April 2025, on the trail, in search of wildflowers

May 22, 2025 / margaretquilts / Leave a comment

We went on one hike on April 1st, before my husband’s neck surgery on April 4th. After a couple of weeks of rest, we found some shorter, easier hikes in the last half of April, following the wildflower bloom, but keeping activity level within medical guidelines.

April 1 – Catherine Creek: Lower Tracy Hill – Arch Loop, WA

One of our usual trails. It was lovely to see the next phase of bloom in the meadows here.

View from the trailhead: the meadows are full of white saxifrage, also purple shooting stars, and a few camas beginning to bloom.

Looking south toward Mt Hood, the orchards of Mosier are glowing as the leaves unfurl.

Along the trail – rosy plectritus and purple broomrape.

Ponderosas reflected in a vernal pool, and yellow desert parsley.

Our trail passed above the ent who guards the slope…

On our return trail, we passed below the Arch, with eagles soaring above.

Some early bloomers were hanging on in this cliff shadow – gold stars and grass widows.

A few larkspur were just starting to bloom among them.

April 21 – Mitchell Point Tunnel and Mosier Plateau, OR

Last month I mentioned seeing the nearly completed Mitchell Point Tunnel from the highway as we drove by. The tunnel is now open. We stopped on our way to Mosier Plateau to see the views from the tunnel.

The new pedestrian and bicycle tunnel replaces the original automobile tunnel on the Old Columbia River Highway that was destroyed when Interstate 84 was built. The tunnel passes around the north side and through Mitchell Point.

Western view from the western tunnel entrance on a windy day.

There are five or six viewing windows in the 600 foot long tunnel.

View from the eastern opening toward the highway and the eastern gorge.

The western entry patio was comfortably sheltered from the wind today.

We walked a short way up the Mitchell Point Trail, which has been closed during tunnel construction. There were lots of wildflowers blooming in the woods. The trail becomes quite steep and rocky, and not suited for a surgical recovery hiker, so we didn’t go very far.

We drove on to Mosier Plateau, where the lower part of the hike is protected from the wind. Eventually, the trail emerges onto the open bench above the river, where the blooms and views were beautiful, but the wind too strong to want to walk the full length of the plateau.

Passing Mosier Creek Falls on the lower trail.

Heading uphill within Mosier Creek drainage, well protected from the wind.

Northward, toward the river – clumps of bright yellow balsam root bloom becoming more abundant.

On the windy plateau, looking west down the Columbia River and toward Mosier.

Northern view, looking directly at Coyote Wall in Washington

A perfect view of the black basalt outcrops of the labyrinth, where I can pick out a couple of my favorite trees.

And farther east toward Rowland Wall, Catherine Creek, and her famous Arch.

April 23 – Camassia Nature Preserve, West Linn, OR

A one mile loop trail through a natural area near Highway 205 and the Willamette River – somehow preserved from surrounding housing and industrial development.

Walking boardwalks through the green forest, with fringe cup and ferns.

A few blue-eyed Marys that always remind me of my sister.

Open meadows of camas and rosy plectritis

Cell tower osprey – the bird can see the Willamette River near Oregon City from their perch.

Trillium and violets in the forest on the return trail.

April 25 – Round Lake Lily Fields, Camas, WA

Another short, easy walk in a suburban area where large slopes of camas lilies are not far from housing developments.

Several paths wind through open slopes of camas lilies.

A few glacier lilies still blooming at the very top of the trail.

April 29 – Weldon Wagon Road, WA

The wind continued strong and steady all week in the Gorge. We chose this hike, in part because it has fabulous displays of balsam root along a smooth trail, but also because it is a bit protected from the relentless blasting wind in the main Columbia River corridor.

Bastard toadflax – my first time seeing this small white cluster flower.

Purple lupine and white manroot along the upper forest trail, just before the opening to…

the wide view across the balsamroot filled slopes.

We took a side trail up the ridge with a view to Mt Adams to the north for our lunch stop.

Back on the main trail, balsam root all the way…

The upper trail is wooded, with blue flowers of Pacific hound’s tongue and yellow violets in the understory.

Returning down the way we came. Pale pink phlox among the yellow balsamroot.

Our descending trail back down through the flowering slopes.

On the drive home, we stopped at the overlook on Highway 84 just below Corbett, where the perfectly calm air allowed a river mirror to form – we don’t see that very often on our gorge excursions.

Eastward, up river, Crown Point/Vista House on the right skyline.

Thus, we enjoyed another month of wildflower hikes, with more to come in May.

Wildflower Hiking in March, 2025

April 18, 2025April 18, 2025 / margaretquilts / Leave a comment

We enjoyed three wildflower hikes in the eastern Columbia River Gorge in March, all trails we have been to many times in different seasons. I love tracking the phases of wildflower bloom each time we go.

March 3 – Catherine Creek and Lower Labyrinth, WA

Early March is grass widow season at the lower elevations of the Catherine Creek and Labyrinth trail systems. My camera doesn’t do them justice, but the swaths of purple grass widows are so very pretty!

Fields of purple grass widows carpeted the lower meadows along the ADA Trail at Catherine Creek.

More grass widows on the rocky outcrops.

There was nothing blooming at the slightly higher elevation fairy ponds, so we went to the nearby Labyrinth/Old Highway 8 Trail to see what was happening there.

The Lower Labyrinth Falls along Old Hwy 8 was full.

The Upper Labyrinth Falls was also full, but there were no flowers up here.

The flowers were concentrated in the lower elevation areas…

Grass widows, gold stars, pink woodland stars.

March 11 – Rowena Crest, OR

The next week, on the Oregon side of the river, we saw more swaths of purple grass widows along Rowena Crest – both in the lower part of the Tom McCall Trail, and the Rowena Crest Trail.

We started by walking toward Tom McCall Point, where grass widows filled the meadows.

Grass widows and tiny white spring whitlow grass blooms

We walked through the oak tree lined Parsley Alley, and saw purple Columbia Desert Parsley beginning to bloom.

Looking east toward Lyle Cherry Orchard and the Rowena curves

We went back down, and walked all the way to the end of the Rowena Plateau Trail.

Grass widow meadows along Rowena Plateau Trail

Gold Stars in the meadows at the west end of the trail

Reflections in the ponds along the way provided some abstraction distractions…

We walked back along a side trail near the cliff edges – so many flowers!

March 18 – Rowland Wall/Stringbean Loop, WA

By mid-March in the Catherine Creek area, grass widows were joined by other flowers – saxifrage, gold stars, yellow bells, more of the parsleys, and the first balsam roots.

At the trailhead, white saxifrage were speckling the meadows along with grass widows.

Gold stars becoming abundant in the rocky areas overlooking the arch.

Plenty of grass widows, looking toward the orchards of Mosier.

The burn areas from last fall’s Top Of The World Fire are prominent around the trees, but the slopes have turned green.

There were many robins hopping along today. We watched these two playing in some puddles while we ate our lunch.

We continued uphill on the burned, but now green, slope of Sunflower Hill.

We dropped down over Rowland Wall, then decided to walk the inside-out switchbacks of the String Bean Trail. We didn’t find many flowers in the woodlands.

Looking back toward Rowland Wall, and the Needle.

We crossed the lava flows, then went back up over the wall at the lower trail.

We saw the first of the balsam roots blooming along the way

Plenty of yellow parsleys blooming along these west-facing slopes,

It was a beautiful day, and I am looking forward to the next phase of wildflower bloom in the eastern gorge!

Preview of Coming Attractions –

Driving home westward on Interstate 84, we passed under the base of Mitchell Point. The tunnel on the old highway was destroyed when I-84 was built, but has recently been reconstructed and reopened as part of the bike path through the gorge. I grabbed a photo as we passed – and we hope to walk there sometime soon. The views are supposed to be amazing!

Mitchell Point Tunnel, above the highway on the left.

February 2025…

March 13, 2025 / margaretquilts / Leave a comment

The shortest month seemed very long. I went from skiing the neighborhood snow to admiring the early spring blooms. I knit, quilted, and read as productive activities to counter the political upheaval. We honored the boycots. I made progress on the recycle/repair/upcycle four-year home improvement project. And we went on two hikes.

Crafting/Home Improvement:

I started sewing these quilt blocks together

Back hall carpet installed, almost the last step in that project.

Reading – I read nine books last month, many by or about women: writers, artists, a river guide, a Supreme Court Justice. After watching the Bob Dylan movie last month (A Complete Unknown), I was very interested to read Suze Rotolo’s side of the story. She was a politically active artist. She made a lasting impression on Dylan and his music, but she wanted to pursue her own artistic and life goals, not be just another string on his guitar, his ‘chick’, who would wait for him while he did whatever, wherever in the world. I really admire her for that. There are many great, less celebrated women out there, and I plan to read more of their stories. Meanwhile, I have been listening to the early Bob Dylan music – it fits the mood of this time in the world.

The neighborhood:

February 14th – I always love a chance to get out my 35 year old cross country skis, and kick-glide for a couple of miles down the quiet, flat streets of Irvington. The snow was perfect this day! And almost completely gone the next day.

Meanwhile, in Philadelphia, our son and his fiancee were attending the Super Bowl Victory Parade! Wearing hats that I knit for them last year.

Around town – flowers and rainbows…

Rainbow seen while driving north on I-5 in Portland

Hiking –

We hiked out in the eastern Columbia River Gorge twice in February –

February 20th – Crawford Oaks, WA – We hiked about 5 miles on the Lower Vista Loop, past the full Eight Mile Creek Falls, and around the lower plateau. We saw very few early flowers and just a bit too much wind that day.

Salt and Pepper parsley, Dalles Mountain Ranch

February 27th – Memaloose Hills, OR – A beautiful, perfectly calm day. We could see the blue heron rookery on yonder cliff top and a few flowers. It was an easy, enjoyable 3.5 mile hike with dear friends.

Eastward view from the Memaloose Overlook

View to the north, with a peek at Mt Adams

Westward view, heron rookery circled in red

Trail up the south approach to Chatfield Hill

Lunch at the top, and a view to Mt Hood (photo credit to my husband).

Meanwhile, the news is worse every day – we are doing what we can, and trying to hold on to the glimmers and small victories. The daily reports of the shredding of the constitution by anti-empathic billionaires is trying every nerve, but I try to stay positive…

October 2024 chronology…

November 14, 2024 / margaretquilts / Leave a comment

In the interest of keeping up, I’m posting a brief chronology of what I did in October after our visit to Mt Rainier during the first week.

Hikes and other adventures:

Portland Art Museum – Our son visited from Philadelphia, and we visited the Beatles photography exhibit during his stay…

I got my first glimpse of the extensive remodel of the Portland Airport.

Portland Art Museum – we all like the Beatles, and my husband and I are just old enough to remember the early 60’s.

Most of the photographs were taken by the Beatles during their early 60’s American tours.

Beatlemania from the inside of the car…

October 10 – Our son joined us on a hike from the East Crater Trailhead, Indian Heaven Wilderness, WA.

East Crater

Junction Lake

Small lake along the Old Cascade Crest trail

Frozen bog

October 16 – We went up to the Hoyt Arboretum in Forest Park to see the Japanese Maple, but it was still mostly green.

Vine maples changing

Japanese maple still green

October 18 – We hiked with friends in the eastern gorge, Lyle Cherry Orchard Trail, and could see over to the Catherine Creek area, where a controlled burn had spread to nearby forest.

Convict Road viewpoint

Lyle overlook, smoke from the Top of the World fire

Closer view of the fire

Wide view looking west

October 24 – Back in the eastern Washington gorge the next week, for one of those perfect fall hikes at the Labyrinth trail – colors blazing, views forever.

Rowland Lake, near the trailhead. A late bunch of poppies; destination ponderosa on the skyline.

Mt Hood on view

Hello to the trail guardian oak tree

Creek almost dry, but a few ponds in the stream bed

Oak leaves

Oak grove

Lunch view

Ponderosa near our destination…

From which we can see over to the controlled-burn area above Catherine Creek.

Going down past the ridgeline oak tree

A glorious day!

October 29 – We went back up to the Hoyt Arboretum, to see the maple tree now in nearly full color.

Meanwhile – Neighborhood walks…

Sunflower

Sumac

Shadow

Joan of Arc

GrantPark

Sumac and tupelo

Neighborhood Halloween –

Ghosts

Witches

Spider

Peanuts

Bushes with eyes

Neighborhood Hope – I am writing this in November, but we did have hope in October…all through the neighborhood.

Crafting – was mostly knitting, but also, near daily prep and painting over numerous patches in the walls from plumbing repairs.

Icelandic vest – just needs buttons

New gift hat started

Gift socks finished

Donation hat finished

Painting in progress

And I carved my Halloween pumpkin with inspiration from my kitchen sock monkey.

June 2024

July 14, 2024June 20, 2024 / margaretquilts / Leave a comment

June, so far…Three hikes, watching the tomatoes grow, pulling weeds, checking off the medical and dental appointments, some home maintenance, and getting ready for travel. Then off we went to Iceland for three weeks… (See next post)

Some views from the tram plaza at OHSU:

Knitting – I’m making slow but pleasant progress on my Garter Mesh scarf, using the Linello yarn I bought in Innsbruck last summer. I enjoy watching the rainbow unfurl as I go. And I’ve got the second sock of a pair ready for airplane knitting.

Knitting in progress…

I started knitting an Emotional Support Chicken, using leftover sock yarn. So fun! This one really calls to me, even though I have other things to work on.

Garden – The tomatoes, basil, and flowers are growing – I have foiled the snails and squirrels so far. I’m hoping for an overgrown profusion of flowers and tomatoes when we return.

Tomatoes, basil and marigolds

Snapdragons, zinnias, cosmos, dahlias, and pentstemon.

Delphinium in the neighborhood

Hikes –

June 6 – Saddle Mountain, OR – We love this hike, though it seems steeper each year. The yellow monkey flowers were particularly bright this year, and I found the first of the Lewisia columbiana, just starting to bloom. All the Cascade Mountain peaks were out today.

Saddle Mountain from the trailhead, and a meadow of candy flowers

Monkey flowers along the trail

Topknot Rock

Meadows, approaching the penultimate high point.

But we still have to go down the saddle and then up to the summit; fortunately, the wildflowers pull me up.

Mts Rainier, St Helens and Adams from the top

Panorama – west to north – Pacific Ocean, Astoria

Panorama – north to east – The High Cascades: Mts Rainier, St Helens, Adams, Hood and even Jefferson in the haze south of the lower summit.

Some of the flowers:

Monkey flower and rosy plectritis

Iris

Meadow rue

Shooting stars and saxifrage

Prairie smoke

Paintbrush, viola, chickweed

Paintbrush, buttercup, checker mallow, phlox, chickweed

Lewisia columbiana

Saddle Mountain bittercress, fleabane

Tufted saxifrage

June 11 – Salmon Creek Greenway Trail and Klineline Pond, WA – One day our appointments were near Salmon Creek in southwest Washington, and we had some extra time for a walk here. It was okay – a bit too hot to walk very far on this unshaded trail, and far enough into the summer that things were getting a little weedy and dry – not a wilderness experience, but a valuable resource for locals – a swimming and fishing pond, a bike path along the creek, and nearby sports fields. We could hear lots of birds in the trees.

Bridge over Salmon Creek

Salmon Creek from the bridge

Klineline Pond

Another pond along the greenway

June 19 – Lookout Mountain, Oregon – Somehow we got the idea that this hike was accessible, and the trailhead (6000 feet) is, but half a mile and 400 more elevation feet up the trail, and it was all snow. We weren’t really equipped for that, so we spent a little time looking at the abundant shooting stars, marsh marigolds and buttercups in the High Prairie Trailhead meadow.

High Prairie Trailhead

400 feet higher – the trail disappeared under snow.

High Prairie Meadow, Mt St Helens beyond

Shooting stars and buttercups

Marsh Marigolds

On our return drive, we took a short walk on the Cook Meadows side trail that we explored last summer in July when it was bursting full of wildflowers. We saw just the beginnings of the bloom there.

Cook Meadows view of Mt Hood, June 2024

Same view, July 2023, with scarlet gillia

Some of the flowers we saw today:

Trillium, Oregon anemone

Balsam root

Jacob’s ladder

Dusky horkelia

Yellow paintbrush

The first of the season King/Coho salmon was available from a native fish market in Hood River, making our trip worthwhile, even if our hike was abbreviated.

And of course, Happy Solstice and Happy Pride Month!

Next stop, Iceland!

May 2024…

May 31, 2024 / margaretquilts / 1 Comment

May was a busy month, with a visit from our daughter being the best part. We also planted our garden, and went on several hikes (next post). I cut out some new quilt block pieces and knit on several projects.

Sewing – Emily taught us to make her famous sock monkeys, and we got a good start. We will finish during her next visit.

Emily’s Sock Monkey

Other monkeys, in progress

Knitting – I finished a shawl and one sock, and started another scarf.

Modified Chloris Shawl

One sock done, one started.

Garter and Lace Scarf made from the Linello yarn I bought in Innsbruk last summer

Quilting – Friends All Around – I cut patches for quilt blocks from the leftover Transparency Quilt fabric.

Tentative patch placement – Modern Quilt Studio – Friends All Around blocks

Garden – We planted tomatoes, basil, cucumbers, marigolds, a few other flowers….

Neighborhood Rainbow – So many things blooming in our neighborhood! I collected a rainbow on my walk one day…

Art Experiences – Emily and I visited our friend Claire’s latest exhibit in a downtown hotel. I love her ability to capture the beauty I see all the time in our favorite natural places.

Paintings by Claire Christy-Tirado

Coyote Wall

View from Timberline

We also saw this nautilus when walking around downtown.

May 30th – We took a short hike at Brooks Memorial State Park outside of Goldendale, WA, then stopped to see the latest exhibit at Maryhill Museum.

The setting…

View from the museum plaza looking …east,

South,

And west.

I was particularly interested in seeing their new exhibit, a collection of historic and new paintings and photographs, arranged in geographic order from east to west along the Columbia River. I’ve shared a few of my favorites below.

The most impressive piece was a four panel journey along the Columbia River – beautiful!

And random extras – We were served by a “robot” waiter in a Burmese Restaurant.

Robot waiter

A lovely Mother’s Day card…

Hiking, January 2024

February 5, 2024 / margaretquilts / Leave a comment

Two hikes in January – it was mostly too cold, wet, icy to hit the trails this month.

First Day Hike – January 1 – Columbia River Gorge and Powell Butte

The skies were blue and the sun was out! We could see the mountain as we drove east out of Portland!

But in the Gorge, the east winds were strong and cold, and fog banks covered many of the slopes. We turned around and drove back to town on the Historic Highway, stopping for views at Vista House. The winds were so strong I could barely open the car door!

Looking east – white caps on the river!

Looking west…

And Vista House.

We stopped again for a quick view from Women’s Forum/Chanticleer Overlook…

Looking back at Vista House, the Columbia River, Beacon Rock…

And then we drove to Powell Butte in east Portland, where hiking trails lead up the sides and around the top of this volcanic butte. It is also the location of an enormous covered reservoir, a main stop in the Portland water system. Lots of other people were there on this sunny first day, so that we had to hike up from the north parking lot on 148th Avenue because the upper lots were all full. But we persisted, and were rewarded, finally, with a chance to stretch our legs a bit on this beautiful day. It was a lot less windy here!

We could see Mt Hood beyond reservoir infrastructure as we reached the top.

The museum at the top utilizes pipes as part of an exhibit that explains the water system

Pipe as embedded surface art.

We made a loop to the high point on top, with better views of Mt Hood,

and Mt St Helens.

Eventually, we returned down the Blackberry Stairs to our car, after a 3.5 mile hike.

Thus we began the New Year as we mean to go on, with weekly hikes. Nature got a little bit the better of us in this regard…there was snow, ice, and below freezing temperatures for a week, and then a fair amount of rain. But I did get out for one more hike in January – to see the eagles!

January 23 – Balfour-Klickitat Natural Area, and Coyote Wall, WA

There was a lot of snow all through the Gorge, and more than I expected in the eastern Gorge. It was quite beautiful, and not as cold as it had been. We drove over the Hood River Bridge to Washington…

Looking east from the bridge

The views across the Columbia River from the Chamberlain Lake Rest Area on Hwy 14 were sparklinging in the sunlight!

We reached The Balfour-Klickitat Natural Area, just west of Lyle, and found that the parking area had not been plowed. We parked just below, on Hwy 14, and walked up along the Klickitat River on a snowshoe trail. We wore microspikes on our boots to assist our grip on the six inches of snow.

Looking back across the Columbia River from near the parking area.

Walking along the Klickitat River Trail

Klickitat River

A perennial stream enters the Klickitat River on the west side of this little lake.

We reached the overlook to the lake where bald eagles congregate this time of year, and there they were! We counted about 25 different eagles over the course of our observations.

The white plumage of bald eagle pops out against the gray tree branches across the lake.

Closer view

Another one

We noticed these two on our side of the lake…

Zooming in…

The more we scanned the landscape, the more we saw, though the brown juvenile birds are harder to see. Then we noticed a snag in the distance that was covered in birds!

Distant snag, circled in blue

Zooming in. Birds were coming and going. There are also three perched in the trees to the left of the snag.

Nine eagles perched on the snag in this view.

There were also ducks down on the lake, and flying about…

Ducks

Eventually the fog started rolling in, so we returned to our car.

Fog

Goodbye to the eagles for this year.

It is always a treat to see them before they return to Canada.

We drove back west on Hwy 8, planning to walk at Catherine Creek, if possible, but it was completely fogged in. We sat in the car, eating our lunch and hoping the fog would move on, but no luck.

Lunch view at the Catherine Creek Trailhead.

We continued west to the Coyote Wall Trailhead, once again parking near Hwy 14, because the parking area was not plowed. We walked under the cliffs, and along Look Lake to the frozen waterfall, and then turned back, as the fog was beginning to settle here, too.

Looking toward Coyote Wall from the snowplow berm near Hwy 14.

Our path along the old highway under Coyote Wall

Looking back toward sunlit cliffs at the top of Coyote Wall

Look Lake

Sunlight in the melted lake ice

Frozen waterfall

Waterfall icicles

Fog rolling in ahead…

View over Look Lake as we walk back westward.

We had seen enough for the day, and it was time to warm up again.

View to the west as we drove back over the Hood River Bridge. Even the sandflats out along the Hood River Delta were covered with snow.

We will be back next month to see the first spring wildflowers after the snow melts.

December 2023 – all about the light..

January 2, 2024January 2, 2024 / margaretquilts / Leave a comment

December is a month for hibernating, preparing for holidays and family visits, rooting for the solstice, and trying to get all the knitting done for holiday gifts. I only went on two hikes this month.

Early December...sun getting lower, shadows longer, I was counting down to the solstice with two advent-style knitting projects and a few walks on dry days.

Pro Palestine march passing our house

A little bit of knitting every day on the stocking and the mystery gnome…

Arne and Carlos Mystery Stocking

Imagined Landscapes Mystery Gnome

Hanukkah was early this year. We lit candles and had friends over for latkes on one of the nights.

December 12 – Hike – Lyle Cherry Orchard Discovery Trail, WA – We hiked the 4.5 mile loop on an overcast day – taking in the views and getting some good exercise.

Looking east as we ascend

View west from our lunch stop

Circling back below the Lyle town sign

And almost back to the Convict Road.

December 15th – We passed Joan of Arc on our way to lunch and bead shopping with the knitters…

December 20th – Hike – Dry Creek Falls, OR – Another dry weather window – we hiked a past Dry Creek on the Pacific Crest Trail to one of the pinnacles, but not all the way to the main pinnacles. It was a good seven mile hike.

Starting up the trail at Cascade Locks.

The pinnacle near our lunch stop. All the forest we have hiked through today has 2017 burn scars

Slight view across the Columbia River from our lunch stop.

Back to the PCT bridge over Dry Creek,

and upstream a short way to the falls —

Dry Creek Falls, pouring out of a notch in the columnar basalt.

They are quite beautiful!

Splash pool at the base.

And back at the trailhead, the park at the Bridge of the Gods is adorned with festive light displays.

On the Solstice, I took an enjoyable walk through the neighborhood – happy to know that longer days are ahead.

Christmas week – House guests, finishing the knitting, decorating the tree, wrapping and unwrapping presents, tamales on Christmas Eve and dinner with friends on Christmas day. A little bit of baking, but not too much. It was a relaxed and enjoyable week.

Tree decorated

New ornaments – from Italy and New Zealand

With gifts

Stockings

New books, bowls, and glasses

Trifle of Christmas

Dog of Christmas

Emily and Izzy at Multnomah Falls

Some of the Knitting:

Finished stocking

KC hat for Rachel

tiny cat for nancy

Hat for Izzy

Socks for Dan

Socks for Emily

Socks for Brian

Snow Matter What gnome and snowman

The month ended with more clouds and rain. I found a version of the Christmas story on instagram that resonates with me for its inclusiveness, and the reminder that although history repeats itself in terrible ways, there are always people who step up and help.

Weak sun through clouds

Rain wet streets and sparkling lights

Message of hope

November 2023 Hikes

December 14, 2023 / margaretquilts / Leave a comment

We had five walking adventures in November, four in the wilderness and one in town.

November 1 – Deschutes River Trail, OR –

We’ve taken this trail many times, especially on days like today when it is raining everywhere else within a two hour drive of home. This area had a fire several years ago, and another brush fire last summer, which we could see evidence of along the way.

Deschutes River near the trailhead

Looking upstream as we walk uphill towards Ferry Springs.

Looking downstream toward the confluence with the Columbia River.

Approaching the Ferry Springs crossing.

Ferry Springs – burned by a brushfire last July.

A few wildflowers flowers hanging on.

View upriver from our lunch spot near the rock arch.

Walking back along the Blackberry Trail, the Columbia Hills appear like a mirage from the mist.

Sumac

Heron

And the rain didn’t start until we were on our drive home (5 miles, 500 feet).

November 8 – Portland Arboretum and Crystal Springs Garden, Portland –

We wanted to see the beautifully curated gardens, including the spectacular Japanese maple, at Portland’s Japanese Garden in Washington Park. On this sunny Wednesday it seemed many had the same idea. The parking lots were packed and lots of people were walking toward the garden entrance – it seemed less than ideal. So we drove around to the other side of the park to the Arboretum, and there found a beautiful Japanese maple and many other trees in excellent fall colors with much less crowded paths.

White Mexican Orange flowers near the Arboretum headquarters.

Walking toward the Maple Trail…

Approaching the sumac grove

Sumacs

A selection of leaves and berries…

And a beautiful Japanese Maple…

After lunch, we decided to check out the fall colors at Crystal Springs Garden, on the east side of town. It was also beautiful there, with colorful reflections in the lakes, and also not very crowded.

We passed the Portland Tram, that I rode in last week, on our way across town.

A pink azalea blooming very late

Japanese Maple near the entrance

Northern lake, with technicolor reflections…

Cherry tree

And another upside down tree

Crossing over to the southern part of the garden…

Ducks on a log

Party meadow

Waterfall

The reflections in the southern lake were mesmerizing…

November 14 – Cape Horn, WA –

It has been a while since I have walked the full seven mile loop, but we decided try it on this windy day (7.4 miles, 1460 feet).

We started clockwise, downhill, a one and a half mile roadwalk.

Highway 14 viaduct across Cape Horn above.

Crossing the lower scree slopes.

Lower cliffs, upstream view to the Needle and Beacon Rock

Several hundred feet higher on the trail – one of the viewpoints that has had a wall and viewing platform added in recent years.

Upper viewpoint to the east along the Columbia River.

Through the woods near the top of Cape Horn.

View to the south from the uppermost viewpoint.

Whitecaps on the Columbia River below, and a horse in the meadow.

View to Silver Star Mountain, to the north, as we switchback down to the Salmon Falls Road Trailhead.

November 20 – Horsetail, Ponytail and Triple Falls, OR –

This trail is in the heart of the Columbia River Gorge waterfall zone, and was very hard hit by the 2017 fire. We have not been on this trail since before the fire, but had seen recent trip reports that the trail was repaired and open, so went to see how it fared. We hiked the clockwise loop, starting at Horsetail Falls, then up hill to Ponytail Falls, then across Oneonta Gorge, past the Oneonta Falls, then uphill to Triple Falls, and circling back down to the Highway, and to our start point. We walked through a lot of burned forest, and across several repaired trail sections. The very cliffy trail up to Triple Falls had several obvious washouts that had been repaired, but seemed somewhat fragile. With the local downpours last week, I would not be surprised if the trail were washed out again. (5.0 miles, 1000 feet).

Horsetail to Triple Falls trail

Horsetail Falls

The trail ascends the cliffs above the falls

Top of Horsetail Falls

Ponytail Falls – the trail passes behind the falls

View from behind the falls

Looking back at Ponytail Falls

Looking east at the viewpoint before heading up to Oneonta Gorge

Westward view from the viewpoint

Heading upstream toward the new bridge over Oneonta Gorge

A peak from the trail down into Oneonta Gorge

Crossing the bridge

View down stream from the bridge

Middle Oneonta Falls upstream from the bridge

Looking down at Oneonta Creek from Oneonta Trail

Burned forest on the slopes above Oneonta Creek

We reached the Triple Falls viewpoint after walking along the repaired trail through the severely burned forest. For comparison, I’m adding a similar view from September 2013.

Triple Falls, Nov. 2023

Walking back along the Oneonta Trail through the burned landscape.

Circling back along the highway, toward the Oneonta Tunnel, which was completely burned in 2017.

View from the tunnel bridge up the Oneonta Gorge, trail closed since before the fire because of hazardous log jams in the gorge.

Back to Horsetail Falls.

November 28 – Hummocks and Boundary Trails, Mt St Helens, WA –

We have hiked the Hummocks Loop here a few times, but gone farther along the Boundary Trail toward Johnston Ridge one other time, in May of 2020, when they first reopened the trail after the initial pandemic shutdown. We encountered only a few other people out on the trail today (5.7 miles, 1100 feet).

Welcoming party at the Trailhead – white tail deer, Mt St Helens beyond.

Walking along the lakes that have formed between the hummocks.

Partially frozen lake

Frost on the trail

The famous upside down log, still in depositional position from the eruption in 1980.

View of Mt St Helens from the trail junction with the Boundary Trail.

The trail rises above the hummocky plain, and switchbacks up Johnston Ridge, past sheered-off tree stumps, to the ridge crest. From the top are views in all directions, and we can see the mountain all the time.

To the north – Coldwater Lake and Visitor Center.

Eastward panorama – Mt Margaret backcountry and Mt St Helens

Some closer views:

Mt Whittier

Coldwater Peak

Zoom in on the volcano monitoring equipment on top of Coldwater Peak

Mt St Helens Crater

Mt St Helens – snowy high point

Toutle River Valley

Here is a set of photos from nearly the same spot on the ridge, one from May of 2020, when the hillsides were green:

November 28, 2023

May 27, 2020

Heading down, I realized we had a good view over to the Windy Pass area on the east side of the mountain, which we were looking toward from the south side on our hike to June Lake in October.

Shadows growing long in the crater as we hike down.

Closer view of the Windy Pass area

And an excellent view of some of the hummocks in the afternoon light.

Back at the Boundary Trail Junction

The top of the mountain is glowing.

We stopped on our drive out at the Castle Lake Viewpoint for a last look at the area as the sun was setting…

Castle Lake Viewpoint

October 2023 adventures…

November 15, 2023 / margaretquilts / Leave a comment

Our five hikes in October ranged from urban Portland, to wilderness areas at Mt St Helens and Indian Heaven, and to our reliable dry trails in the eastern Columbia River Gorge in Washington.

October 1st, Oaks Bottom, Portland

An oft-repeated sunny walk around the Willamette River bottomlands just south of downtown Portland. Not much wildlife today, but there was new artwork on the railroad underpasses since the last time we were here (3.4 miles, 150 feet).

New artwork on the southern railroad underpass

We could hear the screams from upside down people at Oaks Park today.

View of the giant mural and the lake along the bike path.

A few cormorants

New artwork on the northern railroad underpass,

on both sides.

Early fall colors and

reflections in the lake.

The train, and the hills of SW Portland.

October 4, Indian Heaven, WA

We repeated one of my favorite loops in Indian Heaven, from Thomas Lake to Rock Lakes, to the less trodden path through the lakes and high huckleberry meadows along the Old Cascade Crest Trail (6.4 miles, 750 feet).

Colorful foliage from the trailhead on…

Thomas Lake

Heather Lake

Mt St Helens from the viewpoint above Eunice Lake

Mt St Helens

High meadows of huckleberry foliage

Naha Lake

Reflections

More reflections

Bright red foliage

High meadows

A glimpse of Mt Adams through the trees

We arrived at our lunch stop, Rock Lakes.

Rock Lakes

Rock crossing

Reflections

Moss

More red

After lunch we continued a little farther east, then south through the high meadows and unnamed lakes along the Old Cascade Crest Trail – all water reflections and colorful foliage. A delight! These are just a few of the images.

Unnamed lake

Magenta foliage, with a few last huckleberries

Lakes and huckleberry bushes along the trail

South toward Gifford Peak

Looking back at partly burned East Crater

Gradients of color in the foliage

And in the reflective lake water…

Monet water

We also caught a glimpse of Mt Rainier through the trees on our return hike…

Eastern flanks of Mt Rainier, and the Tatoosh Range?

On our drive home, I took this photo as we crossed the Bridge of the Gods. The burned zone in the Gorge is starting to look like fuzzy grey hair on the slopes.

Crossing the Bridge of the Gods, looking toward Oregon.

October 12, June Lake, Mt St Helens, WA

Our only new hike this month. We have been to June Lake before, but this was the first time we continued to the east on the Loowit Trail, the 30 mile loop around Mt St Helens. The mountain top remained covered in clouds all day. We saw fall colors on the slopes below the snow line (6.5 miles, 1200 feet).

Trail map

The first mile through the forest along June Creek is relatively flat.

Glimpse of the cloud-covered mountain from near the trail head

Approaching the lava flow that has dammed the creek to form June Lake. Tiny hiker on the lower left.

June Lake

Lower cascade

Reflections

Fall colors mirrored

More reflections…

More Monet water

Past June Lake, the trail ascends steeply to join the Loowit Trail around the mountain. We went eastward this time, through forested trail, and over the toes of lava flows, ascending to an eventual viewpoint of the mountain.