Trailhead location:
43822 SE Mt Si Rd, Tanner, WA
Directions:
From Seattle, take I-90 East to Exit 32. At the end of the off ramp, take a left. Go to the end of the road and take a left on SE North Bend Way. Approximately .25 miles down the road, take a right on SE Mt Si Rd. Cross the bridge and there will be a parking lot on your left. This is overflow parking in case the main parking lot is full. Roughly .1 miles further down the road there is another parking lot on your left. This is the main parking lot for the Little Si trailhead. Get here early or it will fill up.
Trail:
Little Si is pretty easy as far as trails in the Northwest go. Stuck in the shadow of the much taller Mount Si, Little Si isn’t exactly imposing on the nearby landscape. At approximately 5 miles round trip and 1200 feet of gain, Little Si is a good warm-up hike for the spring or for those just getting into hiking.
The trail starts just behind the latrines in the parking lot and quickly gains a bit of altitude. An overlook 5-10 minutes into the hike provides a decent view of the valley below and a good preview of the sights to come. The trail continues to climb and you head into the woods. Once in the woods, the trail flattens out for most of the way towards Little Si itself.
If hiking early in the season, beware that areas of the trail can get fairly muddy. So, plan on bringing boots instead of hiking shoes if you don’t want to get mud on your ankles. 1.5 miles into the hike, you’ll run into a memorial bench for a climber from the area that tragically died on Everest in 1996. A couple hundred feet past this, you will come to a fork in the trail. Take a left to go rock climbing, or take a right to continue on the trail.
As you can see on your left, you are making your way around Little Si to approach from the back. Once you hike around the cliffs, the trail takes a left and begins to gain altitude again. Depending on your experience, some sections can be a bit steep, but overall it’s pretty easy. Eventually you will come to a lookout point looking up at Mt Si and north. This is a good spot to stop for a break and eat lunch out of the wind. The summit is another 200-300 feet down the trail with good views of the surrounding area. Once you’ve had enough of a break, turn around and head back the way you came.
