Black Diamond Hill overlooks Green River Gorge State Park in Black Diamond. The 12-mile-long canyon flows west through Flaming Geyser State Park. It then becomes the Duwamish River in the last 12 miles past Tukwila, Washington.
See more trip photos here.
Black Diamond Hill at a Glance
Access: Green River Gorge Springs parking (area info)
Round Trip: 6.7 miles
Elevation Range: 560′-1260′
Gear: none
Route Info: Rich P
GPS Track: available
Dog-Friendly: yes
Green River Gorge State Park
Another car arrived earlier and took the only spot by the gate. So I returned to the other side of the bridge and parked in the Green River Gorge Springs lot. Then I crossed back through the narrow walkway to the gate.
Beyond the oversized lot, I soon entered the state park past the second gate. Then a quick stroll took me through the old mining Franklin Ghost Town. The thistles-strewn path with views en route ran slightly over two miles to the top.
See more trip photos here.
Black Diamond Hill Northwest Summit
One big log debris pile marked the modest high point. Despite the tall brush, far places like Cougar Mountain and Middle Fork Snoqualmie high points were visible. Meanwhile, McDonald Mountain‘s long ridgeline looked quite impressive.
The main summit sat half a mile east and stood at the same height but with less prominence. Views were underwhelming as trees still lined the south. Though, reaching the high point took brief contending with the debris.
See more trip photos here.
Franklin Ghost Town
Soon, I returned to the old coal mining town, packed with rich history. Perhaps it’s most infamous for the 1891 firefighting disaster that killed 27 miners. Much of the remnants are still around since mining ceased in 1919.
I continued uphill a short way to check out the Franklin Mine. The rectangular shaft used to send miners 1300′ underground before it sunk in 1910. A moment of silence, and I scoped out the east views before returning to the gorge.
See more trip photos here.