Wayfaring Day 106

October 14, 2025 Tuesday

An absolutely beautiful day with blue skies and highs in the low 60s. We took it easy this morning, having a little breakfast and enjoying our dogs. Around 1:00 we took a 30 minute drive to visit Granite Falls. We parked and walked down to the falls. It is a short hike to the falls down a few flights of stairs. The water falls over massive levels of gray granite in a steep granite gorge. It’s no surprise that there is a large granite mine just across the highway from the trail. This is also home to the largest fish ladder we have ever seen. The falls and the ladder are both quite the sight to behold.

The falls are very close to the town of Granite Falls and we decided to get a snack and some hydration before moving on to our next objective. There is a McDonalds in town so we just did the drive thru. We then drove back out past Granite Falls to our next adventure. Our destination is a hiking trail called Old Robe Trail.

Old Robe Trail, also known as Historic Robe Canyon Trail, is a trail that leads down to the Stilliguamish River where there are remains of the old abandoned railroad. The parking area is right alongside the road and in front of the trailhead. The trail begins as a flat trail through the woods and soon thereafter there are a string of four switchbacks that take you to the floor of the canyon. After a few hundred feet through lush forests and reeds we reached the river. The scene here is a wide beautiful rocky river with fall colors along the shore. The rapids are relatively loud and become more so the further you hike down the river.

The river narrows surprisingly as you began to near the area of the trail where the landslide destroyed the trail. We were unable to reach the first tunnel but we could at least see it from where the trail dissolves.

We made the trek back up the switchbacks and reached our car. The car was still there and unharmed which we hear is not always the case. We weren’t too worried since it was parked on a fairly busy highway but that is no guarantee of safety. The drive back was pleasant and short.

This evening we sat around with the dogs and made tacos. We may get one more day of really nice weather. Other than preparing for our return home, no plans have been made but maybe we will come up with something.