Trail closure - Lime Kiln Trail

**Update as of 7/29/2014 - According to many trip reports on WTA.org, the trail is not closed 2 miles in, despite signs (and the Snohomish County Parks website) saying otherwise. Many reviewers hiked the trail with children and had no problem with the trail conditions. Keep in mind that there are steep, narrow parts along the trail, so make sure to supervise your kids to avoid accidents. :-)
I ran across this trail closure today and wanted to let you know about it. The Snohomish County Parks and Rec page has the following posted about the Lime Kiln Trail:

* TRAIL ADVISORY *     DUE TO SLIDES AND UNSTABLE CONDITIONS,THE LIME KILN TRAIL IS CLOSED FOR ALL USE AT THE WASH OUT AT APPROXIMATELY 2 MILES IN.  THE BRIDGE, NEAR THAT LOCATION, WILL ALSO BE CLOSED FOR MAINTENANCE APRIL 14th-18th, 2014

This is a fabulous trail and I hope that they are able to get a safe path around the slide area soon! I would check the Snohomish County Parks and Rec Page or the Lime Kiln Trail Reports on the WTA site for updated info.

Here is a picture of the lime kiln from the last time we hiked there in 2012.

Stay safe!

Lord Hill Regional Park ~ March 25, 2014

I know I haven't been posting much lately. I'm in college full time as well as homeschooling my two boys so there hasn't been as much time for hiking lately. We did manage to get out once during my spring break. We went to one of my favorite local places, Lord Hill Regional Park. We originally decided not to go in the morning because it was pretty wet outside. Around noon, the weather was looking okay, so we changed our minds and decided to head out. It (of course) started raining on the way there and continued for the first 30 minutes of hiking. The trails were muddy, but we came prepared with boots and/or shoes that could get dirty. We only saw a couple of other people who ventured out in the rain on the trail that day.

You can see my son is somewhat drenched from the rain.

 We went up to the lookout off of the pipeline cutoff trail (my favorite lookout, and a great place to eat lunch). We stopped to have something to eat under some trees that were keeping us drier. After we'd been there for about 15 minutes, the rain stopped and some blue sky started peeking through the clouds!

The view from the lookout.

I loved the way the water on this lichen was catching the sun.

We even found a snake sunning himself along side the trail on the way back to the car.

We saw some  flowers, including skunk cabbage, announcing that spring had arrived.

Salmon berries are in bloom. 

Trillium was up and blooming as well. 

It was nice to be out and get some exercise and fresh air. The flowers and sunshine were a nice reward too!
I'm taking the summer off from school so I should have more time to hike and will try to blog the hikes that we do over the summer.

Happy Trail!