Poo Poo Point

Mt. Rainier

The Trail

View of Lake Sammamish

 

Saturday, May 11, 2015, my husband and I hiked up Tiger Mountain in Issaquah, WA. to Poo Poo Point. My youngest is in Boy Scouts, and we tagged along on their activity. I’ve been wanting to do this for a long time, and I was super excited! I charged up my camera batteries, put on my hiking boots, my hippie hat,  and my bright green shirt (in case I got lost), and off we went!

You may be wondering why it’s called “Poo Poo Point”. Contrary to the boy’s ideas (giggling the entire way), it’s name is a reference to the steam whistle sounds in the early logging days. The actual “Point” is a small knoll on the shoulder of West Tiger Mountain. Around the 1970’s, the owners at the time, Weyerhaeuser Corporation, logged the area around the Point so well they took out the stumps and everything. The result is a clearing that is now used as a launchpad for paragliders, many of whom backpack their gear two miles up the mountain, and float back down. Yes, people actually do that. They pushed me out of their way as they jogged by me (yes, jogged) on their way up the mountain. (Who are these people? Are they even human?)

If any of you have seen pictures of me, you’ll know that I am not a skinny little thing, but I try to stay active and though I’m not the fastest person, my pure stubbornness to finish what I start will get my butt up that mountain.  (I am a Taurus, after all. Slow and steady wins the race.) Also, I have a tiny competitive streak, especially when there are boys around (grown or otherwise). I blame this on growing up with an older brother who loved to show me up every chance he got. The fact that he was 5 years older and twice my size did not strike him as having an advantage over his little sister.

So, the first part of the trail is made up mostly of stone steps. Yes, steps. It’s very picturesque, but wow. Steps. As you go farther up, the mountain (but not the trail) becomes less steep as it zig-zags back and forth across the Yah-er Wall (the steep face of Poo Poo Point). As you keep going up, the trees of the regenerating forest become smaller and spaced farther apart. Not quite as pretty, but no more steps! Woo!

And did I mention that I just had gallbladder surgeries a few weeks ago? Yes, surgeries, plural. Two consecutive days of them. The first day to remove stones and insert a stent, and the second day to remove the gallbladder. And that I had actually just been back in the hospital the Tuesday before our hike to have them remove that stent they left in me from the first surgeries? 

Just over 1 1/2 miles up the mountain, we came to the South Launch Viewpoint (insert oohs and ahhs here). Here you get an unobstructed view of Mt. Rainier (see pic). Keep going another 1/4 mile and 140 feet and you reach Poo Poo Point and its North Launch Viewpoint (more oohs and ahhs).

Here we all crumbled to the ground (except for those inhuman backpackers who began to unload their stuff and prepare for launch) and looked out over the quaint town town of Issaquah nestled between Tiger Mountain to its east and Squak and Cougar Mountains to the west. To your right you can see Lake Sammamish, and the city of Belleview on its far side. It was actually clear enough while we were there that we could see the snow-capped peaks of the Olympic Mountains.

And let me tell you, it was all worth it. The only bad part, is now we had to go back down. The boys ran most of the way, and yes, my youngest took a dive and came up bloody. I, with my expensive camera, carefully picked my way back down the rocks and was the last one down.

Four hours and multiple blisters later, we were back at the bottom and watching the paragliders. We were also starving, and so with a wave to Poo Poo Point, we headed to the Triple XXX diner to replace all those calories we’d just lost.

I definitely need to invest in some hiking poles and thicker socks.

The husband and I at the North Launch Viewpoint