New Year's Day Talus Rocks Loop

To start the new year off, let's visit an old favorite -- the weird rock formations at Talus Rocks in the West Tiger area. Sure, the boulders in Boulder Garden are bigger, and the big round rock standing all by itself off the west coast of Magnolia is definitely a curiosity, but the Talus Rocks have all sorts of strange arrangements of rocks jumbled on top of one another, leaning against each other,...

We'll start from Issaquah City Hall, walk down the Rainier Trail past Jacob Two Trees (the Thomas Dambo troll), then take the HIgh School trail and the Section Line trail up to the Talus Rocks. We'll stop here for lunch and exploration.

We'll come back down by way of the Nook trail, Bus trail (with what's left of the bus from which the trail gets its name), Wetlands trail, out the East Sunset trailhead, and back to Issaquah City Hall.

This is about 6.1 miles, 1300 ft elevation gain -- 2.7 miles up to the Talus Rocks, 3.4 miles back, including an 0.3 mi detour to use the toilet at the High Point trailhead ;-) because everything else will be closed.

Here is the route (including the detour):

https://maps.app.goo.gl/i1AeBr9q1NrU4Q7K9
https://maps.app.goo.gl/wuFVArYoaKT1hPXr7

I asked the Issaquah Alps Trails Club folks if there were going to be any trail work events after the recent storms. They don't have any scheduled yet, but we can help by noting the locations of any damage and getting pictures. We can also do some minor cleanup by moving debris off trails. If you have work gloves or gardening gloves, bring those along. (You'll want gloves anyway, as the temperature will be a bit chilly.)

Logistics:

Meet at the eagle sculpture by the front steps of Issaquah City Hall, on the northeast corner of E Sunset Way and Rainier Blvd S.

Bring water, lunch, snacks. Most of this is on actual trail. It is non-technical, but hiking shoes / boots with good traction are needed, and trekking poles are recommended. There is no snow in the forecast currently. There may be showers in the afternoon, so be prepared for wet air. The Talus Rocks area is always oddly colder than the surroundings, so dress warmly. See note above about bringing work or gardening gloves.

Bus riders: The #554 and #271 have stops nearby, but the #554 will likely be faster, and the event time is set to accommodate the #554 that arrives from Seattle at just after 10am.

Drivers: There is parking *south* of E Sunset Way along Rainier Blvd S. Do not park in the lot just west of City Hall -- it has time limits. Check for time limits in some parts of the lots south of Sunset, especially the parts nearest to City Hall.

Use comments to coordinate, so anyone can see them and respond. (I won't see direct messages til long after the event is over...)

If you are new to riding transit, and want to try it, please do ask how-to questions.