Whenever Val and I need to get out and do a training hike, Elk is one of the hikes that comes in the list. Part of it is because it’s a short drive from home and doesn’t require, for us, to cross the city and it doesn’t get as crowded (yet) as other hikes in the Gorge. The other is because, even though it’s not that long, it has a section with good steep elevation gain. This hike is one of those that you don’t get to warm up. AS soon as you hit the trailhead, it starts going up, quickly. The advantage is that it doesn’t take long to get to a very descent viewpoint. On this particular day, we know we would good views as the sky looked clear towards the ocean. As we gained elevation the views got better and the weather hotter. Along the way we saw wildflowers in bloom which is always an extra treat. We reached the summit pretty fast and got a real nice view of the coast and a darker blue line that could be the ocean, or maybe not, you be the judge.
From there the trail becomes a roller-coaster of ups and downs as it travels on the ridge. It’s interesting that this hike passes over the Elk summit yet there are points on the ridge that are higher than Elk. It’s very weird. IN any case, right after the highest point, the trail descends to an old forest road and a junction. We wanted to make a stop there for lunch but the sun was beating on us so we continued on the road towards Elk Creek until we found a shaded spot to sit and have lunch. From there we continued on the shaded road for quite a while passing a fork that leads to the creek. At you continue, the road starts to thin out until it actually disappears and you are left on a trail. I guess not too many people take this route as the bushes are pretty high in places. There’s no good views of the creek but at least it offers a relief from the sun as heat until you get all the way down back to the parking lot.
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