A Foray into Gifford Pinchot National Forest
Just north of the Columbia River, along the Cascades, is the Gifford Pinchot National Forest. I finally had a chance to check it out as a possible adventuring area. According to the maps I have, I should have been able to go to Carson and then follow some forest routes for a ways and then follow the Lewis River west and then return home. Things turned out a little differently, and more fun.
Here is the track I followed: (Click on the map to enlarge it)
Here are the pictures. You should maximize the slide viewer (in the top left corner) to properly appreciate the pictures.
From Gresham it took about an hour to get to Cascade Locks where you can cross the Columbia via the Bridge of the Gods. After some detours and short side explorations I ended up in Carson ( 1 ) about a half hour later. I gassed up at the single gas station and followed Wind River Road looking for Panther Creek Road. I found Bear Creek Road and took the next one ( 2 ), which was unmarked. It turned out to be the one I wanted.
Panther Creek Campground ( 3 ) has quite a few sites, not too crowded together. Some were reserved, and there were still a few open sites, despite the Memorial Day weekend. There is access to Panther Creek.
The road is nice and smoothly paved, 1 1/2 lanes wide. Real fun to drive on. Eventually I got to the intersection with 60 ( 4 ) and encountered a sign that indicated there might be a change in plans. The pavement soon ended and dust swirled on the gravel road. That wasn’t too bad until oncoming traffic zoomed by. Since I had the windows and roof open, there was soon dust everywhere. Falls Creek Horse Camp ( 5 ) would be a nice place to camp, and there are several trails around there.
An open spot along the road provided a nice view of Mt St Helens above the trees. I convinced one of the local bears to take a picture of me and Orion.
We got to what the sign warned about: a culvert was plugged and a small creek washed over the road ( 6 ). The original plan was to follow forest roads to ( 6a ), or even further north along the Lewis River and then head west. Large 4WD vehicles made it over fine, but without tools to level things out a little, I didn’t want to risk getting stuck, or worse, damaged. I don’t think breakdowns out here are covered by the roadside assistance coverage. And how would I contact them anyway? So, I backtrack to the intersection with 60 and head west. Poor Orion wanted so badly to cross the stream, and after watching the 4WD truck go through he had a serious case of big tire envy!
Along the way there was an inviting turn-off. After following some hillside-hugging and overgrown roads we ended up in a large meadow ( 7 ). Careful examination revealed that the flat area is actually a huge flattened pile of gravel. This might have been a gravel depot for preparing the forest roads. In the course of trying to find a route through the forest, I found several similar, smaller sites which might have been work and storage areas for road crews. All that was left was piles of gravel, trash, and evidence of much target practice.
This was a good place to have lunch and I convinced another bear to take our pictures. Unfortunately the bears are very bashful and wouldn’t let me take their picture. We had lunch and tea and said our good byes. A nice thing about this place: it was very quiet! Some wind, some birds and a few insects was all I could hear. What a place to have a cabin, and there was already an outhouse.
I was trying to find a route back to Wind River Road without having to return to 60, but failed. I got over a berm and moved a few (small) fallen trees but eventually the prepared road ran out. Again we backtracked, and continued on 60. The gravel road gave way to smooth pavement that wound through trees and we slalomed joyously along the traffic-free path until we rejoined Wind River Road ( 8 ).
It was a scenic drive to, and along, the Lewis River. McClellan Viewpoint ( 9 ) provided a spectacular panoramic view of Mt St Helens. The lakes looked pretty but trees blocked most of the view. It was getting late so I didn’t stop at any of the parks. The last picture was taken at ( 10 ).
Overall, the wilderness I passed through was rather typical, dry forest. It was pretty, but not really what I was looking for. At least I now know what it is, and may come back for some more exploring, particularly around Mt St Helens, but I think I need to aim west if I want to find rain-forest.
Equipment I need for Orion so we can go more places (because I can’t get him the big tires he wants):
- Large folding bow saw
- Collapsible but sturdy pick/shovel
- Long tow strap, to reach to the nearest tree
- Manual winch
- Blocks to put under scissor jack, maybe pieces of 2×8 or 4×4
- Wheel chocks