We hiked Estekwalan Mountain a year after our first time on the mountain.   The first trip last year was in late fall on the snow (link to previous post).

This September trip had hot and dry conditions.   The road up is still a bit rough, but most vehicles will be fine, unless conditions are wet.   We followed the trail to the top, noticing there were several side trails making route-finding a bit confusing, but as long as we headed up, we found the main trail.  Near the top, there are several possible routes up through rocky, steep slopes.   A couple of these are scrambles, but they all seem to go to the same place, the top of the ridge.  The east side of the ridge drops straight down into the Pillar Lake Road Valley.   Keep back from the edge.    From the ridge, the middle part of the hike follows the ridge toward the peak, then winds around the central valley.

To do the loop, continue down the ridge west, dropping into the heavily forested creek valley and up the other side.   The route winds through forest to the top of the bluffs looking south,   We stopped for lunch there.   To complete the loop, proceed down the steep gullies to the logging road beyond.   When we did this last time, it had been snowy and wet.   We found it a bit slippery and used the fixed ropes when we needed to, but our boots dug in when we needed it.   This time, the gullies were dry and it was like scrambling down on ball bearings, very slippery and exciting.   The loop route is an interesting one, but not for everyone.   There is a small shale fossil bed next to the trail part way down and I found some fossils of leaves after a short search.   All photos by the author.    Click an image for a lightbox view.

At the bottom, the trail goes through a logged area.   Wild raspberries were ready for picking.   We followed the logging road back to the parking lot.   The hike is on rough terrain, with many cliffs and rocky ridges to explore.   Fall colors make this a good hike before the snows fall.