Looking for a good hike with miles, elevation gain but little driving from the Valley? Alpine Trail out of Westfir is a great choice. A full harvest moon greeted me as I pulled out of the driveway at 5:30 … a quick 45 minute drive to the cleanest and safest trailhead in Willamette National Forest,…
With Hwy 242 closed from Foley Ridge Fire, and PCT SOBO from Willamette Pass impacted by Emigrant Fire, another PCT hike north of Willamette Pass checked the boxes: <1.5 hour drive; decent miles; a climb and vista; and a bonus, covering some OR PCT miles not yet walked. This hike’s objectives: close the non-walked PCT…
Odd weather continued with fires burning around Sisters (Flat Fire), south of Diamond Peak (Emigrant) and new ones surfacing as more thunderstorms rolled through. Wednesday, I headed to Willamette Pass for a PCT day hike that didn’t require a permit, and obviously going Northbound (NOBO) from the pass rather than head directly toward Emigrant fire….
In a week of dynamic plans, Tuesday was a 50+ mile bike ride in rural Willamette Valley and Wednesday a hiking buddy and I shared the ride to Willamette Pass to hike Maiden Peak via PCT. From Willamette Pass, the PCT winds north through the central cascade lakes area starting with 3 Rosary Lakes, where…
To prepare for upcoming PCT adventure, a backpack kit shakeout was definitely needed. After driving last week to ID and planned adventures, driving more than 1 hour away was not an option. 3 hikes were possibles: Alpine Trail to Tire Mountain, King Castle to Macduff Mountain and finally Hardesty to Sawtooth (or June). The decision…
Hiked with a buddy Goodman Creek trail to Eagle’s Rest on a wonderful June Tuesday – sunny, warm, but not hot, a small breeze … a good day to be in the woods. We had a ‘must return by’ time box and we wanted to hit Eagle’s Rest so we drove up the forest service…
After Tuesday’s jaunt up King Castle in the McKenzie valley, Thursday’s hike was up Alpine Trail to Tire Mt in Willamette valley. I had hiked up Alpine not this far earlier, and the difference in trail conditions were striking – leave it to MTB riders to clean up their trails first! All the blowdowns were…
King Castle is a big rock that sticks up from Mckenzie River outside of Rainbow, OR. A small comms tower at the top spoils some of the views of Mt Washington and the Three Sisters covered in April snows. The trail is mostly used by MTB folks racing down the hill, but Tuesday April 22…
Weather was unstable – most people thought it was going to rain, cloudy and cold at best. Could there be better opportunity in March to go up and down Hardesty Mt? A hiking buddy and I took off initially to Goodman Creek trail to Eagle Rest, but in reviewing recent trip reports (and a sign…
… of the Willamette River. Last night I had four hikes on the table waiting for the morning’s weather, snow pack, and my mood (especially about driving) … North Fork of Middle Fork Willamette River was the choice. I was just at the same TH for recent Alpine hike, so had a good idea about…
