Recent Hikes

January 24, 2015 Bosterson Deadwood 13 miles 5,250 feet gained

Offtrail exploration of the chute NW of Deadwood Point. Socked appropriately for a gully exploration. Continued to Green Point Mountain, then down the Wyeth Spur as a "shortcut" - ended up getting down in the dark after some trials and tribulations.

January 24, 2015 Megan City of Portland Reservoir Number 6 3.5 miles 500 feet gained

Saturday stroll up Mt. Tabor to take advantage of the beautiful January weather!

January 24, 2015 Pablo Pct: Mt Hood 11 miles 4,250 feet gained

Hike up Dry Creek Spur and returned on the PCT.

January 24, 2015 Rich Eagle Creek Campground 17 miles 4,750 feet gained

January 24, 2015 Roman Tam-A-Lau 6.7 miles 750 feet gained

Gorgeous 60+ degree day in Cove Palisades State Park. Lake Billy Chinook looks like a wide, mighty river from this trail, and its rocky gorge is very scenic. The trail has plenty of views of the canyon and all nearest Cascades peaks - we could see Hood, Jefferson, Olallie, Sisters, Broken Top, Bachelor - only to name the biggest ones...

January 24, 2015 acorn woodpecker Powell Butte 5 miles 750 feet gained

Rode the bike out to Powell Butte this morning for a volunteer orientation about bird surveying at Powell Butte. Was shown the sites on where I would be surveying. Heard a pileated woodpecker in the stands of old trees on the SE slopes of the butte. Then, the family met me and we went out and did another loop. In the sun it was t-shirt weather...in January! ...

January 23, 2015 Mileage Mike Battle Ground Lake 5.8 miles 1,000 feet gained

We haven't been here in decades, and now I remember why. The smell at the parking lot and around the lake wasn't pleasant! It was crowded around the lake with plenty of people fishing but the trail system was devoid of hikers, and only a few groups on horseback were seen. We enjoyed the trail system but it was a bit muddy in places. There is plenty of road n...

January 23, 2015 Karl Salmon Butte 12.5 miles 3,250 feet gained

Really nice "training hike" up Salmon Butte. The first 1.3 miles is along a decommissioned roadway, which has been valiantly turned into a fairly nice trail. From there on up, it's a lush old forest, with a very comfortable, mostly duff, trail underfoot. The grade is consistent nearly the entire way, only leveling off a little bit along the final ridgeline b...

January 23, 2015 acorn woodpecker Skamania Island 6 miles 2,000 feet gained

A wet day, but great vistas, forest walking, and scouting out a new off trail way to make a loop in the area. Oh, and near total solitude, as always here. Sadly, my first actual hike in the area for the year. Quite a departure from January 2014 when I did over 70 miles in 5 hikes.

January 23, 2015 Jim Round Lake 3.5 miles 500 feet gained

Roaming the trails before work today while testing a new pack out. 60# of sand makes even a gentle walk thru the forest into a workout.

January 22, 2015 scotty Larch Mountain 11 miles 3,000 feet gained

January 21, 2015 Mountainkat Cool Creek 7.61 miles 3,000 feet gained

This was a nice, quiet weekday hike to the lookout on Devil's Peak from the Cool Creek Trail. We encountered some snow within the last .5 mile of the summit.

January 21, 2015 Jim Round Lake 4.5 miles 750 feet gained

Took a short hike before work. Just too nice a day not to.

January 20, 2015 Woodswalker Eagle Creek Trail 8 miles 750 feet gained

Waterfalls to numerous to count. Lots of water on the trail. The sun peeked out as well.

January 19, 2015 Tree Spirit Eagle Creek Trail 4.5 miles 500 feet gained

Awesomeness after heavy rain in Oregon last couple days. Lots of rocks had slid down the walls of this gorge, and a plethora of fresh falls that normally are out of sight. Punchbowl, upper and lower, were raging. Full creek, handful of mates on the trail, great short hike-including a slightly treacherous crossing of Eagle Creek just before the Punchbowl drop...

January 19, 2015 Woodswalker Hamilton Mountain 7.6 miles 2,250 feet gained

It wasn't a good view day, but the mists and rainbows were amazing and the falls were completely raging! Great day.

January 19, 2015 Karl Bells Mountain 13 miles 2,750 feet gained

Had a good stretch wandering through the "post-apocalyptic" landscape on logged-over Bells Mountain, in northern Clark County, yesterday. The clear-cutting has been particularly aggressive in the last year, with loads of new views opening up, while plantings a decade or more old are slowly closing up some of the older harvest areas. The landscape is surreal,...

January 19, 2015 Roman Hood River Mountain 4.2 miles 1,000 feet gained

Went with my grandmother to check out Hood River Mtn classic trail, then a few old road grades to the east. That small butte to the east of Elder Rd has some nice views to the east. Terrain around there is pretty open, with multitude of cow trails and old roads - still to be explored... The map is my drawing, not the actual GPS track.

January 19, 2015 Pablo Coopey Falls 4 miles 1,500 feet gained

Late start leg stretcher and trying to improve the approach on the direct way hiking up to Bridal Veil Plateau from Angels Rest TH. Think I found a nice route - go up Palmer Mill Rd to just beyond the end of pavement and take the dirt road that's off to the left. Go up the road a couple hundred feet and head over to the obvious ridge and off you go. Very ste...

January 19, 2015 Gustavo Torres Mount Olympus 7 miles 1,500 feet gained

January 18 to January 19, 2015 Kyle Meyer McNeil Point 13.5 miles 3,000 feet gained 1 night

Wandered up to McNeil Point in the rain with snow on the ground. My subaru couldn't quite make it to the trailhead, so we parked at the last major junction and walked the last 1½ miles each way to the trailhead. It was terrible out—raining and windy, hovering around freezing temperature, and very very strong winds. We made it up the climber's route right at ...

January 18, 2015 Elsie Ridge Cut-Off 8 miles 2,750 feet gained

January 18, 2015 Nat Turner Reed Lake 9.4 miles 500 feet gained

January 18, 2015 Nat Turner Tamanawas Falls 3.6 miles 500 feet gained

January 18, 2015 Bosterson Ridge Cut-Off 7.5 miles 3,000 feet gained

Rain. But not as much as forecast.

January 18, 2015 Pablo Benson Ruckel 13.5 miles 4,500 feet gained

Looking for another approach to Rudolph Spur rather than the PCT which adds a couple of miles. Worked OK. Got up on the snowless Benson Plateau and took the Benson Way trail to the PCT and back to Cascade Locks. Wet and rainy all day but views were available when under 3000'.

January 18, 2015 Roman Devils Rest 7.5 miles 2,250 feet gained

January 18, 2015 Mileage Mike River Mill Reservoir 8.8 miles 750 feet gained

Very rainy day to start off but it stopped before we left. Very few people on the trail, and most were fishing. The Clackamas River was quite high and there were plenty of views! Unfortunately, my Garmin 60CSx died today! It's served us well for many years and it will be missed. I've always enjoyed that the mileage you see on the track is what you get after ...

January 17, 2015 Megan 2.5 miles 250 feet gained

Walk around Lake Park while visiting my parents!

January 17, 2015 Mileage Mike Catherine Creek Shortcut 8.5 miles 1,500 feet gained

I thought we'd go east to avoid some of the rain, so we went to the Catherine Creek area. Unfortunately, it rained hard most of the day! Streams/creek weren't very high, but I'm sure that will change tomorrow. There were no people on the trail and we liked that very much. Saw a total of 8 deer in three separate groups and this was amazing. The last deer we s...

January 17, 2015 Father Guido Sarducci Point Defiance 5.39 miles 1,250 feet gained

Trails are very muddy.

January 16, 2015 Chris Tumalo Butte 5 miles 750 feet gained

January 16, 2015 acorn woodpecker 4 miles 750 feet gained

Unexpectedly ended up in Colorado last weekend for a funeral and had a couple hours the first night to get away and clear my head. Was able to walk/jog from my mother's house to this ridge a couple miles away. Ascended through scrubby sagebrush, lodgpole pine, and cactus through periodic snow to the top of the hogsback ridge, which is the first uplift of the...

January 16, 2015 Nat Turner Crystal Lake 4.8 miles 250 feet gained

January 15, 2015 Jen Cussed Hollow 8.5 miles 750 feet gained

Had fun noodling around on the Lewis River Trail. No one around, warm, cozy,elk musk, rainbows. There is a massive new slide to behold below the Middle Falls. Geology in action.

January 15, 2015 Jim Table Mountain 10 miles 3,500 feet gained

After spending the past 7 blue sky days at work, I decided to attempt Table Mountain today. This would be the third time. The first time, I got side tracked exploring a different trail after taking a wrong turn. The second ended in a complete whiteout in the rocks near the summit following the west side trail. Today, I decided if the weather appeared too bad...

January 14, 2015 scotty Devils Rest 11.5 miles 2,500 feet gained

January 12, 2015 Elsie Dog Mountain 7 miles 2,750 feet gained

January 11, 2015 Chris Meyer Memorial Lake 2.5 miles 750 feet gained

January 11, 2015 scotty Smith Creek 8.5 miles 1,250 feet gained

January 11, 2015 Megan Monitor Ridge (Climbing Route) 8 miles 2,750 feet gained

Left the trailhead around 7 am. Not much snow until around 4800'. Blisters and not great weather made us decide to turn around.

January 11, 2015 Stacey Battle Ground Lake 11.3 miles 1,000 feet gained

Been missing the trails recently, as my winter focus has been more on running than hiking. Sunday I had the opportunity to join friends for a trail run in and around Battle Ground Lake State Park. We ran the outer equestrian trail, upper lake loop, and lower lake loop within the park. Around the park, we ran the Chelatchie Prairie Railroad Trail.

January 11, 2015 B-Dog Source Lake 4 miles 1,750 feet gained

Decided to get up off the couch and go see what the conditions were like up near Alpental. The basin has about 4 feet of crappy snow with an icy crust. Lots of avalanche debris and exposed creeks. Everyone needs to pray for snow !!!

January 11, 2015 Woodswalker Franklin Ridge 11 miles 2,750 feet gained

Great day with 2 new trail friends. Misty and mossy and fun.

January 11, 2015 Pablo West Benson Way 8 miles 4,000 feet gained

Leg stretcher up Rufus Ridge and return on Rudolph Spur. Wet cold miserable and socked in all day, lots of fun.

January 11, 2015 akh Herman Bridge 8.5 miles 2,500 feet gained

January 11, 2015 Roman Hunchback 5 miles 2,250 feet gained

January 11, 2015 Karl Horsetail Creek 11 miles 2,750 feet gained

Total recliner hike! Made a new trail friend, got together again with an old trail friend, and just enjoyed a nice walk through the rainy rainforest. Multnomah Canyon must be one of the more under-appreciated stretches in the gorge. Seems it's often an "issue" of getting past the tourists, but if you really slow down and enjoy it, you remember just how stunn...

January 11, 2015 Mileage Mike Deep Lake 9.7 miles 500 feet gained

This is a really nice state park and we pretty much hiked all the trails today. There's some old growth and a nice (but slippery) boardwalk above some swampy lowlands. There's even a fitness trail with bars for doing other exercises. I wouldn't approach this park during the summer months as it would be crowded, but it's fairly empty now with only a half doze...

January 11, 2015 Father Guido Sarducci Little Ranger Peak 10.42 miles 2,000 feet gained

Drizzly, foggy hike. Ms. 'P' the wonder dog probably ran for 20+ miles. The snow which was present on January 1st is gone.