wanderingyuncks

Gales Creek Trail

A day off of work for New Years and a clear weather forecast = our first hike of 2019. Our trail of choice was the Gales Creek Trail in the Tillamook State Forest. We began our hike at the Gales Creek Trailhead, the same trailhead that we used in 2015 for a hike to nearby University Falls (post).

We began this hike as we had on our previous visit by following the Gales Creek Trail west from the parking area.

The first .8 miles to the Storey Burn Trail was a repeat of 2015 as we crossed Low Divide Creek on a footbridge and arrived at the trail junction.

Unlike last time when we turned left onto the Storey Burn Trail this time we turned right sticking to the Gales Creek Trail which paralleled Gales Creek.

It was a chilly morning, about 28 degrees, and there was a fair amount of frost on the ground and plants. In addition to the typical frost we see on a chilly morning, we had been noticing white clumps here and there. The clumps looked like they could be garbage at first glance but it wasn’t. Other thoughts were fur but we couldn’t think of any animals in the area with white fur or something from a tree but it wasn’t the right time of year for things like cottonwood. Our next guess was a little closer with a fungus but upon closer inspection we determined it was some sort of fine ice/frost.

It was very interesting. The scarcity of the clumps told us that there must be some set of conditions to create these frost clumps and spent much of the hike marveling at the designs. Thanks to the help of some fellow hikers over at Oregonhikers.org we later learned that this type of frost is the result of a fungus inside certain rotting wood that leaves water and carbon dioxide behind as the wood decays. The CO2 forces the water out of the wood through tiny holes and when the temperature is just a bit below freezing creates the frost “hairs” . Here is a post describing the phenomena in more detail and a article on BBC – Earth with a time lapse video of the frost forming.

The Gales Creek Trail stuck fairly close to the creek, sometimes rising a bit above it as it passed through the forest and crossed several streams that would likely have been dry in the summer months.

A mile and a half from the Storey Burn Trail junction we did come to a dry creek bed, but a flash of water back in the trees looked like it might be a decent waterfall. The terrain looked like it might make for a reasonable off-trail jaunt and the fact that there was no water down at the trail but there was some further up made us curious so we decided to head uphill. After about a quarter mile climb over and around downed trees we found ourselves looking at a nice 20′ or so waterfall. The terrain narrowed enough that we couldn’t get right up to the falls but it was still a nice view (although not the best lighting for photos).

The route we came up.

After admiring the falls we returned to the trail and continued west toward the Bell Camp Trailhead.
A short section of railroad grade.

More creek crossings followed, some trickier than others, but we managed to keep our feet fairly dry using rocks or logs.

A total of 2.25 miles from the junction we arrived at stand of alders as the site of good sized slide that occurred in 2007.

Just over a mile from the alder stand we came to the trickiest crossing of the day. There appeared to be two options across, a lone rock barely sticking out of the water and a pile of slick looking logs. Due to the direction we were heading the rock was too far to reach so we opted for the logs. Some carefully placed steps got us across dry.
The logs we came across.

The rock after having crossed.

On the way back I opted to attempt a jump from the rock. It worked but after watching Heather recross fairly easily on the logs my 46 year old body thought that would have been a better choice.
Heather finishing her crossing on the way back.

Beyond this crossing the trail turned inland away from Gales Creek a bit. Slides apparently forced the trail to be rerouted at some point because a footbridge could still be seen through the trees closer to Gales Creek.

We passed a very small cascade along this section and then approximately 1.75 miles from the tricky creek crossing arrived at our turn around point, a 25′ waterfall right along the trail.

We took a break at the falls and as we studied the falls the light moved enough to create a small rainbow.

We returned the way we’d come. The sun was shining but it was still chilly as we made our way back.

We didn’t see much wildlife, just a handful of birds, and being the middle of winter no wildflowers but there were a few mushrooms to enjoy.

With the half mile side trip the hike wound up being just under 12.5 miles with approximately 1500′ of elevation gain. It was a nice start to a new year of hiking. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Gales Creek Trail

Tags Feather frost, gales creek, Gales Creek Campground, Gales Creek Trail, Hair frost, hiking, Oregon, Silk frost, storey burn trail, Tillamook State Forest, Waterfall

Hiking Year-end wrap up

2018 Wildflower Gallery

It wasn’t the greatest wildflower year in 2018 but there were still a few decent displays and several new species for us. Below are some of the better displays as well as individual blossoms from this years hikes. (Attempts have been made to identify, at least in general, the type of flower but please correct us if we are wrong or chime in on the unidentified photos.)

Snow queen – McDonald Forest, February

From Memaloose Hills in April:
Arnica Arnica

Larkspur

Fiddleneck

Lupine Lupine

Prairie star

Balsamroot

Wildflowers at Memaloose Hills Unknown

Large-flower triteleia

Giant head clover

Broomrape

From the Wygant Trail in April:
Fairybells

Hound's tongue Hound’s tongue

Dogwood Dogwood

Ballhead waterleaf

Chocolate lily

Kittentails

Grass widow

Penstemon

From Patterson Mountain in May:
Fawn lilies Fawn lily

Fairy slippers

Wood violet

A saxifrage

Red flowering currant Red-flowering currant

Skunk cabbage

Glacier lily

More flowers from May:
Wild iris Iris – Washington Park

Anemone Anemone – Lookout Creek Trail

Trillium – Carpenter Mountain

Buckwheat – White River Falls State Park

Thistle Thistle along the Deschutes River

Western prairie-clover along the Deschutes River

Clustered broomrape along the Deschutes River

Bitterroot – Rimrock Springs

Bluebells along Muir Creek

Gooseberry along Muir Creek

Wild iris Iris along Muir Creek

Lupine White lupine along Muir Creek

Pea Pea? along Muir Creek

Violets Violets along Muir Creek

Bleeding heart along the Muir Creek Trail

Tall mountain bluebells – Rogue-Umpqua Divide Wilderness

Jacob's ladder Jacob’s ladder – Rogue-Umpqua Divide Wilderness

Marsh marigolds – Rogue-Umpqua Divide Wilderness

Avalanche lilies – Rogue-Umpqua Divide Wilderness

Wildflowers along the Buck Canyon Trail Spring Beauty – Rogue-Umpqua Divide Wilderness

Western stoneseed – Black Butte

June wildflowers:
Bunchberry – Salmon River Trail

Anemone Anemone – Salmon River Trail

Star flowers – Salmon River Trail

Valerian – Salmon River Trail

Rhododendron – Salmon River Trail

Spotted coralroot – Salmon River Trail

Cat's ear lily Cats ear lily – Salmon River Trail

Field chickweed Filed chickweed – Salmon River Trail

Stonecrop – Salmon River Trail

Wildflower along the Salmon River Trail unknown – Salmon River Trail

Paintbrush and plectritis – Salmon River Trail

Blue head gilia – Salmon River Trail

Candy sticks – Salmon River Trail

Salmonberry – Salmon River Trail

Showy milkweed along the Deschutes River

Chicory Chicory (non-native) along the Deschutes River

Blanket flower along the Deschutes River

Bindweed along the Deschutes River

Dwarf monkeyflower – Diamond Craters

Wild onion and lupine leaves Wild onion – Jordan Craters

Mariposa lily in Slocum Gulch Sagebrush mariposa lily – Leslie Gulch

Butterfly on dustymaiden in Slocum Gulch Dusty maiden – Leslie Gulch

Clarkia Clarkia – Leslie Gulch

Primrose Evening Primerose – Three Forks

Salsify Salsify – Three Forks

Grand collomia – Three Forks

Stream orchid – Three Forks

Mariposa lily – Three Forks

Wildflowers along the Owyhee River unknown – Three Forks

Tufted primrose – Chalk Basin

Orange globe mallow – Chalk Basin

Wildflowers in the Dry wash in Chalk Basin unknown – Chalk Basin

Smooth stemmed blazing star – Chalk Basin

Threadleaf phacelia – Chalk Basin

Penstemon – Alvord Desert

Beetle on yarrow Yarrow – Pike Creek

Purple sticky geranium Geranium – Myrtle Creek

Scarlet gilia – Myrtle Creek

Yelow and red paintbrush – Myrtle Creek

Skull cap – Myrtle Creek

Checkermallow – Myrtle Creek

Death camas – Myrtle Creek

Hedge nettle Hedgenettle – Saddle Mountain

Penstemon Beardstongue – Saddle Mountain

Twin flower – Saddle Mountain

Columbine – Saddle Mountain

Larkspur – Saddle Mountain

Wildflowers along the Saddle Mountain Trail Wildflowers on Saddle Mountain

Old man's whiskers Old man’s whiskers – Saddle Mountain

Wall flower Wallflower – Saddle Mountain

Wildflowers along the Saddle Mountain Trail Featherbells – Saddle Mountain

Inside out flower – Saddle Mountain

Foxglove (non-native) – Soapstone Lake

July Wildflowers:
Fireweed – Elk Lake Creek

Spreading dogbane – Elk Lake Creek

Scouler's bluebell Scouler’s bluebells – Elk Lake Creek

Washington lilies – Elk Lake Creek

Prince's pine Prince’s pine – Elk Lake Creek

Coralroot – Elk Lake Creek

Pearly everlasting – Elk Lake Creek

Wild ginger – Browder Ridge

Tiger lily – Browder Ridge

Larkspur and paintbrush – Browder Ridge

Vanilla leaf – Browder Ridge

Wildflowers along the Browder Ridge Trail Sagebrush false dandelions and cat’s ear lilies – Browder Ridge

Oregon sunshine? – Browder Ridge

Spirea Spirea – Browder Ridge

Shooting stars – Heart Lake

Owls clover – Browder Ridge

Lewis Flax – Browder Ridge

Northern phlox – Horsepasture Mountain

Foam flower – Horsepasture Mountain

Lousewort – Horsepasture Mountain

Beargrass – Horsepasture Mountain

Coneflower – Horsepasture Mountain

A fleabane – Horsepasture Mountain

Catchfly – Horsepasture Mountain

False hellebore – Opal Creek Wilderness

Monkeyflower – Strawberry Mountain Wilderness

Streambed globe mallow – Strawberry Mountain Wilderness

Mountain coyote mint – Strawberry Mountain Wilderness

Low jacob's ladder Low Jacob’s ladder – Strawberry Mountain Wilderness

Nuttall's Linanthus Nuttall’s linanthus – Strawberry Mountain Wilderness

Bog orchids – Wildcat Spring

Elephants head – Strawberry Mountain Wilderness

Lousewort Louewort – Strawberry Mountain Wilderness

Yellow paintbrush – Strawberry Mountain Wilderness

Rockfringe willowherb – Strawberry Mountain Wilderness

Wildflowers along the Strawberry Basin Trail Small wildflower meadow in the Strawberry Mountain Wilderness

Wild rose – Strawberry Mountain Wilderness

Penstemon – Strawberry Mountain Wilderness

Wildflowers along the Skyline Trail Hyssop, yellow paintbrush and unknown yellow flowers in the Strawberry Mountain Wilderness

Pussypaws – Strawberry Mountain Wilderness

Moving on to August:
Gentians – Mt. Jefferson Wilderness

Yellow monkeyflower – Mt. Jefferson Wilderness

Aster Aster – Elkhorns

Orange agoseris – Elkhorns

Mountain heather – Twin Lakes

wildflowers along Lower Twin Lake unknown – Twin Lakes

Bistort Bistort – Elkhorns

Wildflower along the Rigdon Lakes Trail Groundsel? – Waldo Lake

A couple from September:
Western pasque flowers Western pasque flower – Mt. Jefferson Wilderness

Wildflower on Mt. Jefferson unknown – South Climb Route, Mt. Jefferson

One from October:
Moth mullen – Cape Perpetua

In a little over a month the snow queen will once again begin popping up at low elevations and soon after the eastern end of the Columbia Gorge will begin to cycle through it’s blooms starting with the grass widows. Until then we hope these flowers will be reminders of the colors of Spring/Summer. Happy Trails!

Tags hiking, Oregon, wildflowers

Hiking Year-end wrap up

2018 Wildlife Gallery

We encountered a large variety of animals during our travels in 2018. A number of the animals we had not previously seen including a badger near Borax Springs (which we failed to get a photo of). Below is a sample of the many critters we encountered this year.

Seals in Nehalem Bay

Frog Tree frog – Patterson Mountain

Garter snake on Patterson Mountain

Crab spider – Lookout Creek Trail

Green beetle on the Carpenter Mountain Trail Beetle – Carpenter Mountain

Butterfly Pale crescent near Macks Canyon

Gopher snake near Macks Canyon

Crowded thistle Beetles on thistle near Mack’s Canyon

Caterpillar along the Black Butte Trail

Green tailed towhee on Black Butte

Pigeon Rock pigeon – Deschutes River

Merganser family – Deschutes River

Dragon Fly – Deschutes River

Lizard Sagebrush Lizard – Deschutes River

Pronghorn – Malheur Wildlife Refuge

Yellow headed blackbirds Yellow headed blackbird – Malheur Wildlife Refuge

Horned grebes – Malheur Wildlife Refuge

Great horned owl – Malheur Wildlife Refuge

Lewis's woodpecker Lewis’s woodpecker – Malheur Wildlife Refuge

White faced ibis – Malheur Wildlife Refuge

Yellow warbler – Malheur Wildlife Refuge

Western meadowlark – Malheur Wildlife Refuge

Bullock's oriole Bullock’s oriole – Malheur Wildlife Refuge

Rabbit Rabbit – Jordan Craters

Marmot Marmot – Jordan Craters

Chukar Chukar – Leslie Gulch

Cricket Cricket – Leslie Gulch

Monarch butterfly Viceroy- Leslie Gulch

Swallowtail in Timber Gulch Swallow tail – Leslie Gulch

Cicada Cicada – Leslie Gulch

Burrowing owl near Leslie Gulch

Dragon fly – Three Forks

Fritillary butterfly – Three Forks

Pheasant – Pillars of Rome

Side blotched lizard – Chalk Basin

Collard lizard – Chalk Basin

Sandhill Cranes near Steens Mountain

jack rabbit – Borax Hot Springs

Desert horned lizard – Alvord Desert

Long nosed leopard lizard – Alvord Desert

Lizard Western Fence Lizard – Pike Creek

Swallowtail Swallow tail – Myrtle Creek

Butterfly Sheridan’s hairstreak – Myrtle Creek

Orange- tip Butterfly Orange-tip butterfly – Myrtle Creek

Western kingbird – Cove Palisades State Park

Cascade toad – Browder Ridge

Gray jay – Browder Ridge

Rufous hummingbird – Horsepasture Mountain

Grouse Grouse – Horsepasture Mountain

Wren Wren – French Creek Ridge

Butterfly on stonecrop Checkerspot butterfly – French Creek Ridge

Chipmunk near Hidden Forest Cave

Pygmy short horned lizard near Pictograph Cave

Caterpillars – Strawberry Mountain Wilderness

Fish in Little Strawberry Lake Trout – Little Strawberry Lake

Doe at Slide Lake Doe – Slide Lake

Megarhyssa nortoni

Great blue heron – Newport Bay

Snake Sharp-tailed snake – Newport Bay

Osprey Osprey – South Beach

Pika Pika – Mt. Jefferson Wilderness

Hawk Northern goshawk – Elkhorns

Hawk Red tailed hawk – Elkhorns

Mountain goats across Lower Twin Lake Mountain goats – Elkhorns

Mountain goat grazing near Lower Twin Lake Mountain Goat – Elkhorns

Golden-mantled ground squirrel Golden mantled ground squirrel – Elkhorns

Mourning cloak – Elkhorns

Beetle at Summit Lake Beetle – Summit Lake

Bee on coneflower Bumble bee – Crawfish Lake

Finch Finch – Crawfish Lake

Bald Eagle – Waldo Lake

Hairy woodpecker – Rigdon Lakes

Blue copper butterfly Blue copper – Rockpile Lake

Buttefly at Carl Lake Tortoiseshell butterfly – Carl Lake

Varied thrush – Carl Lake

Frogs on a log Frogs – Table Lake

Clarks nutcracker – Mt. Jefferson Wilderness

Ouzel Ouzel – Pamelia Lake

Junco Junco – Pamelia Lake

Frog Frog – Taylor Lake

Birds on the beach Sanderlings – John Dellenback Beach

Douglas squirrel – John Dellenback Dunes Trail

Egret Great egret – Mud Lake

Bird at Mud Lake Wilson’s snipe – Mud Lake

Elk along Elk River Road Elk on the way to Barklow Mt.

Starfish – Bandon, Oregon

Crab Crab – Bandon, Oregon

Anemones – Bandon, Oregon

Turkey Vulture – Bandon, Oregon

Seagull and a marbled godwit in the Coquile River

Black turnstones along the North Jetty Black turnstones – North Jetty, Bandon, Oregon

Brown pelicans – Bullards Beach State Park

Mink Mink – Sprague River

White pelicans and a seagull White pelicans – Tule Lake National Wildlife Refuge

Snowy egret at Tule Lake National Wildlife Refuge Snowy egret – Tule Lake National Wildlife Refuge

Stellars jay Stellar’s jay – Fish Lake

Muskrat Muskrat – Lake of the Woods

Dragon fly – Lake of the Woods

Geese Canada geese – Lake of the Woods

Caterpillar – Lake of the Woods

Cormorants – Link River

American coots – Link River

Mallards – Pond near Lake Ewauna

Northern shoveler – Pond near Lake Ewauna

Northern flicker – Link River Trail

Scrub jay – Link River Trail

Western grebe – Link River

Hooded mergansers – Link River

Buffleheads – Siltcoos Lake

Rough skinned newt – Jessie M. Honeyman State Park

Sparrow Sparrow – Jessie M. Honeyman State Park

Anna's hummingbird Anna’s hummingbird – Jessie M. Honeyman State Park

Ring-necked ducks – Jessie M. Honeyman State Park

Spotted towhee – Jessie M. Honeyman State Park

That’s a pretty good sample of the different wildlife we spotted this year, but we still often wonder how much wildlife we don’t notice on our hikes. Happy Trails!

Tags hiking, Link River, Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, Oregon, Tule Lake National Wildlife Refuge, Wildlife

Hiking Year-end wrap up

The Hikes of 2018 – A Look Back

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date December 29, 2018
7 Comments on The Hikes of 2018 – A Look Back

It’s hard to believe that it’s time for another year end wrap up. This will be our 6th such post since we started this blog in 2013. It’s even harder to believe that we still have so many hikes yet to do before we are finished with our long term hiking goal of completing at least some portion of all 500 of the featured hikes in William L. Sullivan’s five “100 Hikes…” guidebooks.

A goal we are closing in on is visiting all 45 of the accessible designated wilderness areas in Oregon. (Three Arch Rocks and Oregon Islands, both off the Oregon Coast, are off limits to visitors,) We now have just seven wilderness areas left to visit after spending time in the Rogue-Umpqua Divide (post), Steens Mountain (post), Strawberry Mountain (post), and Copper-Salmon (post) wildernesses this year.

With so many different hikes available we were once again able to spend most of our year exploring new trails and areas. We took hikes on 61 different days, 51 of those days were spent on trails (or sections of trails) that were new to us this year. Six additional days were partially on new sections of trail while just four days were repeated hikes.

Many of our hiking days consisted of multiple stops this year which resulted in a nice round 100 separate “hikes” varying in length from a quarter mile at the Pillars of Rome (post) to 20.3 miles in the Waldo Lake Wilderness (post).

Of those 100 hikes 89 were brand new, 6 were partially new, and 5 were repeated. The number of repeated hikes is 5 and not 4 because Saddle Mountain was done on the same day as three new hikes (post). Below is a map showing all of our stops.

Hikers=Trailheads, Houses=Tent Sites, Binoculars=Short Walk/Viewpoint

Although the majority of our hikes were done in Oregon we did manage to spend one day each in Washington (Falls Creek Falls), California (Lava Beds National Monument), and for the first time Idaho (Jump Creek Falls).

Falls Creek Falls

View from the Schonchin Butte Trail

Lava Beds National Monument

Jump Creek Falls

We did spend more time east of the Cascade Crest this year compared to years past including trips to SE Oregon in June (amazing scenery/horrible roads), the Strawberry Mountains in July (beautiful but HOT), the Elkhorns in August (mountain goats galore), and Klamath Falls in October (lots of wildlife). Our other vacation was a trip to the Oregon Coast in September (Bandon = new favorite coast town). Hiking in so many different areas once again provided us with a wide variety of scenery. Cape Meares Lighthouse

Cape Meares Lighthouse

Footbridge along the Old Growth Trail

McDonald-Dunn Forest

Lower South Falls

Lower South Falls – Silver Falls State Park

Balsamroot

Balsamroot at Memaloose Hills

Lone Wolf Meadow

Perham Creek

Perham Creek – Columbia River Gorge

White River Falls

Deschutes River

Deschutes River near Macks Canyon

Upper meadow of Buck Canyon

Buck Canyon – Rogue-Umpqua Divide Wilderness

Mt. Thielsen

Cupola lookout on Black Butte

Cascade Mountains from Black Butte

Salmon River

Frustration Falls

Frustration Falls – Salmon-Huckleberry Wilderness

Malheur Wildlife Refuge

Peter French Round Barn

Coffee Pot Crater

Coffee Pot Crater – Jordan Craters

Timber Gulch

Waterfall at Three Forks Hot Springs

Owyhee River

Pillars of Rome

Pillars of Rome – Rome, Oregon

Chalk Basin

Borax Lake

Borax Hot Springs

Alvord Desert and Steens Mountain

Steens Mountain and the Alvord Desert

The Island and Lake Billy Chinook

Emerald Pool

Emerald Pool – Bull of the Woods Wilderness

Horsepasture Mountain Trail

Footbridge over the Hot Springs Fork

Bagby Springs Trail

Boyd Cave

Pine Creek Trail

Pine Creek Trail – Strawberry Mountain Wilderness

Volcanic ash along the Pine Creek Traii

Volcanic ash – Strawberry Mountain Wilderness

Strawberry Mountain

Strawberry Mountain Wilderness

Slide Lake

Slide Lake – Strawberry Mountain Wilderness

Mt. Jefferson and the Pacific Crest Trail

Jefferson Park – Mt. Jefferson Wilderness

Elkhorn Crest Trail

Summit Lake

Summit Lake – Elkhorns

Rock Creek Lake

Rock Creek Lake – Elkhorns

Diamond Peak and Fuji Mountain from Waldo Lake

Waldo Lake

Rigdon Butte from Lake Kiwa

Rigdon Butte

Broken Top, The Three Sisters, Mt. Washington and Three Fingered Jack from South Pyramid Peak in the Mt. Jefferson Wilderness

Carl Lake at sunrise

Carl Lake – Mt. Jefferson Wilderness

Hole-in-the-Wall Park and Mt. Jefferson

Hole-in-the-Wall Park – Mt. Jefferson Wilderness

Mt. Jefferson and Goat Peak

Mt. Jefferson & Goat Peak – Mt. Jefferson Wilderness

Umpqua Dunes

Bandon Islands

Barklow Mountain Trail entering the Copper-Salmon Wilderness

Copper-Salmon Wilderness

Tahkenitch Creek

Huckleberry Bushes

Huckleberry bushes – Diamond Peak Wilderness

Mt. Hood

Devil's Garden

Devil’s Garden

Sprague River

Tule Lake

Petroglyph Point

Mt. McLoughlin from Great Meadow

Mt. McLoughlin

Salmon Creek Falls

Footbridge over Falls Creek

View from the Red Mountain Lookout

Washington Cascades from Red Mountain

Klamath Falls

Klamath Falls on the Link River

Spouting Horn

Spouting Horn – Cape Perpetua

Wildwood Trail

Forest Park – Portland, Oregon

Waxmyrtle Marsh

Sunbeams in the Siuslaw National Forest

Siuslaw National Forest

In addition to the great scenery we saw a wide variety of wildlife and a fair number of wildflowers despite it not being the best year for them. Instead of including some of those pictures here we hope to post a separate 2018 wildlife and wildflower galleries soon.

We’re already looking forward to another year of hiking. If everything works out we will be checking off three more Oregon wilderness areas and a whole bunch of new hikes in 2019. We’ll be doing one or maybe two hikes a month from now until mid-Spring. Since we won’t have a lot of trips to report on during that time we’re hoping to do a few other hiking related posts including a more in depth look at our goals of visiting all the wilderness areas and checking off the 500 “featured hikes”.

We hope everyone has a great New Year and as always – Happy Trails!

Tags Alvord Desert, California, Copper-Salmon Wilderness, Elkhorn Mountains, Elkhorn Range, elkhorns, hiking, Idaho, Lava Beds National Monument, Malheur wildlife refuge, Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, Oregon, Oregon Coast, Salmon-Huckleberry Wilderness, Steens Mountain, Strawberry Mountain Wilderness, Washington

Hiking Oregon Oregon Coast Southern Coast

Siltcoos River, Siltcoos Lake & Honeyman State Park – 12/08/18

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date December 17, 2018
1 Comment on Siltcoos River, Siltcoos Lake & Honeyman State Park – 12/08/18

The first week of December greeted us with some beautiful weather. Unfortunately the forecast called for the arrival of rain Friday evening and we were unable to get time off of work during the week to take advantage of the sunny conditions. We kept our eyes on the forecast though and by Friday there was a window of time Saturday morning where it looked like it might be dry along the coast south of Florence so we made a last minute call to take our final outing of the year.

Our plan was to end the year much as it started (post), with a three stop day along the Oregon Coast. For this trip we’d picked three hikes just south of Florence, OR in the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area. Our first stop was at the Stagecoach Trailhead, eight miles south of Florence, in the Siltcoos Area.

Stagecoach Trailhead

Map at the Stagecoach Trailhead

From the trailhead we followed signs for the Waxmyrtle Trail which led us across the Siltcoos River on bridge on the entrance road to the Waxmyrtle Campground.
Waxmyrtle Trail sign

Siltcoos River

Once across the bridge we turned right along the river bank on the Waxmyrtle Trail.

Siltcoos River

It was a mostly cloudy morning, but it was dry and there was a least some breaks which gave us hope that it would turn out to be a nice day after all.
Siltcoos River

Our guidebook had mentioned that this area was one of the best areas for bird watching in the State. Although we didn’t see a large number of birds on this morning we did spot a few along the estuary here.
Egret Egret

Great blue heron

Common mergansers

Bufflehead

A little under a half mile from the bridge we came to an old fork in the trail. The right hand fork had been a seasonal trail sticking closer to the river, but it has been closed due to erosion.
Closed portion of trail along the Siltcoos River

We stayed left and shortly arrived at a sandy road leading between the campground and the beach. A sign here pointed right for the continuation of the Waxmyrtle Trail.
Sign for the Waxmyrtle Trail

Waxmyrtle Trail

We followed this sandy track 3/4 of a mile to Waxmyrtle Beach. Along the way we passed through Waxmyrtle Marsh where the morning colors reflected off the still waters on either side of the trail.
Waxmyrtle Trail

Interpretive sign for the Waxmyrtle Marsh

Waxmyrtle Marsh

Waxmyrtle Beach

For a longer hike here we could have walked along the beach, but with two other stops ahead of us we simply stopped for a moment to enjoy the Pacific Ocean. It was a perfect morning for a visit, the temperature was in the upper 40’s, there was no breeze at all, and the sky above seemed to compliment the waves below.
Waxmyrtle Beach

Pacific Ocean at Wax Myrtle Beach

Pacific Ocean

Sanderlings

After enjoying a peaceful moment on the beach we headed back the way we’d come, careful to not step on any of the numerous rough skinned newts that were out and about.
Tiny rough skinned newt

After recrossing the Siltcoos River and before returning to the Stagecoach Trailhead we crossed the main road to take the .7 mile Lagoon Trail.

On the far side of a boardwalk the Lagoon Trail began a .7 mile loop around a campground in the middle of the Siltcoos Lagoon.
Lagoon Trail map

Siltcoos Lagoon

Interpretive sign along the Siltcoos Lagoon

Siltcoos Lagoon

Squirrel

Sparrow

After finishing the loop we returned to our car. The hike here had only been 3.3 miles but had offered a nice variety of scenery and wildlife. We drove back to Highway 101 from the trailhead and crossed directly over it to reach the Siltcoos Lake Trailhead.

The Siltcoos Lake Trail with a .9 mile climb inland through a second growth forest to the start of a loop.

Siuslaw forest along the Siltcoos Lake Trail

Siltcoos Lake Trail

A wide variety of mushrooms grew along the forest floor where there were also more newts to watch out for.

Mushrooms

Mushroom along the Siltcoos Lake Trail

Rough skinned newt next to an upturned mushroom

We turned right at the start of the loop and followed the trail a little over three quarters of a mile to another junction.
Sunbeams in the forest along the Siltcoos Lake Trail

Siltcoos Lake Trail

We had lost nearly all the elevation we had gained and the trail to right continued downhill for another quarter mile to South Camp, a tent site along the lake shore.
Siltcoos Lake

Siltcoos Lake

The lake was very pretty and full of birds but the nearly constant sound of gunfire took a little away from the enjoyment.
Birds on Siltcoos Lake

Birds on Siltcoos Lake

We climbed back up to the Sitlcoos Lake Trail and continued a half mile on the loop which dropped to a small creek crossing before arriving at a sign for the tent sites at North Camp where we again turned right and visited the lake shore.
Siltcoos Lake Trail

Siltcoos Lake

American coot

Birds taking flight from Siltcoos Lake

Following paths north along the shore led us past all the sites and back to the Siltcoos Lake Trail.
Sunbeams in the Siuslaw National Forest

Siltcoos Lake Trail

Just under a mile and a quarter from North Camp we finished the loop and then returned the .9 miles to the trailhead to complete the 4.4 mile hike.

Next we drove north on Highway 101 just over 4.5 miles to signs for Jessie M. Honeyman State Park where we turned east on Canary Road. We followed this road for a half mile before turning right into the East Woahink Day Use Area.

After parking in the large parking area we walked back toward the entrance to a large sign for Cleawox Lake Day Use Areas.
Trail from the East Woahink Lake picnic area

This path led briefly through a forest before joining Canary Road to cross a portion of the lake.
Trail between Woahink and Cleawox Lake

Woahink Lake

After passing over the water along the road the trail dipped back into the forest and immediately forked. The right hand fork led directly into the West Woahink Day Use Area while the left fork (which we took) looped around the day use area along the lake shore passing picnic tables and a small beach.
Beach along Woahink Lake

Woahink Lake

On the far side of the West Woahink Day Use Area we once again found ourselves on the shoulder of Canary Road passing over more of the lake. The trail again veered away from the somewhat busy road and we followed pointers for Cleawox Lake to a paved bike path leading over Highway 101.
Trail between Woahink and Cleawox Lake

Trail between Woahink and Cleawox Lake

Path over Highway 101 in Jesse M. Honeyman State Park

Rough skinned newts had become the theme for the day and even the bike path was not free of them.

Shortly after crossing over the highway we turned right off the bike path at a trail sign.
Trail between Woahink and Cleawox Lake

This path led downhill past a small stone structure and across a couple of paved roads before reaching Cleawox Lake.
Stone structer in Jessie M. Honeyman State Park

Trail between Woahink and Cleawox Lake

Cleawox Lake

On the far side of lake was the day use area complete with a very nice bathhouse. We turned right at the lake and made our way around the water to the bathhouse and swimming area.
Cleawox Lake

Bathhouse at Cleawox Lake

Cleawox Lake

We could imagine that this would be a very busy place at other times of the year but on the second weekend in December there were only a few other people that we could even see and they were all across the water in other areas. We found a dry bench and sat a for a bit listening to a sparrow sing.
Sparrow

As we started to head back an Anna’s hummingbird zoomed by and landed in a nearby tree.
Anna's hummingbird

Anna's hummingbird

We passed by the trail that we had come down to the lake on and continued along the water to a large parking area on the opposite side of the bathhouse.
Cleawox Lake

At the end of the parking lot a path led to a dune along the lake, but before we headed out onto the sand we took a very short side trip on the signed Nature Trail to visit Lily Lake.

Lily Lake

After seeing the small lake we headed up the sand dune overlooking Cleawox Lake.
Dunes Trail

Dune in Jessie M. Honeyman State Park

Cleawox Lake

We climbed to the top of the dune and surveyed the surrounding area.
Dune in Jessie M. Honeyman State Park

Cleawox Lake

Pacific Ocean from a dune in Jessie M. Honeyman State Park The Pacific Ocean from the dune.

To the south we could see our goal, the largest sand dune (at least in that area) in Jessie M. Honeyman State Park.

Jessie M. Honeyman State Park

It was a half mile of sandy up and down walking between the two dunes.
Trail through the dunes at Jessie M. Honeyman State Park

Dune Trail

After a nearly 150′ climb we arrived at the top of the dune and its 360 degree view.
View from the tallest dune in Jessie M. Honeyman State Park

View from the tallest dune in Jessie M. Honeyman State Park

Although off road vehicles are allowed in much of the park this dune (and our route to and from it) are off limits. After soaking in the view (and watching a couple of motorcycles in the distance) we followed footprints steeply downhill to the east.
Path down the dune

Dune in Jessie M. Honeyman State Park

After a short stint through trees we followed tracks around a sandy bowl reentering the trees just above the park’s campground.
Dune in Jessie M. Honeyman State Park

Once in the campground we headed north following the paved roads to Loop “B”.
Campground in Jessie M. Honeyman State Park

We turned east along the northern end of Loop B which brought us to the bike path that we had crossed Highway 101 on earlier.
Trail to East Woahink Lake Day Use Area

We followed path back up and over Highway 101 and returned to the East Woahink Lake Day Use Area. The path was full of birds now, mostly robins but we also spotted a nice spotted towhee.
Robins

Spotted towhee

The only thing we did differently on the way back was that we went through the West Woahink Day Use Area instead of around it which allowed us to use the facilities there before our drive home. This was our longest hike of the day at 5.2 miles bringing the days total to 12.9.

We had been all prepared for wet and rainy weather, but instead we had a nearly perfect day for hiking at the coast. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Siltcoos River, Siltcoos Lake, & Honeyman State Park

Hiking Oregon Portland Trip report Willamette Valley

Forest Park – Wildwood Trail & Leif Erikson Drive Loop

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date November 12, 2018
10 Comments on Forest Park – Wildwood Trail & Leif Erikson Drive Loop

Heather and I recently celebrated our 23rd anniversary with a morning hike in Portland’s Forest Park followed by dinner at Sisters Irish Bistro in Salem.

We started our hike at the Germantown Road Trailhead where the Wildwood Trail crosses the road.
Wildwood Trail at Germantown Road Trailhead

We chose this loop due to the presence of some low clouds. This section of trail didn’t offer the mountain views that some others do so we thought it was a good day for it. From the parking area we headed south on the Wildwood Trail which briefly climbed before leveling out on a hillside.

Wildwood Trail

We followed the Wildwood Trail for a little over four and a quarter miles through the foggy forest. Junctions were well marked along the way with maps located at several of them.
Forest Park from the Wildwood Trail

Wildwood Trail junction with the Waterline Trail Waterline Trail junction

Wildwood Trail

Wildwood Trail Map at the Springville Road junction.

Wildwood Trail

Wildwood Trail junction with the Ridge Trail Ridge Trail junction

Wildwood Trail

We turned off of the Wildwood Trail at Fire Lane 7A which we followed downhill less than a quarter mile to a pointer for Leif Erikson Drive.
Wildwood Trail junction with Fire Lane 7A

Fire Lane 7A

Tie trail to Leif Erikson Dr.

A short path led fairly steeply down to the closed road where we turned left.
Leif Erikson Drive

Leif Erikson Drive

After one and a quarter mile on the road we came to the remains of an old building on the left.
Remains of an old building along Leif Erikson Drive

Remains of an old building along Leif Erikson Drive

A little over three miles after turning onto Leif Erikson Drive we arrived at another small parking lot along Germantown Road.
Leif Erikson Drive Trailhead along Germantown Road

Signboard for Leif Erikson Drive at Germantown Road

From this trailhead we followed the Cannon Trail uphill for a third of a mile back to the Germantown Road Trailhead and the Wildwood Trail.

Cannon Trail

Our loop was approximately 8.4 miles long with about 500′ of total elevation gain. It had been a good day for this particular hike and although we saw quite a few other people it never felt overly crowded. Shorter (or longer) loops could be done using the numerous other trails in the area.

Dinner at Sisters Irish Bistro was a perfect way to end our anniversary celebration, the food was excellent and so was the relaxing atmosphere. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Forest Park

Tags Cannon Trail, Fire Lane 7A, Fog, Forest Park, Germantown Road, Germantown Road Trailhead, hiking, Leif Erikson Drive, Oregon, Portland, Sisters Irish Bistro, Wildwood Trail

Central Coast Hiking Oregon Oregon Coast Trip report

Amanda’s Trail to Cape Perpetua

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date October 31, 2018
6 Comments on Amanda’s Trail to Cape Perpetua

As we approached the final hike of our official “hiking season” (May through October) we were playing a game of cat and mouse with the weather forecast. Our original plan had been a visit to Wahtum Lake between the Columbia Gorge and Mt. Hood but on Wednesday the forecast for Saturday was rain there so we began to look elsewhere. Our November hike (we try and do one a hike month in our “off-season”) was going to be a visit to Cape Perpetua via Amanda’s Trail so we checked the forecast for that area and it simply called for mostly cloudy conditions. We checked again on Thursday and the forecast for these locations had basically swapped and now Wahtum Lake looked better. Another check Friday night called for rain in both areas (more at Wahtum Lake) so we decided to check again in the morning before deciding where we would end up. The forecast the next morning was still calling for rain at both locations but not starting until 11am. With less precipitation expected at Cape Perpetua and views being less of a concern there we headed to Yachats on the Oregon Coast.

At the southern end of Yachats, after crossing over the Yachats River, we turned right on Ocean View Road which leads to the Yachats Ocean Road State Natural Site. The road passes along the natural site where there are several pullouts before looping back to Highway 101. We parked at a small dirt pullout near the southern end of the natural site and took our time getting going because we’d arrived a little before sunrise.

Luckily there was a decent amount of light being provided by the Moon so it didn’t take long before we headed further south along Ocean View Road to a post marking the Oregon Coast Trail (OCT).

We followed the posts south which brought us to the shoulder of Highway 101.

A little under a quarter mile beyond the first OCT post the trail crossed over the highway at Windy Way Street. We then climbed a bit away from the highway before dropping back down to a driveway for a bed and breakfast.

The first sign that this section of the OCT is Amanda’s Trail came on the far side of the B&B when the trail reentered the forest.

The trail once again climbed away from the highway as it rounded a hillside with a few ocean views.

Approximately a half mile from the bed and breakfast we came to a statue of two bears representing an Alsea Indian myth that bears dance when the salmon come. Norman Kittle, whose name is on the statue, along with his wife Joanne were the first private landowners to donate a trail easement in the State of Oregon.

Beyond the bear statue the trail began a slight decent, crossing a gravel road, before arriving at the small grotto with Amanda’s Statue ( a quarter mile from the bears).

Interpretive signs here told of the blind woman’s forced march to the reservation.

The present statue is not the original statue as it and a nearby footbridge were washed away in a 2016 flood. The current statue is one of two others completed by the same artist and was provided by its owners when the original statue was lost. This version was placed a bit higher to avoid any subsequent floods. Other precautions to protect the statue have been taken as well.

After visiting the statue we continued on across the replaced footbridge.

Beyond the creek the trail climbed nearly 750′ as it turned inland up a forested ridge.

A mile from the bridge we had left the ridge and traversed around a marshy area near the head of North Cape Creek.

After a little additional climbing on the other side of the creek the trail began to descend along this ridge toward the ocean. A mile and a quarter from North Cape Creek we arrived at a signed junction.

Here we stayed right following pointers for the Stone Shelter on what was now the Whispering Spruce Trail.

We had visited the shelter in 2013 (post) on what was part of the first outing featured in this blog.

A little less than a quarter mile from the junction we arrived at the shelter.

It was a surprisingly nice morning considering the forecast and we were happy to have a good view from the shelter.

After a brief rest we continued on passing another viewpoint before reaching a junction with the St. Perpetua Trail.

I mentioned that we had visited the stone shelter in 2013 but that had not been our first visit to the Cape Perpetua Scenic Area. In 2010 we had stopped here to visit the tide pools on the way home from a hike in the Drift Creek Wilderness (post). One thing we had not seen on either of our previous trips was the Giant Spruce, a nearly 600 year old State Heritage Tree.

With that goal in mind we took the St. Perpetua Trail downhill toward the Cape Perpetua Campground.

Shortly after crossing Overlook Road, which leads to a trailhead along the Whispering Spruce Loop, we arrived at the campground entrance road.

Behind the restrooms the trail continues across Cape Creek.

On the far side of the creek we turned left on the Giant Spruce Trail.

This trail followed the creek upstream for .8 miles to the 185′ high tree with a trunk circumference of 40′.

We are always awestruck when we visit any of the giant old trees in person. It’s nearly impossible to capture just how huge they really are in photos. In addition to their size their age always forces us to pause and try and picture the timeline of their growth. This tree would have likely been a sapling at the same time Christopher Columbus was lost looking for a route to Asia.

After visiting the tree we returned to the junction near the footbridge at the campground. The weather was holding nicely so we decided to check out the Spouting Horn and Devil’s Churn areas. We followed the Giant Spruce Trail .2 miles to the visitors center where we picked up the Captain Cooks Trails.

We followed this paved trail under Highway 101 to a viewpoint.

From the viewpoint the Captain Cook Trail went left making a loop with views of the Spouting Horn and Thor’s Well while the Trail of Restless Waters was to the right leading to Devil’s Churn. We decided to visit them in the opposite order of our 2010 visit and went right first. This trail briefly followed the shoulder of the highway past a small parking area and vista before dropping toward the ocean.

We crossed over Cape Creek and then followed the trail, keeping left at junctions, to a staircase down to Devil’s Churn.

There was some decent wave action going on and we watched if for awhile.

The crashing waves didn’t seem to bother a lone cormorant that was hunting for food in the churn.

Speaking of food after we climbed back up the stairs we continued on a loop above Devil’s Churn to the Devil’s Churn Day Use Area where we wound up buying a lemon muffin from the concession stand there.

After splitting the muffin we completed the loop and returned to the Captain Cook Trail.

We stayed left at a fork in order to complete the loop clockwise.

The tide had been out far enough on our previous visit that the Spouting Horn had not been spouting but today was different.

We also hadn’t even noticed Thor’s Well that day but this time we knew what we were looking for and the Ocean was more cooperative.

It was a bit of a zoo with people in the area though so we didn’t stay long and were soon heading back up the St. Perpetua Trail and past the shelter where the view had become much cloudier.

The rain mostly held off as we made the two and a quarter mile horseshoe through the forest along the ridges above North Cape Creek between the shelter and Amanda’s Statue.

By the time we reached the grotto, where we encountered a Boy Scout Troop, a steady light rain was falling. The rain continued to pick up as we made our way back to the Highway 101 crossing south of Yachats.

Overall it had been an excellent day, the rain had held off long enough for us to get some nice views and stay relatively dry without having to put on our rain gear. We got to finish up the trails in the Cape Perpetua Scenic Area and had unintentionally timed it better for the Spouting Horn and Thor’s Well. Oh and we also had that delicious lemon muffin mid-hike so yeah it was a pretty good way to end our 2018 hiking season. We do plan on getting a couple more hikes in this year but from November through April we drop down to just one outing (or so) a month. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Amanda’s Trail to Cape Perpetua

Central Oregon Hiking Klamath Falls Oregon

Link River Nature Trail

Two weeks after a last minute hiking trip to the Klamath Falls area we had a different reason to head back down to that city, my Aunt LaVonne and Uncle Ron’s 50th wedding anniversary. The celebration wouldn’t be starting until the afternoon, so before the festivities began we took a short hike with our son Dominique along the Link River Nature Trail.

After being chauffeured to the trailhead by my parents (who did their own shorter version of the hike) we set off along the trail which was actually a closed roadbed behind a chain link gate.

The road paralleled the river which flows between Upper Klamath Lake and Lake Ewauna.

From the very start the trail lived up to being called a nature trail as a number of different birds could be seen in and around the water.

At the .4 mile mark we passed the dam that created the lake behind it.

Just beyond the dam the trail crosses a canal on bridge.

At the half mile mark we left the roadbed at a post for Klamath Falls and made our way to the river just downstream from the small cascades.

After visiting the falls we returned to the trail and continued to follow the river toward Lake Ewauna through a desert canyon where there were plenty more birds.

Coots

Scrub jay

White pelican, coots, and a cormorant

White pelican

Coots

After one and three quarters of a mile we arrived at the southern end of this section of trail at w parking lot near a power station. Here we crossed Main Street near the Flavell Museum and then also crossed Highway 39 at a crosswalk into a small parking area for the Klamath Wingwatchers Nature Trail.

This trail passed underneath Highway 97 and brought us to Lake Ewauna.

The trail itself wasn’t much to write home about as it passed between the lake and the busy highway, but the number and variety of birds made up for the traffic.

After about a quarter mile on this trail we came to a fork signed “Loop B”.

This was the beginning of a .8 mile loop around a couple of old mill ponds. We decided to go around the ponds counter-clockwise so we stayed right. We saw birds everywhere – in the ponds, on the lake, and in the sky.

Mallards and other birds

Canada geese

Pelicans in flight

Great blue heron among others

Northern shoveler

Horned grebes

After completing the loop we headed back, recrossed the roads, and returned to the trailhead along Lakeshore Drive. We spotted several additional types of birds that we hadn’t seen earlier and many that we had.

Northern flicker

More pelicans

Another jay

Great blue heron on the rocks

Common merganser

Hooded mergansers (in the foreground)

Egret

Western grebe

In addition to all the birds we did see two garter snakes slither into the grass and my parents spotted a muskrat and a deer on their hike. For a short, in town hike it had provided a lot of wildlife over the 5 mile round trip.

We spent the afternoon at the anniversary party with a whole different type of wildlife :). Happy Trails!

Flick: Link River Nature Trail

Tags Candad geese, Coots, Egret, great blue heron, hiking, Horned grebe, Klamath Falls, Klamath Wingwatchers Nature Trail, Lake Ewauna, Link River, Link River Nature Trail, Mallard, Northern flickr, Northern Shoveler, Oregon, Upper Klamath Lake, Western Grebe, White Pelican

Hiking Indian Heaven Trip report Washington Washington Cascades

Falls Creek Falls and Indian Racetrack

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date October 18, 2018
5 Comments on Falls Creek Falls and Indian Racetrack

One week after spending a day hiking in California at the Lava Beds National Monument (post) we visited our neighbor to the north, Washington. On our itinerary for the day were a pair of hikes north of Carson, WA. We started with a visit to Falls Creek Falls.

We parked at the trailhead at the end of Forest Road 57 where only one other car occupied the large parking area at 7:15am. The dim morning light coupled with some low clouds made it hard to capture the fall colors with the camera but our eyes had no problems appreciating them as we set off on the trail.

We quickly passed a trail on the left which would be part of the loop we were planning on doing here and stayed straight toward the falls.

At the .4 mile mark we arrived at a short suspension bridge over Falls Creek.

Beyond the bridge the trail climbed gradually for a mile to a junction. Along the way there were several views of the creek.

At the junction we stayed right and continued to gradually climb for another .3 miles to three tiered Falls Creek Falls. The first views are of the upper and middle tiers through some trees.

The lower tier comes into view near the end of the trail at which point most of the upper tier is lost due to the angle.

We spent a few chilly minutes admiring the falls before heading back to the junction.

Here we veered uphill to the right climbing fairly steeply for about two tenths of a mile to the Falls Creek Trail.

Before continuing on the loop we turned right on the Falls Creek Trail to visit a viewpoint or two above the falls. After .6 miles on this fairly level trail we spotted a side trail heading out to the first viewpoint. We started to head out this spur but then noticed a tent set up there (we found the owners of the other car) so we continued another quarter mile to the second viewpoint.

The view from the top was just out over the valley, but a steep scramble trail led down to the top of the falls from here. We checked to see if the ground seemed muddy or slick, but it turned out to be in good shape so we made our way down to the creek just above the falls.

From the viewpoint we returned to the loop and continued down the Falls Creek Trail 1.7 miles to another bridge over Falls Creek which we hadn’t seen since the viewpoint. Despite the creek not being visible from the trail the scenery was not lacking due to the surrounding forest and fall colors.

At the far side of the bridge we turned left for a little over half a mile completing the loop and returning to our car, and a much fuller parking lot.

After the 6.3 mile hike here we were ready for the second hike of the day to the Indian Heaven Wilderness and Red Mountain. We drove back toward Carson and eventually (after missing the turn the first time) turned east on Warren Gap Road (Road 405) at a pointer for the Panther Creek Campground. We followed this road for a little under two miles to Forest Road 65 where we turned left for 8 miles, passing the parking area for Panther Creek Falls (post) along the way, to a junction with FR 60. We turned right here and followed this road for two miles to the Pacific Crest Trail and a small campground.

We followed the PCT north climbing gradually through the forest which looked quite different from the forest along Falls Creek just a few miles away.

A little over 1.75 miles from the trailhead we passed one of the small Sheep Lakes.

A quarter mile later we entered the Indian Heaven Wilderness.

Although there wasn’t as much fall color along this trail as there had been along the trails at Fall Creek there was some and there were also some interesting mushrooms to be seen.

This may named be Green Lake

As we hiked through a meadow we spotted the lookout tower on Red Mountain to the SW which was to be one of our stops on the hike.

We turned left off of the PCT 1.2 miles after entering the wilderness at a sign for Indian Racetrack.

This trail led a half mile through the forest to the large meadows at Indian Racetrack where up until 1928 tribes indeed raced horses.

We turned left in the middle of the meadows toward a trail sign for the Indian Racetrack Trail.

This trail climbed for .8 miles, steeply at times, to a road on the shoulder of Red Mountain. An opening just above a saddle along the way provided a nice view of Mt. Adams to the NE.

We followed the road uphill for .3 miles to the lookout gaining views of Mt. St. Helens and Mt. Rainier along the way.

Lemei Rock and Mt. Adams

Near the lookout Mt. Hood and Mt. Jefferson could be seen to the south in Oregon.

We took a nice long break at the summit gazing at Washington’s trio of volcanoes and talking with a fellow hiker from Vancouver who had tried to reach the lookout earlier in the year but had been turned back by snow.
IMG_4555_stitch

Mt. St. Helens

Mt. Rainier

Mt. Adams

From the lookout we headed back down the road and followed it all the way back down to FR 60 a total of 3.4 miles from the tower.

We were a half mile from the Pacfic Crest Trail so we road walked, uphill, back to our car. In hindsight it might have been nicer to do the loop in reverse in order to start with the road walks and finish the hike with a gradual descent. Either way it was a great hike, but we had been expecting it to be a 7.5 mile loop based on our guidebook, but our GPS (and our legs) put it at 9.2 miles. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Falls Creek Falls and Indian Racetrack

Tags Falls Creek Falls, Falls creek Falls Trail, Falls Creek Trail, hiking, indian heaven wilderness, Indian Racetrack, Indian Racetrack Trail, Lemei Rock, Mt. Adams, Mt. Rainier, Mt. St. Helens, Pacific Crest Trail, PCT, Red Mountain, Red Mountain Lookout, Sheep Lakes, Warren Gap Road, Washington

Hiking Oakridge Area Old Cascades Oregon

Salmon Creek Falls

On Columbus Day morning we left Klamath Falls and headed home to Salem. We were planning on hiking on the way home, but we weren’t sure what hike we would be doing. If the weather was decent we were hoping to hike up The Twins near Waldo Lake and if it wasn’t we’d try the Salmon Creek Trail to Salmon Creek Falls near Oakridge.

It was dark at 5am as we headed north on Highway 97 but the stars where visible in the sky above. The stars were still out as we turned onto Highway 58 and began to head NW toward the Cascade Crest. The possibility of The Twins was still on the table, but by the time we had reached Crescent Junction the stars had been replaced by rain clouds. Salmon Creek Falls it was.

Just prior to reaching Oakridge we turned right onto Fish Hatchery Road and drove it’s length to Forest Road 24 where we turned right for .8 miles to the Flat Creek Road. Here we turned right and parked in a large gravel parking lot next to a small gazebo.

The Salmon Creek Trail began a short distance down the road from the gazebo.

After just a tenth of a mile we came to an unsigned junction where we turned left.

A steady light rain was falling from the low clouds overhead as we followed this trail east past the Flat Creek Work Center and along Salmon Creek.

It was an interesting trail in that it split in several areas only to rejoin a short distance later. A sort of pick your own adventure trail if you will. It also spent some time along the shoulder of FR 24 in areas where Salmon Creek had eroded the bank substantially.

At other times the trail followed roadbeds.

This led to a little confusion about the correct route, but it really didn’t matter as long as we kept heading east because the creek and FR 24 acted as rails on either side.

After a little over two and a half miles we arrived at a wide junction.

A right turn here brought us to the site of a washed out bridge that used to connect to another trail on the south side of Salmon Creek.

Just under a mile beyond the washed out bridge we arrived at the Salmon Creek Campground.

We headed through an empty camp site and followed a path down to the creek and 10′ Salmon Creek Falls.
IMG_4286_stitch

It was a good day to visit the falls, the autumn colors were nice and there were no crowds around. After spending some time by the water we headed back keeping our eyes open for the small things that are easy to miss in the forest.

It was a fairly easy 7.8 mile round trip hike and even though it rained almost the entire time we didn’t feel soaked. It was about as nice a hike as one could hope for on that kind of day. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Salmon Creek Falls

Tags hiking, oakridge, Oregon, Salmon Creek, Salmon Creek Campground, Salmon Creek Falls, salmon creek trail