July 2013 - Freedom - Turning 50! - Timberline Trail

     July in the United States generally means warm sunny days, ice cream and watermelon, and Fourth of July fireworks all around the country.  For me, July means another birthday.  Many of you may know that my wife's birthday is in November, and each time her big day lands on our Thanksgiving Holiday, we take the entire week off and travel somewhere exotic.  So every few years, she gets a "Birthday Week" while my big day only happens once.  I mentioned this to Kandy recently, and she said, "I'll tell you what Don.  Your birthday is very close to Independence Day, so anytime your birthday lands on the 4th of July, we'll take the entire week and do something special."  Needless to say, my date never lands on that date, but still, my wife loves me, and I got a birthday week, only because I turned fifty this year.  What does this 50-year-old man do for his birthday week?  He hikes 40 miles in three days around Mount Hood on the Timberline Trail.  As always, the first day is the most challenging, and by the third day, I don't even notice my backpack weighing down on my shoulders.  Needless to say, like most of my adventures, it was a wonderful trip.

  Mention Independence Day (4th of July if you're illiterate) and most people will say, "that's A'merica!"  In fact, most Americans know it's their God-given right to celebrate this momentous day with a day off from work, a huge backyard bar-b-Que, and a fun-filled evening of fireworks.  "We're free" they say.  "It's America!"  But what does that mean to them?  Does that mean that they have the right to drive over to Washington state--or any other state sells gonzo pyrotechnics --and purchase fireworks deemed illegal in the Oregon?  "Come on; It's Fourth of July," they say!  Never mind the law, the fire danger, and the noise and displeasure caused to neighbors and their pets.  I, for one, being a military veteran, never tire of laying in my bed at 10:30 at night, stark awake from the countless screech-pop-BOOM! noises going on until sometimes after midnight.  It's no mater that I have to bring my kitty into the garage and my neighbors have to bring in their pets, some on medication from the trauma, while my other neighbors exercise their freedom break the law.

  Two of my favorite quotes come from Benjamin Franklin.  The first is unconfirmed, but I have the T-Shirt and it says, "Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy."  The second is pretty much confirmed (well I wasn't there, but I heard it from a friend who read it on a website, who got it from a civics teacher, who heard it from an old relative that talked to a colonialist, that said Ben Franklin told her this) and is reported to go like this:
   
     In crafting our nation, the founding fathers came together, and when they emerged, an woman asked, "what sort of government have you given us Mr. Franklin?"  Ben Franklin was reported to have said, "A Replublic Madam, if you can keep it."

  With this, and all the follow-on debates and discussions on the matter, the subject has been construed as meaning they provided the foundation but it's up to us to maintain it.  It's our "Responsibility" to vote, elect representatives, and hold them accountable.  It's also our duty to obey the laws and respect our fellow citizen's rights to life, liberty and property.  So where does illegal fireworks fit into this responsibility.  Aside from my right to "peaceful enjoyment of property" granted in the US Constitution, illegal fireworks not only injure the dumb-asses that set them off, but they cause a lot of property damage due to fires in the area.  Just recently a 60-acre wildfire was attributed to them.  Earlier this year, a Des Moines (near Seattle) man nearly lost his life when a mortar exploded, severely disfiguring his right hand.  In that case the $10 fireworks caused him $500,000 in medical bills.

  Now I know it's not my responsibility to tell others how to live their lives.  Heck, I just see others being stupid as part of natural selection, but it's so damn slow and takes forever to weed these folks out of society.  Often more than not, they reproduce at a faster rate than intellectual individuals, so there are countless layers of idiots waiting to fill the void when one of these assholes takes themselves or a family member out of the gene pool.  But there's a bigger picture to look out.

  Yes, I always stay, "take a step back and take a look at the big picture."   The reason we have increased laws, increased government, increased insurance rates, is because of those of us that cannot obey or respect the few laws we started out with.  Take traffic light cameras for one.  I personally thing that if a certain intersection has a traffic camera, there is something wrong with the design of the traffic flow at this intersection, because they only put them where there is a high incident rate of infractions and accidents.  But, the fact is that many drivers are simply unsafe.  Speeding, Texting, and Alcohol Use behind the wheel are probably more common than you think.  But if we want to encourage more laws and traffic cameras or if we wish to pay more and more for insurance each year, let's just keep disobeying the laws we have now.

   Turning 50 years old feels no different than turning forty-nine, except people make a bigger deal about it.  Well this month, I turned the big 5 oh!  And my wife Kandy did a wonderful thing, she reserved a section at Columbia River Brewing in Hollywood (in Portland, not L.A.) and about a dozen of my close friends came to celebrate this milestone of life.  Needless to say, it was a great birthday and thanks to all who helped make my day so special.

"Hello, Lets go Hiking"

  So, what does this guy do for his 50th birthday?  Surely it involves spending time in the woods!  Deciding what to do in the wilderness is always tough as we have so many choices in the Northwest.  Kandy had previously wanted to take me back to Iceland for my 50th birthday, but I decided that with Makenna's age, the dent in our savings to visit a place where we used to live for two years, and the fact that I'd rather take a two-week sailboat cruise through the Greek Islands, I would differ a big trip until another time.  But several local options entered my mind for distance hikes.

  I originally wanted to do a two-week section of the Pacific Crest Trail in Washington.  With Kandy having no business trips from home for about a month, I thought the timing was good for such a trip, but still, lots of driving and the logistics wasn't optimum for the family.  Then I remembered my attempt in 2009 to hike around Mount Hood on the Timberline trail, a trip that ended early because my ankle hadn't healed all the way after my January fall from a tree that resulted in a broken tibia.  On that trip, I made it around about one-quarter the trail and returned to my car.  But on this trip, I had Kandy drop me at Timberline Lodge for the week and gave myself five days to circumnavigate the mountain.

Makenna and Me at the Parking Lot on Day 1

  It was Monday, 11:30AM, and Kandy and Makenna sent me off on a warm, sunny day in the Oregon Cascades.  Snap, Snap, a few photos to start my trip. The first day of a backpack trip is always the same; "why am I doing this?" or "man, my bed is missing me right now." are the usual thoughts when my legs are the weakest and my pack is the heaviest.  But, as with every one of my long distant trips, the first couple of days are the toughest and by the third day, my pack doesn't even weigh anything on my shoulders.

PCT and Timberline Trail Marker near Timberline Lodge

  The Timberline Trail as a loop trail is officially closed in the portion at the mountains 12:30 to about 1 O'clock according to the officials at the ZigZag Ranger Station.  For this reason, I planned an extra day and a half of to navigate a detour north around the washout area of the Elliot Glacier.  Most online references also state that the trail is closed because of floods from the melting glacier have stripped out a canyon on the mountains northeast flank.  Each year, the US Forest Service evaluates the option to install a bridge or redirect the trail, but more and more devastation is created by melting ice and snow, all a probable result of increased warming due to the increased CO2 we're putting into the environment.  If you still aren't convinced that humans are compounding climate change through fossil fuel use, check out this movie http://www.chasingice.com/ and start reading the thousands of reports, interviews, and briefings available on the subject.  If your favorite political figure or corporate leader is refuting this evidence, it's because their interests require you to be ignorant so that they can continue to be part of the 1% of wealthy, while you continue to keep yourself in the 99% as you surrender your wealth to the media, corporations, sports organizations, and the film industry. (more about this in a later post)

Zig Zag Canyon

    My first day's hike to Ramona Falls was about 14 miles...not hard, but long and with lots of heat, river crossings, and several hikers heading south as in an effort to complete the the Oregon section of the PCT.  These South-Bounders as they're know started at the Bridge of the Gods in Cascade Locks, Oregon, and they are going to the California Border.  One hiker said he started in Washington, but the snows were so deep in some of the northern Cascades that he decided to bypass them all together this year, thanks to el'Nino and global warming.

Slide Mountain

   The views were awesome as always!  Much of the Mount Hood landscape is scoured by ice and snow as glaciers advanced and receded over the years.  The ZigZag, Sandy, and Muddy Creek canyons resemble the moon in some areas.  Erosion and rockfall scars the land, and the topography is constantly changing.  Often, the trail changes locations due to the steepness and hazards presented by this ever-changing environment.  And to a sense, it makes this portion of the trail much more challenging (and rewarding) to the average hiker like myself.

Lupine and Paint Brush

One of the West Slope Canyons with Multiple Waterfalls

  The wildflowers were still in amazing bloom this middle of July, 2013.  Indian Paintbrush, Lupine, Avalanche Lilies, and Bear Grass was everywhere.  There were more species of wildflowers than I could remember names for and I could even see the Huckleberry starts of tiny green nubs that will be juicy mountain blueberries in a little more than a month from now.  Waterfalls in some areas of the west slope seem to stack on top of each other as the steepness and grade descends from the glaciers and snowfields near the summit.  (Click on Any Image to Enlarge)

Ramona Falls

  After a good six hours of hiking and sight-seeing adventure, I arrived at my first campsite near Ramona Falls.  I must admit that I didn't research the trails to and around the Mount Hood area as I love to discover things for the first time in REAL-TIME as I go along.  I soon found that Ramona Falls is a popular day-hike destination and there were several tourists whom had hiked up from their cars for a photo and to enjoy the trail.  Some campers had come up this easy trail to get to the falls and they simply took day-trips around the area to see wildflowers and waterfalls and more.  If you're not a hearty outdoor enthusiast, this trip might be perfect for you, or for families with small children.  Some previous campers even left a half-gallon jug of Bourbon Whiskey and Soda Pop for someone else to enjoy and pack-out for them.  Sometimes I feel there needs to be a sign, "ATTENTION: Peanut Shells, Sunflower Seed Shells, Pistachio Shells, Egg Shells, Banana Peels, and Orange Peels are not part of the natural environment and should be carried out by you!"

One of about Ten River Crossings on the Trail

  Needless to say, these easily accessible areas on Mount Hood bring all types of people, some who are not aware of the trail ethics of "Leave No Trace" or "Pack it Out" in the sense that I am.  For me, I want to experience the area as if I were the first person to step foot on this trail, and I want others to feel the same way.  The sense of new discover is a magical one, something that every soul should detect in the wilds of nature.  Generally, I found tons of trash, left over food, and equipment on the trail and in the rivers of the wild places I visit each year.


 The second day, I was off on the trail by 7:30 AM after having my Starbucks Via and Quaker Oatmeal.  My Cell-Phone was my clock, but I rarely had it turned on.  So the sunrise and sunset would be my time keepers for the trip.  The second day, I hiked for 12 hours and average just over a mile per hour.  There was nothing difficult about the trail this day, and I simply met up with other hikers and went sight seeing in the meadows and canyons.  A new friend, Tom, was out on his long time off from Powell's Books to reconnect with nature.  Having survived Cancer and even quit smoking five months ago, but his new level of awareness, coupled with his passion for nature, revived this 36 year-old's consciousness and he is no longer trapped in the Matrix.

The Western Edge of the Dollar Lake Burn

  Total mileage this day was around 14 miles and I hiked through the Dollar Lake burn area from a couple of years ago.  I met lots of people out on day-hikes, and I even met a couple of back-backing  US Army Vets, one of whom lost both legs in the recent Iraq/Afghanistan war.  I thanked them for their service as they did for mine, but these guys were the real heroes to me.  Everyone who serves honorably in the US Military is special, but to lose so much and still press on takes courage beyond the battlefield.  I salute you all!

Somewhere on the North Slope

  Mount Hood's north slope is pretty amazing.  This day's cloud cover and slight shower activity made it feel like a totally different hike for me.  The greens and tans were hewed with orange and brown with every changing light beam as the clouds intensified and subsided.  For most of this day, I lost track of time as I couldn't see the sun move and I spent most of it socializing with other enthusiasts, none of which were hiking the Timberline Trail as I was.  But still, we all had a love of nature and the outdoors as our bond.  It was good to see others, but now it was time to press on to the goal.

Something from a Dr. Seuss Book

  By the time I passed Elk Cove Meadows, the trail was becoming ever-increasingly overgrown with vegetation as I neared the portion of the closed route.  Since most hikers heed the warnings and take an easier route or different hike, I had my sights set on completing the loop around the mountain, even if it meant detouring dozens of miles and thousands of feet in elevation.  Still, the flowers and terrain offered spectacular views and the miles flowed by after I set back upon my original task; to get around the mountain.  Stops for pack and snack breaks, water breaks, photo breaks, chat breaks, and to make water with a filter, I really didn't feel slow or fast, easy or difficult, happy or sad, I just felt there, in the moment.  What a great day it was.  A couple of times, I'd lose the trail in a burn area with fallen timbers and washed out canyon.  By now, I was in the area of the map that showed no trail as the map-makers updated it lately.

Night Two Looking North

  After one particularly difficult creek crossing, I bivouacked at the bottom of a snowfield just north of the Langille Glacier, just west of the Crags of the same name.  Having a map and a clear view, I was able to keep progress on my trip, and by now, I was over half way around the mountain.  During the later part of day two, the biting flies and mosquitoes dictated long pants and shirt sleeves as well as protective headdress which included a lightweight cap and bandanna.  This left only my hands and face exposed to the bugs, but luckily, the temperature was cool due to the cloud cover.  Life is so awesome!

Will and I survey the Route overlooking Elliot Glacier

  That second night, I awoke every hour or so to check the weather as lightening flashes (no sounds) danced the night sky north of my position.  All the storms stayed in the Washington Cascades, and I awoke on the third day to calm, cool weather and had a great breakfast.  I did get cold that night as I brought my 45-degree down bag and had to use my rain fly as a cover to keep warm...but it's all good.  The next morning, I met up with my first loop hiker, Will, and he and I both sought to find the best route across the washout area.  Talk about perfect timing.

Snack on a Boulder in the Middle of the Elliot Moraine

  Will was 21, looking to take a few weeks off from college life and partying.  "Two weeks" he said.  And I shared with him about 1-Year in the Forest...and we became good friends.  I told him that it was good he'd come by when he did...at least someone would show the authorities where my body was if I didn't make it.  After breaking camp, we headed to the point of no going through--a sign that said "TRAIL CLOSED" accented by a different sign that said "DON'T DO IT" on another tree.  But we dropped our packs and surveyed the route.  It became clear that we were not going down the original trail.

The Elliot Glacier Headwall at about 8,000 Feet

    Our luck was with us, as just when Will came back up through the overgrowth, we met a cool backpacker Steve who told us of an easy route up high across the snow and rock field of the  Elliot.  Aside from some steep rock descents off the west ridge, we had an uneventful crossing at a few snow fields and the rocky medial moraine.  In fact, we stopped in the middle of the glacier on a huge boulder to have a snack and drink some water.  Just about three-hundred yards away, we could see the up-trail on the eastern edge of the Elliot, and this took us up to the Cooper Spur side, just near the climber's hut.

  Some parts of the glacial moraine had solid ice, while others had something consistent with liquid cement mud, almost potential quagmire.  We carefully selected our route and there was equal debate from both of us before deciding.  Will surely has a good head on his shoulders and is very wise for his youthful age.  He said that meeting Steve (just turned 60) gave him purpose of how he wanted to be living when he got that old.  I told him good thing he and I were still so young, Ha!

Last Snowfield to Cross - Elliot Glacier

  Will and I made it up the east ridge, and out of danger about mid-morning time.  I had planned to cross the area as early as possible, before the mid-day heat to minimize the risk of high flow and loose rock during thawing.  Upon reaching the connecting trails by the climber's bivouac, I told Will to press on without me as he was making for his car parked at Barlow pass by tonight.  It was now Wednesday and I had two full days of free time ahead, but Will was ready for another adventure on some other mountain in the Pacific Northwest.  As for me, I donned my long pants and long shirt and prepared myself for the desert-like expanse of the northeast slope, totally exposed to the sun for miles.  I actually ran out of water for about an hour and found an oasis creek just about a mile south of the Cooper Spur Hut.  Since most of the rest of my trip was downhill, I filled my hydration reservoir in my backpack and my 1400 ml Nalgene water bottle.  Still, considering this isolated incident, there was water everywhere.

Cooper Spur Climbing Hut

   From Cooper Spur area south, once descends from the Timberline Trail's highest point near 8,000 feet to the around 4,000 feet at the White River crossing just a mile or two from Timberline Lodge.  I could have hiked all the way out this third day, but that would have made Kandy and Makenna drive up at 8 PM to pick me up.  Since I had plenty of camping time and food, I hiked about 10 miles that day and slept near Mount Hood Meadow's ski area.  This area just south of Cooper Spur presented many, many small snow fields, some that took me away from the main trail, and a couple of times, I strayed off course, only to re-intersect the trail down lower.

Almost on the Moon!

  After saying good-bye to Will that morning, I didn't see another person for quite a while.  Often, the only indication of others in the area was Will's fresh footprints as I found, and lost, his trail at various times throughout the day.  Finally, in the afternoon, I ran into some endurance runners whom I'd met earlier on the trail at a different point around the mountain.  They had not seen Will, but I later found his boot print near the ski area and rested that he made it safely home.  I eventually checked my cell-phone and texted Kandy that I was probably finishing about 24 hours earlier.

The Timberline Trail near Mount Hood Meadows

 The Timberline Trail has many different starting points.  Mine took me from civilization to wilderness and back, and I'd have to say that my favorite part is from due North to about Due East of the mountain as it's high and wild.  Getting back to the areas frequented by people, I found more and more evidence of humans like trash, lost items, and development.  The trail was a goal I'd set for myself a while back, but I'd rarely do this again, instead opting to climb to the summit solo, or find another adventure elsewhere.

Almost Home - Mount Jefferson in the Background

 

  Although it was less than 72 hours, it seemed like a long time because I wasn't reminded of the time except for sunrise and sunset.  During most of my trip, I could track the sun, check the map for position, and orient myself with a compass.  But mainly, I hiked where and when I wanted.  I shared stories with folks I'd never met but who had associations with old friends of mine.  A Geologist and his colleague knew two of my friends from Battle Ground, and Will new people from my old mountain bike club in Portland.  It's truly a small world.