Silver Star Trail #180

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The northern trailhead is located at the end of Forest Road 4109, which is recommended for high-clearance vehicles only, not passenger cars. This trailhead is likely to be closed by snow between November and March. The southern trailhead is located on state lands and a Discovery Pass is required to park there if you want to avoid a fine. Park off of W-1200, outside the gate and along the side road - DO NOT block either the gate or the side road.

It's often possible to reach the southern trailhead in winter when the peak's higher elevations are snow-covered. A snowshoe adventure up the peak's south ridge is an excellent winter-time adventure.

From its northern trailhead, the Silver Star Trail #180 starts as a singletrack dirt path that climbs fairly steeply out of the parking area through a young maple forest. It soon comes to a closed road and follows this old fire lookout access road most the rest of the way up the mountain. The open slopes along here are great wildflower areas in the spring.

In just under a mile, you'll pass the signed lower end of Ed’s Trail #180A and then, at 1.4 miles from the trailhead, an unsigned junction with the Chinook Trail #180B. After passing a couple of false summits, the trail dips into the forest near the junction with the upper end of Ed’s Trail #180A and, soon thereafter, the junction with the Bluff Mountain Trail #172. The old road becomes really rocky at this point, but you'll soon come to another old road, the Silver Star Summit Trail #180D, which leads, in 0.25 miles, to the summit of Silver Star Mountain.

From its southern trailhead on Washington Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Road W-1200, the #180 is a fairly new logging road. Follow this road for 0.8 miles, and 0.1 miles after the road makes a bend to the right (northeast), look for an older road coming in from the left (north). It is upslope of the road and may be faint at first but it soon becomes obvious. Follow it as it climbs up the flank of Silver Star's southern ridge to a junction with the Grouse Vista Trail #180F (another old road, sometimes called the Pyramid Rock Trail) coming in from the left (south), 3.1 miles from the southern trailhead. Continue up and to the right, past a junction with the Indian Pits Trail #180E and the Sturgeon Rock Trail #180C at 3.6 miles to the old road that is the Silver Star Summit Trail #180D.