We only had half day for the outing so it had to be somewhat shorter and easier, and preferably somewhere close by the highway. Sauer's mountain near Leavenworth fit the bill.
We arrived at the trailhead at 3:30 p.m and started hiking shortly afterwards. There were 3 couples on their way down we met and after that we had the trail to ourselves... only had to share with the few lizards, bees, and birds. To my liking, we did not see any snakes. Would not mind to keep it that way for the rest of the season.
The trail starts to climb right from the beginning and I can imagine one can really break sweat here on a hot summer day. Fortunately soft breeze that accompanied us for most of the way made our ascend pretty enjoyable.
After about half mile there is an intersection and the trail splits for another half mile or so. We took the longer (left) fork on the way up which offered pretty views of surrounding mountains, including Icicle Ridge and Tumwater Mountain, and higher up we also saw Leavenworth nested in the valley below.
The view of Glacier Peak announced by a nice handmade sign was not available due to dark stormy clouds gathering over the mountain but apart of that we enjoyed variety of great views all along the way.
Balsamroots lined the whole length of the trail. Thousands and thousands of beautiful yellow blooms. Even though little past their peak, they were still spectacular; however if you'd like to experience this magical yellow garden this season, you should not delay more than few days.
With somewhat leisurely pace and frequent stops to enjoy the views (me) and catch breath (Chad) we were back at the trailhead at 7:00 p.m.
Very nice trail. Around 5 miles RT and 1600 ft elevation.
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