Mileage Mike went hiking January 12, 2014 9.1 miles 2,500 feet gained

Catherine Creek Exploration Hike

1

This area is just plain fun on those stormy days when you want to avoid the torrential downpours. It drizzled for most of the day, and the wind wasn't too overpowering, except for the gusts on the drive home. Only saw a few people on the trail! We explored an area at the northern reaches of the Catherine Creek hiking area. What we found were locked gates and private property. We evidently wandered onto unmarked private property, and only found this out when we ran into barbed wire, and we were on the wrong side. We won't be going to this area of Catherine Creek again, but were glad to see what was at this boundary.

Trail Talk

1 person has hearted this trip.

Karl · January 14, 2014

Wow, sounds like we were there on the same day!

See my post for a few shots. Did you see that persistent rainbow over Tracy Hill?

We were the first to the trailhead, around 9:15, but there were probably 10 cars when we got back to it about 2:30.

Mileage Mike · January 15, 2014

Too bad we didn't get a chance to see each other! We veered left before the Catherine Creek crossing and headed up the powerline road to the back of the syncline. Really nothing much to see except a bunch of private property and barbed wire. Last month (I think) we went to the Tracy Hill area and it was a big logging mess! We were terribly disappointed to see the devastation, and the trail was like soft jello and slippery!

We only saw a partial rainbow at the TH, and it was beautiful! Last year we saw a full rainbow hang in the area for a bit, and I got a great picture, similar to yours! By the way, great photos as always! I've always loved that Cherry Orchard sign!!!

Getting there early is a great idea, but we tend to get out late, even during the short winter days. We arrived at about 11am, and there were three other cars when we got back at 4pm. The wind gusts in the Gorge were quite turbulent, and the wife didn't enjoy trying to keep the car on the road.