October 6, 2017 Roman 5.8 miles 1,250 feet gained
Recent Hikes
October 6, 2017 Karl 20.5 miles 5,750 feet gained
Interesting loop, which I think I did in the right direction this time. Started at US35, and climbed from there up to Lookout Mountain via the Gumjuwac Saddle. The views were great, stretching from Rainier to the Sisters, though not the best I've seen from there. Lenticular clouds were forming leeward of Jefferson, so I knew something was up. Headed south to...
October 6 to October 7, 2017 Father Guido Sarducci 10.7 miles 2,000 feet gained 1 night
The plan was to spend 3 nights up the Sol Duc River making base camp @ the Appleton Pass junction. From there we would day hike up to the High Divide & 7 Lakes Basin & than spend a day hiking up to Appleton Pass. Mother Nature did not cooperate as it rained steadily from the time we left the Sol Duc TH on 10/6 to the time we got back to our vehicle around 4p...
October 5, 2017 Karl 25.5 miles 4,750 feet gained
Finally knocked this loop off. Been wanting to do it for a few years now. Very interesting, but I think I'd go the other direction next time. Started going down Lava Canyon, which I just can't decide whether it's best first or last in the day? Either way, not prime. Then I followed the Smith Creek canyon up to FR99. The first 7 or 8 miles are relatively flat...
October 3, 2017 pizza pal 5.8 miles 1,000 feet gained
October 3, 2017 Jen 7.6 miles 2,000 feet gained
Working on some unfinished business from the last trip
October 2, 2017 Woodswalker 7 miles 1,500 feet gained
Misty moistey morning.We were hoping for an earlier clearing to the rain today, for a view from East Zigzag. But by the time we got to the lake it was evident that Blue Sky was a long ways away. So we just strolled around at the lake and headed home. The clouds on the water were beautiful.
October 1, 2017 Father Guido Sarducci 4.5 miles 1,500 feet gained
Perfect hike for a wet misty day.
September 30, 2017 Woodswalker 12.3 miles 1,750 feet gained
Great day to get some green views.
September 30, 2017 Karl 12.5 miles 1,750 feet gained
Perfect day for a walk in the woods! Especially the temperate rainforest that is the Salmon-Huckleberry Wilderness, just south of Zigzag. Near-constant drizzle-rain, punctuated by bursts of sunlight at times, meant we probably couldn't have picked a better trail for this most enjoyable dog walk. The salmon were migrating up river to spawn, and the vine maple...
September 28, 2017 Roman 8.1 miles 1,750 feet gained
Last summer-like day, couldn't stay at work.
September 27, 2017 pizza pal 15.5 miles 2,500 feet gained
September 27, 2017 Woodswalker 3.6 miles 250 feet gained
I went with a friend to check on a wildlife camera out in the High Rock area and decided to take a quick stroll up to Hideaway and Shellrock Lakes. The vine maples in the open areas are beautiful and the area is pretty quiet. There was a logging operation loading up on the way in on Rd 58 that we had to wait for. But not too long. Wonderful day wading and st...
September 25 to September 26, 2017 Karl 17 miles 3,500 feet gained 1 night
Finally knocked off the last segment of the Loowit Trail that I'd yet to traverse - from the June Lake to Ape Canyon junctions. Started at the June Lake trailhead, and enjoyed a rip-roaring waterfall into the lake (from recent snowmelt), before beginning on new-to-me trail above. Loved this segment! Some forested, but mostly through lava fields and pumice pl...
September 24 to September 25, 2017 Karl 14.5 miles 3,500 feet gained 1 night
Started at Independence Pass to see what shape the Independence Ridge trail may be in. My answer: terrible! Four significant washouts in the first two miles, and the last mile near-completely overgrown. Good thing the WTA has this on their hit list! :-) Turned towards Norway Pass after hitting the Boundary Trail, then headed south on the "closed" Independenc...
September 24, 2017 Jen 7 miles 1,750 feet gained
Wandered around below the cliffs of Table Mountain.
September 24, 2017 Woodswalker 10.4 miles 2,500 feet gained
Fall Colors are on!! Views in every direction. Slippery snow discourage us from doing the final ascent up to Mt. Tomroy. But we couldn't have been happier. Great day with trail friends old and new.
September 23 to September 24, 2017 Karl 21 miles 4,750 feet gained 1 night
Wandered east along the Boundary Trail from Elk Pass on FR25 for the first time. Hit snow just before arriving at Badger Lake, about 4.5 miles in around 4800' elevation, and stayed in it until returning to the same point again. Dirt bike ruts provided all the clues needed to follow the trail, thankfully. Heh... Tried scrambling up Craggy Peak, but got a bit ...
September 23 to September 24, 2017 runandsew 2 miles 750 feet gained 1 night
Left at 8pm with needed snowshoes. Tons of stars.
September 23, 2017 Father Guido Sarducci 5.45 miles 750 feet gained
September 20, 2017 pizza pal 9.5 miles 1,500 feet gained
September 17 to September 18, 2017 Jen 18.5 miles 3,500 feet gained 1 night
We tried to escape the smoke and upcoming wet forecast, but got rained on the second day. Intended to do the loop up Big Indian, spend a night at Wild Horse Lake, then Down Little Blitzen. Ended up just doing an out and back in Big Indian Gorge. It was beautiful despite sogginess!
September 16 to September 17, 2017 Roman 12 miles 2,250 feet gained 1 night
Made a loop around "Sheep Ridge" with closed road, that used to go to upper trailhead. Also visited little summit on the ridge, old favorite in the area. Only the last couple miles were in the rain, glad I decided to extend the hike as the rain held off. GPS track is in Hillmap link.
September 16 to September 17, 2017 runandsew 9 miles 3,000 feet gained 1 night
Late start at 4:45 up Gumjuwac due to work schedules, so we had to rely on the days when we backpacked with toddlers. Lovely evening hike into the sunset.
September 14, 2017 Karl 3.5 miles 750 feet gained
After a nice jaunt up to the top of the volcano, and freezing our keisters off up there, we strolled over to June Lake to luxuriate a bit and enjoy some lunch in the warm sun.
September 14, 2017 Karl 9 miles 4,750 feet gained
Night climb to see the sunrise. Pleasantly surprised with subdued pastels instead. Stayed on top for over an hour, but the cold was intense so we finally descended for breakfast (a ham sandwich and chips, tbh) below. Another great day on the volcano! <iframe width="540" height="800" src="http://gpsfly.org/gps_map.php?gps_id=7637&w=540&h=800&c=ffffff&m=0" scr...
September 14, 2017 Father Guido Sarducci 10.51 miles 3,000 feet gained
Unfortunately clouds & hazy smoke from the Norse Peak fire obscured long range views from Bearhead Peak & Summit Lake. Summit Lake as always was beautiful.
September 14, 2017 Woodswalker 9.1 miles 1,250 feet gained
Took a good friend up to Flag Point Lookout. The Fret Creek Trail was still mossy near the creek, but everything else is dry, dry dry. Super smokey in terms of views, but still lovely. Amazing day.
September 11 to September 13, 2017 Father Guido Sarducci 9.53 miles 3,000 feet gained 2 nights
Had a nephew visiting from Korea who had never gone camping so camped @ Cougar Rock & hiked up to Panorama Point up @ Paradise on day one. On day 2 hike the Grove of the Patriarchs and then left the park & hiked up to the High Rock Fire Lookout. Great views from the lookout & one could clearly see 4 volcanoes and the most eastern Olympic Mtn. range.
September 10, 2017 Roman 7.5 miles 0 feet gained
Chapman to Crescent Beach (around Chapman Point in low tide), then Cannon Beach.
September 10, 2017 Karl 17.5 miles 4,500 feet gained
Decided to climb Table Mountain, from the Bonneville TH, to try getting as good a view of the Eagle Creek Fire as might be possible. Winds were favorable, as we had mostly fresh, clean air to breath all day long. Surreal may be the word of the day. It wasn't complete devastation, as many (myself included) had initially feared. The "mosaic" pattern of the bur...
September 10, 2017 Woodswalker 4 miles 0 feet gained
Just wandered around on old roads and off trail looking for big old growth trees with a few lovely friends. Ended the day with a nice beach walk. Amazing day. it's been way to long since I've been to the coast.
September 9, 2017 Jen 7 miles 1,750 feet gained
Fun hike along the alt trail to Mt Mitchell. The picture is of the base of the cliffs below Sugarloaf Ridge. Just beyond it is Mt Mitchell.
September 6, 2017 pizza pal 4.5 miles 750 feet gained
September 5, 2017 pizza pal 2 miles 0 feet gained
September 3, 2017 Woodswalker 7 miles 1,000 feet gained
Wonderful day on an abandoned trail up to Basin Lakes in Indian Heaven, huckleberries and lots of hidden ponds. Perfect until we sat down for lunch and Karl noticed a huge smoke plume not so very far from us. it was the East Crater Fire starting. We quickly abandoned plans, let some campers in the area know and got out. Glad I saw those lakes mere hours befo...
September 3, 2017 Karl 7 miles 1,000 feet gained
Thought we had a perfect "safe space" picked out for Sunday's hike! Driving east through the Gorge, the sights were just ghastly. Alas, as we enjoyed lunch beside the beautiful Peggy Lake, an enormous plume of smoke erupted over the ridge on the far side. Holy crap! Less than two miles away, a (no doubt) human caused fire had grown to 1000 acres in almost no...
September 2 to September 5, 2017 Roman 23.5 miles 6,000 feet gained 3 nights
Wild. Rugged. Scenic. Remote.
September 2 to September 4, 2017 B-Dog 5 miles 1,000 feet gained 2 nights
7th Annual Labor Day Weekend Backpacking Trip with the Family. Had a great time up at Dorothy Lake and scored an amazing camp spot. We enjoyed amazing weather, swimming and were fortunate enough to eat fresh fish every single night. We caught Rainbows and Brook Trout. Mindy got to do lots of swimming and was beyond exhausted when we returned home. Here's to ...
September 2, 2017 Karl 22.5 miles 5,750 feet gained
Had what turned out to be a farewell tour through many of my most favorite spots in the Gorge on Saturday. When I got back down to Multnomah Falls parking lot, I could see the humongous plume growing over the Eagle Creek fire. Life in the Gorge will never be the same. Not in my lifetime. Profoundly grateful for having this last opportunity. Set a new PR for ...
September 2 to September 4, 2017 Father Guido Sarducci 26.5 miles 7,500 feet gained 2 nights
Entered Park @ the Staircase entrance & made camp approx. 7.5 miles in @ Donahue Creek. Then hiked up to Flapjack Lakes up through Gladys Divide & summited Mt. Gladys. Expansive views @ the 5600 summit with clear views of Mt. Olympus, Sawtooth Ridge, Mt. Cruiser, Mt. Lincoln & surrounding peaks. Next day hiked up to Black & White Lakes & then a very steep de...
August 30, 2017 pizza pal 9.5 miles 1,000 feet gained
August 30, 2017 Karl 25.5 miles 3,750 feet gained
Felt like doing a little woods walkin' yesterday, so pulled out one I'd had "on the list" for years but hadn't even gotten around to. Headed north on the PCT from Lolo Pass to Buck Peak, where I enjoyed the most delightful brunch with views of Mount Hood over Lost Lake. On the way back, I found myself way ahead of schedule, so I took a 7-mile detour down 100...
August 29, 2017 pizza pal 2 miles 500 feet gained
August 26 to August 27, 2017 Roman 6 miles 750 feet gained 1 night
Placid, Chenamus Lake, and a couple offtrail ponds. Found hunters' hidden wildlife cam, got a few selfies. Lakes were a bit cold - great with the hot weather. Little did I know it was last weekend to camp in IHW in 2017, hope to see these places intact next year...
August 25, 2017 Jen 3 miles 250 feet gained
Falls Creek Cave- what a hoot! We were in there scrambling for hours. Troglodyte fun.
August 25, 2017 Karl 19 miles 4,000 feet gained
What Woodswalker said! Absolutely a highlight of all 2017 summer hikes. The high country up on this side of Adams is just so spectacular. This one's going to be an annual trip, for sure. <iframe width="540" height="600" src="http://gpsfly.org/gps_map.php?gps_id=7555&w=540&h=600&c=ffffff&m=0" scrolling="no" frameborder="no"></iframe>
August 25, 2017 Woodswalker 19 miles 4,000 feet gained
The area up above timberline is so amazing and just made for strolling. The flowers in the meadows below were still going, but they are finishing up. The dwarf lupines etc up above were perfect. We took the Riley Camp Trail up and the off trailed it to Crystal Lake and then just cruised across at about the 6500 line over to Horseshoe Meadows and then down th...
August 22 to August 24, 2017 runandsew 29 miles 6,500 feet gained 2 nights
Incredible trip where we saw the Northern Lights.