2011 Trips
Angels Rest
5 miles of hiking • 1500' elevation gain •
30-something degree weather and high winds did not deter people from hiking in t-shirts and sweatpants.
November 20, 2011
Nick Eaton Ridge
10 miles of hiking • 4000' elevation gain •
This was sorta a bust.
The original plan was a loop starting up Nick Eaton Ridge, and then taking Casey Creek trail back to Herman Creek. Fairly simple. Unfortunately, there was enough snow on top of the ridge that I couldn't find the CC trail intersection. I hiked up and back a fair amount to see if there was a sign, flag, marker, anything to denote an intersection, but nothing. I guess I'll have to come back from the other way and bring some flags with me.
This was also the first time I've done >3000' EG without poles . . . my legs were definitely feeling it the drive home.
November 15, 2011
Angels Rest
5 miles of hiking • 1500' elevation gain •
Weather was good, and almost no one was there. A nice late afternoon hike.
November 13, 2011
Tom Dick and Harry
6.5 miles of hiking • 1750' elevation gain •
My original thought was to get up to Cooper Spur before the coming wet weather. Unfortunately, my brain wasn't in Winter Mode yet because I forgot to bring chains, which made my attempt at driving the Civic up an icy Cloud Cap Road comical if not idiotic.
I turned back, went up to Timberline, then headed to TDH for a quick hike. Snow on the trail started around 4500'. Also, it looked like someone broke into a few vehicles at the Mirror Lake TH when I got back.
November 2, 2011
4
South Sister
12 miles of hiking • 5000' elevation gain •
I swore I would never do this one again with no snow coverage up on the cone. Scree is the absolute worst hiking surface on the planet.
Well anyway, after seeing some of the recent photos of South Sister I thought that I'd give it a go, thinking that there would be enough snow up there to make the descent not completely awful. . . I was sorta right. SS so far as three or four inches of new snow, starting around 9500'. The crater was completely covered, with the north side summit area extremely icy. It was a little dicey getting up and down over there, but overall not a major headache. Microspikes would have been nice, but crampons overkill.
Considering it was a quintessential Indian Summer day in central Oregon, I expected more people, but there were only four of us on the summit, with a few more down below finishing out at Lewis Lake. Unfortunately no one was playing soccer in the crater, like last year.
October 17, 2011
1
Mount Defiance
12 miles of hiking • 5000' elevation gain •
I think I hiked this in the reverse that others normally do: by going up Starvation Ridge, and coming down the Mt. Defiance trail. Higher up, some fall colors have started showing and everything was really wet. There was one person camping up near the radio towers, but otherwise empty on the trail. I was worried about slipping everywhere on my way down, but the trail was in good shape . . . only a couple of really slick spots.
October 12, 2011
Kalalau Trail/Hanakapi'ai Beach
4.5 miles of hiking • 1750' elevation gain •
Up and Down, Up and Down, Up and Down. This short North Coast hike to Hanakapi'ai Beach tops out at about 600 feet, but in the two miles to get there, it feels that you've topped out a dozen times. This trail actually continues for a total of eleven miles along the shore, ending at the secluded Kalalau Beach; a gorgeous area that has its own permanent "homeless" residents.
Hanakapi'ai Beach is beautiful as well, if not deadly due the strong surf conditions. We ate lunch, then continued along a bit farther to pick Guava before turning around. A great last day in Hawaii.
October 4, 2011
1
October 2, 2011
Devil's Rest Time Trial
7 miles of hiking • 2500' elevation gain •
With time before work this morning, I thought it might be fun to see how quickly I could hike up to Devil's Rest. This isn't normally my type of thing, but I had the itch so I went with it.
I hit Angel's Rest in 40 minutes and continued up, but unfortunately a wasp flew into my shirt and stung me right below my shoulder blade. This made the rest of the trip painful, with my backpack rubbing against the welt. Also, I'm sure the ridiculous "There's a Wasp in My Shirt" trail dance cost me a minute or two.
I summited in 71 minutes for this ~2,440ft/3.6 mile one-way hike.
Given how sorta-close to 60 minutes I got, I wonder if any superhikers out there have done a Devil's Rest summit in under an hour.
September 16, 2011
1
The Enchantments
23 miles of hiking • 7000' elevation gain • 2 nights
I enjoyed a wonderful weekend with our large group. We camped out on Lake Stuart and, as Kyle mentioned, a few of us hiked up Aasgard Pass to check out the upper basin. We started our climb a bit late in the day, so I didn't get to see all of the upper alpine lakes like I wanted, but maybe next year.
Colchuck Lake is gorgeous, and I'm definitely going to try my best to grab a permit for that zone next trip.
September 3 – September 5, 2011
Tom Dick and Harry
7 miles of hiking • 1750' elevation gain •
I decided to escape the pea soup clouds of Portland this morning in search of sunshine. Bringing my SLR and 70-200mm lens, I thought it'd be fun to get some close-up shots of Mt. Hood from across the highway on TDH. Lots of people around Mirror Lake, but only a couple once I got past it.
August 29, 2011
2
Broken Top
12.5 miles of hiking • 3750' elevation gain •
An almost-summit.
A couple of friends and I set out from the Green Lakes TH around 5:30am on what turned out to be a gorgeous day in Central Oregon. The first 4.5 miles were relatively flat as we made our way up Fall Creek, then turning East at the lakes toward an unofficial climber's trail (unofficial in the sense that it wasn't on my Geo-Graphics map) that led up to a saddle on the Northwest Ridge. The hike up to the ridge was a mix of scree and icy snow
From the saddle we picked our way up the mostly third-class rock (with some fourth-class spots) on the ridge until we hit the 15-foot crux of basalt at about 9043'. At this point we discussed our options because this clearly was steeper and more exposed than what we were used to. Testing the holds, I moved up a little bit along a crack that runs along the left side of the nose and felt okay about it. However, with no protection and the considerable fall one would experience if they slipped, we agreed that lunch on the ridge was a better idea.
Even without the summit, I would recommend this to anyone who finds themselves in the Green Lakes area and enjoys a good scramble.
August 7, 2011
Mount Rose
10 miles of hiking • 2250' elevation gain •
While visiting a friend in Reno we struck out for this popular day hike near Lake Tahoe. It's fairly stunning how little snow the east side of the Tahoe Basin receives because even at 10K feet, there were only patches here and there, versus the west side where we spotted a few skiers enjoying their late snow season.
The trail starts off a bit crowded, as it seems that many families come to check out the waterfall and meadow which serve as the halfway point of this trail. As we kept going, it got much quieter and we finally starting getting some good views. There were a few different groups on the steeper section, all of them conditioning for Mount Whitney as it turned out, so we chatted and ate lunch on the windless summit. A fine morning all-around, save for this truly painful sunburn on my calf.
July 27, 2011
Mount St. Helens - Monitor Ridge
9 miles of hiking • 4500' elevation gain •
This turned out to be a last-minute thingy.
A good friend of mine and his fiancée signed up for this one a few months ago with their co-workers, but I first heard about it last week. He wanted to know if I could make it, so I tried all week and finally was able to snag a couple of permits on Friday for myself and the girlfriend. Quick tip: if you want to go on a day that's sold out, call the day before and give them your name because people always drop reservations and the MSH folks want your money, badly. That said, there were no rangers out on a busy July weekend checking for permits . . . just saying.
Conditions were almost too perfect: no wind at all, which made the summit very warm. About half of Monitor Ridge has lost snow, which made for some slow-going where the boot path went onto the ash. A lot of people tried to stay on the dirt, but I personally feel that I move more consistently on packed snow, so I sought it out as much as possible.
Glissade tracks are still in great shape, but this might last only another week or two.
July 23, 2011
Nesmith Point
10 miles of hiking • 3750' elevation gain •
The middle section is overgrown a bit but other than that, it was nice hiking here again without having to lug the snowshoes. On the way back down I met a man wearing a blood-soaked cap whom earlier had slipped and fell on his head, so I walked with him the rest of the way to make sure someone would be around in case he passed out. The guy was a trooper however and we made it back with no issues.
July 15, 2011
Starway Trail to Peak 3977
5.5 miles of hiking • 2500' elevation gain •
The original plan was to take the Starway Trail to Little Baldy and Bluff Mountain, however once I hit this unnamed peak, I found a great place to hang out and decided to read for awhile instead. Great 360˚ views.
July 8, 2011
Bandera Mountain
7 miles of hiking • 3000' elevation gain •
While visiting a few friends in Seattle I had half-day to myself, so I drove out into the Cascades for this short hike. I only went as far as Little Bandera, which is a peak separated by a half-mile ridge from its slightly taller namesake, mostly due to my lack of a traction device and a heavily corniced ridge. The views were great and the crowds were small for a Friday afternoon.
June 17, 2011
1
Mount St. Helens - Worm Flows
10 miles of hiking • 5500' elevation gain •
A near-perfect day for this one . . . Kyle's TR says it all. I used snowshoes to about 6000' but they weren't necessary, and if I could do it again I'd leave them at home. Glissading conditions were great and according to the gps, I got up to 15mph! What a blast.
June 8, 2011
Silver Star Mountain
6.5 miles of hiking • 2250' elevation gain •
Went out and hiked this early in the morning and found the snow nice and consolidated. Descended along the ridge and watched the mist roll over everything. A nice start to the week.
June 5, 2011
2
Rock of Ages/Horsetail Creek Tr./Oneonta Loop
10.5 miles of hiking • 3750' elevation gain •
A wonderful day yesterday to get out and tackle this interesting loop. The first 2.5 miles were a real grind, but checking out Rock of Ages Arch and Devil's Backbone made the early going worth it. At the top, I hiked back toward Oneonta creek fording at least six creeks, the last of which had a huge fallen tree to walk on. The descent was wet and muddy causing me to fall a dozen times, so by the time my dirty self made it back near the trailhead I was getting the type of looks that ask, 'why is this guy walking back from Ponytail Falls covered in mud?'
I think next time I may loop the other way towards Nesmith Point and return on #400.
June 2, 2011
Silver Star Mountain Attempt
5.5 miles of hiking • 1750' elevation gain •
I had great time, even though we were unsuccessful on getting to the summit. A combination of getting to the Grouse Vista trailhead way too late, and the mushy snow that even our snowshoes had trouble with, slowed us down enough to make the two friends I went with nervous about getting caught out in the dark. So they turned around about a half-mile from the summit while I kicked up to the saddle to check out the view and take some pictures.
The trail is partially melted out a little past Pyramid Rock and then fully covered. This will definitely be a morning hike next time.
May 23, 2011
Dog Mountain
6 miles of hiking • 2750' elevation gain •
Went with the GF mid-afternoon to Dog Mountain. A lot people were parked in the lot, but almost no one was on the steep trail. Very windy and cold on top!
May 20, 2011
Table Mountain
9.5 miles of hiking • 3500' elevation gain •
Started this one from the unofficial Aldrich Butte parking area and immediately went the wrong way from my car and had to double back after about 15 minutes of walking around the front of the butte. Once I was on track, I had a blast. Not many people on the PCT and only one other person on the summit, who was celebrating his 66th birthday; a great day to do it! This was my first time here and it's one of the few hikes that I enjoyed so much, I could do it again the next morning and not get bored.
Also, while snow was non-existant on the trail, there's still a bit on the summit.
May 18, 2011
Angel's/Devil's Rest
7 miles of hiking • 2500' elevation gain •
Went with a friend up to Angel's Rest and on through to Devil's Rest. Rain the way up, sun the way down.
May 16, 2011
1
Nesmith Point
9 miles of hiking • 3750' elevation gain •
Had a great morning with this hike. Snow on the trail became continuous around 3100', but was packed in pretty well. Snowshoes were helpful, but aren't necessary.
May 10, 2011
Chinidere Attempt from Herman Creek TH via PCT
20.5 miles of hiking • 6000' elevation gain •
Went on this crazy adventure with Shane and Kyle.
May 4, 2011
Indian Point
8.5 miles of hiking • 3250' elevation gain •
The weather was terrible driving out from Portland and I figured that I'd be hiking in full rainwear for the duration. Once I got to the trailhead however, the rain slowed to more of a thick mist, or, "normal."
I took the Gorton Creek trail up to Indian Point, cut across the Ridge Cutoff Trail, turned SE up the Nick Eaton Trail for a short while, then turned around and summited the cleverly named "Peak 3152" on my way back down. It was a great afternoon!
April 24, 2011
Hardy Ridge
9 miles of hiking • 2250' elevation gain •
This was an out and back hike, rather than finishing up with the loop. The first few miles on the equestrian trail were rather boring but once I got off of it to head up the ridge, the trail became more varied. If you go, I'd advise not to wear shorts as there's a lot of brush on the trail. Also, at about 2700' I encountered a couple hundred yards of snow that needed to be slogged through.
April 19, 2011
Gillette Lake
6 miles of hiking • 750' elevation gain • 1 night
A very muddy trail, but great camping. Some websites have this roundtrip hike listed as <300' of elevation gain, but my gps track came out over 900'.
April 15 – April 16, 2011
Saddle Mountain
5 miles of hiking • 2000' elevation gain •
I hadn't been here before . . . a nice hike. We got to the trailhead kinda late in the day (around 3) so the sun that we had early on gave way to an intense, frigid wind and temperature drop. There were only three big patches of snow still left on the trail.
April 8, 2011
Coyote Wall
9 miles of hiking • 2000' elevation gain •
Great Scenery, but a bad day to forget my chapstick.
April 2, 2011
Munra Point
5 miles of hiking • 2000' elevation gain •
Munra Point is a fantastic hike; one that I probably won't be again doing alone. I've done this before with a friend, but by myself I spent half the time thinking, "Wow, if I slip here there's no one to get help, notify my next of kin, etc."
I started from the Wahclella Falls trailhead and took #400 west for about 1.5 miles to the sorta unmarked Munra trailhead. Conditions were good overall with a couple of iffy spots; including the final chute, which was very wet. I got lost as I hit the final part of the descent and ended up trekking all around the Moffett Creek area for a good half an hour before I found my way back again.
March 31, 2011
King's Mountain
5 miles of hiking • 2500' elevation gain •
Went to King's Mountain on Monday with a friend because I thought that we'd actually have some clear skies in the afternoon. Unfortunately it was overcast, with no views from the top. The trail was snow free until about 2800 ft, where it got slushy, then turning into about two feet of snow near the top.
March 27, 2011
March 25, 2011
View trips from: 2012