2.5 hr
Overview
The Bluff Mountain approach may be the longest of the several options ending at the summit of Silver Star Mountain, but is exceptional for a few reasons: 1) it tends to be much less traveled; 2) you can "climb" three mountains in a day! and 3) you get to hike atop a fun, jagged, exposed ridgeline. Abundant wildflowers are an added bonus in late spring and early summer, and there are views of various drainages that feed into the Washougal River to the east and south. Most of the hike undulates along the ridge, which means you'll have short elevation gains on the way back. The Bluff Mountain trail (#172) starts at the Bluff Mountain Trailhead and follows an abandoned forest road for the first three miles. Despite this non-aesthetic gravel pathway, your view all around you is fantastic right from the start. You peer down the wide open valleys of Copper Creek to the west and Bear Creek and the Washougal River to the east as you traverse the top of a ridge. In springtime, the abundant bear-grass is in bloom, and if you keep your eyes open, you can spot columbine, tiger lily, yellow rattle, paintbrush, hawksbeard, lovage, and other northwest gems. Huckleberry, bracken, thimbleberry, and young noble firs crowd the path. There’s a long drop on the road after you've passed around the slopes of Howie Point, and the trail heads off to the right before the end of the road bed. Smooth hawksbeard, a dandelion-like Eurasian invasive, paints these slopes bright yellow in the summer. After about two miles you'll see Bluff Mountain become pronounced in front of you. At mile three, you'll be upon it as the trail starts to veer to the right (west) of it. If you feel so inclined, you can scramble up to the top to get some quick views. However, that climb will be anti-climatic in retrospect after summiting Silver Star. You're at about the half way point. The trail gets far more interesting from here as you continue on open slopes scoured by the massive Yacolt Burn, a conflagration which began in September 1902. The trail heads
Trail Stats
0.0 km
746 m
1333 m
0 m
—
Photos
400px-BluffMountainHikeMap
400px-BluffMountainHikeMap
400px-BluffMountainTrailMarker
400px-BluffMountainTrailMarker
250px-SS09_SummitZoom02
250px-SS09_SummitZoom02
250px-Pacific_ninebark_%28Physocarpus_capitatus%29%2C_Bluff_Mountain_Trail
250px-Pacific_ninebark_%28Physocarpus_capitatus%29%2C_Bluff_Mountain_Trail
250px-SilverStarBearGrass
250px-SilverStarBearGrass
250px-Lupine_and_paintbrush%2C_Bluff_Mountain_Trail
250px-Lupine_and_paintbrush%2C_Bluff_Mountain_Trail
400px-LittleBaldyBeargrass
400px-LittleBaldyBeargrass