Hike Little Saint Helens via Hansen Creek

The road to the hike is rough in some spots but overall any car can make it up. Quite a lot of campsites along the first mile if you choose to camp here.

The trail is well maintained and easy to follow. You start out by cutting across the road and starting at the Hansen Creek trailhead. Follow the trail as it loops around the mountain giving you some great views to the east and south. Just over two miles in, you run into a Y in the trail; if you are heading up to the top of Little Saint Helens, take the trail to the right, otherwise continuing straight stays on the ridge and you never get to the summit.

About another quarter mile, there is a log on the left with some cairns on it. Take this path up an old logging road to the top. It gets a little brushy but the path through the is defined. You get some great views of Rainier as you gently climb. In another half mile, you will be met with two choices; 1) take a hard right and head up to a small clearing on a hill, 2) continue straight for open views of Rainier. 

As a warning, there were a lot of signs of bear in the area, so I recommend being alert and making noise through this section, just in case. 

Return the way you came. There are a lot of forks and splits in the trail. If you choose to explore further, be sure to have a map available because you can end up a long way from your car requiring miles of walking on a road to get back. 

Details:

• 7.0 miles roundtrip
• 1,109 ft elevation gain