This long named hike is actually a combination of several trails to form a long loop and, although it has some good things to look at on the way, it’s more of a training hike than anything else. Just consider that the whole loop is about 15 miles with an elevation gain of over 400 feet. Certainly not for the faint of heart. The hike starts from the same place as the Eagle Creek hike so the first part of it is actually easy, but then you get all the elevation in a rather short distance so it’s good to save some energy for that. My post for this hike described all the details so in the end, it was Val, Jeff and I who took on the challenge. We started early and doing a quick pace on the Eagle Creek trail. As we’ve done this section of the trail many times, we didn’t stop for many pictures or took the normal detours to visits the waterfalls. Instead, we kept a steady pace trying to save time by covering the first 5 or so miles quickly. The idea was to save some time we would use later on the climb to Benson Plateau. Weather was perfect, not too hot or too cold and clear skies. After passing 4½ Mile Bridge, that brought us back to the east side of the creek, we started looking for our detour. About half a mile after Wy'East Camp we found it, a little trail to the left with a worn out sign that is barely visible from the trail. At that point we decided to take a breather, adjust layers and eat something before continuing up. Then came the huffing and puffing. In the next couple of miles we gained most of the elevation of this loop. Half of it was on a good and easy to follow trail, but as we gained elevation the trail got more difficult. Towards the end we found places were the trail was so dense and overgrown that it’s hard to follow. Once we passed the 3600’ mark we finally leveled of a bit and entered the tall trees that signal you are in Benson Plateau. The trail continued up but not as steep as before until we reached a campsite near the junction with the PCT. At that point we decided to stop for lunch and rest as most of the climbing was done. After lunch we followed the PCT to the next junction with the Benson Way trail. From that point on, the trail would be pretty flat all the way to Ruckel Creek. You can take the PCT and go thru the Plateau which eventually will take you to the same place, but we opted for the Benson Way trail as it’s easier to follow and has some openings with views to the west. We meandered thru the forest for a while until we reached Hunters Camp where the Ruckel Creek trail starts. Then we came out of the forest to start our long way down. As expected, our progress going down was as grueling as coming up. The trail is steep in places, slippery in others and rocky in the rest. That combined with the afternoon sun pounding on your head made it a bit hard. We made the necessary stops at the viewpoints to take pictures of Cascade Locks and the Bridge of the Gods but kept our pace going down. We got to a point were the only thing in our minds was getting back to the car which we eventually did, very tired, but with a great sense of accomplishment.
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