Email updates
December 26 to December 27, 2012 Tilly Jane Ski 4 miles 1,500 feet gained 1 night
A buddy and I headed up early Wednesday to climb up to the treeline at Cooper Spur and build an igloo. Unfortunately, there were a couple set backs. The first was careening out of control into a snow bank. We were just a few miles from the turnoff to Cooper Spur from Highway 35. There was about a quarter or half inch of snow on the ground, freshly plowed wit...
November 10 to November 11, 2012 Cast Lake 9 miles 2,000 feet gained 1 night
This turned out to be much more snowy than I expected. We hiked to Cast Lake from the south Burnt Lake trailhead up road 2701. That road **sucks.** Once we got on the trail, snow started in earnest and we ended up sleeping on about six inches. It was beautiful to see the forest just before it gets buried for the winter.
October 11 to October 14, 2012 Ice Lake 33 miles 8,000 feet gained 3 nights
## Day One (320 miles of driving) Five of us left Portland Thursday after work for the long drive out to Joseph, our two cars arriving within minutes of each other at the Wallowa Lake trailhead a little past 1am. We donned our insulation quickly and commenced with the drinking, standing in a small headlamp-lit circle in a dark, empty parking lot. It took a b...
September 15 to September 16, 2012 Blue Lake 12 miles 500 feet gained 1 night
Went for another weekend in the world's greatest place (for two months a year). This time, my wife Christy and I and five other friends met up at Blue Lake for a campout. Christy's never been to Indian Heaven before, so we made a loop from our camp at Blue Lake north on the PCT to Bear Lake and then south on the CCT back to the Rock Lakes. We picked a quart ...
September 1 to September 2, 2012 Bear Lake 21 miles 1,000 feet gained 1 night
Wonderful tour of Indian Heaven. Met up with my dad at Lake Wapiki for the night and otherwise roamed aimlessly and explored lakes. No mosquitoes.
August 18 to August 19, 2012 Soda Peaks Lake 5 miles 1,250 feet gained 1 night
Another delightful adventure out to Soda Peaks Lake for swimming. This time I carried out a raft and swam for hours and hours. This lake gets surprisingly warm and it's position at the edge of a ridge gives a consistent wind which eliminates mosquitoes.
August 11 to August 12, 2012 Wildcat 7 miles 250 feet gained 1 night
Beautiful, restorative trip into Siouxon Creek. This place in August is magic. Go to 3 miles up the trail at 3pm for a perfect swimming hole and rocks to jump from. The pool below Siouxon Falls has all the fishes.
August 4 to August 5, 2012 Soda Peaks Lake 5 miles 1,250 feet gained 1 night
After a wedding at Edgefield, we awoke in Edgefield, enjoyed brunch, and headed out on a hot Saturday to go find some swimming. I managed to fit all of Christy and I's backpacking gear into just my ULA Ohm, so we had a quick (but strenuous) hike into Soda Peaks Lake. Our campsite had a precut pile of wood next to the fire pit (thanks strangers!) so we drank,...
July 5 to July 6, 2012 Kopetski / Opal Creek 11 miles 500 feet gained 1 night
This was predominantly a fly fishing mission. My friend Nick just acquired a fly rod and wanted to learn how to flail his arms about, recite some incantations and reel a fish in with it. It was so warm and beautiful that we swam quite a bit too! The fishing was nonexistent where we camped at the confluence of Opal Creek and a side creek at the end of the tra...
June 22 to June 25, 2012 Bull of the Woods 30 miles 5,500 feet gained 3 nights
Awesome restorative trip into Bull of the Woods. It poured rain halfway into the first day until the morning of day three. My feet may have never dried out, but we saw some beautiful wilderness, witnessed the recent fire's destruction first hand, and finally had a dry night with a fire on night three. Go *now* and see the bear grass and rhododendrons—they ar...
June 2 to June 3, 2012 Dublin Lake 14 miles 4,000 feet gained 1 night
The lake was melted out this time! Didn't see any snow the entire boring hike. Had a wonderful fire and good company. Caught four eastern brook trout on a #16 tan caddis fly—try the northern shore near the underwater logs at sunset. We had the lake all to ourselves on a dry June Saturday. Maybe the big climb keeps people away!
May 11 to May 12, 2012 Dublin Lake 14 miles 4,000 feet gained 1 night
I think I've finally hit summer backpacking shape. We hiked up to Dublin Lake in 2.5 hours after work on Friday without nary a stop. We had time to collect wood for a big fire, I caught a healthy looking brook trout from a thin strip of melted lake on a dry fly, and we enjoyed the solitude. The lake was predominately frozen over, but the hike was 99% snow fr...
May 5, 2012 Mud Lake 20 miles 5,000 feet gained
My friend Kevin and I intended to do the Herman / Benson loop as a one night backpack, bagging Chinidere Mountain on day one. I've been out that way five times now and have always been turned back due to snow or weather conditions. On this trip, it was both. The hike up to and a bit past the Herman Creek crossing was snow free, but then the snow started. Onc...
April 20 to April 21, 2012 Ruckel Creek 16 miles 5,000 feet gained 1 night
My good friend Kevin and I carried snowshoes and skis respectively up to the Benson Plateau, hoping we might be able to make it out near Chinidere mountain. The weather Friday was pretty awful—temperate with high humidity—making the hiking extremely moist. I expected there'd be less snow up there, expecting to find at least a snow-free patch to sleep. Instea...
April 14 to April 15, 2012 Wildcat 6 miles 250 feet gained 1 night
Easy trip out to our typical campsite on Siouxon Creek. My wife Christy came out for the first time this year and we introduced another friend to backpacking for the first time. The road is in good shape after last year's repairs, making the drive more pleasurable as well! Beautiful weather, beautiful raging creek, and beautiful night sleeping in a bivy unde...
March 23 to March 25, 2012 Cape Johnson 10 miles 250 feet gained 2 nights
Two friends and I made the long drive up to Olympic National Park's beaches to take advantage of the weather window over this weekend. It's a long drive, but worth it for the epic nature of the beaches there. We got to the Rialto Beach parking before noon and started hiking. The coast is not what I expected—steep stony beaches devoid of footprints drop steep...
February 23, 2012 Cooper Spur 8 miles 3,000 feet gained
Beautiful day on the mountain. I've never been on the North side of Mt Hood, and I was surprised at how much more rugged it seemed and how much better the views were. Rime ice above treeline, but big pockets of powder in the trees made skiing with the Altai Hok skis enjoyable. I got two huge blisters on my heels though :[
February 18, 2012 Clear Lake Butte 7 miles 1,000 feet gained
Took the [Altai Hok skis](http://www.altaiskis.com/blog/products/the-hok/) and a [new backpack](http://zimmerbuilt.com) out for an easy ski in this weekend's "blizzard" on Mt. Hood. Turns out that the weather was a mixed bag of wet snow and cloud breaks, making for an extremely beautiful ski trip. Despite the huge mess of trailers and RVs and other signs the...
February 11, 2012 Doane Creek 4.5 miles 500 feet gained
My first time in Forest Park *ever*! I went on a 4.6 mile trail run with a friend Saturday morning. I love a sloppy run through the mud in the woods.
February 5, 2012 West Benson Way 10 miles 4,500 feet gained
Great day for a hike up Ruckel Ridge! The catwalk section gets your blood pumping as you have to down-climb little fiddly rock bits with 50 foot drops on either side of the ridge line. Went up Ruckel Ridge without really ever stopping, took a rest creekside, and slogged back down the Ruckel Creek trail.
January 27 to January 28, 2012 Gumjuwac Saddle 6 miles 2,000 feet gained 1 night
Went with friends Nick, [Chris](http://wenthiking.com/users/5-chris/hikes), and new friend Tommy up the switchbacks to Gumjuwac Saddle Friday for some snow camping. The weather was perfect—blue, crisp, and calm. The snow was unexpectedly crunchy underfoot for the first 1500 vertical feet, but gave way to powder once we reached the crest of the hill. The camp...
January 15, 2012 Moffett 13.5 miles 2,500 feet gained
Took the Altai Hok skis out for a test ride with the sudden low elevation snow. Had a lot of fun learning to cross country ski with these "skishoes". I'd guess 8 of the miles were spent hiking on skis. After Road 777 ends, the trail is an asshole. All the branches are weighed down with snow making the 1.25 mile trail down to Tanner Creek a real pain. Once I ...
January 8, 2012 Summit Meadows 5.5 miles 1,500 feet gained
Rented the "Barlow Cabin" near Trillium Lake for two nights with my beautiful wife and another couple. We snowshoed out to the cabin with a pulk loaded with delicious New Seasons goodness, relaxed by the warmth of a fire, climbed Multorpor Mountain, and otherwise enjoyed the woods.
January 6 to January 7, 2012 Monitor Ridge 10 miles 5,000 feet gained 1 night
Spent the night near the parking lot in wait for an early morning assault on Mt. Saint Helens. Unfortunately, the summit was not in the cards for the climb, with a thick layer of rime ice making the climb extremely treacherous. We turned back a half mile and 1000 vertical feet from the summit. I'm going to wait until some real snow gets laid down before atte...
