30. Coyote Wall, WA

November 8, 2017 / margaretquilts / Leave a comment

Little Moab trail on a misty day. Nov 6, 2017 (#53)

Monday was supposed to be clear in the eastern gorge after a rainy weekend, but the clouds did not move out until afternoon. Fortunately, the misting rain at the Coyote Wall trailhead dried up about the time we got our boots on. We walked the old road section, admiring the remains of fall colors, then wound our way up the cliffs of the Little Moab trail.

Dried flower seed heads in the grass,

lichen and moss on the rocks,

fog on the top of the wall,

all the views across the windless glassy Columbia River to the Mosier/Lyle/Rowena viewpoints.

‘Twas a good hike at Coyote Wall, with only a few other hikers and bikers sprinkled through our day.

4.6 miles/1300’

LOOKBACK:

We have hiked here many times – to see the first grass widows in February,

February 2015

the brilliant balsamroot in April,

April 2017

the autumnal colors of fall, as we saw today, and snow in winter:

December 2015

I am hoping someday the trail below the wall will reopen to hikers – it would be a lovely loop.

Knitting, spinning, quilting:

I have spun more singles and plied, skeined and washed my first practice yarn.

I cast on a Sonic Six hat with the tubular 1×1 rib cast on in Total Eclipse yarn and am enjoying knitting the slip stitch pattern.

I finished the fourth of the blue and purple washcloths.

I have sewn the first two rows of the Atmospheric River clamshell quilt – so far, so good.

28. Atmospheric River Quilt / Tryon Creek Hike 10/22/2107

October 24, 2017October 24, 2017 / margaretquilts / Leave a comment

Heavy rain predicted for the weekend. Meteorologists describe an atmospheric river headed our way. Hiking questionable. Time for some quilting!

I have finally drawn a successful template for my giant clamshell quilt, and spent some enjoyable moments sorting fabric for the clams. It began with a stack that I purchased approximately 20 years ago at a quilt shop in Bend, Oregon – blue-green-purple with gold metallic accents in geometric patterns.

I have used small pieces in scrap quilts, but have been more recently plotting to use these in a giant clam shell quilt, inspired by one I saw on a bed at the Metolius River Lodge in August of 2012. That one had 19 1/2″ wide clams.

The dimensions of my available stash limit my clam size to 18 inches maximum. It took me a while to design the clam shell template. I resorted to creating a compass with a piece of graph paper, a pin, and a mechanical pencil. I traced the half-clam onto freezer paper, and will use the freezer paper template to cut 40 whole clams on the fold, and 20 different half clams, 5 each left, right, top and bottom. I watched the Latifah Saafir YouTube video on sewing clams without pins, but I have already made drunkard path, apple core and half-circle quilts, so I am familiar with the technique. These curves will be relatively easy to sew, I hope, with such large circles.

I visually selected a palette of cool colors to go with the focus fabrics. It makes me happy that I can make this a charm quilt in the sense that each fabric is used only once. After cutting the large clams from my larger fabrics, I placed the smaller pieces around the tentative layout to audition for the half clams.

As I looked at the flood of cool, watery colors on the floor, the perfect name popped into mind – Atmospheric River. In the week ahead I plan to finish cutting the half clams and finalize the layout. Then, on to the sewing.

Tryon Creek Hike 10/22/2017 (#51)

Meanwhile, by Sunday afternoon, the atmospheric river had passed over our area, and we headed to Tryon Creek State Park, only 20 minutes away, for a brief hike in the drippy forest. This beautifully maintained park is one of the oases of nature surrounding Portland. A maze of trails and bridges cross and recross Tryon Creek, providing peaceful moments.

Big leaf and vine maples showing fall color:

Vine maple

Big leaf maple

Moss, fern and cedar:

Muddy creek reflections:

About 3 miles/300 feet.

LOOKBACK:

We have hiked in Tryon Creek many times – it is famous for blooming Trillium in the spring.

Trillium at Tryon Creek, April 2015

OTHER CRAFTING:

Kimono robe and socks I made for my daughter for her birthday.

27. Cape Horn Loop, Columbia River Gorge, Washington

October 18, 2017October 23, 2017 / margaretquilts / 1 Comment

Cape Horn Loop October 14, 2017 (#50 – hikes in 2017)

On a beautiful fall day, after several days of rain, we went with friends to the Cape Horn trail just east of Washougal, WA. This view shows the massive cliffs of Cape Horn from Angel’s Rest on the Oregon side of the river. Our trail will follow the road down to the lower green fields, then traverse west along the lower cliffs before heading back up hill to the top of the mountain.

October 2014 Cape Horn viewed from Angel’s Rest

Fog draped the summit when we arrived, so we chose to hike clockwise around the loop, our first views being the highway 14 viaduct above us as we completed the road walk.

From the road, the trail then enters the forest, and emerges onto the open mossy scree slopes above the cliffs adjacent to the waterfall (which was at very low flow).

We reached the lowest part of the trail above the Columbia River, and could look east to see Cigar Rock.

Eastward view toward Beacon Rock, Phoca Rock; fog topped cliffs

We continued across the cliffs, and opted for the westernmost loop that leads onto a promontory above the western entrance to the train tunnel that cuts through the cliff beneath us.

From here, the trail heads upward through various switchback sections, with spurs to the Oak and Waterfall viewpoints, then through the trail tunnel under highway 14, and finally up to the Nancy Russell Overlook, where plenty of other hikers were resting.

We saw two giant baguettes being transported by barge (or was it sawdust)?

There is a distinct sandbar in the river channel below glinting in the sun.

Next, the traverse along property boundaries to the actual highest point – Pioneer viewpoint. By this time the fog had evaporated.

View to the east upriver from Pioneer Point

View to west from Pioneer Point, including Hwy 14 viaduct

From there it is all downhill, down the steep switchbacks to the trailhead. We were a bit early for the fall color display, and saw only one flower, a penstemon, whereas in the spring the trail is lined by hanging gardens of wildflowers.

The last penstemon

It was a lovely day for a hike. On a side note, the turftoe plate I was using in my right boot seemed to delay the onset of pain in my arthritic big toe for a couple of miles, and I hope this tool will allow me to continue with longer hikes.

Total for the day: 7.5 miles, 1350 feet.

Look back:

We have hiked this trail several times – though we have only completed the full loop a couple of times because the lower cliff area is closed from February to July for peregrine falcon nesting. In 2014, when we hiked the lower loop, we saw a train exit the tunnel beneath us.

The most striking comparison is the new view of burned up Angel’s Rest, almost directly across from Cape Horn on the Oregon side of the river. Green in the past, it is now brown.

Angel’s Rest 2014

Angel’s Rest 2017

Crafting:

I have knit two more tortillas and a square purple wash cloth, as well as mended four pairs of hand knit socks in time for winter.

I have been planning my giant clam shell quilt, but have not yet made a satisfactory template. More on that later.

26. The Perfect Fall Hike on Mt Hood

October 8, 2017October 9, 2017 / margaretquilts / 1 Comment

Mirror Lake and Tom, Dick & Harry Mountain, Mt. Hood October 6, 2017 (#49)

Sunny skies, shady forest, bright red huckleberry and vine maple on the scree slopes, reflections of Mt Hood in Mirror Lake, five cascade volcanoes in view at the top. Total distance 6.6 miles, 1500 feet.

Mt Hood, Mirror Lake

Fall color along the trail

Huckleberry and bear grass

The rock pile at the top of the ridge

View back to Mt Hood from the open scree slope

Vine maple

Mt Hood

Mirror Lake

Paradise Park

Mt St Helens, Mt Rainier and Mt Adams to the north

Mt Jefferson to the south

Lookback:

We have hiked here in every season, including with micro spikes on on New Years Day 2014, a low snow year; and a failed snowshoe attempt in January of 2016, when the snow above the lake was too deep to find a safe trail. Spring and summer flowers, brilliant fall color, fabulous views when not cloudy. The trail is overly popular for good reason.

Comparison photos:

Views from Mirror Lake to Mt. Hood:

September 27, 2010

January 1, 2014

January 8, 2016

November 4, 2016

October 6, 2017

Views to Mt Hood from the top of Tom Dick and Harry Mtn:

September 27, 2010

June 1, 2013

January 1, 2014

November 4, 2016

October 6, 2017

22. Mt St Helens Boundary Trail

September 13, 2017September 24, 2017 / margaretquilts / Leave a comment

Eagle Creek fire update as of 9/11/17: 34000 acres, 7% contained.

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USFS Incident Map

Boundary Trail toward Harry’s Ridge 9/10/2017 (#45)

The skies are alternating blue and cloudy today. Unsure of any firesafe place east of us, we opted to drive north to Johnston Ridge, Mt St Helens National Monument. Clouds that were floating at mountain level when we arrived late morning evaporated during the day.

Mt St Helens

We hiked the Boundary Trail toward Harry’s Ridge.

Coldwater Peak, north of the Boundary Trail

Toutle River, pumice plain

The trail that used to go along a steep, cliffy slope to the grand viewpoint at Devil’s Elbow is now closed. The new alternate route cuts over the ridge, and has a view to Spirit Lake from the pass at the top of the cutoff. We stopped there for lunch.

Lunch stop at the top of the new cut off trail, with view to Spirit Lake

I decided it was too hot to continue, so hiked slowly back to the observatory. Dan went on to Harry’s Ridge then met me back at the observatory later. I had the chance to watch the excellent 16 minute film that simulates the eruption and illustrates the forces of nature during the 1980 eruption.

View while hiking back toward Johnston Observatory

Looking east from the observatory toward Mt Adams

Mt Adams

There are straggling summer flowers in bloom – lupine of both large and dwarf varieties, penstemon, paintbrush, yarrow, an abundant yellow composite, and equally abundant white pearly everlasting gilding the slopes, and standing out strongly in contrast to the early reds of fall.

Pearly everlasting

lupine

Red fall foliage

Lupine

penstemon

We stopped at Coldwater Lake to walk the boardwalk trail that illustrates the Birth of the Lake. It was peaceful and beautiful there, with excellent views of Minnie Peak and Mt St. Helens. It is pleasant to walk through shady foliage after spending time in the blast zone. My total mileage for the day was about 5 miles/800 feet.

Coldwater Lake

Coldwater Lake, Mt. St Helens

Coldwater Lake, Minnie Peak

LOOKBACK:

Boundary Trail to Harry’s Ridge – we have hiked this trail in several seasons, with different views of the mountain:

June 2016

September 2017

Inner crater dome close up June 2016

September 2017

Coldwater Lake:

In March of 2015, a low snow year, we walked the 12 mile loop around Coldwater Lake. The foliage was mostly dormant and brown. We had views of the mountain, walked by the abandoned logging machinery destroyed by the blast, got some closer views of Minnie Peak.

March 2015 Minnie Peak and old logging machinery on Coldwater Ridge

March 2015 Minnie Peak

March 2015

September 2017 Mt St Helens and Coldwater Lake

In Spring of 2017 we were in the area hiking the Hummocks trail, and we visited the Science and Learning Center, which gave us a snowy view of the boardwalk that we walked on today.

February 2017 Looking down on Coldwater Lake

21. It’s cool at the beach! plus a pod of pelicans!

September 7, 2017 / margaretquilts / 1 Comment

My post 20 about the Columbia Gorge fire, (still out of control as I write this) delayed finishing this post.

Neahkahnie Mountain 9/1/2017 (#44)

The heat and wildfire smoke have settled into the Portland area for the long weekend and beyond. We drove out to the coast this morning, for a repeat of the day trip I took with my sister and son in August. No fog bank this time – the sky was clear blue and it was actually a little hotter than I would have liked for the hike.

Neakanie Mtn juts 1680 feet up from the ocean. The south trailhead is at about 700 feet, so we only had to climb about a thousand feet over one and a half miles to reach the top. The first mile is steep switchbacks through coastal forest with a few straggling flowers, and shady much of the way. The last half mile is just below the ridgeline, over rocky outcrops, with a final slight scramble to the summit – a rocky spine with not much space for the two or three families who were there with us. We perched where we could long enough to eat sandwiches, while admiring the incredible view over Nehalem Bay, and watching the wave trains swash along the beach below.

Nehalem Bay/Manzanita from Neahkahnie Mtn

A fellow hiker took this photo of us while we were eating, and kindly emailed it to us. It is one of my favorite photos of us on a hike. Meanwhile, it was actually rather roasting up there, so we started down and fairly quickly returned to the trailhead.

With most of the day still ahead of us before the low tide at about 5 pm, we next went to the famous Neahkanie Point overlook on the highway, and paused to say Thank You! to Oswald West, Oregon governor about 100 years ago who was foresighted enough to reserve much of the Oregon coast as public land.

South view, Neahkahnie Viewpoint

Thank you Oswald West

Next we walked about a half mile down to a viewpoint over Devil’s Cauldron, a coastal cliff chasm that creates a lot of splash. There was a lovely bench in the shade which we had to ourselves for a while. We sat and admired the view, which includes Cape Falcon in the distance – the very Cape that Helen, Brian and I hiked out to about a month ago – interesting to see from this angle.

Cape Falcon

Devil’s Cauldron

Next stop – Hug Point. We have spent a lot of time on this stretch of beach, from Arch Cape to Cannon Beach, during the last 28 years. We rented a house for a week here with our kids nearly every summer, and if they remember any one place as a favorite family vacation spot, this is it. First we walked south toward Arch Cape, passing The Cave and Big Barnacle Rock. I am impressed with how deep the sand is! Ten or more years ago heavy winter storms washed away so much sand and deflated the beach such that the sections of cobbled beach were persistent all summer. It is more fun to walk on the sandy beach! Tide was going out, but not very low today – we could not walk around the west side of Big Barnacle Rock, but it was nice to say Hi and have a good peek into The Cave.

The Cave

Big Barnacle Rock

Neahkahnie Mountain, which we climbed this morning

We walked back north to Hug Point, now the cool wind in our face! All the way onto Hug Point, (once the actual road, cut by people out of the sandstone headland), and around to the other side, looking north to Arcadia and Cannon Beaches. On the walk back we got a close look at the waterfall, then drove north along the coast to Arcadia Beach.

Walking north around Hug Point

View north from theHug Pont

Beach view on the north side

Looking south

Back onto the south side

The Waterfall

Dan wanted to see if there were any sea stars at Big Starfish Rock (Silver Point) at low tide. We walked north from Arcadia Beach as the tide ebbed, splashing in the tidal pools that sparkle in the sun. The water was so blue today, and the air so fresh! We spotted a sea star in the sand, but none at the rock. We arrived just as the tide was beginning to rise, so couldn’t get close to the small arch which we were hoping was covered in sea stars. Again, not a low tide day, so we couldn’t really tell if they were there.

I had seen a couple of lines of pelicans from a distance flying along the swell line. We were treated to watching a pod of about a dozen of the elegant birds land on a tidal sand bar just as the rising tide isolated the bar from the beach. They were standing on the sand bar, facing north, and seemingly grooming. We watched for a long time, taking pictures, though the sun angle was not great for our purposes. Another couple of pods also flew near so that I could see over thirty pelicans at once. Pretty cool! We have named the sea stack behind them Big Pelican Rock, to honor a family tradition of naming important viewpoints.

We walked back to Arcadia beach, noticing the promontory we now call the Sphinx of Arcadia, because that is what it looks like.

the Sphinx of Arcadia

We finished the day with a delicious dinner at the Pelican Brewery in Cannon Beach, followed by an uneventful ride home, over the coast range, into the hazy Willamette Valley.

LOOKBACK:

I could go crazy here! We have so many pictures of this locale. I will just show these two comparisons, which I find interesting because they show how much sand has returned to the beach between photos. The first is The Cave, 2008 and 2017. The second is an alcove near Hug Point 2011 and 2017.

The Cave, August 2008

The Cave, September 2017

September 2011, Alcove near Hug Point,

September 2017, Alcove near Hug Point

20. The Columbia River Gorge is on fire!!!

September 6, 2017September 6, 2017 / margaretquilts / 1 Comment

September 5, 2017

In northeast Portland the sun is cloaked in an orange shroud, the air tastes bitter, smells like smoke, and is dripping ash, ash from the burning trees in our beloved Columbia River Gorge! The heat has pushed the human caused (allegedly a teenager with firecracker) conflagration west along the famous waterfall corridor. Residents have evacuated and their homes are intact so far. Firefighters are working hard, may they stay safe! But the weather is so hot and dry and the winds relentless – we all fear for the next stage of this tragedy. It is a waiting game now as I reflect on all the lovely hikes we have taken in the area – waiting to know which of these amazing places are intact, and which will begin a new phase of regrowth and regeneration. I am no stranger to hiking in burn zones, but this particular area was so lush and green. It is very sad.

From east to west, some of our favorite places that are threatened or burned:

Herman Creek

Herman Creek October 2016

Dry Creek Falls

Dry Creek Falls April 2017

Eagle Creek

Salmon October 2014

Eagle Creek Trail September 2012

Punchbowl Falls October 2014

Note that steep trail area is likely where the fireworks were used.

Wahclella Falls

Wahclella Falls April 2016

McCord Creek / Elowah Falls

View from the trail to Mt Adams May 2012

Upper McCord Creek Falls February 2015

Elowah Falls February 2015

Oneonta / Horsetail area

Horsetail Falls September 2013

Ponytail Falls September 2013

Triple Falls September 2013

Oneonta Tunnel September 2013

Oneonta Gorge September 2013

Wahkeena / Multnomah Falls Loop

Wahkena Falls June 2013

Fairy Falls June 2014

Ecola Falls June 2014

Wahkeena Trail June 2014

Top of Multnomah Falls June 2013

Multnomah Falls

June 2014

December 2015

November 2014

Angel’s Rest

View to the west October 2014

Trail on top October 2014

View to the east January 2013

Latourell Falls

Lower Falls July 2017

Upper Falls July 2017

Views from Washington toward Oregon where the fire is burning

Hamilton Mountain, looking toward Bonneville Dam May 2016

Cape Horn looking upriver April 2016

19. Vista Ridge again, Fireweed this time

August 28, 2017August 28, 2017 / margaretquilts / 2 Comments

Vista Ridge, Mt. Hood, Oregon 8/25/2017 (#43)

Looking for another trip to subalpine elevations, we walked up the Vista Ridge trail on the north side of Mt. Hood, as we had in late June. This time, instead of millions of avalanche lilies, we were treated to the late summer swath of pink fireweed through the burn zone, with readily picked huckleberries along the way. We could see the dried seedheads of the earlier lilies. Other blooming plants in the burn zone were pearly everlasting and goldenrod, and plenty of Sitka Mountain Ash with ripening clusters of red berries provided additional color.

Fireweed and pearly everlasting understory in the burn zone

Mt Hood from the switchback viewpoint

Dried avalanche lily seedheads

Golden rod and fireweed

We reached the timberline trail, and rested in a shaded pocket at the edge of Wy’East basin, as lovely an alpine meadow as one could hope for – though the flowers are fading in the open areas. We continued walking east toward Elk Cove, hopping over the small strands of Clear Branch Creek that trickle down through Wy’east basin. Pink monkey flower, yellow groundsel, purple aster and lupine, and magenta paintbrush were the main riparian blooms.

We admired the view of the three Washington peaks from various angles, and turned the corner toward Elk Cove, with the rocky cliff of Barrett Spur to our right, and the looming peak of Mt Hood and its glistening Coe Glacier to the south.

Mts St Helens, Rainier and Adams

Turning the corner of Barrett Spur toward Elk Cove, with Mt Hood looming above

Close ups of the Coe Glacier

We continued about half way down to Elk Cove, far enough to see the hanging meadow of pasque flowers, and the long drawn out ridge of Barrett Spur. That was our turn around point for the day.

Mt Hood and Barrett Spur

Pasque flower seed heads

Heading back toward Wy’East basin, we located the trail that leads up to Dollar Lake. It is really more of a puddle.

Dollar Lake

Barret Spur and Mt Hood from the ridge above Dollar Lake

Back on the Timberline Trail, we meandered up the side trail to the upper part of WyEast basin to take in the slightly wider view of the horizon to the north.

Sitka Mtn Ash foliage with fall colors

Heading into upper Wy’East Basin

Magenta paintbrush

Looking down into Wy’East Basin and the Washington Peaks

Clear Branch Creek in Wy’East Basin

asters

From there, we retraced our steps back down the Vista Ridge trail, admiring the intense coral/red violet color of the fireweed, and greeting my favorite ghost trees on the way down.

Ghost tree, fire weed

shadows in the burn zone

Another ghost face

Intense coral/red violet flowers

Another friendly ghost tree

Our total for the day was 9 miles/ 1500 feet.

GPS track

LOOKBACK:

I perused my photos from our previous hikes up Vista Ridge. Our trip in August of 2014 had more blooming flowers in the upper meadows.

August 5, 2014

March 29, 2015

August 25, 2017

The photo from August of 2013, taken only two years after the 2011 Dollar Creek Fire, shows a mostly blackened environment. The contrast with the with the avalanche lily / fireweed lined trail of this year is striking, and shows how fast the vegetation is restarting. I didn’t get a picture of the abundant low huckleberry bushes along some parts of the trail – I was too busy eating the ripe berries.

August 23, 2013, two years after the fire

June 30, 2017

August 25, 2017, six years after the fire

Knitting and other home front activity:

two more knitted tortillas

ripe tomatoes

zinnias

17. Oswald West/Cape Falcon

August 15, 2017August 15, 2017 / margaretquilts / Leave a comment

Beach Day 7/8/2017 (#41)

Portland has been HOT (95 to 105) and SMOKY from the BC and other Cascade wildfires. My visiting sister, my son and I decided to head west to the coast for some relief. Our initial plan was to climb Neahkanie Mountain, an easy hike with great views, but the peak was fogged in. We opted instead for the five mile round trip hike to Cape Falcon from the Oswald West State Park parking area. The beach is a popular surfing spot, and the trail took us down to the beach where many were riding the waves and enjoying the 60 degree air temperatures.

Cape Falcon (our goal) is the far ridge beyond Smuggler Cove

Short Sand Beach

We went from the trailhead to the cape and back via the beach trail

We followed the well worn trail past a small waterfall and out to the Cape where we watched the fog roll in and out, obscuring views and keeping us cool. We found a shady perch to eat lunch, then hiked back to the trail head, tripping over some of the many exposed roots on the trail – it could use some work, to be perfectly honest, but the cool temperatures and beautiful views make it hard to complain.

Looking down on Short Sand Beach from the trail

Small waterfall above Blumenthal Falls

Daisies and hemlock on the Cape

View to south from the Cape

View to north from the cape

Cape Falcon

We drove back north on HWY 101, and stopped for a while at Hug Point State Park. The receding tide was still high, so we could not quite make it on to Hug Point, but we sat for a while in the late afternoon near the waterfall, dipped our toes into the Pacific Ocean and enjoyed the peace, and the cool temperatures. I was able to get one iPhone photo of the waterfall without other beach goers in it.

Castle Rock from near the Hug Pt Waterfall

Hug Pt Waterfall

And because I have been really enjoying the LOOKBACK aspect of writing this blog, despite, or maybe because of, the rabbit hole nature of digging through my photos, here are two comparison photos of the Hug Point waterfall, and the view south toward Castle Rock from Hug Point, taken May 8th, 2016, when we were there for a super low tide.

Hug Point waterfall, May 8, 2016

View south to Castle Rock from Hug Point, May 8, 2016

We stopped in Cannon Beach for a typical post beach day meal at the Pelican Brewery (clam chowder, fish tacos, fish and chips), then returned eastward on Hwy 26, back over the coast range to Portland and home, where the hazy smoky air and hot temperatures absorbed us into their gloom. Next weekend is predicted to be in the 80s; perhaps the wildfires will calm down and the smoke will dissipate. One can only hope, as it is rather tedious to complain about the weather.

Meanwhile, back in Portland:

By the weekend, the heat spell finally broke. I pulled open the living room shades for the first time in two weeks, and there were plums on our plum tree, raindrops on roses, and cherry tomatoes for my birthday eclipse bowl.

And, somewhere in Peru…

They made it to Machu Picchu!

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16. Visiting in Eugene; Hiking in Silver Falls State Park

August 13, 2017August 13, 2017 / margaretquilts / 2 Comments

Family time in Eugene, Oregon

A sister visiting from California created an opportunity for us to spend part of the week in Eugene visiting other family members while my husband and daughter are off on an adventure to Machu Picchu, Peru. We found a house to rent for a few days near the University,

and were able to spend some lovely down time relaxing, celebrating my birthday, and trying to stay cool in the unreasonable hot temperatures and smoky hazy air that have settled in the Willamette Valley for an overlong period this year. There was lots of color around town and at the Saturday Market,

the UO Art Museum,

Untitled (Full Color Butterfly 47.77), 2016, Mark Grotjahn

and a couple of family yards that were blooming with lovely flowers.

Wild turkeys

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Silver Falls State Park 8/6/2017 (#40)

We drove home via Silver Falls State Park, arriving about 4 pm and unrealistically hoping for slightly cooler temperatures. We completed the short loop (about 3 miles and 300 feet) around the Upper and Lower South Falls.

Upper South Falls

Lower South Falls

Lower South Falls

Walking behind Upper Falls

Upper South Falls

It was a little hot for hiking, and the water levels were low enough that we were not at all misted when we passed behind the falls on the trail, another hope that was dashed. This contrasts markedly with the last time I was there in February, when we had to practically run those trail segments to avoid being soaked. Still, my sister enjoyed the scenery and the greenery, as she lives in a completely different landscape.