Trail 8 (11E24)

The northern entrance to Trail 8 starts at a bridge crossing from an intersection with Trail 1, then it goes into a dense forest of bigleaf maples, on a narrower shelf trail following the edge of the hillside. It’s nice and shaded, starting off fast and flowy, but watch out for log hazards. There are frequent root bands in the trail, some creating bigger obstacles and ledges. It comes up to several tight switchbacks that are challenging to make the turn smoothly, and one has an embedded rock ledge on the inside of the corner. The trail is shelfy and narrow in between the switchbacks as it ascends the hillside. Expect some deep ruts in spots as it keeps climbing south, and a super troughed section dug out a couple of feet below the forest floor. The south end ends on Rock Creek Road.