Category: Hiking
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20200518 Eruptiversary – USFS 26 Rd to Cascade Peaks, MSHNVM
How has so much time passed? Was it really 40 years ago that I was a young child, watching in fear as the sky disappeared behind boilings clouds of ash as darkness fell one Sunday mid-morning in May? We visited Mt. St. Helens for the first time, post-eruption, in what I believe was 1984. The devastated landscape…
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20200125 Muddy Fork Cowlitz, GPNF
I really needed a day on the river, my river, the Muddy Fork Cowlitz. And what a bluebird day to be there, too. All the little creeks were full to the brim with melt-water, the sky was intensely blue and the air warm and still, and I had a new camera to play with. I purchased…
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20190930 Packwood Lake, Upper Lake Creek, GRW, GPNF
I spent Sunday and Monday at Packwood Lake – had a sweet campsite at the upper end of the lake, and enjoyed the company of a very friendly dipper. Weather was moving thru rapidly, with lots of wind and a wee little bit of rain, bringing the season’s first chill. I celebrated with an impromptu campfire.…
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20190923 Davis Mtn, GPNF
Davis Mountain rises over the Big Bottom Valley immediately north of the Cora Bridge, and is accessed by Carr Rd, which turns into 1256 Rd a couple of miles up. The road is permanently gated, but maintained, and climbs its way up the south face of mountain then the north face, before coming to an inglorious…
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20190704 Griffin Mtn North & Allen Mtn South, GPNF
I’ve done it! I’ve completed a hiking route between Longmire, WA and Randle, WA, down to Hwy 12. Now that I’ve completed it, I’m not happy with the route. More exploration is in order to more closely align my route with the watershed divide. As you can see on the map below, the route between…
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20190701 Kiona Peak, GPNF
How is it July already? Summer is getting on, and I’m eager to be getting up into the high county. My recent trip up to the PCT at Divide Camp leads me to think July 1 is still too early to be getting up into the Goat Rocks or high Tatoosh, but I’ve still some…
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20190609 Watch Mountain, GPNF
Spent Sunday scouting the area just north of Randle, WA, in the GPNF as part of a Randle-to-Longmire route, but I think I have better options, yet to be explored. Watch Mountain is beautiful. Watch Lake is OK, but does not really provide a good site to hang a hammock, the trail there is a traumatized…
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20190603 Tahklahk Lake, Tak Tak Meadow, Council Bluff, GPNF
Spent Sunday night at Tahklahk Lake, hoping for some night-time and/or pre-dawn shots of Mt. Adams. A lack of skill, and a lack of clear sky thwarted me. I had a great hike on Monday, however, exploring Tak Tak Meadows, and then the trail to Council Bluff. Tahklahk Lake is melted out, and there were…
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20190526 Silver-Skate Area, GPNF
Memorial Day Weekend means another summer season begins. I took an extra day from work for a five-day holiday, and spent much of it up in the NW corner of the GPNF, in the area between Longmire and Randle. I was packed for a backpacking adventure, but the lingering snows above ~4000 meant the high…
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20190510 Muddy Fork Cowlitz Canyon Trail, Tatoosh Wilderness, GPNF
Wandered about the mouth of the Muddy Fork Cowlitz canyon on a gorgeous spring day.