Indian Heaven, Aug 29th

I just love this place, unfortunately there is a small window when weather is perfect and mosquitoes are gone. This time I think we were just about right. The idea for the weekend was to camp at Blue Lake, one of the most scenic lakes in the area. Considerably, this is the first place I backpacked to when I moved to Portland back in 2007. Being the weekend before Labor Day, we knew there was a big possibility of finding a lot of people out there as summer is coming to an end and schools are starting again. Contrary to what the weather guy said, we got to the trailhead on a very cloudy, misty, foggy day. That didn’t stop us in any way. Passing thru the multiple lakes on the way to Blue Lake was very nice although with limited views. We got to Blue Lake only to find out that all campsites where already taken. I had though of that possibility so my plan was to continue towards Junction Lake and try to find a campsite there, but just because I went by memory, I took the wrong turn and actually hiked in the complete opposite direction. After several miles I came to realize this mistake at which point it was easier to continue than to try to head back. Shortly after, we got to a pond in the Indian Race Track. This pond is usually visited by people horseback riding and by deer and elk. Being kind of remote added the bonus that there was nobody there. We found a perfect campsite with enough space for all our tents and a nice view of the pond and its floating water lilies. Later that evening the skies cleared up and we had a fantastic star show and a bright moon. Nancy and I went for a short walk and where delighted by the colors and shadows on the trees as we illuminated them with our flashlights. On Sunday we woke up to an incredible clear day so after a nice breakfast, we packed everything and headed back the same way we hiked in; this time enjoying the views and multiple lakes.

Olympic Coast Backpack, Aug 21st

This trip is really hard to describe as we had some good moments and some really bad. For me, it was a bit of a train wreck although I have to admit that part of it was my own fault. I think I underestimated the trip and overestimated some of the hikers. In short, we were not able to do the intended trip which was supposed to start from Hoh River and go all the way north to Third beach covering some beaches, creeks, headlands, etc. Not being able to do the trip as intended left me with a bit of a sour taste as I think it would have been fantastic. On the good side though, I think that I’m better informed now to try it again next year. This trip was a three day thing with a late start on Friday. The reason for that was that we had to time the low tide to pass a section of the beach about two miles in from the Hoh River. Since the tide was going to be at the lowest at around 8PM, we had a window of about 4 hours between 6 and 10PM to make that pass. Due to some unfortunate events that include (and this is part of the bad part) late arrivals and departures from several places, getting showered with Diesel fuel, etc we started hiking at 8 PM instead of the intended 5PM. Thanks to that, we were not able to make the pass and had to hike back and find a campsite to spend the first night which happened at around midnight. At that point I knew we were not going to be able to do the whole traverse as intended, so I told everybody to sleep as long as they wanted and that we would discuss possible plans the following day.

Morning from our first campsite


On Saturday, we woke up to a sunny clear day. Right after breakfast we discussed the viable options to finish the weekend which included going back home, staying where we were one more night or moving to Third Beach and stay the night there. The general consensus was to move to Third Beach, so we packed everything, hiked back to the trail head, went to pick up the cars, brought them back, picked up everybody and drove back to Third Beach. In the end we got to a campsite at Third Beach at around 3PM. After setting up camp and having a light lunch, we went for a hike to the end of the beach, over the headland all the way to Second Beach. This hike ended up being the highlight of the weekend. The views were magnificent and walking on the sand in the low tide was just incredible. The amount of life and little creatures you see is phenomenal. As time was moving, we hiked back right before sunset getting to camp in time for some Frisbee and more sunset pictures.

Sunset reflection


That night we had a nice fire by the beach with good food and some smores that helped release some of the built up tensions from the last couple of days.

Campfire


The last day, before packing up and heading out, I went for a walk to the north side of Third Beach. It was a very nice walk and I got to enjoy some really nice sky reflections on the sea and seagulls taking flight right in front of me (with a little running and yelling on my part). After that, we hiked out and went for lunch at a little place in the town of La Push.

Mt Hood Ice Caves, Aug 15th

This is a hike we tried last year with no success. After a very long hike, fast moving clouds and improper gear, we had to turn around without getting to the caves. David rescheduled the hike and was very specific with the gear and fit requirements so this time we had a very strong group. Although weather forecast was calling for mostly sunny, on our way to Top Spur and at the trail head, it didn’t look that way. WE started our hike hoping weather was going to clear up or that we would be above the cloud level. The first part of the hike is the exact same trail to McNeil point that I did a couple of weeks back. This time, with the cloud cover, there were no views and no wow moment so the hike up to the shelter was a lot shorter. Once there though, we started to get some sun rays passing thru the clouds and suddenly, clouds were gone.

Finally some sunshine


With blue skies ahead, we continued our hike up on the Vista Ridge up to a point where we made a quick stop to put on our Gaiters. We then headed of trail traversing a meadow towards the next ridge. I recalled this section as one of the most difficult last year due to heavy bushwhacking. This time, we took off higher so we bypassed that area. The hike continued pretty much the same, traversing a couple of meadows and climbing a couple of ridges until we got to the ridge on one side of the muddy fork. From that point on, there was no more vegetation, just loose rocks, sand and snow. The good part is that we had the cave right in front of us.

There’s the cave


After a bit of a scramble, we got to the entrance of the cave which is larger than what it appears to be. We took a small break to gear up again to go in. Although it was a bright sunny day outside, inside the cave was colder and there was water falling everywhere. Besides using rain gear, we were also wearing helmets just in case rocks or chunks of ice fell off. While gearing up, the cave proved the necessity of it. Every couple of minutes we saw a bunch of rocks sliding and falling of the sides or the top of the entrance. Watching that, we went in one by one as quickly as possible while I was in the back watching for falling rocks. Once in, it was only water falling from the ceiling. What was really incredible though, was the magnitude of the cave. When you stand outside, it doesn’t seem to be that big but once you step in, it all comes into perspective and you realize how high the ceiling is.

Entering the cave


On the right side of the entrance, there was a big hole up in the ceiling that was letting some light in and illuminating the side of the cave that had some very interesting shapes and holes. As we hiked in, we saw another big hole straight up to the sky and then darkness. WE did go as far as we could, always climbing up on very loose gravel, rocks and a flowing river, a very interesting experience. Once back out, we took a break to have lunch before heading back. In order to avoid some of the heavy bushwhack, we climbed higher towards a ridge thinking the trail would be there. It wasn’t, instead we ended up high above a small peak with very steep inclines on both sides. Since scrambling down on loose rocks didn’t very safe, we continued on traversing a big snow field that was pretty steep. After that, we found our trail and headed back down to McNeil for a short rest and then all the way down to the parking lot which was still under the clouds.

Mt Adams Summit, Aug 7th

At 12276 feet above sea level, Mt Adams is the second highest mountain in the state of Washington. This mountain is actually one of the many volcanoes in the Cascade Volcanic Arc which includes Mt St Helens, Mt Hood and almost every other peak in the region. On the cool side of things, you don’t have to be a technical climber to summit Adams, just a very good hiker. This trip was actually planned for last year but do to a fire that closed the access to the Cold Springs Camp Ground; we were unable to do it. Back then, Sean and I reschedule it for the August and finally we were able to do it. Originally the trip was planned only as a meetin event but since we didn’t get a big group, I added the event to the Meetup group so we ended with a group of 11. On Friday we took off in the afternoon and drove first to get the permits and then to a nice dinner and the most delicious Huckleberry shakes you can possibly have. From there we headed to the Cold Springs campground at the base of the mountain where we would spend the first night. It was a bit strange that on the road it appeared that there wasn’t many going that way, but once we got to the campground we found it was pretty much full. Being a mountain with easy access, there’s an average of 400 climbers per weekend and all start from the same place, so you can imagine. On Saturday we woke up to a warm sunny day and after a nice breakfast and packing all our gear, we started our climb.

The climbing party


The first part of the hike was very similar to any trail in the upper section of Mt Hood, rocky and sandy with low vegetation. As you climb up, tress become scarce and you get more rocks and loose gravel which makes the hike a bit more difficult. Not only you have to climb up, but you have to avoid sliding down. This first portion was very arid and we found several campsites along the way wherever we saw trees. After a while, we finally made it to the ridge where the hike starts to get more intense. After a couple of hours of huffing and puffing we got to the top of the ridge right where the bottom of Crescent Glacier is. From that point forward, up to Lunch Counter, our destination for the day, most of the hike is on snow and ice, so it was time to try my new MicroSpikes. Walking over ice made the hike a bit more pleasant as it was a lot cooler that what it was going over the ridge. During our climb, we saw clouds moving in and out from the summit offering clear views at times and none at others.

Reaching the top of Crescent Glacier


After reaching the top of Crescent Glacier, we veered east towards Lunch Counter and started looking for some good camping spots. We spent some time setting up camp and resting while trying to acclimate to the high altitude. Although you don’t feel much, the low oxygen becomes very apparent when you kneel and then quickly stand up. It took us a while to adapt to that. Once camp was set, we went on an exploring hike around Lunch Counter. Waling all the way to the East and crossing over an ice shelve with a lot or running water, we got to the Suksdorff Ridge that overlooks the Mazama Glacier and the Ridge of Wonders in the distance. As you can see from the pictures, the views where just magnificent.

Panoramic view from the Suksdorff Ridge


Back at camp, we had a nice dinner and then got ready for a magnificent sunset. By that time, we had rested a lot and happiness was just around us and everybody else in the area. You’ll see a series of goofy pictures that prove the point. Sunset above the clouds was as expected, incredible.

Sunset from Lunch Counter


On Sunday it was rise and shine early in the morning. We had talked about being ready to hike by 7:30 which meant breakfast done and all gear packed. At roughly 8 in the morning we were already on the trail on our way to the false summit first and then the real summit. To Pikers Peak (the false summit), most of the climb is on a glacier which in not as difficult provided you have some sort of traction device. My MicroSpikes came in very handy. It was just a long hike up where you just need to pace yourself so you don’t run out of air. As you go up, the views get better and better. You are constantly surrounded by glaciers, rocks steep inclines and the cloud cover. Once you get to Pikers Peak, you finally get a clear view of the actual summit. From the false summit, the trail descend a bit towards an ice shelve before starting to climb again passing on the upper side of the Mazama and Klickitat Glaciers. The Crevices on the top, up close and personal are just incredible. It’s actually hard to imagine how all that ice is holding in the mountain and not just sliding down. Roughly about an hour after reaching Pikers Peak, we made it to the summit reaching an old shelter. Obviously the first thing you do is just stand there and do a complete 360, I guess is that reassurance that you are there and there’s nothing higher. If you’ve ever been on the top of a mountain, you probably know what it feels like to get there, but if not, you can probably imagine the views you can get from there. Here are just a couple of examples







We stayed at the summit for about 45 minutes until the cold air was getting to us. The hike down follows the same path you use to go up so it’s basically the same views. There’s a highlight though. It takes a bit over two hours to hike up the 2700 feet of glacier from Lunch Counter to the false summit. To get down, you simply sit and slide all the way down… fast…very fast; in fact, it takes about 10 minutes to descent the whole glacier…. Yes, it’s a lot of fun. We did a short stop at Lunch Counter to pick up our gear, change clothes and have a bite before continuing our hike down towards the campground.

McNeil Point, Jul 18th

The hike to McNeil point is one of those that always promises great views and amazing flowers and never disappoints. I have done this same hike probably 4 or 5 times and once again, it was fantastic. On this warm and sunny day, my plan was to hike up the ridge and take the shortcut, through a short scramble up, to the shelter and then continue down on the normal trail to Cairn Basin and back. The group did very well but considering the warm weather and rather difficult hike up, we didn’t do the Cairn Basin portion of it. We started from the Top Spur Trailhead going through a dense forest that doesn’t offer many views but is a great preamble to the views you get from the ridge. Most of the group hadn’t done this hike before, so the wow factor once we got to the ridge was noticeable. Besides the great views and having Mt Hood right there in front of us, the flowers were just incredible with Bear Grass in full bloom and all sorts of lilies.

Incredible Mariposa Lilies


We took a short break at that point and then continued up doing the short rock scramble to the shelter were we stopped for lunch. On the way back, we crossed the snow fields on our way towards the Cathedral Ridge from where you can descend to Cairn Basin or head down back to Top Spur. At this point the group was a bit tired so we headed back down crossing the McGee Creek and back to the Timberline Trail on our way down. Once down in the forest, I stopped and offered the loop around Bald Mountain to get our final views of Mt Hood before heading out. Everybody agreed to that so we did the short loop. As you’ll see in the pictures, it was well worth the extra effort