Eight Mile Trail

First off, this trail is not 8 miles. I was like, "Why are Washingtonian's always naming things Eight Mile for no apparent reason?" - so I finally just Googled it. Turns out, just like in Leavenworth, one thing is named Eight Mile because it is actually that distance from town, and then several things (like Eightmile Lake) get the same name. Seems people are not very creative when it comes to naming things. 

But I digress; I didn't choose this hike because I was looking to hike 8 miles. I only wanted to take advantage of a beautiful day and I didn't want to drive more than 2 hours. Because I don't typically like to re-do hikes, I did my scavenger hunt on the WTA website to try to find something that suited my needs. 

Sammie loved the big stumps

As I explained on my Pharmaceutical Hiking post, this is technique where you bring up the Hike Finder Map and just start clicking. It's not efficient, but it's surprising what you can find this way. I was very intrigued to find this "Squire Creek Pass via Eight Mile Trail" off of the Mountain Loop Hwy, because I really thought I knew all of the hikes in that area.

A beautiful biggie that is still standing strong

I wasn't expecting much...I mean if it was any good I would have already heard about it, right? The first review I read on Alltrails confirmed my assumptions by saying "Views at end are nice but I don't think it's worth the major effort to get there." But how can a 5.2 hike with under 3k elevation be a major effort? What a baby 😉...so with just an hour and half drive from my house, I went to check it out. 

You'll get some nice views mid trail too!

I was glad there was a least one car at the trailhead because after driving the 6 mile forest road it really felt like I was in no man's land. The trail started off really nice, but progressively got worse and worse. I used my hands in a couple places to climb the root ladders, and tried not to think about how my legs and knees were going to feel on the way down. 

Finally getting out from the trees I came across the other two hikers. "Enjoy the view at the top" they said as we passed each other, but unfortunately that put in my head that I was almost there. And in actuality,  another half mile is not all that far. But if you are a hiker, you understand just how far this can feel. 

A tradition on my Intragram

I started doing my "this has to end, this has to end" chant. Partly just to make noise (this really feels like bear territory with all the blueberry bushes) but mostly because it's what I do when I'm in a bad head space. (Last time was just before the Desolation Peak Lookout.) I was fully expecting the smattering of clouds in the sky to be covering the "nice" view of whatever mountains may have been visible from this pass that felt like I was NEVER going to get to. What a baby.😆

Sammie needed a rest by the infinity pool ;)

I do love when you get your mind blown in a situation like this; I was almost brought to tears. Though I also had to ask myself, "why is nobody here?" Yes, it was a bitch of a hike, but no worse than Mailbox Peak's old trail, and everybody is clamoring up that thing. And IMO, this view is far superior. How amazing to have it all to myself on a glorious Labor Day weekend. 

Driving through Darrington on my way home I passed what I teasingly referred to on my IG story as a "sign from God" and stopped for my post hike treat.

It says "BEER" in case you can't see it

The River Time Brewery is a really cute place with great outdoor seating that I highly recommend. Happy "don't be a baby" trails! Things to know list below for those interested. 

If Jesus turned the water into wine, how could he not like beer?

Things to Know about Eight Mile Trail

1) You should have navigational assistance unless you are very good at reading a trail. It's not that it's super unclear, there are just a couple tricky spots that are easy to miss. 

I almost missed a right turn here because I was so distracted by yet another huge tree ;)

2) A couple people mentioned in comments that they believed the mileage to be longer than stated. Normally I would just say they are being babies 😜but I do have to agree this feels closer to 6 miles RT. 

3) You could make this a thru hike with two cars by hiking out the Squire Creek Trail, but it doesn't sound worth it to me. That trail is even less maintained and has an added 2 mile road walk due to a wash out.

4) Alltrails will tell you that you are at the TH when you actually have about 15 more minutes of driving to do. I guessing this is because the road was blocked at some point, but as of 9/6/2026 it's clear all the way to the TH and as far as forest roads go, it isn't that bad. 

5) The Oso Memorial is not far from Darrington. You should stop if you can; they've done a really nice job with it. Hard to believe it's been 12 years, but it needs to be remembered. 

6) I personally cannot imagine doing this with a full backpack, but there is amazing looking camping at the pass. Maybe in a few years I'll forget how brutal this hike was and go back, because seeing that view at sunrise and sunset really might be worth it.

You'll need to know big rock/little rock to camp here

7) There is a rock climbing area about a mile in. Bring a rope if you are so inclined. 

It's called 8'o clock rock...looks fun, right? 

 

8) Gotta end on eight 😆but I have to point out that you can actually see the Three Fingers Lookout at the pass! I thought it was pretty cool, since I'll never be doing that one. Well, never say never, but I highly doubt it.