Wygant peak, Nov 27th

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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Fort Stevens, Nov 23rd

We hadn’t made plans for a hike over the weekend so we had to look for a quick option. Neither Val nor I ware super motivated for a hard hike so we even toyed with the idea of just going to the coast to hang out. While thinking about that, Fort Stevens came to mind. I recalled reading a bit about it in the hiking books but never making a point to go there as it’s a flat hike. Val hadn’t gone there either so in a split second decision, we grabbed small [packs with water, trail mix, a rain jacket and of we went. Fort Stevens is located at the mouth of the Columbia River into the Pacific Ocean. This is one of the forts that were built around the 1900 to protect the state, and possibly the country, from invaders coming by sea. These days, Fort Stevens is a State Park with some historic sites, a campground and some trails. Maps and guides of the area are not very clear but you can certainly find your way with a bit of common sense. From the Visitor’s Center, we started heading towards the ocean on what I think is therefore Stevens Trail (different sources show deferent names for the path). The path was mostly paved and easy to follow as it wondered thru deep and beautiful forests. In the distance we could hear the ocean so we knew we were close but didn’t know how close or when we would get to it. We got to a road and had to make a guess on how to continue but finally we took a connector trail that went straight to the beach. It didn’t get us there so there wasn’t a “walk by the beach” kind of thing. Instead, we followed parallel to the coast line but always behind a tree line. Nothing to see other than the coastal forest. Finally we got to a road that gave us two choices. First we went towards the ocean and finally got on the sand. It was a windy and cloudy day so there weren’t a lot of people there. We got to see one of the highlights of the trail, the wreck of the Peter Iredale. Only a small piece of this ship is still visible after about a century. From that point, we retraced our steps and continued inland until we took a small trail that lead us to Coffenbury Lake. We made a stop for lunch at a little camp table on a floating dock. Besides ducks on the water, we didn’t see another soul. We wanted to do some distance so instead of going back from there, we took a trail that goes around the lake. As any other, it was nice to walk around it and see ducks flying and moving around. There were several instances that we came around a bend just to scare some of them that would fly/swim towards the center of the lake scaring the crap out of us. On the South side of the lake we found a junction and not being sure, we guessed and took the wrong turn. That spur trail went into a more forested area on a less maintained path. We saw a private property sign and images of rednecks with guns started to appear on our minds. Towards the end we found a couple of big building that I think belongs to the girl scouts. We turned around and got back to the lake to continue going around. Once we got back to the point were we had stopped for lunch, we connected with the Battery Russell Trail going back to the parking lot. It was another quiet walk thru the empty forest. At one point we crossed paths with a lonely deer quietly exploring the area. Once we got back, the weather had improved a bit so we had a bit of blue ski and sun over us. WE took a short detour to explore the Battery Pratt and some of the other installations in the area before heading back to the car. It ended up being a day hike covering the distance that we normally do but without the elevation gain. Not bad for a no-hike day.



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Coyote Wall and the Labyrinth, Nov 1st

There are three or four ways to modify the Coyote Wall hike to make it longer and/or more interesting. One of those is to add the Labyrinth. This is an area east of the wall that has some rock formations and little hills that makes you feel like you’re in a labyrinth (hence the name). There are multiple footpaths in the area so it’s definitely open for exploration but this time we just wanted to do a good loop including Coyote Wall. Time couldn’t have been better. It was a crisp November morning with some clouds in the skies and wonderful fall colors. We started the usual way as if going towards Coyote Wall but stayed on the road a bit longer to get on the Labyrinth trail. As with most of the trails in this area, nothing is official. There are multiple paths yet is hard to get lost as its pretty open and you can quickly get a sense of where you are. We followed a path that hikes on the west side of the labyrinth and took just a couple of short detours to explore around. After passing the labyrinth we continued up on open fields overlooking the west side of the Gorge towards the high desert. Mt Hood was showing his white cap in the distance and the sun was painting the hills in orange. At some point we got to a 4WD road in the upper section that connects back to the Coyote Wall area. We followed that road for a while and then made de decision to do the longer loop. This loop involves descending quite a bit towards the wall and then climbing back again along the border. There’s a shorter version where you can traverse without losing a lot of elevation but you meet the Coyote Wall at higher elevation and miss some of its beauty. Once we reached the Coyote Wall, we started climbing up again as the wind started to blow on us. It wasn’t necessarily cold but it was enough to prevent us from stopping at the usual stop at the top for a snack. Instead, we continued and soon came to the junction with the connector trail that goes down to the valley. I remember once seen deer in this area. Once we were down and shielded from the wind, we stopped for a well-deserved late lunch. We were not able to stay long as we noticed ticks getting on our clothes. After that it was a leisurely walk down thru yellow and copper covered trails all the way down to the car. Always a good hike.



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Hunchback Mountain, Oct 12th

This is one of those hikes that has been forgotten for one reason or another. I do remember doing this trail ate least a couple of times before. On one of those, we went up with a group and at some point lost the trail due to snow. We followed the ridge as much as we could but after a couple of hours of negotiating rhododendrons we bailed and came back down. A second time I remember doing this hike was with Val when we started dating several years ago. It was a fall day when the clouds didn’t clear up so we got no views and the day kept cold. Back then, we reached the Rock Pile, had something to eat, and came back down. This time around, we didn’t have a big plan but we wanted to go a bit further. On this trail that is easily doable as you can continue all the way to Devils Peak which would require a very long day or staying out for the night. There are several places along the trail though were you can stop, take a break and return so we picked a view point past the heliport that is a bit over 5 miles in. Being a fall day again, we wanted to be back down at a reasonable time. We got to the trailhead pretty early and started hiking getting a couple of surprises. The first one was the greenery. The day was overcast and it had rained the previous days. All that recent water was enhancing the moss. The other surprise was the trail itself. I remember on the past times I’ve done that there were some blown down trees you had to jump over or go under. There were one this time. The trail was easy to follow and well maintained. As we gained elevation, the fog from the lower valleys started to raise and come thru the trees filtering the light a bit. At moments we got some pretty magical views in the forest that we had all to ourselves. On the way up, we past the Rock Pile without stopping but making a note to do so on the way down. Further up and just for a brief moment, the clouds parted and we got a clear view of Hood. It didn’t last for long but enough for a picture. We got to our intended destination where we stopped for a quick bite and then retraced our steps back down. Perfect fall day.



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