8 miles of hiking • 1750' elevation gain •
Vista Ridge Trail was great, tons of avalanche lilies carpeted the ground. There was lupine and Indian paintbrush here and there, along with some heather and a few other types of flowers. We crossed 2 tiny patches of snow not really worth mentioning other than to acknowledge what an incredibly low snow year we had.
Hood could be seen thru the burnt trees as we headed up toward 600. Upon reaching Y'East Basin we had views of St Helen's, Rainier and Adams, as well.
We got a relatively early start so backpackers were all we saw on the way up .... but we passed a lot of folks on the way out. The trailhead-parking area was full when we returned around 12:30p.
Weather was warm and sunny. There were no bugs of consequence so it was a great day!
