Three Fingered Jack Loop Hike, OR

The first real backpack trip since before I had kids! Thanks to a push from a good friend and a supportive spouse who stayed behind with the kids I was able to spend 3 days and 2 nights exploring a beautiful part of the Jefferson Wilderness in the Deutsches area. I am proud to say that I was far more organized before children and found I had done a stellar job cleaning and packing away all my backpacking gear 5 years ago, so everything was in great shape.

I would not call the Three Fingered Jack Loop (20.5 miles) an easy hike at all. It has some more advanced degrees of difficultly but it is worth it for the absolute beauty and uniqueness of the area. We started with an easy 5 miles or so on the first day which took us through a rather beautiful young second growth ecosystem recovering from a fire that surged through the area in 2003.

We camped in a beautiful meadow. It was raining but that wasn't the best surprise of the first night. At some point during the night our tent and one backpack were attacked by a very vicious creature with sharp teeth and amazing sense of smell for granola bars, commonly known as a chipmunk.

 Hole chewed by a chipmunk (aka chomper)!

The second day was clear with a partial overcast. The weather forecast for the third day was rain again so we decided to put down as many miles as possible before the second storm rolled in. We went off trail following a stream through meadows of wildflowers.

 Paintbrush growing in meadow along stream

The stream began to shrink as we climbed in elevation until coming to a snowy mountain ridge that we climbed up and over to get back onto the trail. This climb up and over was by far the most challenging part of the hike.

Climb down from ridge back to trail

Once we were back on the trail it continued in elevation but had some spectacular views along the way as we hiked along.

Looking down on Wasco Lake

We continued to hike through many patches of snow before setting up camp, finishing out the day with approximately 11.5 miles hiking (we felt like bad asses). 

Crossing one of many sections snow cover trail

We decided that we deserved a fire. After collecting wood and much effort we finally got a fire started.

Do not ever start a fire like this...seriously!

It rained that night again. We had wet gear, frozen hands and were almost out of water, so we were very grateful that we only had 4 or so miles all downhill to our vehicle. We hiked out into a cloud so we did not get any views of 3 Fingered Jack but all the views of the prior day still had us feeling good.

Foggy view on hike out

Lessons learned: 1) Remove all food from tent and pack and secure it before sleeping! 2) Collect water at every opportunity 3) Bring fire starting supplies 4) Keep smiling!

Back in action! Hoyt Arboretum!

I was not prepared to writing about this hike so this entry is brief. It has been awhile, but two kids and a dog later we are back to hiking! Easier kid and dog friendly hikes are now the goal. For our first hike after the birth of our second daughter who is 12 weeks old, we picked a local easy dog friendly hike through Hoyt Arboretum. The Arboretum has a large network of trails the lead throughout the Washington Park area with 1,400 different tree species. The even provide bags for dog poop along the way. Parking as of January 10th will cost $1.60 an hour throughout Washington Park, including the zoo lot. There are many trail heads but we like to start from the visitors center.

This time of year I recommend sticking to the evergreen tree trails. There is not much happening on the Maple Tail right now. Most trails are jogging stroller friendly. Hiking with a toddler and dog is slower than what I use to do but lots of fun and everyone is asleep in the car before you get home. I hope there will be more hikes to come.

Angel's Rest Trail, OR

The Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area has some spectacular views and trails. Angel's Rest Trail is one of those views and trails. This trail is 4.4 miles out and back and is right off of The Columbia Gorge Historic Scenic Highway west of Multnomah Falls.  It is a 1,400 foot climb from the parking lot to Angel's Rest. The view from the top is well worth the climb on a clear day. Be sure to pack water and lunch to enjoy with your view from the top.

View looking west from Angle's Rest

This is also the perfect time to catch the early spring time flowers along the trail. In full bloom are Menzies' Larkspur (Delphinium menziesii), Chocolate Lilies (Fritillaria lanceolata), Pacific Bleeding Heart (Dicentra formosa) and many others. For wildflower buffs this is just the beginning of the season in the Columbia Gorge.

 Chocolate Lily (Fritillaria lanceolata)

 Menzies' Larkspur (Delphinium menziesii) line the trail

Ozette Triangle Trail, WA

The Ozette Triangle Trail is a gorgeous 9 mile loop and part of the Olympic National Park north of Forks, WA. The trail splits at the parking lot and is 3 miles to Cape Alava and 3 miles to Sand Point, camping is allowed at both locations. There is 3 miles of beach connecting Cape Alava and Sand Point creating the 9 mile triangle.

The 3 mile beach portion of the trail is a very unique section of Pacific Ocean beach with historic and sacred ties to the Makah Tribe. About 1.5 miles the down the beach are petroglyphs carved into Wedding Rock by the Ozette People between 300 and 500 years ago. The site of the Ozette Village is about 14 miles south of Neah Bay on the Pacific Ocean side of the Olympia Peninsula.

This trail was teaming with wildlife. There was everything from deer to coyotes to birds. Best of all the native Banana Slug!

The only campfires allowed are driftwood fires at the Cape Alava campground. All overnight camping requires a permit of $5 plus $2 for each person and $15 a vehicle. Overnight hikers are required to keep all food and garbage in bear cans, which are available at the Port Angeles and Quinalt Ranger Stations.

We camped at Cape Alava after hiking 3 miles in the first day. This gave us plenty of time to hike the 3 mile beach portion at a low tide on the second day and the last 3 miles from Sandy Point back to the parking lot. The rain and moisture on the first night made it impossible to start a campfire, despite all of Cody and Matt's efforts. However the following day was sunny and beautiful. The Cape Alava Campground was a lush green meadow where one might expect a gnome to appear running across it. This hike is in my top 10 favorite hikes.

Cape Flattery, WA

Cape Flattery is the most northwestern point in the lower United States. Recently renovated by the Makah Tribe, it is a one mile hike to a beautiful view point of Tatoosh Island. Parking permits are $10 a car and can be purchased at the local grocery store/gas station. Dogs are allowed on this trail.

 This view point is an excellent spot to look for Puffins. Our groups was able to spot two Puffins and a loud group of Sea lions.

 Tatoosh Island

South of the view point

Playa Carricitos, Sayulita

Today we went to Playa Carricitos. We followed a dirt road north out of Sayulita through the cemetery and turned left up a dirt road before Playa de Los Muertos and followed hand painted signs to Playa Carricitos.  This beach usually has fairly mellow waves for body surfing, but today was a bit rough due to a small storm the day before. We went with a couple from our hotel, Shyla and Max, and met a very friendly beach dog. The beach dog we named Coco made herself at home on our beach towels and ran off with Shyla's shoe. Luckily Cody convinced Coco to trade the shoe for a stick. The waves were very fun to play in and Cody turned a nice reddish pink color. This beach had very little traffic and we had it all to ourselves.

Playa Carricitos

Beach dog "Coco"

Dirt road to Playa Carricitos

Playa de Los Muertos, Sayulita

Today we visited Playa de Los Muertos which translates into The Beach of the Dead. Most likely named for the cemetery you walk through to get to the beach. The cemetery is very large and maintained by family members. The beach is also a popular spot for Mexican families and maintained by the city. It was a fairly short hike compared to our hike to Playa Malpasos, but a wonderful taste of Mexican culture. There are three main extended Mexican families that make up a large part of the 2000 full time residents in Sayulita.

 This is the Cemetery

 The Beach of the Dead

Playa Malpasos, Sayulita

Far from the Pacific Northwest in Sayulita, Mexico! The temperature is around 85 degrees Fahrenheit and beautiful. Sayulita is 24 miles north of Puerto Vallarta on the Pacific Ocean. For our first day here we picked a hike to Playa Malpasos, one of Sayulita's less traveled beaches. The trails through the jungle in Sayulita are not your typical well marked National Park Trails. For example here are some hiking directions to Playa Malpasos, "Shortly you will cross a small river (dry in the winter) the main path appears to follow the river to the right but look straight ahead and you will see several large boulders. Clamber over or go around the rocks and follow the path across a cobblestone road (which is a private road from the beach-house to the main highway) and continue along the dirt track." This can get slightly confusing sometimes. However, it is well worth the effort if you make it to Playa Malpasos. It is a great place to sit in the sun without a hundred other people around you. Not a great place to swim because of the strong undertow.

The dirt jungle road to the beach is full of birds and butterflies. I was able to get a couple butterflies to sit long enough for a picture. I also was able to get some unusual flowers as well.

This flower reminds me of Horton Hears a Who. I have yet to identify it.

Marble Mountain, Washington

Its time for snowshoeing! Yesterday Cody and I went to Marble Mountain Sno Park with our friend Dan. The park has a series of trails that wrap around the base of Mt. St. Helens. On a beautiful sunny day like yesterday at 2,700 ft elevation we were join by snow mobiles and cross country skiers. The snow mobiles had their own set of tracks separate from the snowshoe and skier tracks. We did the Marble Mountain Loop Trail with an accidental 1 mile of the Pine Martin Ski Trail complements of Cody. The snow was so dry that snowballs simply would not pack. 

This was our very first time snowshoeing and we learned some important lessons. 1.) Buy a sno park permit ahead of time 2.) Bring the water bottle with you on the hike 3.) Bring a compass 4.) Cody really has no idea where he is 5.) It is impossible to walk backwards in snowshoes as demonstrated by Dan. 6.) Bring a Camera!

Snowshoeing is an inexpensive way to spend a day in the snow. We rented snowshoes from REI and it was $20 a pair for the weekend. If you plan to go more than 5 time during the winter buying the shoes is the way to go. After covering our first 4 miles in snowshoes we are ready to dig in a make a routine of snowshoeing. Mount Hood and Mount Rainer all have tracks for snowshoeing and are on our list to do.

Ape Cave, Washington

November 20th Cody and I visited the Ape Cave which is located north of Cougar, WA in Gifford Pinchot National Forest. The ape cave is not named after primates but after a 1950's outdoor club that called themselves the Mount St. Helen's Apes. The Ape Cave is a lava tube formed from one of Mount St. Helen's more unusual eruptions. The tube was formed about 2000 years ago by fluid basaltic lava similar to that of the Hawaiian lava flows.

Cody and I arrived in the Ape Cave parking lot to find about 9 inches of snow on the ground. We were around 1900 ft in elevation. We hiked the lower cave first which is considered an easier route. However, in total darkness with only a head lamp and a flash light we found it was still easy to lose your footing. The lower part of the cave is about 1 1/2 miles round trip. The cave was very damp and is a solid 42 degrees year round. We found Gor-tex boots and warm clothing were very nice to have. The cave took on many shapes and sizes throughout the hike. We found ourselves looking up most of the hike. Next we hiked the more difficult 1 1/2 mile upper cave. This part required climbing over rock piles and paying close attention to our footing at all times. This portion of the cave had a sky light that let some light down into the cave. However, the light did not travel far before the cave was returned to pitch black conditions. This hike absolutely can not be done without a light source. If bringing a flash light, I strongly suggest keeping some extra batteries in your pocket just in case. The upper cave has an exit that lets you out onto a trail that takes you back to the main entrance of the cave as well as the parking lot. Cody and I finished up with a snowball fight on the way back to the car. Snow tires or chains would have been nice as we received help from some other fellow hikers pushing our car out of the parking lot.

Cougar Bar and Grill was a welcomed stop on the way home for a beer and an "Ape Cave" Sandwich. 

Portland Stairs

All through Northwest Portland there are stairs everywhere! It is my mission when go on runs up in the west hills to find at least one flight of new stairs and figure out where it goes. Today I found one hidden behind a guardrail and a Photinia. This dropped me onto a road that looped back around to the top of the staircase and a sidewalk that went down a very steep slope for about three blocks and ended on the corner of Thurman St and 29th Ave. On the other side of Thurman St there was another set of stairs that drops you down under a bridge and is an entrance to part of the Forest Park trail system. Following all these stairs took me from a city neighborhood out into the woods. I guess that is one advantage to never planning a walk or run.

Washington Park in Portland, Oregon

This morning there was a window of blue sky, so Cody and I grabbed a water bottle and walked to the 23rd Ave entrance of Washington Park located on the North end of the park. We spent the morning walking through Washington Park's miles of trail that weaves in and out of the acres of woods and gardens. All of the trees were brillant yellow and red with leaves falling at the slightest breeze.  It was a relaxing stroll through the series of old staircases and winding pathways. Some of the staircases went to nowhere. I am not sure if the stairs use to go somewhere or the path was never completed to begin with. Fall is only for a brief period of time in the Pacific Northwest and rarely dry so today was special.

If you have not got a chance to take in any of this Fall's color I highly recommend a stroll through Washington Park. It is a beautifully designed Urban Park that allows you to step out of the craziness of the city for a moment and into a relaxing and greener setting.

Lewis River, Washington

This is my first blog post. I have always kept nature journals and detailed notes on longer hikes and trips, but for the shorter day hikes it is usually just a few snap shots on my camera. I hope with this blog to be able to take some notes on these day trips.

 On October 13, 2010, I had the pleasure of going on a series of small hikes north of Cougar, WA in Gifford Pinchot National Forest with Nathan and Josh Cramer. Along Forest Service Road 90 we were able to stop and hike short distances to 3 stunning water falls of the Lewis River. Josh (a beginning but serious nature photographer) took many shots of the falls, and the photo below is just one of many. At the water fall featured below we attempted to take a shortcut where both Josh and myself managed to slide down the side of river's rock bank and into the river. Nathan amazingly made the climb to the top and remained dry.

No trip is complete without the post hike meal. On the way home there was a little tavern on the left side of the road right before entering Cougar. If you are looking for a hardy burger or sandwich this is the place to stop. I highly recommend the favorite "Ape Cave Sandwich." 

Josh has several more nature and art project photos on his gallery page.