Initially I was planning to go up and down via the magnificent Glen Boulder trail and Davis Path. This route is the shortest way to get to the summit of Mt Isolation, also the steepest.

Glen Boulder trail will climb to about 4921' to meet Davis Path, and then descend 2.8 mi to the summit of Mt Isolation 4003'. About 900' of extra climbing one way... but for the great views along the Glen Boulder trail, it will be all worth while! At least that was what I thought at first.

It turned out that indeed the Glen Boulder trail did worth every ounce of the effort to climb, but as I descending on the Davis path for almost an hour before reaching the junction of Davis path and Isolation trail, I was feeling frustrated and worry about the way back. Any ascend at the end of a long day is not welcome, especially this section of Davis Path is long and creepy. So I changed my plan, I would descend via Isolation and Rocky Branch trail. And hitched a ride or walked back to my parking lot 3 mi away.

The first person i ran into on this trip was a guy at the beginning of the Glen Boulder trail, he was hiking down with a small day pack. I assumed he hiked up to the Glen Boulder very early in the morning to watch sun rise. The next person I ran into was about 3 hours later at the junction of Davis path and Isolation trail. He hiked up via Rocky Branch and Isolation trail (so his car was at the Rocky Branch trail head :-) We hiked at the same speed and ended up hiking together to the summit of Mt Isolation. During our conversation, I was screening him to make sure he is not a rapist or serial killer. So I asked him for the ride, and he agreed.

Total Distance: 13.2 mi
Time: 8.25 hrs (including breaks time)