Backpacking at Herman Creek, May 17th

This is the same trail I backpacked with Linda back in February. Back then, we set up camp at Herman Camp, the first camp site in the trail. On a day hike we went up to Casey Creek where we found snow. This time, the original idea was to go all the way to Noble Camp, the fourth campsite after passing Herman, Casey and Cedar Swamp. The first part of the trail was the same we did back then with different colors. Now it’s a lot greener with lots of wild flowers. Creeks were bringing down a lot more water than in February. After a short stop at Casey creek for lunch, we continued up and entered the old growth forest part of the trail. This section is basically forests that have never been logged with Douglas firs, Hemlocks, Noble firs and Cedars of incredible size. You’ll see a couple of pictures were we look really small against the trees. After passing numerous creeks and falls and climbing nearly 2600 feet, we got to Cedar Swamp. We encountered some hikers coming back down that told us that beyond that point, the trail was covered in snow which we confirmed. We also found that the complete Cedar Swamp campsite was already taken by boy scouts. At that point we decided to backtrack a bit and go of the trail looking for possible spots to camp out. We found the perfect spot clear off the trail, with enough flat spots and space to build a fire. Saturday’s weather was so hot that during the night, temperatures didn’t go very low. It was a great night. On Sunday we had originally thought of doing a loop and coming back down via the Nick Eaton Trail but since I was not feeling very well, we did the same trail back. Weather was nice and not as hot as Saturday so the whole hike back was very enjoyable. We did not get to Noble Camp, but that doesn’t take it of the list.

Hike to Boulder Ridge, May 11th

This was the first on a series of training hikes in preparation for the Mt Adams summit later this year. As you’ll see in the pictures, weather did not cooperate that well with us this Sunday. Still, a large group got together to try this. The trail took us on constant switch backs immersed in deep forest until we started to hit snow. We found a lot of blow down trees and not that many views. After passing the snow level the trail became almost invisible so we ended up cutting the hike short. On the way back, it tried to clear up a little bit and I was actually able to take a couple of pictures with a bit of light between the trees. It might not be the most photogenic trail I have done, but the forest was beautiful.

Celebrating 5 de Mayo at Nesika, May 3rd

Another weekend at Nesika. This time Lisa planned a potluck to celebrate 5 de Mayo, so we all brought ingredients to make some Mexican dishes and share. The hike up was beautiful as expected. With the spring and all the snow melting at higher elevations, streams, rivers and falls are incredible. The new green and flowers added a lot to the beauty of the area. We got to Nesika at around noon, perfect timing to do lunch. The original idea was that everybody would take care of their own lunch and the potluck was for the night, but since everybody brought a lot of food, we decided to share some of it for lunch. Marci made a great 7 layer dip that got devour in a couple of minutes. In the afternoon we did a small loop hike to Franklin Ridge. This trail was the same we did back in January when it was all covered in snow. It was really interesting to visit the spot were we sunk to our waist in snow and see it in full bloom. Back at the lodge we spent some time at the view point enjoying the views and then it was back to cook. We made tortillas, guacamole, taco salad, fajitas and all sort of Mexican plates, it was a lot of food. The following morning, I woke up really early and went to the view point to enjoy the sunrise. In the pictures you’ll see how beautiful it gets early in the morning. After a nice breakfast with Pan de Jamon and pancakes we took off on our way back. Instead of going down straight to the parking lot, we hiked to Devil’s rest and then cut back to Wahkena falls and back to the parking lot. This hike was long and beautiful with great views of the Gorge and tons of flowers.