Larch Mountain (Washington) 11-22-15

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bobcat
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Larch Mountain (Washington) 11-22-15

Post by bobcat » November 25th, 2015, 4:50 pm

The weather was glorious last weekend, but I only had a half day to spare, so I motored up to Grouse Point Vista and did a quick jaunt (about 5 1/2 miles) up and down Silver Star's poor relative, Larch Mountain. Like some other Larch Mountains, including the ones in the Oregon Gorge and Coast Range, this peak has no larches. What grows at the summit are noble firs and firs being, in early lumber industry parlance, an inferior type of life form, the trade name for noble fir was "larch" - a much more superior species in terms of quality (This is like the labeling of certain fish species on your restaurant menu: "Chilean sea bass" for Patagonian toothfish or "Orange roughy" for slimehead, as examples).

The Tarbell Trail takes you part way up along a ridge crest: it's a rubbly former jeep track like many of the trails in this area. After crossing Grouse Creek, you see a couple of larger Douglas-firs and hemlocks that somehow survived the 1902 Yacolt Burn, until 2014 Washington State's largest forest fire. You also get views of Mt. Hood where the trail passes close to a clearcut.
On the Tarbell Trail to Larch Mountain.jpg
Footbridge over Grouse Creek, Tarbell Trail, Larch Mountain.jpg
'Larch' on Tarbell Trail, Larch Mountain.jpg
The best views, and the highlight of the hike, come at a ridge opening above a massive talus slope. Mt. St. Helens sits on the horizon just west of the snowy summit of Mt. Rainier. Looming across the precipitous Grouse Creek valley is the Silver Star pluton, from Sturgeon Rock to the Indian pits ridge.
Bear-grass frostcicles, Tarbell Trail, Larch Mountain.jpg
Mt. St. Helens and the top of Rainier from the Tarbell Trail, Larch Mountain.jpg
Sturgeon Rock, Silver Star, Pyramid Rock, Indian pits from the Tarbell Trail, Larch Mountain.jpg
Frosty fringes on salal, Tarbell Trail, Larch Mountain.jpg
From there, I peeled off the Tarbell Trail to join an old jeep track to the summit of Larch Mountain. There are very restricted views here because of an encircling toupee of "larches", but the summit does host a fenced in compound of microwave towers. One mile down the access road is the mountain bike trailhead. All these trails were formerly used by ATVs, but their use was banned a number years ago with ATV activity confined to the Jones Creek area, and I saw no signs of recent trespass.
Junction, Tarbell Trail, Larch Mountain.jpg
Comm towers at the summit, Larch Mountain.jpg

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kepPNW
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Re: Larch Mountain (Washington) 11-22-15

Post by kepPNW » November 25th, 2015, 5:19 pm

I still haven't gone that way from Grouse Vista, and really need to. Is it really just 5.5 miles round-trip, or is that one way? If RT, it sounds like a perfect add-on for some random time when I finish Silver Star with daylight left! :)

Thanks for the reminder!
Karl
Back on the trail, again...

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bobcat
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Re: Larch Mountain (Washington) 11-22-15

Post by bobcat » November 26th, 2015, 9:27 am

kepPNW wrote:Is it really just 5.5 miles round-trip, or is that one way?
Last time I did it, it was an adjunct to Silver Star. That was the plan this time also but, well, obligations got in the way. DNR says it's 3 miles one-way, but most other reports put it at less than that. You can also do it via the Cold Creek section of the Tarbell, which is 12 - 15 miles r-t depending on where you start.

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kepPNW
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Location: Salmon Creek

Re: Larch Mountain (Washington) 11-22-15

Post by kepPNW » November 26th, 2015, 9:39 am

bobcat wrote:
kepPNW wrote:Is it really just 5.5 miles round-trip, or is that one way?
Last time I did it, it was an adjunct to Silver Star. That was the plan this time also but, well, obligations got in the way. DNR says it's 3 miles one-way, but most other reports put it at less than that. You can also do it via the Cold Creek section of the Tarbell, which is 12 - 15 miles r-t depending on where you start.
Thanks! Sounds like a great addition. :)
Karl
Back on the trail, again...

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