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Going Around Mt Hood

Going Around Mt Hood

Some projects are finished and it’s time to go adventuring again!

The plan is to head down US Highway 26 toward Y’East (Mt Hood) and check out the trail head for an overnight hike I’m planning in mid-June. After that, just follow my hiking muse, or wherever Orion (my car) steers me. Ultimately, 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.

There are 5 major areas I explored. These are noted with the yellow numbers on the topographic map.

The drive from the house to Salmon River Road takes about 1 hour (Marker 1). Then it takes another 20 minutes or so to get to the trail head. I checked out the beginning of trail 793A, which starts opposite the sign to the Green Canyons campground. It has a (very) brief level section and them goes up, and up, and up. I went only 3/4 mile and climbed over 500 feet. Ultimately the climb is about 3000 feet! With an overnight pack that will be fun. After my quick mile and a half round trip, I went to the absolute end of Salmon River Road, which ends at the trailhead to Salmon Butte. That hike is 8 miles, round trip, and also climbs about 3000 feet. The main parking lot for the Salmon River trail was overflowing and there were plenty of cars here as well.

I wanted to stop at the ranger station at Zig Zag, but it was closed, so I continued along 26 and stopped at Mirror Lake (Marker 2). This can only be accessed from the uphill, or eastbound side of the highway. According to the signs, this is one of the most popular places to visit around Y’East. It is about 1 1/2 miles each way, with gentle switchbacks. You can see more comments in the picture descriptions. There was a lot of two- and four-legged traffic.

At Marker 3 I checked out Still Creek Campground. About half way around the campsites I noticed a dirt road and Orion pulled the wheel in that direction. This went through a strange collection of what looked like unofficial campsites that seem to be occupied for long durations. Eventually I found a sign leading me to Trillium Lake which was on my list of places to check out. My NW Forest Pass saved me the $5 entrance fee. It was a pretty busy place with lots of anglers, picnickers, and people enjoying the official beginning of summer that is marked by the Memorial Day weekend. I found an out-of-the-way picnic bench and made my lunch. I do not recommend the freeze-dried Pad Thai from Backpacker’s Pantry. It’s just noodles and textured soy protein and flavoring. It tastes fine but the textured soy protein has the consistency of bits of pencil eraser! Well, that’s why I’m trying it out on day trips like this. Even though it’s almost June, it’s in the low 40’s and I’m glad of the many layers of clothing. Hands were pretty cold. Another thing about the food packets: they never tear open the way they’re supposed to, and cold fingers have a hard time grabbing the tough plastic. Having a multi-tool with scissors is essential. It is unlikely that I will have a reason to revisit this park.

I returned to Highway 26 and had a choice of following it south toward some other lakes, or taking State Highway 35 north around Y’East. I chose 35 as the route that would still get me home that day. Shortly after turning onto 35 there was an unmarked dirt road off to the right (FR3560, according to the map). Again, Orion tugged that way and off we went at Marker 4 . A cliff-hanger of a drive with great views of Y’East. Eventually we were stopped by too much snow on the road. Definitely will come here again later in the summer, perhaps with Little Bear.

Marker 5 We headed home via the towns of Mt Hood and Hood River, and then west along the Columbia River. There were some nice views of Y’East along the way.

Overall, a very productive exploration. I know a little more about my planned overnight to Kinzel Lake and found a nice forest road to explore. The contrast between the west and east side of Y’East is interesting. As I came back west around the north side it got cooler and cloudy again. The town of Mt Hood on the north-east side had been sunny and warm.

Coming back along the gorge I could see the damage done by the Eagle Creek fire last summer.

Here is the day pack I prepared:

Adjustments for the future are:

  • Get a smaller tripod!
  • Don’t forget the lens filters!
Fort Stevens, Ho !

Fort Stevens, Ho !


(You have to maximize the picture viewer to properly appreciate the pictures.)

I took a little time to go exploring the area. Since the Mount Hood (original name is Wy’East) area has snow and ice, Orion and I headed west to the coast. The northwest tip of the state was the goal, a trip that usually should take less than two hours. It took me five – I just had to stop and explore some of the nooks and crannies along the way. And I passed up on many more.

The weather was typical Oregon January: on and off rain with occasional gaps in the clouds that let some sun shine through. Fog blurred some of the sights, and yet created a fantasy landscape in the hills.

Sauvie Island was the first major stop. It is nice and flat with many trails and should be good for easy bike riding. There are some very nice and new looking houseboats here. I saw some others along the way that looked like they were on the verge of sinking.

Rainier is a little town stuck to the hillside along the river. It is opposite Longview, Washington, which also has a port, and smokestack industries. Spelling does not appear to be important to the marina owners, but then all the slips were empty.

One of the downsides to winter exploring is that the days are short. If I was going to make it to Ft Stevens and back before dark, I had to get a move on. The highway wound up into some hills with nice views of the river and opposite bank. The sun was peeking through the clouds and hinted at some pictures. Just as I pulled into the Bradley State Scenic Viewpoint it started raining again. Sigh. I still took a few pictures, explored, and made use of the facilities. Then onward.

Somewhere along the way I was treated to a fantasy landscape draped in wisps of fog, or was it smoke rising from the Fire Swamp? Whichever, I couldn’t turn around on the hill so I had to go to the bottom and backtrack until I could find a spot to take pictures. (Note to self: Always bring the tripod! Better yet, leave one in the car, along with the go-pack.)

On to Astoria… I didn’t explore the town much, just a brief stop by the river-front, then to a Starbucks, and on to the park.

This part of the coast is sand dunes, no doubt sediment from the river, etc. Very different from the rocky coasts to the north and south. There’s so much to explore around here! Anyway, look at the pictures. The park looks like a nice place for easy biking in the summer. By the time I finished a quick tour of the park, it was time to head back.

The town of Seaside is built on the dunes, with some houses just a short walk away from the water. And there is not a barrier island or reef! Let’s see: rising seas, changing weather patterns, and no earthquakes in a while to relieve tectonic stresses – a perfect place to build! There are some nice neighborhoods, such as the gated one for horse owners. There are stables, lots of white fences and green grass on top of the rolling dunes. Very pretty, and expensive, I’m sure.

Just south of Seaside I headed back, reluctantly. (Orion didn’t want to turn the wheel! It would have been much more fun to continue south on 101!) Took 26 and skirted the northern edge of Tillamook State Forest.

Left at 8:30 and got back at 5:30

Window-Wide Webs

Window-Wide Webs

For many years I’ve had an imaginary pet spider, Amanda, and I even wrote a few stories about her. One day she actually showed up outside my workshop window and demonstrated her web-building skills. I was able to capture this on my new (at the time) semi-pro video camera.

 

This particular type of spider is known as the golden silk orb-weaver. They grow up to about two inches in size, not including leg span. With the legs, some are over five inches in size. Web silk is golden in color, hence the name. Their species is the oldest surviving spider genus. Fossil remnants are 165 million years old. They are mildly venomous, causing redness, blisters, and pain at the bite area. Their Latin name, Nephila clavipes, means “fond of spinning.”

As you watch her rebuilding the web, it appears she does it entirely by touch. Some of the legs wave about, searching for the non-sticky draglines (the spokes of the circle) and then she uses another leg to attach the sticky silk.

The first portion of the video shows her in action close up. Starting at 4 minutes in, there is a zoomed-out, and speeded-up portion which shows her circling around the web.

I filmed her for several days but was never able to be there when something was captured by the web. I really wanted to see what she does with the prey. Unfortunately, I only saw her while she was doing her repairs.

There are other videos I have which show her preparing an egg case on the outside of the window frame. I checked on this regularly, hoping to see a lot of little spiders emerge, but one day both the mama and the egg case were gone. Perhaps the victim of a larger predator. Or she found a new home.

While large, and fearsome looking, these spiders are quite harmless and need to be encouraged, since they prey on other nuisance insects.