With friends Mark, Carol and Brian we decided to go for a hike in the Gorge and try something new. Looking at maps and stuff, I found that we hadn’t tried Wygant Peak yet, or at least not recently enough for me to remember. Doing the research though, I found information about an old trail called the Chetwood Loop. I quickly marked some waypoints in my GPS with the idea of combining both routes into a single loop. It was a perfect day for this hike as it was overcast and most of the hike was in the trees. We got to the trailhead in good time and just after passing the rain on the highway. We weren't sure if we would get it or not but as soon as we started, we felt the first drops on our head. The hike starts following a path that travels parallel to the highway for a while. It has one or two openings with nice views of the Gorge but nothing compared with some of the other views we were about to get. Along the way, we found on one the ends of the Chetwood trail, our intended return path. Finally we turn left and started climbing away from the noise. The trail followed a creek to the remains of a broken bridge that is still usable to cross the stream below it. We meandered thru the forest and came to our first view point. A rock overhang on top of the highway that almost made you dizzy. It was exposed enough that wire was protecting the edge. From there we retraced our steps to the trail and started the arduous hike up doing numerous switchbacks along the ridge. On the way up, we saw the sign for the upper end of the Chetwood trail so now we had both points of our return. We continued as a drizzle started but finally made I to the uneventful summit. As with other destinations in the Gorge, this one is inside the trees with now views and only market with a small cairn. We stopped briefly to grab a bite before heading back down. Once we got to the junction with the Chetwood trail we turn right and started our exploration. The trail was somewhat easy to follow but had a lot of blowdown. The going was extremely slow and time was running fast. All of us took turns to fall or trip on the way and at some point we had to make a stop to make a decision. With limited time and sun light, we were not sure if we could do the loop or not. Part was because we didn't know what lied ahead. So we opted for the safe option of turning around and heading back. That was when Val, Brian and I went a bit of trail and descended a bit more than what was needed to get back on the main trail. At some point we heard Marks voice from above asking what the hell we were doing down there. Turning around was not an option so all three of us had to bushwhack our way up to the trail. It was hard work getting out of there but finally on the trail we started moving again heading back. Minutes before it got pretty dark we finally got to the lower trail that was wide enough to hike without headlamps. That section seemed to be longer that what it had been on the way in but we made it to the cars without headlamps and almost in the dark. Looking at the map afterwards, I realized we did about half of the Chetwood so there’s still a portion to explore and discover. Is in the list
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