Summit Loop

Dogs Leashed

Features Birding · Fall Colors · Views · Wildflowers · Wildlife

This trail joins the Uplands Loop in Saltese Uplands about halfway up the main hill. The singletrack trail is narrow but relatively clear of rocks, roots and other debris. It winds upward through a series of switchbacks. A bit windswept, there are almost no trees to impede 360-degree views of the Spokane Valley/Saltese Flats/Liberty Lake area.

About a mile of uphill hiking will take you to the water tower which marks the northernmost point of the trail and the point at which it begins to move east and south, back to an intersection with the Uplands Loop.

There are several intersections with old maintenance road tracks which are no longer sanctioned trails in the area but the tread on this singletrack trail clearly delineates it from other, lesser used tracks. As hikers move back south and down the hill, the views of the Liberty Lake area and south to Mica Peak continue. This is a beautiful trail very near an urban center and well worth the trip.

Tumbleweed, moss, and lichens are prolific in this area! It is also a prime area for spring and early summer wildflowers. Badgers, moles, bobcats, birds of prey, deer and possibly even moose and elk frequent this area.