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December 12, 2021 3 miles 500 feet gained
Forgot to add this one in - partial trip. Had the dog with me and felt uncomfortable going over sllides/dealing with worsening cold weather as I went up in elevation. Listened to my gut and turned around to play it safe and will come back another day.
December 5, 2021 8 miles 2,250 feet gained
A cold but pleasantly clear day. Found yet another abandoned vehicle when walking the road back to make our trip into a loop. Motorized users have completely trashed the top of Bald Butte and the trail heading to the top. Hillside is one huge road. Unfortunate that there is nothing done to stop illegal activity there.
November 27, 2021 7 miles 750 feet gained
Went to "the place of big rocks on the ground". This was an excellent short ascent up a geological wonder, wandering a landscape with Junipers up to 250 years old and volcanic rock stacked as fences by ranchers from the past. Views to surrounding cascade volcanoes (on a clear day, I wasn't so lucky.) Along the rim, there was a view of "the island", a protect...
November 26, 2021 3 miles 750 feet gained
Went camping with gloomy skies over the long weekend.
November 21, 2021 11 miles 1,500 feet gained
Followed Mill Creek road until the pavement ended, 'and the West begins'. Drove until the road started to get rocky, then hiked to the site of a former lookout. Hiked out of the fog and into blue skies, and then back into the gloom.
November 14, 2021 6 miles 1,000 feet gained
Car died during the rainstorm. A friend is letting me borrow a car, but I didn't want to risk driving someone else's vehicle far, so Forest park was my chosen destination today. Always nice to have the option of green therapy close by.
November 7, 2021 5 miles 500 feet gained
Rainy day hike. Originally planned on checking out Idiot Creek Road, but after eyeing the water crossing, we decided to just head up the gradual way up Elk Mountain. Rain was light at first, but then turned into sideways, unrelenting, gear soaking, cold rain and the decision to bail was made. More rain gear needed on a day like today.
October 7 to October 10, 2021 7 miles 750 feet gained 3 nights
Been a little behind on reporting hikes, with an extremely busy October. Volunteered to work and get paid to camp for Snow Peak Way, an annual gathering of snowpeakers and snow peak people. Managed to get a few hikes in on the beautiful property in Tygh Valley, both during the day and even a night hike to do some stargazing, as we had a group of amateur astr...
October 3, 2021 13 miles 2,750 feet gained
Fall got away from me, but I did manage one long hike in before dwindling daylight. Excellent fall color.
September 24 to September 25, 2021 12 miles 2,250 feet gained 1 night
I really wanted this summit. A year and a half of pandemic without climbing anything, and I wanted to get more rock experience under my belt before completely forgetting what I learned years prior in BCEP. The week prior was spent practicing my prusik hitch and watching videos on rappelling and making sure I remembered an autoblock. I felt like I was ready. ...
September 19, 2021 7 miles 250 feet gained
Chased some sunshine last weekend on the Deschutes.
September 11 to September 12, 2021 14 miles 3,500 feet gained 1 night
September 6, 2021 8 miles 750 feet gained
A journey with remnants of giants. Spectacular display of nurse logs on enormous old growth stumps.
August 29, 2021 7 miles 2,000 feet gained
Decided to check out the new trail system at Meadows. Took a mixture of service roads and trail, ending up high on the mountain taking Lower and Middle Wizard. (I'm guessing they will be adding an Upper Wizard?) Ran into one of the trail makers on the way down - he asked us a few questions about whether we made it all the way up, etc... He asked how we liked...
August 22, 2021 7.5 miles 1,500 feet gained
Plan A for today was canceled (a Mazama "climb" of Eliot Glacier) so we made a plan B (Paradise Park from Paradise trailhead). Met at Zigzag ranger station and the mountain was in a cloud... so plan C. Crossed off an easy hike I'd always skipped. Slowly crossing off more Hood hikes till we get all the way around the mountain.
August 16, 2021 10.8 miles 2,250 feet gained
Up down up down... trail and falls were pretty dry, but it was nice to take a dip in the cool water.
August 8, 2021 14 miles 1,750 feet gained
Originally intended to go for McNeil from Top Spur, but the trailhead was overflowing. Decided to head to the next closest trailhead and winged our day exploring the PCT, and then took a jaunt down to Lost Lake. Mostly solitude until Lost Lake. All blowdown on the trail looked to have been recently cleared by trail crews.
July 25, 2021 5 miles 1,500 feet gained
Didn't get an early start, and the day ended up too hot for us to continue with the dog safely. Also, biting flies were vicious and we decided we had had enough of being on the menu. Will try again another (cooler) day.
July 11, 2021 4.5 miles 1,000 feet gained
Just a short hike to the top of a pile of rocks.
July 9, 2021 12 miles 1,500 feet gained
Eagle Creek quietly opened up at the beginning of the month. Team comfort optional decided to spend my last Friday of freedom exploring before I go back to a M-F grind. We left Portland at 7:30, and ended up with the last parking spot close to the trailhead. The morning crisp air was nice, but it quickly warmed up in the canyon. Since there is way less canop...
July 4, 2021 4 miles 250 feet gained
A short easy stroll on the 4th to get the dog away from neighborhood booms.
July 1, 2021 10.1 miles 2,500 feet gained
Was initially going to go early in the day, but I had a friend who offered to come with who couldn't leave Portland until 2:00 pm. We knew we weren't going to be able to drive the road, as it is rumored to be one of the worst forest roads in existence. At a friends suggestion of where the road gets bad, we opted to just park at the junction in a turnout. We ...
June 20, 2021 4.5 miles 1,250 feet gained
It was too hot to do much of anything but go play in water on Sunday. This week's heatwave is going to be brutal.
June 11 to June 13, 2021 15 miles 3,750 feet gained 2 nights
Due to a dropout, I was invited by my friend Anibal to join on a two day trip in the Enchantments. 5 Venezuelans, 1 Persian, and 2 Americans made for an interesting group. The forecast wasn't great, so I made sure to pack extra clothing in case of steady showers. We all weighed our packs at the trailhead, and I won the prize of heaviest pack, at almost 40 l...
June 6, 2021 7 miles 1,500 feet gained
Both Mountain forecast and NOAA had high wind predictions, mostly clear skies turning into partly cloudy. We decided to stretch our legs anyway, with the idea we would turn around when conditions were no longer fun. We stayed at nearby Elk Lake Campground, my friend Tom had booked because we weren't sure if the parking lot at Devil's Lake Trailhead was melte...
May 29 to May 31, 2021 9 miles 1,750 feet gained 2 nights
I hate going out on Holiday weekends, but my partner Zane wanted to get in a couple of days of fun before summer camps start. We really liked exploring little badger creek on the 4th of July last year, so thought we would try for a campsite on the rock formations, but go in via School Canyon. We decided the heat would let us decide if we would explore the lo...
May 23, 2021 10 miles 1,250 feet gained
First group hike in a very long time. Got an invite from my pal Matt Reeder to check out a seldom used trail. We brought along tools and tried to clear sections of trail but it really needs a lot of work. We did a casual cleanup as we hiked. Really great flower display and interesting bones, but very windy as it looked like wet weather was moving in. Trails ...
May 19, 2021 6 miles 2,750 feet gained
Obligatory dog on dog mountain. Took an evening stroll and had the top to ourselves. Ran into my pal Tom Shi on my way up fulfilling his springtime requirement with Fredo.
May 16, 2021 4.5 miles 1,250 feet gained
I was not feeling great yesterday, and the sun was draining. Long (but beautiful) drive out on forest roads. I previously avoided this hike because I didn't think a Prius would make it, but the long gravel road was smooth sailing the whole way. I really want to get out on some of these Gifford backroads and bring my mountain bike. The boulders reported block...
May 13, 2021 5 miles 1,000 feet gained
Visited a couple gorge trails that I normally avoid due to popularity. It was nice way to spend the afternoon with my dog Lily. Hardly saw anyone on the Latourell Falls loop.
May 10, 2021 12 miles 5,500 feet gained
What better way to start a new week freshly unemployed but to stare into the gaping maw of a volcano to question your future? Today was a struggle with a 3 am start, every morsel of food I packed seemed completely unappetizing, and once the sun hit the snow our pale Portland skin was fried no matter how we covered up. My third summit of Mt St Helens but some...
May 7, 2021 4.5 miles 1,500 feet gained
Just a short and sweet trek up on a weekday to get the blood moving.
May 2, 2021 11 miles 1,750 feet gained
Opted for an easy stroll up Grayback after the sufferfest up Defiance last weekend. One of my favorite hikes for solitude. Mount Adams was out and looking pretty majestic. Maybe I'll have to take a stroll up there soon....
April 25, 2021 11 miles 5,000 feet gained
Had to spend last weekend (with it's beautiful weather) in self imposed quarantine, as many of my coworkers tested positive for Covid 19. Ended up doing a 20 mile bike ride once I got my negative results Sunday afternoon. As a result of them testing positive, my skeleton crew of 3 did everything we could to keep our department going minus 5 people. Lot's of ...
April 11, 2021 10 miles 3,750 feet gained
This was long overdue. I'd been up King, been up Elk, and even had attempted the traverse years ago when I first moved to Portland. (It was winter without much daylight, and we had turned around at the rope and went down the gentler Elk Creek Trail instead of finishing) In my head, I wanted to see if I had grown enough as a hiker to finally complete this men...
April 4, 2021 9 miles 2,000 feet gained
Cloudy day in the gorge, but beautiful views (minus volcanoes) and fun playing in the snow. Mostly solitude on Hardy, except for a group of bunny ear wearing BCEP'ers we nicknamed the Hardy Hares.
March 28, 2021 7 miles 2,000 feet gained
It was Katrin's turn to pick our weekly comfort optional hike, so Green Canyon Way #793 was chosen. We made a plan to go up until we hit sketchy snow or blowdown. This trail rises up, and I mean UP, rapidly. One slightly sketchy section of trail that involves a scramble with a dropoff. Trail is narrow, but felt fine event with snow. We brought spikes, but I ...
March 21, 2021 9.5 miles 2,000 feet gained
Fun day with team comfort optional exploring game trails, old farm tracks, and bushwhacking up steep slopes overlooking the Klickitat. No official trails so it was a choose your own adventure day. A bit grey, windy and cold, but it was a good adventure anyway. Mt. Adams tried to make an appearance. Founds lots of animal bones, and spotted a ton of deer. (Sad...
March 13, 2021 10 miles 3,000 feet gained
Still can't park at Herman Creek Trailhead, parked on the road and walked in. I usually wait to hike on Sundays, (I work on cement and I've been having issues with my feet hurting lately) but I couldn't resist a good weather day. So instead of a day of rest, I opted to try for some conditioning. Last week I was inspired looking back across the gorge to the O...
March 7, 2021 15 miles 2,500 feet gained
I've had my eye on this hike for a while, but I was waiting for more hours in the day to make sure I wouldn't be hiking out in the dark. I knew weather was going to be rain on and off on Sunday, but decided to make a go of it even though I couldn't talk any of the usuals other than my partner Zane into joining. Got up at 6 am, but couldn't quite get motivate...
February 28, 2021 6 miles 1,500 feet gained
Went on a long bike ride Saturday, so I slept in a bit Sunday and got a late start. Went with a plan B and decided to head out from the King's Mountain trailhead. Lucked out at the busy parking lot and nabbed a spot just as someone else left. Instead of going up to the summit of King, I set off on the Wilson River Trail towards Lester Creek, without a destin...
February 14, 2021 5 miles 250 feet gained
A few trips over the weekend checking out the neighborhood, before and after the ice.
February 7, 2021 8.5 miles 1,250 feet gained
A day filled with tree stumps with hair.
January 31, 2021 4.5 miles 750 feet gained
Slept in, felt guilty about not getting up and getting out. Decided to try for a late start, breaking my rule of hiking popular trails on a weekend. Luckily the late start gave me some solitude as most hikers were on their way out as I was heading in. Managed to get one waterfall in before dark, and the rain didn't really start coming down until I was back t...
January 24, 2021 7 miles 1,500 feet gained
Wygant trail sadly in need of some clearing again. We stopped shy of the summit due to to some nasty blowdown.
January 16, 2021 14 miles 2,500 feet gained
Set out to explore again away from crowds. Started at Trout Creek Trailhead, onto the PCT. First creek crossing made a little difficult with a newly fallen huge tree. What looks like it used to be a rock hop is now a balanced log crossing unless you want to get wet. The tree was so large that it also blocked the trail prior to the crossing. We passed it and ...
January 9, 2021 6 miles 1,250 feet gained
Bunker Hill was a fun little jaunt up a 20-25 million year old igneous volcanic plug. 1200 gain in 1.7 miles, a good training hike when I am feeling lazy (like yesterday) and want to sleep in and still get some exercise. While no wow views yesterday due to clouds, it had interesting rock formations to scramble on, old growth, and cool fungi to check out. Bes...
January 3, 2021 7 miles 500 feet gained
I should have known better, but I got Eagle Creek Fever and totally forgot that I hate to be on crowded trails. I managed to spend most all of last year off the beaten trail, but curiosity got the best of me. I wanted to see how the trail had changed since the fire. I arrived at the parking lot around 7:20 am, and was able to get a spot close to the trail he...
