8/30/2010 Posting

Can you believe that we’re done with August hikes already? Seems that the summer time is picking up speed and rushing to its conclusion—particularly with the fall-like weather we had this weekend. I co-led a hike with Barbara Folmer on Saturday up to Tuck and Robin Lakes and while the skies were sunny and clear, it certainly felt like a fall day. The views of Cathedral Rock, Mts Daniel and Hinman were awesome though and it felt so great to finally arrive up at Robin Lake and enjoy the beauty and sunshine even in the cooler weather.

If you haven’t done the hike up to Tuck and Robin Lakes before, then this hike can be a bit of a butt-kicker. It’s very steep and in some places you have to do some low-level scrambling using your hands to climb up rocks. We slowed down and did this section as a group, so that folks could help each other out and encourage each other. A few folks had not done this kind of thing before so they needed an extra hand. Everyone did a great job on the trip and we all had a great time together.

Caring for and helping your fellow hikers is one of the most rewarding parts of hiking with others. When you care about and believe that your hiking partners care about you, then you really enjoy being in their company. At the beginning of the year, I discussed the tenants of the “CHS Way.” One of these guidelines is that “We support other hikers and the group.” We fulfill this guideline when we help our fellow hikers who are having trouble either physically or mentally while on the trail. Instead of complaining about how much a struggling hiker is wrecking our good time, we ask ourselves how we can make their experience better and then we do it. Struggling hikers need to be able to recognize when they need help and then be able to ask for and accept aid from others. This is not weakness, it is maturity. Hiking in CHS is a group activity, and we all have a better time when everyone feels valued and supported by the other members.

September Hike Signup:

September hikes are available for signup. Please limit yourself to signing up for one hike. You can sign up for more than one starting on September 1^st at 9:00 AM.

September hikes with space still available:

CHS1:

9/05/10—Chinook Pass to Norse Peak, Karen Sykes & Lola Kemp (14+ miles, 3000 ft gain)

9/11/10—W Cady Ridge/Benchmark Mt, Kim Westerhof & Jennie Douglas (16 miles, 3300 ft gain)

9/18/10—Deer Lake/Bogachiel Peak, Barry Kellems (16 miles, 3450 ft gain)

9/25/10—Cathedral Rock/Deception Pass Loop, Jan Davis (14 miles, 2300 ft gain)

CHS2:

9/04/10—Welcome Pass/Excelsior Ridge, Barbara Folmer (16+ miles, 4000 ft gain)

9/17/10—Copper Mountain, Sue Shih (20 miles, 6000 ft gain).

9/18/10—Pacific Crest Trail from Snoqualmie Pass South, Bill Scheket (20 miles, 3000+ ft gain)

9/25/10—Mt David, Mark Harniss (16 miles, 5000 ft gain)

WTA Trail Maintenance Signup:

All CHS/WTA combined trips are completed. If you have not completed your trail maintenance requirement you can schedule an outing on a non-CHS trail maintenance trip with either WTA or some of the other outdoor organizations. Once you have completed your trail maintenance requirement, please email me to let me know what date you did it on as we keep track of this information for graduation purposes.

CHS Pictures:

If you took any pictures on your hike this weekend, please be sure to forward them to chshiker2008@gmail.com to post them on the picture site for everyone to view. You can access the picture site through the CHS Web Site or directly by going to http://picasaweb.google.com/hiker.chs.

8/22/2010 Posting

I’m taking a well-deserved rest today and watching some recorded Seahawks football from last night. Yesterday I hiked with three CHS2 folks to Buck Creek Pass in the Glacier Peak Wilderness. We had originally planned to hike on Pilot Ridge, but the weather forecast for the east side of the Cascades was better than for the west side, so we did an alternate trip. The plan was to hike 19 miles and about 3200 feet of gain to a lovely pass. According to the GPS one of us brought along, we ended up hiking about 21 miles roundtrip to get to the pass. The views of Glacier Peak were awesome but we were all pretty beat by the time we got back to the trailhead. Dinner at the 59’er Diner sure was a welcome treat afterwards.

As we were hiking along, we came across a couple of women coming down the trail after spending several days up in the wilderness. We talked a little about their trip and I asked them if they’d done the side trip to Image Lake—a beautiful lake that in the right conditions reflects Glacier Peak. It’s a little bit off of the main route, but many folks make the effort just to see it. One of the hikers told me that they hadn’t and had found the scenery they did see on their trip “beautiful enough.”

I thought about that statement as I was hiking along and came to the realization that it was a great attitude to have about any sort of vacation type trip. So many times, we get caught up in the notion that we have to experience every possible activity or scenery available in an area that we do things just to check them off the list rather than taking the time to savor the experiences that we are having. Vacations become a rushed series of activities rather than a time to relax and reflect on the good things that we are able to do. It’s more enjoyable to abandon this mindset and focus on just a few select activities.

I’ve found this to be especially true on many of the National Park trips that Matt and I have taken. Most parks have so many cool things to see and do that it’s impossible to do it all one trip. For example, at Crater Lake National Park, Matt and I took the boat ride on Crater Lake to Wizard Island. We were dropped off for several hours. The two big activities to do on the island are swimming in one of the coves or climbing the crater to the high point of the island. If we really hurried, we could do both. But it was so much fun just to pick one activity and truly enjoy it. We opted to swim in the lake (that didn’t take too long—very cold) and then spend the rest of our time getting a few Disco Lion pictures and hunting around for crayfish. We got a great picture of me holding a crayfish. It was a fun time spent just bumming around and enjoying the lakeshore.

I encourage you to keep this in mind as you go on any trips that you have planned in the future. Instead of trying to do everything and running the family ragged, pick just a few special events that you will enjoy doing and remember when you’re back home.

August & September Hike Signup

All August hikes are open for signup for more than two hikes. Feel free to take advantage of open spaces we have available in the hikes in your group.

September hikes are available for signup. Please limit yourself to signing up for one hike. You can sign up for more than one starting on September 1^st at 9:00 AM. If you’re in CHS2, Mark Harniss will be leading a hike to Mt David on 9/25. Here is the description:

9/25 Mt David, Mark Harniss (16 miles, 5400 ft gain). This hike is located in the Wenatchee National Forest, north of Lake Wenatchee. Climb well-graded switchbacks through forest to a high ridgeline via a steep, blueberry-filled trail. The endless view walk along the ridgeline makes it all worthwhile though. At the summit there is an old lookout site and a stone outhouse as well as drop-dead gorgeous, panoramic views of the Glacier Peak wilderness including an in-your-face close-up of Glacier Peak. The last 200 feet to the summit are a bit “airy” but manageable. Email the hike leader if you have any questions. Guidebook: 100 Hikes in Washington's Glacier Peak Region.

August hikes with space still available:

CHS2:

8/28/10— Sourdough Mtn, Mark Harniss (12.5 miles, 5100’ gain)

8/29/10— Stileto Peak, Sue Shih (14 miles, 3720’ gain).

WTA Trail Maintenance Signup

All CHS/WTA combined trips are completed. If you have not completed your trail maintenance requirement you can schedule an outing on a non-CHS trail maintenance trip with either WTA or some of the other outdoor organizations. Once you have completed your trail maintenance requirement, please email me to let me know what date you did it on as we keep track of this information for graduation purposes.

CHS Pictures:

If you took any pictures on your hike this weekend, please be sure to forward them to chshiker2008@gmail.com to post them on the picture site for everyone to view. You can access the picture site through the CHS Web Site or directly by going to http://picasaweb.google.com/hiker.chs.

8/15/10 Posting

Well we spent April, May and June complaining about the cold, rainy weather and now we’re just basking in sunshine and hot temperatures. I can’t complain about the heat, but I sure like to start my hikes a lot earlier than I did in April right now.

Matt and I checked out the North Fork Sauk river crossing today for my Pilot Ridge CHS2 hike that I’m leading in a couple of weeks. I was able to cross the log (about 25 yards long) and we were both able to ford the river (it felt great!). So if you were interested in doing the Pilot Ridge hike, but were turned off because of the log crossing, rest assured that you can wade through the river safely, but you might want to bring some water sandals for the ford so you don’t have to hike in wet hiking boots.

I mentioned last week that I did a great hike in the Wallowa wilderness in eastern Oregon with my brother up to Ice Lake. It was a 16-mile round trip hike on great trail and is now one of my favorite hikes. From beginning to end, it was a gorgeous trail with lots of flowers, water, and waterfalls, capped off by a beautiful, large lake with the glowing granite Matterhorn peak looming above it. We arrived around noon and had the lake to ourselves—enough time to check out potential camp spots for the future and take a little nap up against a comfy log while listening to the water lap against the shore.

Disturbingly however, when we arrived at the lake, we found an abandoned campfire still smoldering. Campfires are forbidden in that area, but someone had not only ripped off some live branches from a nearby tree to build one (and left the limbs that they didn’t get around to burning on the ground), but just left it going without making sure it was out. Stuff like this makes my blood boil. Just one spark from that fire could set the whole place on fire given the right dry conditions. And August in the wilderness in most areas meets those right dry conditions.

This is not the first abandoned campfire I’ve found either. I’m beginning to think that many folks who build fires in the wilderness think that it’s okay to just leave a fire smoldering as long as it’s in a fire ring. This is not true. When you build a fire, you are responsible for making sure that it’s dead before you leave the area. This means that you need to pour water on the fire, stir the coals, pour more water on the fire until it stops steaming and hissing. Then crush the sodden coals to see if any more burning embers are exposed. Dump more water on these. Put your hand over the coals—do you feel any heat coming out? Then keep repeating the dumping of water until you no longer feel heat. Then hang around for a bit and see what happens. This is the responsible way to put out a fire when you are in the woods.

August Hike Signup

All August hikes are open for signup for more than two hikes. Feel free to take advantage of open spaces we have available in the hikes in your group.

September hike descriptions will be coming out in the next few days. We’re still waiting for a couple of hike leaders to pick their destination. September hike signup will begin on Wednesday, August 18th.

September hikes with space still available:

CHS1:

8/17—Midweek hike, Destination TBD, Jan Davis & Sue Shih (14 miles, 2300’ gain) This hike was supposed to go to Cathedral Rock/Deception Pass Loop, but unseasonably high waters at Daniel Creek have required a change in destination. Jan & Sue have notified registered hikers.

8/21—Royal Basin, Anna May Brennan & Jan Pecoraro (14 miles, 2600’ gain)

8/21—Go Getter: Surprise Lake/Surprise Mtn, Gregg Pilgreen (15.5 miles, 4100’ gain). This will also count as a CHS2 hike but will be led at a CHS1 pace.

CHS2:

8/21—Go Getter: Pilot Ridge to Johnson Mtn, Kelly Cleman (20 miles, 3600’+ gain)

8/21—Surprise Lake/Surprise Mtn, Gregg Pilgreen (15.5 miles, 4100’ gain). This is a CHS1 level hike but will also count as a CHS2 hike (will be led at a CHS1 pace).

8/22—Thompson Lake Car Shuttle, Bill Shecket & Barb Motteler (14 miles, 4000’ gain

8/28/10— Sourdough Mtn, Mark Harniss (12.5 miles, 5100’ gain)

8/28/10— Tuck & Robin Lakes, Barbara Folmer (14 miles, 3300’ gain)

8/29/10— Stileto Peak, Sue Shih (14 miles, 3720’ gain).

WTA Trail Maintenance Signup

All CHS/WTA combined trips are completed. If you have not completed your trail maintenance requirement you can schedule an outing on a non-CHS trail maintenance trip with either WTA or some of the other outdoor organizations. Once you have completed your trail maintenance requirement, please email me to let me know what date you did it on as we keep track of this information for graduation purposes.

CHS Pictures:

If you took any pictures on your hike this weekend, please be sure to forward them to chshiker2008@gmail.com to post them on the picture site for everyone to view. You can access the picture site through the CHS Web Site or directly by going to http://picasaweb.google.com/hiker.chs.

8/9/10 Posting

I know that you've all been eagerly awaiting the return of my blog since I've been on vacation. Well I'm finally back from my travels in Oregon and California and getting back into the swing of work and CHS.

We had a really great time on our trailer trip. If there is one place I would recommend as a good place to hike or backpack, it would be Lassen Volcanic National Park. The volcanic aspects of the park are a sidebar compared to the wonderful hiking and backpacking opportunities available. The Pacific Crest Trail runs through the park as well as miles and miles of trails around lakes and scenic peaks available.

The highlight of my vacation was hiking up to the top of Lassen Peak--a 10,000+ foot volcano with eye-popping views in all directions. The hike is only about 5 miles roundtrip but when the trailhead is at 8000 feet, I was huffing and puffing up in the the thin air. But the beauty of the scenery and flowers quickly took my mind off of my physical exertions. Matt and I got to the summit early in the morning, so we had the top all to ourselves for awhile. It felt like being on top of the world! Here's a picture of my traveling companion on the top of Mt Lassen looking at Mt Shasta (DL's a bit blurry, but the background sure isn't!).

I have travelled a bit to other countries, but my favorite trips have been spent discovering the beautiful places easily available in this backyard we call the Pacific Northwest. You don't have to spend a lot of money and travel far from home to see the truly amazing and breathtaking places that exist in just Oregon and Washington. I just got back from spending a weekend with my parents and brother at Wallowa Lake State Park in eastern Oregon. What a truly amazing place--it's billed as the Oregon Alps and to say the area was stunning was an understatement. I’ll tell you about the hike I went on up to Ice Lake in next week’s blog.

So next time you're looking for some place new to go, consider taking out a map and looking for some places you haven't been in either Oregon or Washington. Check out the Wallowas, Central Oregon, Methow Valley, the Okanagans, or one of the least visited National Parks, North Cascades National Park. You'll have an adventure and won't spend a fortune to do it.

August Hike Signup

All August hikes are open for signup for more than two hikes. Feel free to take advantage of open spaces we have available in the hikes in your group.

September hike descriptions will be coming out early next week. September hike signup will begin on Wednesday, August 18th.

Hikes with space still available:

CHS1:

8/15—Lost Creek Ridge, Kim Westerhof & Jennie Douglas (12 miles, 3800’ gain)

8/17—Midweek hike, Cathedral Rock/Deception Pass Loop, Jan Davis & Sue Shih (14 miles, 2300’ gain.

8/21—Royal Basin, Anna May Brennan & Jan Pecoraro (14 miles, 2600’ gain)

8/21—Go Getter: Surprise Lake/Surprise Mtn, Gregg Pilgreen (15.5 miles, 4100’ gain). This will also count as a CHS2 hike but will be led at a CHS1 pace.

CHS2:

8/14—Kachess Ridge/Thomas Mtn, Bill Sheckett (15 miles, 3300’ gain

8/14—Club hike: Mowich Lake to Sunrise, Marion Bauman (24 miles, 5900’ gain)

7/17—Cougar Flat Campout: Mt Aix, Kelly Cleman & Matt Cleman (12 miles, 4000’ gain)

8/15—Hidden Peaks & Lookout, Christine Pratt (14 miles, 3500’ gain)

8/21—Go Getter: Pilot Ridge to Johnson Mtn, Kelly Cleman (20 miles, 3600’+ gain)

8/21—Surprise Lake/Surprise Mtn, Gregg Pilgreen (15.5 miles, 4100’ gain). This is a CHS1 level hike but will also count as a CHS2 hike (will be led at a CHS1 pace).

8/22—Thompson Lake Car Shuttle, Bill Shecket & Barb Motteler (14 miles, 4000’ gain

8/28/10— Sourdough Mtn, Mark Harniss (12.5 miles, 5100’ gain)

8/28/10— Tuck & Robin Lakes, Barbara Folmer (14 miles, 3300’ gain)

8/29/10— Stileto Peak, Sue Shih (14 miles, 3720’ gain).

WTA Trail Maintenance Signup

All CHS/WTA combined trips are completed. If you have not completed your trail maintenance requirement you can schedule an outing on a non CHS trail maintenance trip with either WTA or some of the other outdoor organizations. Once you have completed your trail maintenance requirement, please email me to let me know what date you did it on as we keep track of this information for graduation purposes.

CHS Pictures:

If you took any pictures on your hike this weekend, please be sure to forward them to chshiker2008@gmail.com to post them on the picture site for everyone to view. You can access the picture site through the CHS Web Site or directly by going to http://picasaweb.google.com/hiker.chs.