Between big hikes and mountain summits, I have been working on a project to hike all the trails in the Issaquah Alps – Cougar, Squak, and Tiger Mountains. I was reviewing my Gaia GPS maps, and Squak looked like one I could knock out in an outing or two. Squak Mountain was donated to Washington State as a state park in 1972 bu the Bullet family, owners of the Seattle Times. There is an old stone fireplace near the summit, the remains of their family cabin built 70+ years ago. I first ventured upon over 30 years ago while exploring this area while attending The University of Washington in the 1980s.
Squak is a forested mountain with several distinct peaks. Central Southeast (2 summits), and West. The trails are gentle and go through many land, trees, ferns, and spring-fed stream, which were dry primarily during this last outing and the occasional glacial erratic. I took two days to finish all the trails as I was running late on meeting my friend Ric Merrifield at the Attic in Madison Park.
My second day was finishing up four trail access points from various residential neighborhoods and a section of decommissioned trails used for trail-running events. It took me more time to drive amount all the access points vs. finishing up the trail segments.
The mountain’s trails crisscross each other, making for a nearly endless variety of routes of different lengths and challenges. The signage below should indicate the many trails available to hike. Some are clearly older than others.
I always enjoy the waning daylight through the trees. Trees, trees, and more trees.
With Squak completed, I can focus on my next mountain to finish – Cougar! As always, thanks for #HikingWithHadland, @hikingwiththehad.
