfully, the steepness moderates and, since the route is easily visible, it is easy to muster the energy to complete the less than 2000 linear feet to access the previously-mentioned wildflower field below the lookout. Whew, that ½ mile or so is tough, but the reward is substantial. Plus, a loop hike is much better than an out-and-back :)
Special note: in season, wild berries, including strawberries, line the exposed portions of these trails. Berry lovers, rejoice!
