6 miles roundtrip / 1420′ elevation gain

With another beautiful weekend in the forecast for the Pacific Northwest my husband and I were anxious to get outdoors. We woke up before sunrise Saturday morning and headed to Teneriffe Falls for a day hike with friends. Even though our strategy was to reach the parking area early enough to beat the crowds, we barely arrived at the trailhead in time – parking in what appeared to be the last space!

Our journey up towards Teneriffe Falls began by hiking up Mount Teneriffe Road; a slowly ascending, wide dirt and gravel service road. The road winds through the forested mountainside for the first mile and a half of our journey which allowed for an easy hike with great conversation. After the first half of the hike we arrived at a fork in the road with a sign pointing us towards Teneriffe Falls. As we made our way along Mount Teneriffe Trail it became much more steep, slowly switching back and forth towards our destination. We made our way along the narrow, rocky trail opening up at times showing panoramic views and abundant sunshine. As we neared Teneriffe Falls the trail became very steep and finding a viewing spot among the crowds was not easy. After soaking in the view and snapping a few photographs we were ready to find a resting spot.

We headed back down the trail a few yards below the Teneriffe Creek waterfall, and were thankful to rest our aching muscles from the climb we had just made. Once chilled from the cold mornings air, we were now happy to have the shade of our forested surroundings cooling us from our heated exhaustion. We enjoyed the sound of cascading water in the distance as we refueled for the return trip down Mount Teneriffe. Once well rested with renewed energy it was time to leave the sound of the the rushing waterfall behind. Our journey downwards was easy as we swiftly made our way across the rocks and boulders along the trail. Within no time we reached the wider portion of the trail back on Mount Teneriffe Road. We passed many hikers throughout the day also enjoying the outdoors in the unseasonably warm weather on the last day of January. As we reached the parking area we were glad to hand over our parking space to adventurers just about to start their own journey for the day. The memories of the warm sun atop Mount Teneriffe that morning lingered as we made our way back into the foggy Puget Sound area that afternoon.