Taylor Mountain by Tiger Mountain in the Issaquah Alps doesn’t see many visitors. And that’s the appeal of it. In contrast, Taylor Mountain Forest‘s extensive trail system to the southwest attracts lots more hikers.
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Taylor Mountain at a Glance
Access: Highway 18 across from Tiger Mountain Trailhead
Round Trip: 11 miles
Elevation Range: 1360′-2600′
Gear: none
GPS Track: available
Dog-Friendly: yes
Taylor Mountain, the Backstory
It’s been six years since our first visit to Taylor Mountain. Back then, we experienced our first bear encounter. Unfortunately, though, my effort in warning others on WTA about the incident created an unexpected backlash.
Like Twitter, Negative hateful comments soon poured in. Then users crawling out of the boonies had suddenly become experts on bear attacks. I’ve since asked the staff to take down the post. But the experience had further reinforced my distaste for online forums.
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Hiking the Road
Taylor Mountain makes an excellent moderate walk. It has just the right amount of altitude gain and nothing vigorous. There were no grand views on top to write home about. But along the way, we would catch glimpses of distant peaks.
Like before, we entered the mountain across from Tiger Mountain Trailhead. The gated road was right off the busy Highway 18. So I was extra mindful when pulling out of the parking area after the hike.
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Roadside Views
Once we gained more altitude, glimpses of the Olympic Mountains slowly appeared. Then the distinct sight of Tiger Mountain emerged across the freeway. But views into the Snoqualmie River Valley were scarce.
Two clearings on the north side gave a partial view of the valley. Soon, the mood darkened as we slowly walked past our previous turnaround spot.
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Taylor Mountain Summit
Before long, we reached the woodsy summit four miles in from the gate. The top was at the crossing of the main road and an old brushy roadway that stretched across the ridgeline.
There were no views on top. But I fought my way through branches to catch glimpses of Tiger Mountain. Or anything for that matter.
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Brew Hill Summit
A short lunch break and we moved on to today’s number 2 goal–Brew Hill. So we walked southeast on the old trail from the top of Taylor Mountain. Then in a mile and a half, we reached yet another forested summit.
Brew Hill didn’t have a definitive highest point. So we walked around the top for a bit. Then we hung out by the high point for a few minutes before leaving.
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Outro
On the way to Brew Hill, we walked through the lush old-growth with towering trees. There we caught glimpses of Rattlesnake Mountain and Mount Si from the northern edge. I was even able to see Mount Index and Three Fingers!
On the way out, we went through Taylor Mountain’s summit again. Other than a couple of photo stops, we continued walking down the road back to the gate.
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