Wild Olympics, p.7 Signature Projects, p.12 Conditioning Secrets, p.36 WASHINGTON TRAILS May + June 2011 » A Publication of Washington Trails Association www.wta.org » $4.50

All Around ‘The Mountain’ Five bucket list backpacking trips, plus the prehistoric human history of Sunrise

What kind of backcountry eater are you? This Month’s Cover » Spray Park, Mount Rainier National Park. Photo by Don Geyer. » Table of Contents

May+June 2011 Volume 47, Issue 3 News + Views Backcountry Front Desk » Craig McKibben The Gear Closet » What was your first hike?» p.4 Cheri Higman Five approaches to backcountry The Signpost » Lace Thornberg 7 dining.» p.33 Kids these days.» p.5 How to Do It » John Colver Have a long, arduous climb Trail Talk » Susan Elderkin planned for this summer? Expert A chat with guidebook author Craig tips to get you in shape.» p.36 Romano.» p.6 Trail Eats » Sarah Kirkconnell Hiking News » Picks for a pretty picnic.» A push for wilderness in the Olympics, and p.38 Badger Mountain turns five.» p.7 Sage Advice » Adam Scroggins Lessons on how to take kids hiking WTA at Work and camping.» p.39 Trail Work » Mike Stenger We think all of our trail work projects are Take a Hike special. But we’ve picked our top 10 espe- Day Hikes and Overnights » cially special projects anyway.» p.12 Our readers suggest the best hikes Action for Trails » Jonathan Guzzo, across the state.» p.42 Ryan Ojerio The International Hiker » Why we can’t say RIP to RTP.» p.16 Angella Wieben, Jaime Weber Trail funding at risk (yes, again).» p.17 Ireland, anyone?» p.48

Membership News » Rebecca Lavigne A Walk on the Wild Side » A look at the projects that WTA’s Greg Ball Paul Owen Trail Fund will support this summer.» p.18 Soy-nut butter crackers fuel a father-son journey to Camp Muir.» Youth and Families » Krista Dooley p.50 You should read this piece only if you want 12 Featured Landscape » to have the best summer ever.» p.20 Craig Romano Take a look around Leadbetter On Trail Point State Park.» p.51 Northwest Explorer » Eli Boschetto Behold ‘The Mountain’ on five exceptional backpacking trips.» p.21 33 Feature » Jeff Antonelis-Lapp Long before there were backpackers at Mount Rainier, indigenous people came seasonally to the Mountain.» p.26 Feature » John D’Onofrio Find WTA online at A contemplative coastal hike.» p.30 www.wta.org.

© 2011 Washington Trails Association May + June 2011 » Washington Trails About Us « 3

WASHINGTON TRAILS WTA Highlights » A few snapshots we just had to share, all Board of Directors from the same weekend in late March. President ROB SHURTLEFF, Seattle

VP, Advocacy STEPHEN TAN, Seattle VP, Board Development KAREN DAUBERT, Seattle VP, Fundraising CAROLE BIANQUIS, Seattle Treasurer DOUG BRECKEL, Seattle Secretary KATE ROGERS, Seattle

At-Large Directors PETER BARRETT, Bellevue LISA BLACK, Everett JEFF CHAPMAN, Port Townsend LANGDON COOK, Seattle KAREN DAUBERT, Seattle March 24: WTA board member Wendy TODD DUNFIELD, Spokane Wheeler-Jacobs and WTA membership TIM GOULD, Seattle manager Kara Chin cozy up at WTA’s WENDY WHEELER JACOBS, Sammamish annual Fireside Circle celebration, an event RICHARD JOHNSON, Sammamish sponsored by Green Trails Maps. JERRY KEPPLER, Seattle CRAIG MCKIBBEN Seattle DAMIEN MURPHY, Redmond MELISSA STRAUCH, Seattle Staff Acting Executive Director CRAIG MCKIBBEN Advocacy Director JONATHAN GUZZO Bookkeeper DEB HEMINGWAY Chief Crew Leader MIKE OWENS Communications & Outreach Director LAUREN BRADEN Development Director REBECCA LAVIGNE Editor LACE THORNBERG March 25: Skagit Land Trust awards Field Director ALAN CARTER MORTIMER WTA, Guemes Mountain project leaders Membership Manager KARA CHIN Pete Dewell, Arlen Bogaards, Alan Carter NW Washington Crew Leader ARLEN BOGAARDS Mortimer and all Guemes Mountain trail Office Manager HOLLY CHAMBERS volunteers with a Stewardship Volunteer Engagement Manager KINDRA RAMOS Award in recognition of their exceptional Project Coordinator TIM VAN BEEK dedication and professionalism while building Program Development Manager DIANE BEDELL the new trail to the Trust’s Guemes Mountain SW Washington Regional Coordinator RYAN OJERIO Conservation Area. Trail Program Director MIKE STENGER Volunteer Coordinator ALYSSA KREIDER Web Editor SUSAN ELDERKIN Youth Programs Manager KRISTA DOOLEY Youth Programs Specialist CHRIS WALL Washington Trails Volunteers Copy Editors: MARK CANIZARO, JIM CAVIN, REBECCA KETTWIG Photo Editor: WADE TRENBEATH

Washington Trails Volume 47, Issue 3 Owner & Publisher WASHINGTON TRAILS ASSOCIATION

Washington Trails (ISSN 1534-6366) is published bimonthly by the Washington Trails Association, 705 Second Ave, Suite 300, Seattle, WA 98104. Annual mem- bership dues, which include a subscription to Washington Trails magazine, are March 26: A hearty crew from the Korean $40. Single copy price is $4.50. Periodicals postage paid at Seattle, WA and at Mountaineers Club volunteer with WTA at additional mailing locations. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: Wash- Evans Creek Preserve. ington Trails Association, 705 Second Ave., Suite 300, Seattle, WA 98121.

4 May + June 2011 » Washington Trails News+Views The Front Desk » First Hikes If you are trying to get to know another From Mowich Lake, we followed the abandoned hiker, there may be no better conversation Knapsack Pass Trail to Mist Park, where we starter than “What was your first hike?” spent the night. Coming back by way of Spray Park, we saw a million wildflowers. People really open up to this question. They will tell you not just where they went but who While there is nothing unusual about starting they went with, what happened and what they hiking with your family, what did impress me saw. And how they talk about something that’s about the survey results was that nearly 30 per- meaningful to them will help you get to know cent took their first hike with friends as young them better. adults. My hats off to these folks. As a kid you have no choice but to go where the adults want WTA recently launched a highly unscientific to take you, but as an adult, a first hike could be poll on our Facebook page, asking people for way outside your comfort zone. details of their first hike. In 54 responses, we saw a wide variety of experiences. So what conclusion do I draw from this? We should all put in a little extra effort to intro- Not surprisingly, at least 50 percent of our re- duce new hikers to the outdoors—not only our spondents started hiking when they were young nieces and nephews, but also our friends and and went with a family member. Many of these co-workers, anyone else we can cajole into tak- folks started so young that they can’t really ing a walk. Make sure that introductory hike is remember their first hike. Not only parents but a good one, so that when someone asks them, also grandparents, uncles and aunts led these “What was your first hike?” they’ll have a story early formative trips. As one of our respondents to tell. said, “Take ‘em out young and let ’em whine, and they’ll be hikers for life.” See you out there with a neophyte,

I certainly fall into the hiking-before-memory group. I can’t identify a first hike, but one early hike that meant a lot to me was my overnight trip to Summerland at Mount Rainier with my Uncle Gordon. The strangest things loom large in childhood memories. What I most recall was that we boiled a pot of water with dried prunes and let it sit overnight in the coals of the fire. In Craig the morning, the prunes were so plump and deli- cious that I even ate some oatmeal with them. To read about our members’ first McKibben hikes, head to www.facebook. Acting Executive Years later, but before my own children ar- Director rived, I completed the circle. I took my nephews, com/washingtontrails. [email protected] Nate and Eli, for an overnight at Mount Rainier. May + June 2011 » Washington Trails News+Views « 5

The Signpost » News+Views Take a Time Out, Outside

Doug Diekemma

“Kids should spend more time inside.” But, yes, we have plenty of stories for you adults, too, no matter how long it has been Can you guess who said that? Was it A) the since you saw grade school. American Pediatric Association, B) President Barack Obama, C) Governor Gregoire or D) Eli Boschetto’s article about backpacking none of the above? in Mount Rainier National Park ought to help you fend off any Nature Deficit Disorder that If you picked “D.) none of the above,” you are might have crept in over the winter. I dare you right, as quite the opposite is true. “Go play to read it and not to dream of spending night outside!” has become a rallying cry since the after night camped out along the Wonderland concept of reconnecting children with the out- Trail. doors was pushed to the forefront in 2005 by Richard Louv’s book Last Child in the Woods. While we often think of the wilderness as a rough place that provides challenge and adven- In this issue, we offer up a fair bit of family- ture, John D’Onofrio paints a different picture friendly fodder. School will soon be out for the in “Days and Nights by the Sea,” as he offers summer and Mother’s Day (May 8) and Father’s a vivid portrait of a few luxurious days whiled Day (June 19) are just around the corner. The away. A wild landscape presents us with an time is ripe for family adventures outdoors. opportunity to put nothing on the agenda, to set out with “no destination, no hurry,” as he In Krista Dooley’s article, you’ll find a says. complete list of WTA’s Hiking with Children workshops and several great ideas for making Nature is also a great teacher. As Jeff the most of your summer break. Father of six Antonelis-Lapp’s article shows, a natural land- Adam Scroggins shares his experiences hiking scape can teach us about prehistory, ecology and camping with kids ages 6 to 12 and Paul and the relationship between the two. Owen recounts an exceptional father-son trip to Camp Muir that was part hiking, part ski- We can tell kids to go outside and play ing, all adventure. all we want, but it probably wouldn’t hurt if adults spent more time outside. In the fresh air And how about stories for those hikers who and natural light, we can both reconnect with aren’t kids? You know, “adults.” Well, is there nature and get in touch with our inner kid, too. really much difference? I mean, let’s face facts. Getting muddy? Roasting marshmallows? Whatever age you happen to be, I hope Lace Playing word games? Eating gummy candy for you’re inspired to spend loads of time outside energy? It’s all classic kid stuff, and all quint- this summer, enjoying all that nature can Thornberg essential trail behavior, too. Avid hikers might provide.t Editor as well just call themselves grown-up kids. [email protected] 6 » News+Views May + June 2011 » Washington Trails

Trail Talk »

WTA’s Susan Elderkin sits down with Craig Romano, author of seven guidebooks Q&A for The Mountaineers Books. You have two books coming out this because the Washington side is south-facing, it spring. How many miles did you have to tends to melt out faster. The Oregon and Wash- hike? ington sides are very different, and I think they I hiked 1,200 miles last year, and about 1,800-2,000 really complement each other. You get all miles between the two books. It kept me busy. of the views What were some of your most pleasant sur- prises? “and the wild- As I recall, 2010 was not a stellar weather year. What was it like for you? Augspurger Mountain. It’s behind Dog and a little flowers, but It was a tough year. It started off well, because I longer. You get all of the views and the wildflow- you’ll be all by was working on the Gorge book during the dry ers, but you’ll be all by yourself. Also, Table Moun- and warm winter. But I couldn’t even start the tain in Washington. Super-tough hike, but it is yourself. backpacking research until the end of June ... I out-of-this-world spectacular. A pleasant surprise came back on so many hikes in the rain. in Oregon was the Deschutes River. (Hint: Read the ” How do you come up with your list of hikes? Tell me about Backpacking Washington, article to find coming out in June. out where.) The popular hikes, of course, have to go in. But I want to give people a wide variety, and I love go- There are 70 backpacks, and I approached it by ing off the beaten path. So I’m always looking for thinking where can I go for 2, 3 nights—a week? trails in places that other books aren’t covering. The range in the book is from 14 miles to 50. The majority are in the 20-30 mile range. Most of them, you can get into a basin, set up your camp For the backpacking book, I tried to look at hikes and keep exploring. that were logistically easy. No complicated dirt roads. I really had to cherry-pick—only 70 hikes for the entire state. … I looked for variety—lakes, How long did it take you to cover all of this views, historical interest, old-growth forest. Almost terrain? all of the hikes, of course, have that scenic pay-off, I started in October 2008 and finished in October but I was also looking for quiet alternatives. of 2010. I had three or four months a year to work on it. … It was demanding. Who—real or fictional—would you like to hike with? Favorite trip few people know about? I would love to have gone horseback riding with Here’s one: Basin Lake in the Norse Peak Wilder- Theodore Roosevelt in North Dakota. ness. It’s right behind Crystal Mountain. I’ve been there three times and have never seen anyone in Hike It » there. Great for wildlife and views. Lots of elk and What (besides the 10 essentials) is in your mountain goats are in there. backpack? Craig’s latest book For all of my hikes, the 11th essential is duct tape. highlights hikes on For backpacking, I always have my Platypus red Are there backpacking destinations that live either side of the Co- wine bottle, too. up to the hype? lumbia River Gorge. Probably one of the most spectacular places on Here’s how he’d the planet is Image Lake. It’s out-of-this-world. … match them up on a Tell us about your footwear. One pointer: Get up early and do the sunrise. Also, weekend adventure: I do most of my hiking in low-top trail running the Enchantments. They are truly spectacular. I shoes like Ahnu and Oboz. The socks I’m hooked feel like I’m in the Sierra Nevada with all of that “For wildflowers, on are Bridgedale. They’re a wool blend mix and granite. you’ll want to pair reinforced. I wore them for two years backpacking, and they haven’t worn out. Dog Mountain (WA) What’s next? and the Tom McCall Preserve (OR). Currently, I’m working on Day Hiking: Eastern Let’s talk about Day Hiking: Columbia River Washington with Rich Landers. We’ve teamed up Gorge, which is coming out in May. What don’t and are covering day hikes east of the Columbia For spectacular most hikers know about the Washington side River and Okanogan. It’s due out in the spring of views, try Hamilton that they need to know? 2013. Mountain (WA) and If you’re going for waterfalls, definitely Oregon is Nesmith Point (OR).“ the place. In Washington, it’s the flowers. Washing- ton also has more of the spectacular views. And May + June 2011 » Washington Trails News+Views « 7 Hiking News » A Wilder Olympics in the Works Current wilderness campaign seeks protections “from the snowcaps to the whitecaps.” By Lace Thornberg

The scenic, but not yet “wild and scenic” Quinault River. Photo by Don Geyer.

hink for a minute about the alition, The Mountaineers, Pew Campaign for Olympic Peninsula and one America’s Wilderness, American Whitewater, of its free-flowing rivers— American Rivers and others, have been work- the Hoh, the Bogachiel or ing on a wilderness proposal to protect wild the Duckabush—will likely forest and river watersheds on the Olympic spring to mind. Peninsula. As emblematic and iconic At this time, the campaign is in “phase two” as these glacier-fed riv- according to Connie Gallant, Quilcene resident ers may be, they are not “Wild and Scenic.” and chair of the Wild Olympics Campaign. “We At least not by the federal definition. While put out a draft proposal map in July 2010, and thereT are more than 50 designated Wild and ever since then, we’ve been taking in addition- Scenic Rivers in nearby Oregon, there’s not a al feedback from stakeholders.” single Wild and Scenic river to be found on Peruse the Wild Olympics Campaign’s draft the Olympic Peninsula. Not the Elwha. Not the map and you’ll see they have proposed new Quinault. Not a one. protected areas throughout all four counties on That could change if the coalition behind the peninsula, in areas near and adjacent to the Wild Olympics Campaign succeeds in already designated areas in Olympic National their effort to get more than 400 miles of river Park and Olympic National Forest. designated as Wild and Scenic rivers, plus Gallant characterized their proposal as one 135,000 acres designated as wilderness and built around protecting watersheds. As she has 37,000 acres of potential additions to Olympic said, “These watersheds provide local com- National Park. munities with clean water, and world-class For the past two years, a coalition of conser- outdoor recreation opportunities that together vation and recreation organizations, including help sustain our outstanding peninsula way of the Olympic Park Associates, Olympic Forest life. They are vital to the health of Hood Canal Coalition, Olympic Peninsula Audubon Society, and Puget Sound and are critical habitat for North Olympic Group and Washington Chapter wildlife, steelhead and salmon.” of the Sierra Club, Washington Wilderness Co- According to Tom Uniack, conservation direc- 8 » News+Views May + June 2011 » Washington Trails

tor for Washington Wilderness Coalition, the sion by the Forest Service under their 2003 coalition’s work on this proposal builds on the Access and Travel Management Plan. Over approach to wilderness designation that was 2,000 miles of roads on Olympic National Forest used to create the Wild Sky Wilderness and to remain unaffected by the proposal. bring the Alpine Lakes Wilderness additions A Wild and Scenic river designation prevents proposal one step from becoming law in the dams from being built on those stretches of riv- last Congress. ers, while fishing, swimming, paddling, rafting “Reaching out to local stakeholders early and or other river-friendly recreational use typically often is a key part of successful campaign,” continues as it had been in place, unless that says Uniack. “To that end we have listened to use clearly threatens the river’s outstanding and made significant adjustments to the pro- values. posal based on feedback from mountain bikers, tribes, timber companies, recreational users and the Forest Service.” Learn More, Give Feedback The Wild Olympics Campaign has launched While their approach to garnering new desig- a website (www.wildolympics.org) to provide nations may be similar, the scale is larger on information and solicit additional community the Olympic Peninsula and it includes a differ- feedback about their draft proposal to protect ent mix of protections. forests and river watersheds on the Olympic “This proposal is focused on watershed Peninsula.t protection. We’re not just doing wilderness. This time, we’re also including Wild and Scenic The Wild Olympics river designations and willing-seller National Campaign has Park additions,” says Tim McNulty, a Sequim been meeting with resident with Olympic Park Associates, adding local stakeholders “‘Willing seller’ is a new approach to conserv- WTA Adds ONF Crew Leader for the past year ing park land in Washington. With it, the Park to build support Service will be able to bid on key parcels of This summer, WTA be expanding our reach by add- and get feedback private land that come up for sale.” ing a crew leader for the Olympic National Forest to on their draft As a hiker, you may be wondering how their join the cadre of district crew leaders that WTA has proposal to protect draft proposal would affect recreational access. stationed throughout the Cascades. the Peninsula’s The campaign has made a deliberate effort waterhseds. to ensure that current road access to Forest From early May through September, our Olympic Proposed Service trailheads will not be affected by the district crew leader will lead volunteer events on wilderness wilderness proposal. The wilderness proposal both weekdays and weekends, alternating between additions are does include about 65 miles of the ends of work parties in the Quilcene area and trips closer to shown in yellow certain segments of old logging roads in upper Hoodsport. Volunteer along Hood Canal sometime, and proposed wild watersheds, but all of these road segments and you can give a warm welcome to WTA’s newest and scenic rivers were already slated for decommissioning (per- district crew leader, William Jahncke. are shown in blue. manent closure and obliteration) or trail conver-

A Western Washington native and an outdoor en- thusiast since childhood, William’s first trip with WTA was a work party at Snoquera Falls in June 2009. He served as a youth volunteer vacation intern for WTA last year.t

WTA Executive Director Resigns

In March, Brian Windrope resigned from his posi- tion as Washington Trails Association’s executive director.

At that time, Craig McKibben stepped in as acting executive director and the search for a new execu- tive director for the organization is now underway. Craig serves on WTA’s board of directors as the vice president of board development and is the immedi- ate past president of the organization.

Brian joined the organization’s staff in 2010. WTA and Brian came to a mutual understanding to go our own ways, and we wish Brian the absolute best in his future pursuits.t May + June 2011 » Washington Trails News+Views « 9 Forest Service Crafts New Management Framework Comments—in writing—due by May 16

If you’ve ever hiked on Forest Service land— post-decision administrative appeal process left and because they manage more hiking trails in place. than any other federal agency, you pretty much Generally speaking, WTA believes that this have—then you should know that the agency draft planning rule is on the right track from released a new comprehensive planning rule the perspective of recreation and conservation. earlier this spring. We're particularly pleased to On February 10, 2011, the U.S. Forest Service see that the administration’s unveiled its proposed Forest Planning Rule, the draft calls for identifying and result of a collaborative rulemaking process protecting recommended wil- that began in December 2009. derness areas. Where previ- This planning rule is intended to provide a ous regulations only called for new national framework to develop land man- identification, the new draft agement plans. It will cover the full gamut of language requires national forest uses and interests, including recreation, forests to also protect the water quality, fish and wildlife, logging, road- features and values that led less areas and more. these identified areas to be This plan will guide all land and resource recommended for wilderness Joshua Parkinson management planning for all Forest Service designation in the first place. units for a dozen years, or even longer. Due to We are, however, concerned about the public The Forest Planning a series of overturned rules, the Forest Service involvement section of the draft regulations. Rule dictates the is currently operating under a plan developed The draft stresses the value of input, but in- methodology that in 1982. Our planet has changed since 1982 cludes an unsettling caveat: land managers can the U.S. Forest and among other considerations, the current curtail public comment opportunities based on Service will use plan must contend with the unknown effects of cost and resources. We’re concerned that this to manage its climate change—considering both how to deal amounts to an open invitation for some land resources. with the impacts and how forests may be able managers to confine input and develop plans to help mitigate climate change. without proper public involvement. WTA firmly WTA members In addition to facing climate change, other believes that good land management planning are encouraged to key aims include promoting vibrant communi- is based on the opportunity for public input. send any thoughts ties, maintaining or restoring ecosystem and Hikers and other stakeholders often provide or concerns about watershed health and resilience, protecting context that land managers would otherwise this planning rule cultural and historic resources and specially lack. We'd like to see clearer requirements for to us by email to designated areas, such as wilderness areas public input. [email protected] and Wild and Scenic Rivers, and providing for The Forest Service has been holding public or submit their own sustainable recreation. listening sessions around the country through- written comments Under the proposed plan, the Forest Service out the rule’s ninety-day comment period. At directly at www. would implement a two-tiered strategy for the March 23 open house held in Seattle, Forest govcomments.com. monitoring, one that considers both the unit Service officials repeatedly requested that any level and the broader scale. The Forest Service comments and concerns be submitted in writ- is hoping to create a monitoring framework ing as that is the only way comments can be that allows land managers to test assumptions, considered during this phase of the rulemaking track changing conditions, measure their effec- process. tiveness, and feed new information back into Written public comments are due by May the planning cycle in order to adapt plans and 16, and a final rule is expected by the close of management strategies as needed. 2011. WTA will be submitting formal written This plan would also institute a new pre- comments.t decisional administrative review process. The planning framework that the Forest Service currently uses—the 1982 NFMA regulations—al- lows any party that commented in the first Discover Pass Update round of public scoping on a project to appeal As of our press date, the state Legislature was a final decision. The proposed rules would still weighing Discover Pass legislation, but it do away with the appeal process and instead was on track to be enacted. This is good news, as provide individuals and groups with an oppor- this pass will keep our state’s public lands open tunity to resolve issues before final approval of for recreational use. If enacted, the Discover Pass a plan, plan amendment or plan revision. This ($30 annually, $10 daily) would be required at all approach would save the agency headaches Washington State Parks, Department of Natural by not requiring them to amend or alter plans Resources and Department of Fish and Wildlife that have been signed and finalized, but it also lands, effective beginning July 1, 2011. Be sure you strips away the public’s final recourse. Many know if you’ll need to display it before setting out conservation advocates would prefer to see a later this summer. 10 » News+Views May + June 2011 » Washington Trails

Hiking Badger Mountain In the five years since it was established, this preserve has become a boon for Tri-Cities hikers

For a case study on what dedicated grass- resident coyote roots activism combined with a supportive population. The local government partner can deliver for the south face is also community, take a hike on Badger Mountain. the “quiet side” of the mountain. With A Preserve Is Born its back to the city, This wild landscape, where you can find Badger looks out fragile wild onions, native cactus and mari- over orchards and posa lilies growing amidst a variety of bunch- wheat fields with grasses, could just as easily have become back the muted hues of yards like so many of the other hills and ridges the Horse Heaven in the area. Hills sweeping With the sprawling Tri-Cities beginning to across the horizon. creep up the flanks of the most prominent As one would natural landmark in the area, the Friends expect, the north of Badger Mountain formed, with a goal to face of Badger Mountain is cooler, Badger Mountain and bluebells. preserve as much of the mountain as possible. Photos by John Clement. The Friends set out on an ambitious regional more shaded and fundraising campaign and, working through generally sheltered the Trust for Public Land, helped Benton from the prevailing winds. Its terrain is more County to secure a 650-acre tract now known jumbled, with hills, twisting canyons and small as Badger Mountain Centennial Preserve, so cliffs. With its deeper soils and better moisture named to commemorate the county’s one-hun- retention, the north side of the mountain is dred-year anniversary in 2005. more accommodating to thick grasslands and old-growth stands of sagebrush. In contrast to the more agrarian vistas from the south side, A Subtle, Diverse Landscape this part of the mountain casts its gaze over A newcomer might look at Badger Mountain the bustle of the fourth-largest metropolitan and see little more than a big, barren rock area in Washington, with views of the cities, thrusting its way up and out of the city, but the Columbia River and the Hanford Reach its character is more nuanced and interesting National Monument in the distance. than that. Rising over 1,000 feet above the sur- The ridgelines and summit area mark abrupt rounding river terrace, the mountain is part of transition zones between the north and south a ridgeline anchored on an east-west axis that faces. The dual-peaked summit is populated gives it dramatically different north and south by three large communications tower farms faces. Microclimates are easily discernible on and offers panoramic views in all directions. the relatively small mountain, and hikers will On clear days, Mounts Hood, Adams, Rainier pass through no fewer than four distinct eco- and Stuart can be seen to the south and west, zones on a ninety-minute hike. while the Blue Mountains command the east- The broad south face of Badger Mountain ern horizon. is sun-splashed and windswept. Its thin soils As the sun climbs higher and the days grow Adam struggle to support sparse grasses and low- long and warm, Badger Mountain’s plants and Fyall growing shrubs across a rocky landscape animals are rejuvenated. First, the mountain broken occasionally by deeply-incised ravines is renewed, as a verdant sea of bunchgrasses that are the refuge for most of the Preserve’s sweeps away winter’s golden blanket. A parade Adam works in the Benton County Commissioners’ Office. May + June 2011 » Washington Trails News+Views « 11 of wildflowers follows. First, a rosy veil of Nurturing the Preserve phlox visible for several miles cloaks the north The most remarkable thing about the Badger face. By May, the balsamroot have stolen the Mountain Preserve isn’t the heavy patronage or show with their large, yellow sunflowers. In the fragile landscape that was saved for future the heat of summer, a more subtle patchwork generations. Rather, it is the personal invest- of color emerges, with the dominant orange ments that those patrons have made and the globemallow often appearing like small prairie spirit of cooperation among the agencies and fires in the breeze. Finally, in September, the the user groups rabbitbrush blooms in a flush of bright yellow that has led cottonballs, especially in the northwest corner Badger Mountain of the preserve. to become the Badger Mountain’s wildlife can be reclusive, premiere hiking but the patient eye will be rewarded. Spring destination in the is the domain of the threatened Townsend’s Tri-Cities area. ground squirrels on the lower flanks of the As with many mountain; later in the season, jackrabbits and local govern- reptiles are more noticeable. Birders who visit ments, Benton the various elevations and environs of the pre- County has serve will be treated to a variety of avifauna limited budget every bit the equal of the ecology, with numer- and staff re- ous songbirds, upland game, sagebrush-depen- sources available dent species and raptors vying for attention for maintenance throughout the migration and nesting seasons. and improve- ments within Hiking the Preserve the preserve. Over its first half-decade, the community’s This is where embrace and use of Badger Mountain Centen- the community nial Preserve has been nothing short of remark- has stepped in. able. Three distinct trails originating from two Corporate part- trailheads provide access onto the mountain ners like REI have Large work parties and a variety of physical and environmental provided grants for trail materials, signage and and friendly terrain experiences for the visitor. At those two trail- tools. Local organizations such as cycling and allowed WTA and heads, the Friends of Badger Mountain main- equestrian clubs have been key players with Friends of Badger tain counters that logged more than 100,000 trail building and maintenance. Finally, none Mountain to visits in 2010. of this would be possible without the organi- construct a trail The Canyon Trail, dedicated in 2005, carries zational leadership provided by the Friends of system on Badger about 80 percent of the traffic into the preserve Badger Mountain, the park’s de facto steward. Mountain in fairly from the base to the summit. This hiker-only In partnership with Washington Trails Asso- short order. Photo trail originates in an adjacent city park on the ciation and under the guidance of trailmaster by WTA. north side of the mountain and climbs 800 ver- Jim Langdon, the Friends of Badger Mountain tical feet to the summit in 1.2 miles. The trail have planned, engineered and constructed all snakes upward through a ravine and then out of the trails on the mountain. WTA’s expertise onto the face at about the halfway mark, and and ability to marshal statewide resources was offers several viewpoints and rest areas along instrumental to the success of these trail-build- the way. ing efforts, and the original 2005 work party The Skyline Trail was developed in two for the Canyon Trail was at that time the larg- phases beginning in 2006 and provides a est to date for WTA with over 80 volunteers. 3-mile point-to-point hike over more varied terrain. This trail begins on the west ridge, Badger Mountain’s Bright Future then takes most of the elevation gain over the With an excellent team of partners in place Hike It first mile of the hike on the north side. It then and a strong and supportive outdoors constitu- » crosses over for a flatter and distinctly different ency, Badger Mountain should enjoy a long The Canyon Trail experience along the south face before reach- and happy life. At least one more main trail is ing the summit area and dropping down the envisioned, and various other amenities and Total Miles: 2.4 miles east ridge. The Skyline Trail is multiple-use, habitat restoration efforts are in the works. If Elevation Gain: 800 available for hikers, cyclists and equestrians. It you find yourself in the Tri-Cities and you’d feet is particularly popular with the mountain bik- like to stretch your legs for few hours, visit the ing community. Badger Mountain Centennial Preserve. You’ll The mile-long Sagebrush Trail, completed in experience both the beauty of the open space 2010, connects the Canyon and Skyline Trails, and a prime example of the kind of asset a creating a 3-mile loop. This multi-use trail community can give itself when it musters its winds through the old-growth sagebrush in the collective will.t eastern part of the preserve before dropping onto a bunchgrass prairie below. 12 May + June 2011 » Washington Trails WTA at Work Trail Maintenance » Signature Projects We’re delighted to announce ’em. Can you guess what comes next? As you might imagine, drawing up a list like forward to spending some quality time on the this is a fair challenge, with so many wor- High Divide Trail in Mount Baker-Snoqualmie thy projects vying for the title. Truth be told, National Forest this summer. This long-time we’d rather designate every WTA project as a favorite trail offers miles of hiking through Signature Project! But decide we must. With meadows of alpine wildflowers and spectacu- this “Top 10” list, we hope to draw your atten- lar views of Mount Baker, Mount Shuksan and tion to the key elements of the work all of our the Nooksack Valley. volunteers do for the hiking community. “It’s a big hill that keeps going and going What makes a trail project “signature,” you for thousands of feet,” says Gary Paull of the ask? We looked for projects that would demon- U.S. Forest Service. “It’s a gorgeous place that strate the positive impact that WTA volunteers needs a lot of work.” have across the state. All are the products of The High Divide Trail is a great condition- fruitful partnerships with land management ing hike, with a muscle-pumping gain of 2,800 agencies or partner organizations, and each feet of elevation in 2.5 miles to reach the aptly project offers a truly top-notch volunteer ex- named Welcome Pass. It is a challenge to perience. Many have links to WTA’s advocacy reach, but the rewards are well worth it. WTA efforts, to ensure access or address deferred will be there from July 23 through August 10. maintenance. Finally, all of these signature Join us for one of these fabulous Volunteer projects take place in inspiring wild settings. Vacations or for a BCRT trip. Volunteer on a signature project, and you’ll be keen to come back and explore the area on Dates of Work: July and August your own. Types of Trips: Two Volunteer Vacations We hope you will enjoy reading about these and one BCRT top 10 signature projects now, but in some sense these are stories that remain unfinished. Only after hikers like you join us for trail work can we write the final chapters—where we report that each project has been successfully completed to the satisfaction of hikers state- wide.

In Northwest Washington: One Fixed-Up Favorite and One New Mike Trail Coming Right Up Stenger Trail Programs High Divide Trail Director With two Volunteer Vacations and one Back- [email protected] country Response Team (BCRT), we’re looking Expect lush hillsides and mysterious views on the High Divide Trail. May + June 2011 » Washington Trails WTA at Work « 13

project is underway. In October 2010, WTA Guemes Mountain Trail volunteers started in on a 600-foot stretch Through the collaboration of the Skagit Land of boardwalk, hauling and setting timbers, Trust, San Juan Preservation Trust, island pounding in decking and rails, and creating a residents and WTA, we’re on track to complete beautiful boardwalk to raise the trail above a a new 1-mile trail in the Guemes Mountain soggy bog. Conservation area on Guemes Island. This After making 400 feet of progress, we are 70-acre Conservation area lies the heart of a taking a break now to let the county build larger 534-acre area that is being protected, up their supply of logs and planking. We will and the trail we’re building will provide the return in the fall to finish off this ambitious access for hikers to come and enjoy this scenic project. natural area. “There is already a lot of local use of the new trail,” says WTA Northwest Washington Dates of Work: Fall crew leader Arlen Bogaards. “Hikers see the Types of Trips: Day trips full gamut of island flora and fauna, and the top is a wide-open grassy prairie with 360-de- In Mount Rainier National Park: gree views of the Cascades, Olympics and San Bringing Hikers Back to the Carbon Juans.” Layout and excavation of this new trail began in 2010 and continued on weekends Wonderland Trail, Carbon River through the winter. Over 20 work parties have A nickname like “Granddaddy” doesn’t come been completed thus far; we’ll add more trips easy, but the Wonderland Trail earns the title. Signature Projects to our schedule in late spring and expect to This summer, WTA will host three Volunteer We’re delighted to announce ’em. Can you guess what comes next? complete the trail by fall. Vacations and a youth Frontcountry Volunteer Vacation to work on Dates of Work: March and May this famous trail. We’ll Types of Trips: Weekend day trips be working in the northwest corner of Mount Rainier National In the Issaquah Alps: Park, where the route Making Great Close-to-Home Trails winds through a luxuri- ant temperate rain Evans Creek Preserve forest along the Carbon “We are over-the-moon excited about WTA River before carrying and the progress building this new trail,” says hikers to the foot of City of Sammamish Parks Planner Kellye Hilde. Mount Rainier’s impres- In just under 180 acres, Evans Creek Pre- sive Carbon Glacier. serve encompasses a variety of habitats includ- When repeated ing meadows, wetlands, riparian zones and floods destroyed por- forested uplands. After a decade-long planning tions of the Carbon process identified the need for more recre- River Road, access to ational trails and education opportunities, the this magnificent area City of Sammamish asked WTA to take part was curtailed. The park in building the trails, and we were thrilled to is now converting por- come on board. WTA sees natural areas like tions of the road to a Evans Creek Preserve as “gateway opportuni- trail and turning the Ip- ties” for emerging hikers, and we love having sut Creek Campground interesting projects for our adult and youth into a walk-in only volunteers to work on during the winter and campground. WTA early spring. volunteers will stay at With a total of 40 days of trail work on the Ipsut Creek, and their schedule, our work here is well underway. work will complement We’ve been busy excavating and surfacing new the park’s efforts by trail and building boardwalks. We will have maintaining the hiking trail closer to Carbon completed phase one of this project by mid- Glacier and ensuring a quality trail experience Old-growth near April. for visitors to this segment of the Wonderland Ipsut Creek. Trail. Photo by Dave Dates of Work: March and April Interested in hiking the road this spring Schiefelbein. Types of Trips: Adult and youth day trips and working to restore the Wonderland Trail to Carbon Glacier? Sign up for one of WTA’s Volunteer Vacations. Grand Ridge Trail WTA has been involved in developing the Dates of Work: May through September trail system in King County’s Grand Ridge Park Types of Trips: Three Volunteer Vacations, since the year 2000, and now the keystone One Youth Volunteer Vacation 14 » WTA at Work May + June 2011 » Washington Trails

In Southwest Washington: Cape Horn A Return to the Dark Divide and a For a classic hiking experience with fantastic New View in the Gorge views of the Columbia River Gorge and the Cape Horn Falls, you’ll want to hike the newly minted Cape Horn Trail. Those seeking exer- Quartz Creek Trail cise will love it, too, as this trail serves up a The Quartz Creek Trail carries hikers into rugged and challenging workout as it traverses the southeast corner of the Dark Divide Road- the slopes of Cape Horn along the Columbia less Area, one of Washington’s truly special River. places. “This is a spectacular area for back- Throughout the state, WTA works closely packing and day hiking, but in some areas with partner organizations and land manage- many huge trees are down, making it almost ment agencies, and this is particularly true in impassable,” relates WTA’s Southwest Wash- the Gorge. This spring, we’ll be participating in ington Regional Coordinator Ryan Ojerio. This the third annual Columbia Cascades Trail Skills year, WTA has planned two BCRTs and a College, using the Cape Horn Trail as a train- number of day-long work parties on the Quartz ing site. In June, WTA will work with Friends Creek Trail. of the Columbia Gorge and REI volunteers to Named for nineteenth-century gold prospec- begin construction of a new trail that meets tor John Dark, the Dark Divide is the largest the guidelines set by the Americans with Dis- roadless area remaining in Washington, a abilities Act at the Nancy Russell Overlook site. 76,000-acre area west of Mount Adams in the Other key partners in this effort include the Gifford Pinchot National Forest. This diverse Mount St. Helens Hiking Club, Trailkeepers of landscape of deep forested valleys and open Oregon, and Cape Horn Conservancy. ridges with beautiful meadows and breath-tak- WTA’s work parties to improve and restore ing views will leave you hungry for more. WTA sections of the Cape Horn Trail, including the has been actively engaged in protecting this installation of a new bridge, are funded in part area since 1996. The Quartz Creek Trail is the by a National Forest Foundation grant. only trail in the area closed to motorcycles. Dates of Work: March through July Dates of Work: August and September Types of Trips: Day trips Types of Trips: Two BCRTs and a weekend trip In the Olympics: Sawing Logs in the Rainforest

Colonel Bob Trail The Colonel Bob is a rugged wilderness area located east of Lake Quinault in the southwest corner of Olympic National Forest. This is tem- perate rain forest country, where rainfall often exceeds 150 inches a year. Colonel Bob Trail is a classically aerobic experience, gaining 4,200 feet and stretching 14.5 miles. It is also a trail in truly rough shape, due to a great deal of blowdown falling during heavy winter storms. The trail made WTA’s endan- gered trails list in 2008, and roughly 1.5 miles of the Colonel Bob Trail is currently impassable to equestrians and hikers. Luckily, our volunteers have developed a great deal of skill clearing trails with that iconic trail tool, the crosscut saw.

Dates of Work: June through July Types of Trips: Two BCRTs and one Volun- teer Vacation

Cool and lush, the Quartz Creek corridor is blessed with old-growth, waterfalls and certain solitude. After years of neglect, two BCRT crews and a weekend work party will tackle poor tread, downed trees and brush overgrowing the first five miles of trail. In the Cascades: In Northeast Washington: Plenty of TLC for the PCT A Brand New Summit Route and More Time in the Salmo-Priest The Pacific Crest Trail WTA has made a longstanding commitment Colville National Forest to help maintain the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), WTA continues to deepen its commitment to in cooperation with the U.S. Forest Service and maintaining trails in this less well-known, but the Pacific Crest Trail Association. From mid- utterly lovely region of the state. June through September, there will seldom be Helping the U.S. Forest Service build a new a time when WTA volunteers won’t be actively trail to the summit of Gibraltar Mountain, near working on this trail, enjoying the spectacular the town of Republic, is particularly excit- landscapes it crosses as they work. ing. WTA will also return to the Salmo-Priest In early summer, two BCRTs will log-out Wilderness with a Volunteer Vacation on the the trail and restore tread in the Methow and Salmo-Priest Loop and BCRTs to Shedroof Di- Darrington Ranger Districts. Our June BCRT vide, Bead Lake and Hall Mountain. crew will get to go around the barricades on Are there still openings these trips? Yes, just the Suiattle River Road and make improve- a few, and we’d love to have you join us. Please ments to trails in preparation for the road check the trip schedule. opening this fall. By midsummer, we’ll have no fewer than six WTA youth crews camping for Dates of Work: June and July a week and tackling projects in the Cle Elum Types of Trips: One Volunteer Vacation, one and Wenatchee Ranger Districts. Later in the BCRT summer, adult Volunteer Vacations will finish up maintenance at Pear Lake and Deep Lake. Taken together, WTA’s signature projects (And with late season colors, less bugs and represent all the best elements of WTA’s trail fresh huckleberry hotcakes for breakfast, those maintenance program. If any of these project are two amazing trips that you won’t want to descriptions have intrigued you, now is the miss out on.) time to sign up for a work party, BCRT or Vol- The PCT is a national treasure—and it needs unteer Vacation. We need your help, and you’ll your help to stay that way. Sign up. certainly make a positive contribution to hiking and recreation in Washington. And if you are Dates of Work: July through September volunteering with us already, thank you so Types of Trips: Two Volunteer Vacations, six much! Your efforts are truly appreciated.t Youth Vacations, two BCRTs, several day trips

At left: Pear Lake, just off the PCT. Photo by Charles Ardary.

At right: The Shedroof Divide Trail. Photo by Leif Jakobsen.

Upcoming Backcountry Response Trips and Volunteer Vacations Join WTA for a unique volunteer experience. Spaces still available as of press time.

May 28 - June 4 Volunteer Vacation Carbon River - Mount Rainier June 4 - 11 Volunteer Vacation Carbon River - Mount Rainier June 9 - 12 BCRT Tubal Cain - Olympic Peninsula June 11 - 18 Volunteer Vacation Gibralter Mountain - Colville June 16 - 19 BCRT Suiattle River - Darrington June 20 - 22 BCRT Downey Creek - Darrington Sign Up>> June 25 - 27 BCRT Bead Lake - Colville www.wta.org 16 » WTA at Work May + June 2011 » Washington Trails Action for Trails » What Is the Worst That Could Happen? With this much funding on the line, hikers can’t just wait and see

Nature offers predictable patterns, as winter mittee has not made as much progress on a bill turns to spring and spring to summer. Brush in that chamber, but given that federal trans- will grow, rivers will rise, and rain will wear portation funding expired in 2009 and has been away at even the most ingeniously built reauthorized by continuing resolutions since waterbars. The perennial forces of nature will then, we expect to see a Senate proposal soon. continue to do their bloody best to render trails The most recent continuing resolution came impassable. Hikers face this curious duality down the pike on March 4 and runs out at the each year. The same cycles of rain and snow end of September. So the continued existence that make wildflowers and huckleberries flour- of RTP dollars—and a significant chunk of the ish conspire to turn trails into mud wallows work that WTA does in the backcountry—will and knock out bridges. be decided in negotiations between the ad- ministration, the House and the Senate, three In contrast, our human world is filled with parties that could not be farther apart. changes and uncertainty. The U.S. House of Representatives has changed hands, a switch Bringing the lens down to landscape level, that could jeopardize important programs that losing RTP funding could mean that WTA fund trail maintenance. I’m thinking particu- would not be able to work on the Tubal Cain larly of the Recreational Trails Program (RTP), Mine Trail in Olympic National Park. Tubal which is normally included in the surface trans- Cain, heavily traveled and stunningly beautiful, portation funding bill approved by Congress. needs lots of work. We used RTP funding to conduct a Backcountry Response Team work What Is RTP? party there in 2010, and will use more this sum- Formerly known as NRTP, RTP falls under mer, and we hope to come back to Tubal Cain the Transportation Enhancements program, in the future to maintain the work we’ve done. a program which funds nonhighway trans- portation development. RTP dollars flow to Without RTP, our work in Wallace Falls State the states—Washington state receives about Park—indeed all of our work in state parks— $1.8 million annually—and are disbursed as would have no institutional funding source, grants by state administrators. The Recre- since we have no reciprocal funding agreement ation and Conservation Office is Washington’s with that agency. Losing these dollars is a real administrator, and the office is served by an cost, not just to WTA, but to all the hikers who advisory committee that evaluates and ranks depend on us and other volunteer-driven orga- grants. RTP grants are available to both land nizations to maintain our precious recreation managers and nonprofit organizations. WTA opportunities. was awarded $175,000 last year to field youth stewardship work, Volunteer Vacations and What You Can Do Backcountry Response Teams. All told, RTP Please take a moment now to contact your money funds nearly 20 percent of our volunteer representative and our two senators. Let them work annually. know how important these funds are to hiking in Washington. And let them know that you To be frank, this portion of our work—and expect them to fight to retain RTP funding as the work of many organizations from the the House and Senate transportation bills move Backcountry Horsemen of Washington to the toward completion this summer.t Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance—is in dan- ger. The president’s proposed surface transpor- tation funding bill would consolidate federal Kids hanging out at lands programs under a new line item known Tubal Cain mine. as the Federal Lands Access Program and keep RTP intact. However, the new House, which is in the process of drafting its own transporta- tion proposal, is looking at much more stream- Jonathan lined funding and will not entertain gas tax Guzzo increases. Advocacy The third leg of the funding stool is the Sen- Director ate. The Environment and Public Works Com- [email protected] Adam Scroggins May + June 2011 » Washington Trails WTA at Work « 17 Insecure Rural Schools Despite its great benefits, the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act is on the chopping block

Last spring, WTA volunteers took crosscut protected the remaining stands of old-growth saws to over 100 trees that had fallen across forest, drastically reduced the flow of timber the Horseshoe Ridge Trail in southwest Wash- receipt dollars to forested counties. By 1998, ington—one of many recreation and conserva- revenues for these counties had dropped by tion projects made possible by a federal grant over 70 percent. In response, Sens. Larry Craig, program created in 2000. (R-Idaho), and Ron Wyden, (D-Ore.), crafted the When the Secure Rural Schools and Com- Secure Rural Schools and Community Self- munity Self-Determination Act came up for re- Determination Act, which Congress passed in authorization in 2008, Forest Supervisor Janine 2000 to restore federal payments to counties Clayton reported that “an investment of more based on historic timber receipt revenue. Trails than $16 million in Title II projects [had] cre- and recreation projects are funded through ated a healthier Gifford Pinchot National Forest Title II—Special Projects on Federal Lands—a and a boost to our local economies.” The act provision that creates a competitive grant fund was successfully renewed. for projects that benefit the This act is on the table forests. again now, and if Congress In addition to on-the- fails to act by year’s end, ground accomplishments, national forests and their the act sought to improve adjacent rural counties cooperative relations be- will lose a critical source tween federal land managers of funding for schools, and local communities. The roads, public services and legislation authorized the projects on federal lands formation of Resource Advi- that restore habitat, repair sory Committees (RACs) that roads and maintain trails. would disperse Title II funds Hikers will notice trails through a competitive grant going unmaintained and review process. Each RAC is Forest Service roads start a diverse mix of area repre- deteriorating. WTA will sentatives, including local lose grant opportuni- government officials; timber, ties that have supported mining and grazing interests; Volunteer Vacations at environmental groups; and Indian Heaven Wilderness, WTA couldn’t have coordinated native tribes. Many consider youth volunteers at Mount this project in the Indian Heaven the success of this process St. Helens and a seasonal Wilderness without funding from to be one of the act’s most district crew leader. the Secure Rural Schools Act. Photo profound achievements. The concept that the fed- by Gail Rossi. Despite all the benefits eral government has an ob- the Secure Rural Schools ligation to help support communities adjacent and Community Self-Determination Act has to federal lands is as old as the Forest Service brought to our national forests and the com- itself. President Theodore Roosevelt and Forest munities around them, its reauthorization now Service Chief Gifford Pinchot recognized that is far from certain. Many elected officials in the protecting large tracts of land for the nation’s Pacific Northwest, where most of the affected benefit imposed a unique burden on nearby counties are located, have vowed to fight for it. communities, becuase public lands wouldn’t As Sen. Patty Murray, (D-Wash.), has stated, generate the tax revenue that private lands “The Secure Rural Schools and Communities would. Roosevelt and Pinchot worked with Self-Determination Act provides critical fund- Congress to ensure that a portion of revenues ing to rural counties to keep schools open and from natural resource extraction on federal provide basic public services for local families.” lands would be returned to forested counties. She added, “In this challenging budget climate, Ryan These funds helped to support county roads I will continue to work with Sens. Wyden, and schools, plus conservation and recreation Cantwell and others to advocate for adequate Ojerio projects on the forests that often provided jobs funding for our rural communities.” Southwest for the local population. The law worked well If nothing else, the debate over this legisla- Washington for nearly one hundred years. tion illustrates how national policies have a Regional In the late 1980s, changes in the timber real impact at the local level, right down to the Coordinator industry, combined with court decisions that number of trails that we can keep open.t [email protected] 18 » WTA at Work May + June 2011 » Washington Trails Membership News » A Fund for the Future Volunteers can address damage and build new opportuni- ties thanks to WTA’s revenue-generating fund for trail work

In 2011, the Greg Ball Trail Fund will support youth day trips, Backcountry Response Trips and Volunteer Vacations, like this one on the Billy Goat Trail in the Methow Valley. ith each passing bers and donors. Though the full impact can week, WTA volun- be measured only over several generations, the teers move farther fund is already starting to make a difference. into the back- The Greg Ball Trail Fund is helping more country. As the young people connect to the outdoors through snow melts, they trail stewardship. It provided partial funding find and repair for high school volunteers to complete the Greg trails damaged by Ball Trail at Wallace Falls State Park and, this winter weather or overuse. They clear trails year, will help WTA offer more trail work par- blocked by fallen logs and cut back overgrown ties just for youth. brush.W This year, they will perform this annual For hikers east of the Cascades, the Greg maintenance ritual on more than 100 trails. Ball Trail Fund has been instrumental in They’ll also tackle new trail construction and launching WTA’s volunteer trail maintenance continue the unfinished work of storm damage efforts in Spokane and farther north on the recovery from the 2003 and 2006 storms. Colville National Forest. All of this they do for you, dear hiker. This year, the fund will provide major sup- Fortunately, WTA volunteers have a powerful port for the Backcountry Response Teams and source of support in the form of the Greg Ball Volunteer Vacation crews who form the back- Trail Fund. The fund was established to honor bone of WTA’s backcountry trail maintenance the legacy of Greg Ball, who founded WTA’s schedule. trail maintenance program in 1993. In most cases, the Greg Ball Trail Fund is The Greg Ball Trail Fund functions like a one of several sources of funding for a project, permanent savings account for our trail sys- along with grants, government agreements tem. WTA accepts contributions to the fund— and member contributions. Its flexibility allows typically made in cash, stock or through a be- WTA to take on projects that we couldn’t oth- quest—at any time. Last year the fund passed erwise complete. the $600,000 mark in gifts received, thanks to So next time you hike a WTA-maintained forward-thinking WTA members, corporations trail, remember to thank those volunteers in and foundations. the green hard hats—and the hundreds of do- Rebecca The Seattle Foundation invests the fund on nors to the Greg Ball Trail Fund. Lavigne behalf of WTA to ensure that it will generate For information about making a contribution Development returns for our trail maintenance efforts far or a planned gift to the Greg Ball Trail Fund, into the future. Projects are selected each year feel free to get in touch with me at (206) 625- Director by a special committee comprising board mem- 1367 or [email protected]. t [email protected] May + June 2011 » Washington Trails WTA at Work « 19

Featured Trail Project » The Twana Creek Bridge Winter work at Dosewallips State Park

When the worst of winter descends on Western Washington, most of us are content to sit inside and watch the rain lash against the living room window. A few hardy souls are still out there doing trail work, like the volunteers who spent 10 days—between October and March—working to improve the trails in Dosewallips State Park on Hood Canal. Straddling the banks of the Dosewallips River, this park provides grassy fields for year-round camping, beach access to Hood Canal and several interesting hiking trails along the river and into the Meet Our Members » upland areas of the park. As with all of our state parks, it would be a Sam Thompson shame to see this one closed due to budget constraints.

This past Talk About Going the Extra Mile Sam Thompson ran 90 miles from Seattle to winter, our focus Olympia to raise awareness about the need for was a large-scale sustainable recreation funding for our state rehabilitation of lands at WTA’s Hiker Lobby Day. the Twana Creek Bridge. After years of use, the bridge Sam ran his first marathon 12 years ago, then needed extra discovered trail running and was instantly care if it was to hooked on the beauty and freedom. Sam keep servicing reminisces, “Once I got in the woods and my the park’s visi- feet hit dirt, I never turned back.” tors. WTA’s crew began the project by protecting Since Sam’s trail-running friends introduced the bridge abut- him to WTA, he’s become a great supporter ments to prevent of our work. Sam directs the annual Carkeek 12-Hour race, and WTA has been one of the undercutting by Volunteers replacing a handrail on the bridge event’s beneficiaries for the past three years. the stream. They over Twana Creek in Dosewallips State Park. also rebuilt the Now he is also a Hiker Lobby Day superstar, trail approaches at both ends of the bridge, allowing hikers to easily running to the Capitol to illustrate how impor- and safely get onto the bridge. The decking on the bridge had started tant trails are in his life. to decay and was quickly becoming a safety concern. After removing the old decking, the crew made sure that the bridge stringers were Take the hike up Mailbox Peak and you might sound and then installed solid decking that the resourceful park staff encounter Sam—twice. As he says,“It’s far had scrounged from other areas of the park. The final step was to and away my favorite trail to do repeats up to replace broken parts of the handrail and reinforce those sections that the summit and back down, going back and remained usable. In the end, the bridge was restored to its original forth all day.” Found on Department of Natural condition. Resources land, Mailbox Peak is one of the many landscapes that hikers and trail runners Once again, a dedicated crew of volunteers braved the tempests of are hoping to protect from closure. “We’re all winter and did a beautiful job improving our state’s hiking trails. Our passionate about our state trails,” Sam notes, thanks to all of you!t “and although we might enjoy them in slightly different ways, we’re all working together for the same purpose and really all on the same Hike It» team.” Dosewallips State Park We couldn’t agree more. We are grateful to To visit the Twana Creek Bridge, head to Dosewallips State Park. From the park’s have Sam as a member of team Washington maintenance shop, look for a small footbridge and follow this path to reach the Trails and wish him all the best in his upcom- bridge over Twana Creek Bridge in an eighth of a mile. This unnamed trail feeds ing adventures, including running 100 miles in into either the Steam Donkey Trail (3.5-mile loop) or the Maple Valley Trail (2- the Western States 100. mile loop). Map: USGS Brinnon, or state park map available. Best Season: open —Kindra Ramos year-round, go in fall to see elk. More Info: Day Hiking: Olympic Peninsula. 20 » WTA at Work May + June 2011 » Washington Trails

Youth & Families » Best Summer Ever Seven steps to a sensational season

Have you found that a bright orb shining in the sky is causing you to squint more often? Have you been hearing bird songs filling the air? Have you looked down at your feet and seen your toes sticking out of sandals? If you answered yes to any of these questions, don’t worry, the diagnosis is simple: summer is of- ficially on the way.

And how will you be filling your long sum- mer days? We have a few suggestions for you that just might make the summer of 2011 the best summer ever.

Get your family digging in the dirt. Join one of WTA’s family work parties. Volunteer- ing to do trail maintenance is a terrific way to give back to trails. Sign up at www.wta.org/ volunteer/trail-work-parties. We’ll be working on Cougar Mountain on May 21 and on June 4, which is also National Trails Day.

Meet Joan Burton. The author of Best WTA’s youth program activities are getting Hikes with Kids: Western Washington and the a boost this year, thanks to a grant from The Cascades, Joan will be partnering with WTA Seattle Foundation. to present Hiking With Children workshops. You’ll be inspired to get outdoors with your kids, plus learn some fun tips and tricks to Experience a sky full of stars. Waking up keep them safe and have fun along the way. in a peaceful alpine meadow after watching Here are the scheduled dates: the sun set behind a jagged peak? Yep, there May 16: Bellingham REI, 6 p.m. is pretty much nothing better. Take a family June 7: Tacoma REI, 7 p.m. backpacking trip and view the amazing night June 14: Olympia REI, 7 p.m. sky with countless twinkling stars. You might even get lucky and see a shooting star or two. Camp, camp and camp some more. Pack For helpful information from planning your trip up the car and leave the city behind for a few to suggested locations, visit www.wta.org/go- days. Camping out means two things—sleep- hiking/backpacking. ing in tents and roasting marshmallows on an open fire—so kids are pretty much guaranteed Make your miles count. Enter the family to love it, while the adults can look forward to category in WTA’s 2011 Hike-a-Thon and hit serving dinner on massive picnic tables and the trails this August. Not only will you enjoy romping around the campground on short-but- spending time together as you explore Wash- sweet hiking trails. For car-camping tips and ington’s wild places by trail, but you can earn suggested family-friendly locations, visit www. some great prizes, too! Hike-a-Thon registration wta.org/kids/children/how-to/car-camping- begins July 1. with-kids. Become the next Ansel Adams. Take your Share your smarts. When your family camera along as you are out discovering the returns from a hike, share your experience wonders of Washington. Photography allows with others by submitting a trip report. Trip you to capture memorable moments along the Krista reports provide useful information that helps trail. Shoot photos all summer long, and you’ll Dooley hikers know the current trail conditions as they have plenty of images to sift through when our Youth Programs plan their hike. Point out the trail features your Northwest Exposure photo contest opens in mid-August. Deadline for entries is October 16. Manager kids enjoyed on the hike and what advice you [email protected] would give the next family heading to the trail. Submit your trip report at www.wta.org/go- Have a wild summer. You won't forget it.t hiking/trip-reports. May + June 2011 » Washington Trails 21 On Trail Northwest Explorer »

Living in the Northwest, we have no shortage of wilderness locations to escape into for a day—or a week. On any ol’ weekend, we could be climbing to the rim of smoldering Mount St. Helens, journeying through lush rain forests in the Olympics or trekking across the jagged ridges of the North Cascades. And while all of these places, and so many more locations, are outstanding, nothing quite compares with the majesty—or sheer immensity—of “The Mountain.”

But when you think about hiking that Mountain, where do you even start? With over 240 miles of hiking trails (not counting mountaineering routes), spread over 378 square miles, there’s a lot to choose from. Add to that the incredible amount of scenic features—473 streams and rivers, 292 lakes, 122 waterfalls, 25 named glaciers, and more meadows, valleys, wildflowers, old-growth forest, and mind- numbing views than you can shake a trekking pole at—and the task of choosing a trail can no doubt be daunting.

Thankfully, there are stacks of helpful guidebooks available to get you started. But even as great as most of those guidebooks are—full of inspiring photos and informative elevation profile graphs (a feature I particularly appreciate)—you’re still trying to whittle down from 50-plus options. And if you’re unfamiliar with The Mountain, what you’re really thinking Backpacking is, “Where do I go to get the really good stuff?” Well, this month, you’re in luck. From shorter starter trails to the granddaddy of round-the- mountain adventures, we’ll highlight five—and only five—of the most outstanding hiking the Big One opportunities that Rainier has to offer, just in time for you to start making your own summer hiking plans. With some helpful planning tips Five sure-to-wow trails in Mount Rainier and permit info thrown in, all you’ll have to do is National Park. By Eli Boschetto choose and go. 22 » On Trail May + June 2011 » Washington Trails

Hike It» #1: Gobbler’s Knob #2: Spray Park Loop Ideal for an intro to backpacking or an easy Considered one of the best loop hikes in Gobbler’s Knob weekend getaway, what could be better than Mount Rainier National Park, the trail through Round trip miles: 12 pitching your tent beside a clear, sparkling lake the alpine meadows of Spray and Seattle Parks Gain: 2,700 feet within a mile of one of Washington’s premier blazes with a bounty of seasonal wildflowers. Campsites: Lake viewpoints? Not much, but it comes with a Throw in an ample serving of glassy tarns, a George price—you won’t be alone. couple of wispy waterfalls, an optional side trip to Carbon Glacier and a forested stroll up Spray Park Loop From the Nisqually Entrance in the Ipsut Creek, and you have a photographer’s southwest corner of the park, take the Round trip miles: 16 dreamland.Really, what more could you ask Westside Road to its closure 3.5 miles up. From for? Gain: 5,100 feet this point, sling on your pack and continue Campsites: Mowich up the road on foot another 3.8 miles, first Starting at Mowich Lake (the Ipsut Creek Lake, Eagle’s Roost, Cataract Valley, along rushing Tahoma Creek, then plunging trailhead is still inaccessible due to the Carbon Carbon River, Ipsut into forest for a moderate climb to Round Road washout), take a short jaunt south on the Creek Pass and the Lake George trailhead. The next Wonderland Trail to the Spray Park junction. 0.75 mile climbs 500 feet to the Lake George Merge onto the Spray Park Trail and make a basin where six wilderness campsites await, gentle mile-long descent to the edge of Eagle including one large group site. For anglers, Cliff. The trail then turns east, rounding the fishing at Lake George is reported to be Hessong Rock and passing the Eagle’s Roost exceptional, and licenses are not required wilderness camp with seven sites. Shortly within the national park. After staking out past the camp, take the 0.25-mile side trail to your camp, take on the climb to Gobbler’s Spray Falls, a must-see. Following the falls, the Knob, a moderate 800-foot climb in just under trail vaults up 600 feet in the next half mile to a mile. At the Goat Lake junction, bear right the vast Spray Park meadows, with views of and traipse through meadows brimming with Echo Rock, Observation Rock, and the Russell seasonal lupine, magenta paintbrush and Glacier above. On bluebird days, the view Rainier from Columbia lily to the old fire lookout and a view north extends all the way to Washington’s Gobbler’s Knob. that will knock your SmartWools off—Adams, North Cascades. Avoid trampling fragile Photo by Don Hood and St. Helens to the south and east, the vegetation by remaining on trails through Geyer. Olympics to the west, Lake George below, and this area. Plants that survive this harsh Rainier looming dead environment can easily be killed by a single ahead with front-row bootstep. views of the Sunset Amphitheater and From the 6,375-foot high point in Spray Tahoma Glacier. Park, begin a 3-mile descent through more wildflowers in Seattle Park, past Cataract An optional camping Valley wilderness camp (seven sites) to the destination (in case Carbon River junction and wilderness camp Lake George permits (five sites). From this point, the route continues have all been snatched on the Wonderland Trail, following the Carbon up) would be to take River north, then northwest. At the Ipsut Creek the Goat Lake Trail trail junction, fork right 0.3 mile for camping (at the saddle junction at the Ipsut Creek camp (13 sites), or continue en route to Gobbler’s past Ipsut Falls, now bearing southwest, and Knob), 1 mile down start a healthy 2,500-foot climb up to Ipsut into the Glacier View Pass over the next three forested miles. Finish Wilderness for less- your loop by turning left at the pass junction crowded camping at for a gentle climb along the flank of Castle Goat Lake. Peak before dropping the last mile back down to your starting point at Mowich Lake.

Spray Park For twice the meadows, flowers, lakes, jaw- wildflowers. Photo dropping views—and mileage—try the 33-mile by Don Geyer. Northern Loop Trail.

“As an outdoor photographer, Spray Park is one of my favorite areas for the wildflower displays. They’re best in late July. Plus, there are numerous tarns that reflect Mount Rainier, making this a really fun location to shoot.” —Don Geyer, Renton, Washington Northwest Photographer May + June 2011 » Washington Trails On Trail « 23

Planning Your Trip

Permits: All overnight hiking and camping in Mount Rainier National Park requires a wilderness access permit. Permits can be obtained before your hike from any of the Wilderness Information Centers or ranger stations within the park. Advance reservations— highly recommended for some of the more popular trails and camps— can also be made via faxed application. Visit www.nps.gov/mora.

Maps: As two of hiking’s 10 essentials, having a good map and compass (or GPS)—and knowing how to use them—should be no-brainers. The two most comprehensive maps for Mount Rainier National Park are National Geographic’s Trails Illustrated Mount Rainier, and Green Trails Eli Boschetto Maps’ new Mount Rainier Wonderland.

#3: Glacier Basin Loop Weather: Mount Rainier has a notoriously short hiking This 13-mile loop is one of my own season due to heavy amounts of winter snow that keep most areas personal favorites, and a route I’ve covered inaccessible until June and July. Even in summer, heavy rain, fog and for Backpacker. Sure, the Glacier Basin and snow are not uncommon, as Mount Rainier creates its own weather. Burroughs Mountain Loop can be done in a Summer temps usually average between 40 degrees and 75 degrees long day, but, with so much to see, why not near Longmire (2,761 feet), and between 40 degrees and 65 degrees slow it down? Take a few days to soak it all in. near Paradise (5,400 feet). Nighttime temps, even in summer, can fall below freezing. Check the weather forecast just before setting out, From the Glacier Basin trailhead in the and plan accordingly. Visit www.noaa.gov. White River Campground, the 3.25-mile hike up along the Inter Fork of the White River is KEY Gear: A water treatment system a breeze thanks to the recent trail restoration is highly recommended to prevent giardiasis, done by WTA and the National Park Service. a disease caused by a particularly nasty little Along the way, a 0.5-mile side trail heads bug found in many mountainous water sources. up Emmons Moraine and offers incredible Filtering, using treatment drops, or boiling water views of Emmons Glacier, the largest sheet for at least seven minutes can eliminate most of ice on Rainier, and a milky blue-green contaminants. Avoid filtering water from cloudy glacial lake below. Another mile up, pass the glacial streams as the tiny silt particles can clog junction with the Burroughs Mountain Trail and ruin your filter element. Usingtrekking poles can greatly reduce and continue to the Glacier Basin wilderness the stress on your back and knees during those huffing slogs up camp in a forested glen, where six campsites steep hills or jarring descents into valleys, and helps to balance and are available (including one group site). Just stabilize the heavy load you’re carrying. beyond the camp, Glacier Basin opens up in all its glory, with wide meadows, a large shimmering tarn, and views up The Mountain Clothing: Mount Rainier’s unique weather patterns of The Wedge and Mount Ruth. You’ll notice demand layering. Carrying the right mix of apparel will allow you to a well-worn climber’s trail continuing up to deal with rapidly changing temperatures and weather conditions. Your Camps Curtis and Schurman. backcountry wardrobe should include wool, down or fleece insulating layers and some kind of rain shell. Choose synthetic, breathable For the next leg, double back to the fabrics that wick sweat away from your body and dry quickly. Avoid Burroughs Mountain Trail junction and begin cotton apparel—it stays wet when you sweat, robs your body of heat a hearty 1,900-foot climb for the next 1.5 miles, and dries slowly. first through shady forest, then opening into hillside meadows with stupendous views over the White River Valley and Goat Island Food Storage: Most of Mount Mountain. As you continue climbing, the Rainier’s wilderness camps provide bear poles or meadows dwindle away and soon you’re in wires for hanging your food, trash and toiletries. rocky alpine tundra with scarce vegetation. Carry your food in a sturdy bag capable of being Cross a shallow saddle, then mount the final sealed or tightly tied off, as animals are attracted distance amid wide-open alpine plains. The to any food scent. Never store food in your tent, view from 7,400-foot Burroughs Mountain and always remember: pack it in, pack it out. reaches west to the Olympics, north to Glacier Peak and the North Cascades, and southward, Visit www.wta.org/hiking-info/how-to for a comprehensive where Rainier is all encompassing. From the Mount Rainier backpacking preparation guide, complete with gear summit, take a leisurely stroll down to Frozen checklist and permit information. 24 » On Trail May + June 2011 » Washington Trails

Lake and a five-way trail junction. Here, you The Mountain rising immediately to the west. can head west to Berkeley Park and wilderness The trail then drops a quick 800 feet into the camp (three sites), or north to the Fremont valley of the Ohanapecosh River and the wide Hike It» Mountain Lookout. To continue the loop, head meadows of Indian Bar. The wilderness camp southeast on the Wonderland Trail, descending here has only five sites, including one group Glacier Basin 1.25 miles into more subalpine meadows site. In early summer, numerous waterfalls Loop ripe with summer wildflowers and seasonal stream down the walls of the valley, fed by huckleberries. Keep your eyes peeled for black the glaciers above. This makes a good halfway Round trip miles: 11.5 bears. Sunrise wilderness camp awaits with 10 point before starting the next climb. campsites (including two group sites), near the Gain: 3,100 feet shores of Shadow Lake. Completing the loop From Indian Bar, the trail continues north, Campsites: White River, Glacier Basin, requires a knee-crunching, 1,900-foot descent steeply climbing over 1,500 feet in the next Berkeley Park, Sunrise in the last 2.5 miles back to White River. 1.5 miles. It then levels somewhat, still climbing, while traversing the meadows of Ohanapecosh Park to the high point on the Wonderland, Panhandle Gap at 6,800 feet. Indian Bar and #4: Indian Bar, Summerland Here you’ll find yourself in the alpine zone, a Summerland landscape dominated by rocky talus that often Shuttle trip miles: 17 One of the most popular backpacks on holds snow through the summer months. Gain: 4,400 feet Mount Rainier for its varied terrain, wide-open Rangers and guidebooks issue warnings about Campsites: Nickle meadows, and incredible views, this 17-mile traversing the snowfields here in bad weather, Creek, Olallie Creek, one-way route along the mountain’s eastern so exercise caution and good judgment. This Indian Bar, Summer- side showcases the kind of scenery that will land is a common location to spot mountain goats, have you doing happy little dances of joy and the Cowlitz Chimneys can be viewed to from one stunning panorama to the next. And the east. From the gap, the trail descends 1.5 judging by how fast permits are snatched up miles to the Summerland wilderness camp (six The Wonderland for this area, it’s no secret. sites) along Fryingpan Creek. Little Tahoma Round trip miles: rises sharply above wide meadows brimming 95.2 Like Glacier Basin, this trail can be engaged with wildflowers, and Goat Island Mountain Gain: 22,780 feet from a variety of starting points, depending on dominates to the north. The route then Campsites: 24 time and interest. One popular starting point descends steadily along Fryingpan Creek 4 wilderness camps are is the Box Canyon trailhead, 10 miles west of miles to the trailhead at Sunrise Road. available on or near the Stevens Canyon Entrance. The first mile is the trail. a moderate trek northeast on the Wonderland Due to the area’s popularity and the fact Trail to the Nickel Creek wilderness camp that you’ll be competing with weekend hikers (four sites), before starting a vigorous 2,000- as well as advance-planning Wonderland Trail foot climb to the crest of the Cowlitz Divide. hikers for the handful of wilderness campsites The trail undulates along the divide, meadows available through this section, it can be tough widening the higher you go, eventually gaining to get this permit. To improve your chances another 500 feet to a high point with views of scoring a permit and savoring this idyllic of Double and Shriner Peaks to the east and location, consider a midweek trip.

A backpacker coursing through Indian Bar. Photo by Tami Asars.

Wonderland Trail photograph on p.21 by Colleen Ponto. May + June 2011 » Washington Trails On Trail « 25

#5: Wonderland Fast Facts This is the big one. The 95.2-mile This is where we refer you back to Wonderland is The Trail around The Mountain. the guidebooks, as there’s just too much Mount Rainier was estab- Along with the John Muir Trail, the Tahoe information about the complete loop to list lished in 1899 as America’s Rim Trail and the High Sierra Trail, the here. The FalconGuide Hiking Mount Rainier fifth national park by Presi- Wonderland Trail is ranked as one of the most National Park has an entire section dedicated dent McKinley, and largely scenic long-distance trails in the western to the Wonderland Trail, with route details, advocated by John Muir. United States. And like these others, the elevation profiles and campsite descriptions, as Its summit height is 14,411’, window of opportunity is a slim two to three well as helpful planning info. And no matter making it the fifth-highest months per year due how you take on the mountain in the lower 48. to high elevations Wonderland Trail, as one and extreme all-out marathon or in weather conditions. sections over the course As late as 1924, people While no technical of several seasons, you’ll considered changing the mountaineering skill is walk away giddy with name of Mount Rainier to required to complete scenic overload and a Mount Tacoma, to better the Wonderland Trail, sense of accomplishment reflect its original Native careful planning, that will last a lifetime. American name. determination and endurance are key— These suggestions Mount Rainier is home to and that’s just for are but the tip of the the largest single-peak getting your permit! glacier, if you will, and glacier system in the con- no matter which trail tiguous United States. At Along the way, you choose, you can’t 5.7 miles long and 705 feet you’ll visit every go wrong. Of course, thick, Carbon Glacier is the environmental zone there are numerous other lowest glacier in elevation that this towering fantastic backpacking (3,500 feet) of any in the volcano has to locations to explore on lower 48 states. Emmons offer—from dense, The Mountain. Indian Glacier, at 4.3 square miles, old-growth forest in Henry’s Hunting Ground is the largest glacier in the deeply carved valleys offers wide meadows and lower 48. to subalpine meadows an explosion of summer carpeted with wildflowers. Sunset Park wildflowers, to the and the Golden Lakes About 9,000 people a year desolate alpine zone showcase views of the attempt to reach Mount of foreboding rock and Ptarmigan ice cliffs. At Rainier’s summit; about ice, skirting the very Crystal Lakes you’re half actually make it. Of glaciers themselves. bound to see more elk the 56 known routes to the Asters and more along the Wonderland. Over the course of and mountain goats than summit, the Camp Muir or Photo by Troy Mason. the circuit, you’ll gain people. Camp Schurman routes as much cumulative are used by 80 percent of elevation as you would if you climbed from sea But remember, nature rules here, and climbers. level to above the roof of North America, more Mount Rainier is still considered to be an than 22,000 feet (Mount McKinley in Alaska active volcano. A properly planned trip will The fastest recorded is the highest point at 20,320 feet). Access to ensure that your experience is successful circumnavigation of the the Wonderland can be reached from any of and memorable. Pay heed to trail signs and complete 95-mile Won- the four corners of the park: Longmire, Stevens warnings, don’t feed animals, exercise proper derland Trail was in 2006, Pass, Sunrise or Mowich Lake. Most hikers aim food storage, avoid trampling meadows and when Kyle Slagg clocked to complete the trip in anywhere from a fast- practice leave-no-trace ethics. Do all this and in at just under 21 hours! paced week, to a more leisurely two-week stroll Mount Rainier will remain the Northwestern in order to soak up every ounce of picturesque gem that it is for us, and for future generations, goodness. For longer-period hikers, food caches too. And if you happen to see me on the trail Mount Rainier’s snowfall are often planned for pickup along the way. this summer—I’ll be the one in the orange record is 1,122 inches (93.5 Gregory Palisade backpack, with a Nikon feet!) in the winter of 1971- hanging around my neck—give me a wave, and 1972. “If you can, take your time. tell me about your experience backpacking The The climbs are long and steep. Big One.t Be prepared to be wet and The Douglas-firs found in cold on any day, as rain and the Grove of the Patriarchs thunderstorms happen even in are estimated to be more Eli Boschetto is a Northwest Trail Correspondent than 1,000 years old. The summer. But experiencing all Alaska yellow cedars on this scenery makes it all totally for Backpacker and a Washington Trails gear team member. He resides in Portland, Oregon. the upper Laughingwater worth it!” Creek are more than 1,200 —Geoff Krueger, Portland, Oregon Two-time Wonderland Hiker years old. 26 » On Trail May + June 2011 » Washington Trails

On your next visit to the Sunrise area at Mount Rainier, find a quiet place to sit and reflect for a moment. Choose a spot away from the sounds of the parking lot and out of view of human-made structures. Get A Closer comfortable, get quiet, and then consider this: you are amidst the foot- prints of people who have come before you, going back several thousand Look: years. Sunrise has a story to tell, one that connects an ancestral trail, a resi- dential base camp, a hunting site, and one of the area’s most entertain- ing mammals, the hoary marmot. Natural You won’t find the Yakama Trail on your map unless you’re using the first topo of Mount Rainier, the 1915 U.S. Geological Survey map. Indig- enous people used the trail from Yakama and other tribal lands in central and Washington until 1917, about the time the National Park Service began to put an end to Native American hunting and gathering in the park. But for ages prior, groups of men, women, and children traveled on foot Prehistoric for days up the American River drainage and over Chinook Pass before reaching their base camp on the flanks of Sunrise Ridge.

Human Now known as the Sunrise Ridge Borrow Pit, this site was used by engineers as fill material to develop the Sunrise area between 1929 and History at 1931. Recovered artifacts tell of well-organized hunter-gatherers using a trail system and established camps over the ages. Building on the work of other archaeologists and park staff and partnering with local Indian Sunrise tribes, park archaeologist Greg Burtchard is steadily adding to our knowledge about prehistoric human activity at Mount Rainier.

The Sunrise Ridge Borrow Pit area holds a dense concentration of deb- itage, the stone chips left behind from making and maintaining stone Story by tools. Other finds include aground stone, which was probably used as Jeff Antonelis-Lapp a hammer to pound stakes or break bones. Fire-cracked rocks provide evidence of fire usage. Archaeologists have also found anOlivella shell. This small sea snail’s shell had been ground into a bead and made part of a necklace, a trade item. Clues like these indicate repeated use of this site as a long-term residential base camp between 3,500 and 1,500 years ago, with probable use until historic times. Camping in temporary shelters during late summer and early fall for two months or more, these ancestors of present-day Yakama, Cowlitz, Muckleshoot and other tribal peoples hunted and gathered in preparation for winter. May + June 2011 » Washington Trails On Trail « 27

Remembering Our Manners: At left: A view of Tahoma from Sunrise. Photo by Charles Ardary. Protecting Archaeological Below: Archaeologists have found debitage—chips left behind from stone Sites as Outdoor Enthusiasts tools construction—in the Sunrise area. Photo courtesy of MRNP. There are currently over 14,000 documented archaeological sites in the state of Washington, with 20 new sites recorded each month on aver- age. Typical prehistoric archaeological sites in Washington include shell middens, open sites or campsites, pictographs and petroglyphs, caves or rock shelters, wet sites, lithic sites, quarries and burial sites or cemeteries.

When you are hiking in the history-rich lands of Washington, you could encounter an archaeologi- cal site. Here are a few tips to keep in mind that will help protect our state heritage.

What to do if you find an artifact Unless you own the property on which it was found, leave the artifact where it is. It is illegal to remove an artifact from land that you do not Women and children probably spent their July through September days personally own, such as all state and federal park gathering and preparing huckleberries for winter use. Although experts lands. If possible, document the artifact by writ- disagree on whether huckleberries were the primary reason to travel ing down details about the object’s location and long distances to the mountain, there is no question that huckleberries physical appearance, or even taking a photograph. and other mountain resources attracted indigenous people seasonally If the artifact was identified on state or federal for thousands of years. Huckleberries were an essential overwintering lands, you should contact the appropriate land staple, the berries of choice being black huckleberry (Vaccinium membra- manager and ask to speak to a cultural resources naceum), oval-leaf blueberry (V. ovalifolium), and blue-leaved or Cascade specialist. You may also contact the Department of huckleberry, (V. deliciosum). Likely prized for their flavor, size and keep- Archaeology and Historic Preservation. ing abilities, the berries were also sought by sooty grouse, band-tailed pigeons, and northern flickers. When these birds came to dine on the What to do if you find human remains huckleberries, they were often taken for food or their feathers. Black If you encounter human remains, stop your activi- bears fattening up for winter were sometimes hunted too. ties immediately and contact the state archaeolo- gist at the Department of Archaeology and His- Native people used fire to preserve huckleberries intended for winter toric Preservation and local law enforcement. It is use. One method used long, low earthen mounds on which mats were illegal to knowingly disturb a precontact or historic spread on one side with the berries upon them. Small fires adjacent to burial. Remember, human remains are not always the mats, carefully tended, provided heat to dry the berries. Mat-covered prehistoric in origin and could be associated with a racks were also used to hold and dry the berries, with small fires built crime scene or historic burial. underneath. Park rangers reported these types of fires in the early twen- tieth century, but the sites have yet to be found at Mount Rainier. Dried berries were then poured into bags or baskets and stored in the shade Remember that artifacts are priceless until transported to the lowland villages. Professional archaeologists believe that the impor- tance of artifacts is not their supposed monetary The hunters in the group, probably men and boys, spent their days value, but rather the information they provide farther up Tahoma, one of the indigenous names for this mountain. They for learning about past societies. For this reason, traversed Sunrise Ridge approximately two hours to the alpine tundra museums and professional archaeology societ- of Frozen Lake. A scant 2 miles west of today’s Sunrise Visitor Center, ies do not offer monetary evaluations of objects. Frozen Lake is the nexus for hikes to the Mount Fremont Lookout, Bur- These institutions believe that objects recovered roughs Mountain, or continuing on the Wonderland Trail. Long before, from a site should be kept together as a collection however, the Frozen Lake area was an important hunting and butchering to be available for future study or display, and they location. do not buy, sell or trade any artifacts. If you have an artifact you think should be part of a museum People likely were drawn to the area by the co-occurrence of suitable collection, contact the Burke Museum of Natural tooling material and abundant game. (Archaeologists refer to such areas History and Culture. The Burke Museum is Wash- as task-specific sites.) The rock here is part of the Tatoosh pluton, an ington state’s official natural history repository. intrusive rock older than the volcanic andesites and other material that constitute the mountain’s bulk. Formed when magma cools under the —Kelsey Lutz, National Park Service earth’s surface, this rock gives its name to the Tatoosh Range on the Archaeology Collections Curator 28 » On Trail May + June 2011 » Washington Trails

park’s southern border. The Tatoosh pluton bears chert, an opaque, glasslike rock which fractures well enough to be tooled into projectile points. Ready availability of chert on or near the surface made quarry- ing a relatively simple activity. The rock was then tooled into projectile points and attached to spears and atlatls, predecessors to the bow and arrow.

Why would people hike uphill to hunt on windy, treeless alpine tundra, and what did they hunt at Frozen Lake? Although archaeologists are still seeking the bone fragments that will definitively answer these ques- tions, you may get some clues if you linger here for lunch or hike slowly through the area.

In The Wolverine Way, Douglas H. Chadwick reports on a comprehen- sive study of the wolverine (Gulo gulo) in Glacier National Park between 2002 and 2007. Scientists knew little of this elusive member of the weasel family until dogged researchers and advances in radio telemetry began to unravel wolverine folklore and weave in scientific evidence. With an oversized cardiovascular system, wolverines tirelessly patrol territories that range from 300 to 500 square miles. Wolverines have transmitted frequencies while climbing mountain faces too dangerous for the most daring human mountaineers. Wolverines are as tough as their comic book character and live up to their reputation as “badasses,” as Chadwick calls them. With jaws powerful enough to crush bones left be- hind by other predators, wolverines have been known to face off against grizzly bears to keep possession of a deer carcass.

Alas, the wolverine does not figure into our Frozen Lake story. The last documented wolverine sighting at Mount Rainier was in 1933. No, this Dozens of species of wildflowers, part of the story is about its polar opposite, the anti-wolverine, the La-Z- including the western anemone (Anemone Boy recliner-with-legs-and-a-tail of the animal world, the hoary marmot. occidentalis), featured above, thrive in the meadows at Sunrise. For a great The largest member of the squirrel family, the hoary marmot is known flower-by-flower hiking guide, visit www. to scientists as Marmota caligata. Marmota is French for “mountain flowersofrainier.com and download their mouse” and caligata means “booted,” to note the characteristic black Mount Fremont Lookout map. Photo by Mary hands and feet. Found in areas with rocky talus slopes and alpine tundra Campbell. vegetation, visit the Sunrise area any day between June and September and you’re likely to observe or hear this common alpine denizen. Scan the landscape to find them sunning outside their burrows, or listen care- fully for their alarm calls that warn of intruders. Though they are also known as whistle pigs, marmots do not actually whistle, but instead use their vocal cords to shriek warnings when agitated or sensing danger.

Prehistoric people valued marmots for several reasons. First off, their tendency to feed and lie about for more than half of their aboveground lives surely made them easy targets. Marmot pelts, at their densest concentrations of fur as hibernation approached, were likely sewn into robes or blankets. Marmot flesh, described by Hazard Stevens after his 1870 Rainier ascent as “extremely muscular and tough … [with] a strong, disagreeable, doggy odor,” was nonetheless seasonally abundant and probably found its way into prehistoric diets. Finally, known to some as “butter with legs,” marmots have a high fat content and the presence of stone scrapers suggests that people collected their fat for later use.

Lieutenant August Kautz gave us the first description of hoary mar- Is that you? Marmots identify colony mots at Tahoma in his account of his 1857 summit attempt when he members by sniffing, chewing and nose-to- wrote, “The moment anyone stirred from camp, a sound between a nose contact. Photo by Janelle Walker. whistle and scream would break unexpectedly … and immediately all the animals that were in sight would vanish in the earth.”

Vanish they do, and herein is one of the keys to their antiwolverine- ness: hibernating from autumn through May, marmots spend 80 percent of their lives in burrows. When they are active, if you can call it that, a typical August day breaks down as follows: 40 percent feeding, 28 per- May + June 2011 » Washington Trails On Trail « 29 cent in the burrow, 20 percent lying about and sunning, and 12 percent play-fighting, digging, and burrow inspecting. With this schedule, the marmot doesn’t exactly sound like the world’s most industrious rodent, does it?

But with a seven-month hibernation period looming, putting on body fat is serious business. Weight at hibernation is tied to overwintering mortality, and starvation during hibernation is a greater threat than predators in August. Simply put, a fat marmot has a better chance of surviving the winter than a lean one.

Besides being Olympic-caliber eaters and loungers, marmots are highly social. The basic unit consists of a reproductive male, several adult females, a few nonreproductive adult males, yearlings and young of the year. Females are fertile every other year, which probably allows them to restore important energy reserves. Fertile females become pregnant Hey, look! A marmot! in late May, just after their emergence from hibernation. Depending on a variety of factors, hoary marmots may be either monogamous or polyga- Do you want to see a marmot? Of course you do. mous. While marmots can be spotted fairly easily all over Washington, there are some known haunts, like After a thirty-day gestation period and another thirty days to become Paradise, where marmots tend to hang out. Here fully furred and mobile, the young emerge in late July. They remain part are a few spots with a high likelihood of marmots, of the colony until they disperse to form their own group, generally in as suggested by WTA members: their third summer. Church Mountain, North Cascades Marmots use a variety of greeting behaviors to identify colony mem- bers that range from sniffing to nose-to-nose contact to face, neck and You are certain to see marmots here, and that may back chewing. They appear to seek each other’s company and prefer to not be all. “You can sometimes see a wolverine at the feed together, a strategy that might provide additional opportunities for very far end of Skyline Divide, where the trails start to warnings about nearby predators. Popular belief holds that marmots use disappear.”—Ken Lassesen sentinels to survey for predators, but there is no evidence that specific Sahale Arm, North Cascades animals serve this function. “A dozen, two dozen? I don’t remember how many marmots I saw on my way to Sahale Arm, but it was Hoary marmots are primarily herbivores, preferring flowers and flower a lot. I do, however, remember the one particular heads of common Sunrise-area plants that include Indian paintbrush marmot who nearly made off with my trekking (Castilleja spp.), avalanche lily (Erythronium montanum), western anemo- poles. Watch your gear!”—Wade Trenbeath ne (Anemone occidentalis), lupine (Lupinus spp.), and green false hel- lebore (Veratrum viride). Research from the Olympic Peninsula indicates Lake Josephine, Central Cascades that the closely related Olympic marmot has a great influence on plant “The Pacific Crest Trail south of Stevens Pass to Lake communities. Seeing that plant diversity is greater in areas grazed by Josephine is a great place to see marmots. Just past marmots than in ungrazed areas, scientists have concluded that marmots the top ski lifts there is a boulder field where the play a crucial role in plant diversity in alpine areas. marmots just sit on the rocks and stare at you. No fear in these animals.”—Janice Van Cleve Watch a group of marmots feed, and you’ll see that they spend a significant amount of time looking about for predators. At Mount Rainier, Seattle Park, Mount Rainier National Park coyotes, red-tailed hawks and golden eagles are the most likely preda- “The Spray Park Trail leads from Mowich Lake to the tors, with black bears occasionally digging out late fall or early spring hi- subalpine meadows of Spray Park and beyond to bernators. The hoary marmot’s average life span ranges to fifteen years. Seattle Park. Once you hit the scree fields keep your eyes and ears open for bumbling marmots plodding With nearly 100 recorded archaeological sites, there is abundant evi- through the meadows or sunning themselves on dence that people have been drawn to this mountain for millennia for a nearby boulders.” —Tami Asars variety of reasons. Known as Tahoma to indigenous people, this great volcano drew people for its resources and for spiritual reasons, dating Obstruction Point, Olympic National Park back over 8,000 years. Trails between east and west provided the most “You will see them on any of the hikes from direct route for travelers. Even today, Native people continue to prac- Obstruction Point. Even on the drive out, there is a tice their hunting, gathering and spiritual traditions in mountain areas. spot halfway up that is an open meadow, and it’s As more mysteries are uncovered and stories sewn together, we will always full.”—Sarah Kirkconnell continue to see the ever-developing interplay between The Mountain, its people and its flora and fauna.t Photo of marmot among lupine by Goyo Jeff Antonelis-Lapp teaches in the Environmental Studies planning unit at The Ever- Myers. For more adorable marmot photos, green State College in Olympia. This article is from his book-in-progress on the natural watch for a link to an all-marmot photo history of Mount Rainier National Park. gallery in the May edition of Trail News, WTA’s monthly e-newsletter. Hike It»

30 » On Trail May + June 2011 » Washington Trails

Ah, springtime in the Northwest!

Time to count our blessings and choose—as Joseph Campbell would’ve said—which bliss to follow. There’s still plenty of snow to play Days and in up in the mountains. The trails down in the lowland forests are unveiling their verdant new growth in a thousand different shades of vi- brant green. Canoes can be launched on aqua- marine lakes, full to the brim with snowmelt Nights and frisky fish. But there is another choice, one that offers the renewing freshness of open sky and salty wind.

There is the sea. by the Sea Here in the fourth corner we are fortunate indeed to have access to the finest stretch of ocean frontage in the lower 48–the Olympic Meditations on Toleak Point Wilderness beach. Over the years I have hiked extensively on the north section, visiting the wonders to be found at Shi-Shi Beach, Hole- in-the-Wall and countless points in between. Somehow I have never taken the opportunity to explore the south section, from La Push to the mouth of the Hoh River, a stretch famous for its idyllic sandy beaches, wave-tossed head- lands and great congregations of eagles. An oversight to be corrected. The time has come. We leave the car at the Third Beach trail- head, just south of La Push, and head down the short trail towards the beach. The mari- time rain forest is deep and dark, with Day-Glo green patches where shafts of sunlight pen- etrate through the canopy. We emerge from the trees and step onto the sand of Third Beach beneath a dazzling blue sky. Not a cloud to be seen.

We hike down the beach for half a mile and then climb up Taylor Point on the dan- gling rope ladder that affords passage around the surf-battered point. After navigating the trembling ladder to the top of the bluff, we look down on the line of surf stretching for miles, gleaming in the sunshine; an unspeak- ably beautiful and seemingly limitless expanse of wilderness at the continent’s edge. We negotiate the muddy forest atop the headland and descend the hurly-burly trail to the beach, rounding a headland on the outgoing tide. At 3.5 miles, we encounter Scotts Creek and make camp beside its sparkling waters.

Settled in at the place where the creek meets the sea, I listen to the primordial music of the Pacific. The timpani roar of the breaking waves sounds like the beating heart of the ocean, the unfettered utterance of a power beyond our story and photographs clever measurements. Thin veils of spray drift in like the breath of God. Opalescent flotsam trembles in the breeze, backlit by Cecil B. by John D’Onofrio DeMille. Hike It»

May + June 2011 » Washington Trails On Trail « 31

Offshore, a resolute rock resembles fee, and all is well again. Beethoven looking patiently out to sea toward Japan. A woodpecker hammers away at a tree We walk the beach, turning a corner into leaning improbably over the beach, reaching the wind. On one side, Tahiti, on the other, for the surf. As the tide recedes, the wet beach the Arctic Ocean. The wind holds all the cards gleams in the pure salt-scented sun of day’s and plays them strategically. An eagle swoops end. down and snatches a washed-up octopus tenta- cle in its outstretched talons. It beats its wings At night we are subjected to the attentions hard to rise above the rocks into the cadmium of a gang of raccoons, skulking around like blue sky, tentacle dangling. petty criminals. The firelight flashes in their larcenous eyes as they hiss for our chickpea The wind curtsies in the crooked trees and curry. Stretched out in my sleeping bag next blows the sky a bashful kiss. A solitary eagle to the dying embers, I ponder the remarkable flies overhead; a benediction. We sit quietly stars and count my blessings. The night is on the beach. I watch cormorants. Barb gets filled with the sound of the surf, its unseen out her watercolors. A nearby cadre of seals edge marking the margins of the world. watches us from just offshore, heads bobbing in the gently rolling sea. The question they ask Fetching the morning water from Scotts seems important, if somewhat obscure. Creek, I almost step on a seal pup without see- ing it. It hisses and waves its flippers, briefly I wander down the empty beach, walking freaking me out and almost causing me to on sand and over spray-slicked boulders. The drop the filter in the creek. We eat our break- rocks are smooth, molded by the caress of the fast, and a bald eagle soars directly over our sea; their sculpted forms possess the sensuous- camp, bidding us good morning. We load our ness of patient time. The scene is complete: packs with a sense of anticipation for the day’s the waves, the wind, the never-ending urging journey to Toleak Point, our destination for the of the tides, the ancient trees, weathered and evening. bent by the forces of heaven and earth. The present moment echoes The beach is breathtaking, and we walk the great unbroken and in silence, enraptured by the staccato coun- unknowable history of terpoint of the waves. Every rock and piece the mighty Pacific, the of driftwood gleams in the morning sun. We endless cycles of ocean round Strawberry Point and continue our pil- and sky, renewal and grimage south, beside the dancing ocean. We constant change. are alone here at the edge of North America. We haven’t seen a soul since Third Beach. Paradise, found.

We hike around Toleak Point and make camp We spend a luxuri- just south of the spine of jutting rocks at its ous day exploring the tip. I take inventory. Twenty seals watch us beach: no agenda, no from just beyond the breakers, and seven bald destination, no hurry. eagles circle a green sea stack just offshore. We watch the tide I gather tinder for the fire along the margins come in and roll out of the beach and enjoy the long and languid again in a state of per- afternoon. fect contentment, hypnotized by the rhythm of the waves, dreaming beneath the cliffs in the Hike It» As darkness falls, I sit beside the small warm sun. It is unbelievably satisfying to do campfire with my pen and trusty junior legal nothing. South Coast pad and watch the sun go down—my idea of a Wilderness Trail - good time. Night gathers its dark secrets, and In the wavering light of evening, we lean Toleak Point stars appear, one by one. A ship passes on the back on beach logs beside the fire and discuss Roundtrip: 17 miles dark horizon, shining its melancholy light. The our good fortune as the raccoons make their Elevation Gain: 250 tide rolls nearer in the darkness, and the fire nightly reconnaissance. These days and nights feet burns down to its last hurrah. by the sea are measured by the slow and Highest Point: 250 patient tides. I align myself as best I can with feet The sky is again full of eagles this morning. the elegant rhythms. Careening eagles, easy Map: Green Trails We struggle with the persnickety stove to boil laughter and wood smoke. Each one a gift. #163s LaPush water for coffee. The entire time we’ve been The night is filled with the sweet music of the fighting with the stove, and generally speak- sea, a nocturne tailor-made to accompany our ing, I’d say the stove is winning. It won’t hold dreams. pressure. We disassemble it and reassemble it twice, working like shipwrecked watchmakers. Another sun-drenched morning (can this re- Finally we manage to produce two cups of cof- ally be the Northwest coast?) greets us and we 32 » On Trail May + June 2011 » Washington Trails

set off for Mosquito Creek, 5 miles distant. The the stars. The weather seems to be changing. tide is out, and the smorgasbord of kelp and assorted debris that it has stranded is pungent In the morning the horizon is busy with gath- on the breeze. We climb up onto a headland ering clouds as we walk north along the beach using a series of fixed ropes and find ourselves beside the tempestuous sea. Our packs feel in deep green forest once again, a delightful light and comfortable. Eagles chatter from the contrast to the sun-sparkled beach. At Good- wind-gnarled cedars. We cross Scotts Creek man Creek we cautiously ford the stream one on a jumble of logs and discover an elaborate at a time. Despite the rainless days the creek is structure of driftwood lashed together with running inexplicably high, and I use my tripod brine-encrusted rope. We make our last camp as a staff to get across the swiftly moving here, at what we dub Gilligan’s Island. Tomor- water. The thigh-deep current is icy cold and row we must return to the highway and rejoin takes my breath away, prompting involuntary the real world. Or is this perhaps the real little yips and whoops. world? Lying on my back on the soft bed of sand, it’s real enough for me. We reach the headland’s brink and lower ourselves back down to the beach with the A light morning rain drifts in as we continue aid of ragged ropes affixed to weather-beaten north, climbing over Taylor Point and down the trees. The final drop lands us in boot-sucking rope ladder to Third Beach. With more than a mud, and soon we find ourselves on the beach touch of regret, we turn away from the ocean beside Mosquito Creek. I drop my pack and re- and into the forest towards the distant trail- cline on a great lounge-chair-shaped beach log head. in the glorious afternoon sun, basking like a shameless heathen and watching the choreog- We stow our packs and drive around to the raphy of the surf. Hoh River Road where we park and take one last walk to the edge of the sea in a gently fall- As has been the case for the entire trek, we ing drizzle. So this is where it ends, at the Hoh have the beach to ourselves. Barb disappears River in the rain. Unknown birds in dark trees. around a point, and I explore the edge of the One hundred thousand frogs seem to know my sea in solitude, contemplating the elegant name. bric-a-brac left by the tide. Getting down on all fours, I examine the multihued inhabitants of The river lazily offers itself to the sea, lan- a tidepool; darting sculpins going about their guid and quiet, joining with the roaring ocean implacable business amongst the starfish and in a jubilee of ionization. The journey does not anemones. A complete world, unto itself. Until stop here on these rocky banks but goes on, the tide comes in. goes on.

Another star-spangled evening beside the Joseph Campbell was right. If bliss is what boisterous sea, watching sparks rise into the you want to follow, the South Coast Route of darkness like brushstrokes in a Jackson Pollock Olympic National Park leads directly there. painting. The sound of the waves has become so comfortable, so absolute, so all-encompass- I’ll be back.t ing. A distant foghorn adds poetic counter- point, and a mist rolls in off the ocean, muting

John D’Onofrio is a Bellingham-based writer and photogra- pher. Visit his website at www.jdonofrio.com. May + June 2011 » Washington Trails 33 Backcountry

You’re about to spend the weekend backpacking. Are you looking for a wholesome meal? The Gear Closet » Nah, that can wait. Yeah,that’d be great.

Choose Your Own Do you grow your own It’s 40 degrees and a light veggies, belong to a rain is falling. Would you C.S.A. or have a neighbor EATING like a cup of cocoa? with a fruit tree? Sure Do! Adventure Cocoa? I wish! Meh! Mmmm, Nourishing your body in the backcountry Cocoa! isn’t a one-way trail. Some approaches to this task require substantial preparation time. Others could squeeze every penny out of your wallet. And some just won’t suit your palate, try as you might. In this issue, our gear closet more closely Sounds like you resembles a pantry, as we look at how each If you can go might have excess member of WTA’s gear team fuels their body without this produce. Do you on their outdoor adventures. Read on as they comfort food, also have spare extol the virtues of going light, gourmet or you can go time at home? Why worry cheap, and you might just be convinced to try without fuel. about a few a new approach on your next trip. Pick Food Not so extra ounces without Fuel. Cocoa is much. when your tasty, and taste buds Food Without Fuel cheap. Choose are titillated? When you are looking to cut down on Budget in the A fair bit. weight, there are three areas of your pack you Backcountry. can look to for additional economy. While there is usually room for improvement in how one Like! Dislike! provides shelter and water, food and the tools necessary to make often represent a sizable percentage of anyone’s pack. Here is the low- hanging fruit. Even the lightest homemade Cat Can alcohol Don’t let those If lighter is stove requires that you carry fuel and a pot. plums rot! You always better, If the prospect of lugging around a couple of should really try Crack open you’ll be best chunks of metal on your back is unappeal- DIY Dehydration. an ale. You’re going with a ing, consider changing your eating habits and Gourmet on Freeze Dried adopting a no-cook approach. the Go. Favorite. Of course, the usual suspects—nuts, dried 34 » Backcountry May + June 2011 » Washington Trails

fruits and meats, energy bars, Oreos, fruitcake my backpacking pantry. Other items that are and hard cheese—will probably make up a fantastic for dehydrating are beef, ground significant portion of your growing no-cook meats, ham and shrimp. You can dehydrate menu. Try to integrate some fresh fruit and beans and potatoes and sauces and use them vegetables, looking for those that can survive as the base for tasty stews and other dinners. the rigors of your pack. —Cherie Bevers Keep in mind that any weight you leave behind in the way of gear can become edible Would you rather take pictures at sunset weight. Bring along a few little extras like chocolate bars or your favorite candy, and the or putter about in your outdoor kitchen? extra calories may give you enough extra en- ergy to extend the distance you’re able to Sunset colors. Hand me a spatula. hike. Even if you bring treats that don’t pack enough calories to be more than a flash in the pan, the psychological boost gained from munching while walking down the trail and taking advantage of long summer days helps to pass the miles. —Matt Thyer Find a Freeze-Dried Favorite For a long time, I had been trying to find the ideal prepackaged, lightweight backpack- ing meals, but my experiences had been hit- Do-It-Yourself Dehydration and-miss. There are many backpacking food Dehydrating your own foods is a great way companies out there, and they each have items to eat healthy while you are on the trail. The that are tolerable, terrible, and “what were taste is superior, there are no chemical addi- they thinking!” But last year, while planning tives, and it can be easy on your pocketbook. my meals for a thirty-day thru-hike on the If you are tired of the basic peas and carrots John Muir Trail—and wondering, “How am I you get in pre-packaged meals, doing it yourself going to eat the allows you to incorporate a plethora of exciting same three to vegetables. If you have the time to plan ahead, four acceptable it is possible to save more than three dollars meals I’m used per meal compared to store-bought dehydrated to packing?”—I meals. Also, dehydration reduces the volume happened across of food to roughly one-fifth of its original size an ad for Packit and reduces the weight. All these reasons Gourmet, an on- compelled me to escape into the world of food line backpacking dehydration. food supplier out A fun way to jump into dehydrating your of Austin, Texas. own food is to start with fruits and vegetables. I ordered a bunch The dehydrator that assisted me on my adven- of their meals to ture was the American Harvest Snackmaster. try out and was This unit will dry about 20 pounds of produce a amazed to taste day. When preparing fruit, cut whole fruits into food that was not just tolerable, but actually slices that are an eighth- to a quarter-inch thick. good! Allow the fruit to dehydrate for six to twenty My favorite meal, and the winner of several hours at 135 degrees. Vegetable preparation outdoor publication editors’ awards, is their varies quite a bit, as some require cooking Austintacious Tortilla Soup. So good! It comes beforehand and the manner in which you cut it packaged with tortilla chips and Tabasco down to size changes. Plan on cooking vegeta- sauce, and it warms the insides on those chilly bles at 130 degrees for anywhere between three evenings. Other tasty dinner offerings include and fourteen hours. Remember to periodically Dottie’s Chicken and Dumplings, Bangers and check on your produce throughout the drying Mash, and another award winner—Tuscan process. Overdried food can be tough and not Beef Stew. For lunches, instead of the typical so satisfying. The final step is to store the beef jerky and gorp, just heat a little water dehydrated fruit properly. You can use a and have a Trailside Bean and Cheese Burrito ziplocked bag if you will be consum- or All-American Burger Wrap (get it with “the ing the produce within a month, but works”). On their breakfast menu, you’ll find it is best to use an airtight system. Migas del Sol, Tex-Mex Breakfast Taco, and my Try using one of the Reynolds food favorite (since I’m not a big breakfast eater), sealer systems. their Jump-Start Fruit Smoothies—full of good One of my favorite experiments stuff to get you going and available in four was preparing seasoned rice. The flavors. Not only is their menu a lot of down- process was simple, and the outcome home goodness, but their meals are affordable will allow me to add tasty cheap carbs to (roughly five dollars a serving) and serving por- May + June 2011 » Washington Trails Backcountry « 35 tions are very generous. benefits) and makes any hot dish taste and Many of Packit Gourmet’s meals are made feel like a home-cooked meal. I add it to my with organic and all-natural ingredients, and pack. I also grab two carrots, one avocado, this is a big plus for me. Thoughtful additions and a bag of Vigo red rice and beans. I make like chicken broth packets, olive oil, hot sauces sure to bring along a couple of teaspoons of and real Parmesan cheese really boost the fla- cayenne pepper and garlic salt, knowing they vor of many of their prepared dishes. If you’re should really help give the wraps a spicy kick! a do-it-yourselfer, they also offer a full range I decide to bring a couple protein bars and a of freeze-dried meat and vegetable ingredients few Emergen-C drink packets, just in case. I that you can put together to prepare your own almost forgot victory beverages! I immediately creations. Give this brand a shot. You won’t be add two to three canned craft ales (Oskar disappointed, and they’ll change the way you Blues, Caldera or the like), the stronger the plan your future backpacking meals. Check better, to my bounty. Soon, very soon, I’ll be them out online: www.packitgourmet.com. sitting on top of a mountain, surrounded by —Eli Boschetto rows and rows of jagged peaks, sipping on a citrusy, hoppy double IPA. —Patrick Leahy

Gourmet on the Go One step I never skip when trip planning is contemplating what would be delicious to Budget in the Backcountry Being the perpetual student that I am, I eat in the backcountry. My top priority is to need to pinch pennies wherever I can in order incorporate “real” food into the weekend. I to reduce the size of my student loans, and want to be slightly conscious of weight, but I’m I need to spend as little time as I possibly definitely willing to pack in a bit more so that I can preparing my food. Instead of the pricey can indulge in something truly delectable. prepackaged meals one finds in fancy retail If it’s Thursday night and I am about to em- stores, I take a trip down to my local grocery bark on a solo mid-summer weekend backpack- store. Herein lies an abundance of cheap, ing trip, my preparation will go something like tasty meals that are packed with calories and this. Since I haven’t had smoked salmon in a enough nutrition. couple weeks, I pack salmon and pair it with My typical meal plan in the backcountry sesame crackers and white cheddar. This will consists of Pop Tarts ($.80 for 500 calories) and make for two excellent lunches. Some trail mix, coffee for breakfast, peanut butter and jelly dried fruit, and a few cookies will complement ($.61 per 500 calories) or peanut butter and my meal perfectly. I grab oatmeal from the Nutella ($.72 per 500 calories) and a piece of cupboard, enough for two mornings, and throw fruit for lunch, and some ramen ($.38 per 500 in a handful of freshly picked blueberries. I still calories), Easy Mac ($1.41 per 500 calories) or need to figure out dinner. Since I won’t want mashed pota- to cook on Friday, I’ll pick up a turkey, Havarti toes ($1.70 per and pesto sandwich on rosemary focaccia from 500 calories) the grocer and eat it at the trailhead before You studied the map, and hot cocoa I start on my moonlit hike. I will want some- You loaded your for dinner. I thing hot and satisfying on Saturday night backpack add generic after hiking all day, so I grab two tortillas and drove to the granola bars, and an 8-ounce bag of sharp cheddar out of trailhead, chocolate, the fridge. I can make some mouth-watering homemade You climbed two ridges burritos by adding rice, beans, veggies and trail mix and and forded a stream. hot sauce. Kale is a great source of flavonoids dried fruit Now it’s time to reflect: (with both antioxidant and anti-inflammatory to snack on throughout Buckskin Larch the day. A and Bedrock great place (The book) for dried fruit by Mike Hiler and tasty nuts is your local Trader Joe’s. I’ve also found bulk food bins to be an excellent place to invent my own trail mix. I try to stock CAVE MOON PRESS up on these trail mix staples when I see them Y A K I M A W A on sale. Remember, buy in large quantities and your Available at food will be even cheaper. —Cheri Higman www.Amazon.com Whistl’n Jacks Lodge Ranger Stations Illustrations by Noel Berube. and select bookstores Contact him at [email protected]. 36 » Backcountry May + June 2011 » Washington Trails How to Do It » Love Hiking More Six conditioning tips, and one secret, to get you into the best shape possible In Survival of The Fittest, Dr. Mike Stroud, Maintain a neutral spine medical advisor to the United Kingdom’s Min- It’s important to create equal tension in a istry of Defence, makes a compelling argument way that neither strains our back or our core that walking is the primary activity that we as abdominal muscles. One way to do this is to humans are designed to do. imagine you had to carry a friend on your shoulders. You’d bend the knees slightly and I could not agree more. I personally enjoy quickly engage your core trunk muscles to pro- hiking and backpacking as a way to experi- tect your lower back and gain balance. ence the beauty of the outdoors, and as a fitness coach, I recommend that everyone go hiking. It is a per- fect way to build a solid foundation for fitness and health. I can’t think of a single activity that provides more fitness enjoyment and benefits than hiking.

I also know that sometimes we experience fatigue or pain which might detract from our enjoyment. Back pain and knee pain are very common. But is the hiking to blame? Not according to the physi- cal therapist who once told me, “If people hiked regularly, I’d be out of business.” It’s my observation that the hours we spend sitting in an automobile or at our desks cannot help our posture and overall bal- ance. In coaching, I try to address this imbalance in simple and effec- To download a step-by-step graphic featuring all of the tive ways that will always increase exercises in “The Daily Dozen,” visit www.wta.org/how-to, or body awareness and efficiency. John’s website www.fitbynature.us.

Here are six exercise tips that can help us all enjoy hiking more: Build Strength Naturally Think About Your Posture As an outdoor athlete, I would rather not As you walk, imagine yourself as a dancer— spend my time in a gym, and yet I want to John tall and elegant. This awareness can help have the necessary strength to be able to Colver align, or unkink your body in a way that you comfortably carry a pack, quickly put up a tent are now recruiting more of your muscles, espe- or to easily use a snow shovel or mountain An avid hiker, cially in the middle of your trunk. axe. One of my favorite routines is the “daily athletic coach dozen.” It takes only twelve minutes, and it and Rainier guide Use the Most Powerful Muscles will exercise all of your muscle groups, develop great movement skills and increase strength As you walk, focus on stepping off from your with over 80 and flexibility, all by using only your own body heels; this small action can increase the use of summits, John’s weight. You can go through the routine twice strong gluteus muscles as well as hamstrings. book, Fit By Nature for a longer session. (You can download a step- You can also reduce the strain on your quad- is available from by-step graphic featuring all of the exercises in riceps muscles, knees and calves and ankles “The Daily Dozen” at www.wta.org/how-to.) The Mountaineers while greatly increasing your efficiency. Books. May + June 2011 » Washington Trails Backcountry « 37

Work on Speed Backcountry Bookshelf » Struggling to keep up can be a drag. Hiking alone will improve your overall fitness, and Mariposa Road Trip practicing some strength exercises like the Robert Michael Pyle takes readers daily dozen will build strength, but there are some tricks to improving your speed. along as he pursues a 500-butterfly year

One thing you can do is to practice “interval If you haven't read Robert Pyle's Sky Time in Gray's River, you're obviously not training.” Here’s an example of how to add on my Christmas list. Pyle earned a Ph.D. in ecology, and his books are full of some quick segments to your hikes or training informed, yet vivid descriptions of the land and its occupants. His book Winter- walks. Pick a large tree or rock a few hundred green won the John Burroughs award for natural history writing. yards away, then simply pick up the pace and see how quickly you can reach your target. Al- Sky Time and Wintergreen are about his corner of southwestern Washing- ternatively, you can use your watch to measure ton. In these books he intimately captures in words what so attracts me as a a minute of faster-paced hiking. Doing even photographer to this area —the dreamy play of light and the fluid effects of three to four faster intervals during a hike will the changing of the seasons on the land and its inhabitants. The appeal to make a big difference. It works because you those of us who dwell in cities is irresistible. We would love to be on a first- are stimulating your neuromuscular system to name basis with neighbors and local wildlife. So I wondered if his new book be able to move more quickly. With intervals, with its much-expanded scope of his personal radar would be too ambitious. the key is to focus not on going “hard” but on Would Mariposa Road, a travelogue of his trips across the 50 states, measure being fast and nimble. Try intervals two to up? I need not have worried. Opening this book is like sitting down with an three times each week, and you’ll see an im- old friend who is a great yarn spinner and very much in tune with the natural provement in your speed in a matter of weeks. world. You want to hang out with this guy.

Practice Your Balance Mariposa Road details Pyle's challenge to log observations of 500 butterflies in Everyone can improve balance. And it’s a one year. The book begins in January 2008 when, not surprisingly, Pyle often myth that we lose it as we age. What really gets skunked by bad weather on his West Coast expeditions. happens is that we practice less. One simple and fun way to see improvements in balance and stability is to see how long you can stand The man knows his bugs, specifically butterflies, and has written several other on one leg—fifteen seconds, thirty seconds, a books on them, including Chasing Monarchs, published in 2001. If you've ever minute or more. For an extra challenge, try tried to identify a butterfly using Internet tools such as butterfliesandmoths. standing on one leg with your eyes closed. Do org, you'll gain an enormous amount of respect for Pyle, the breadth of his it for fun each day after your daily dozen. knowledge and his passion for this quest. Pyle is also keenly observant of the natural surroundings that constitute the butterflies' habitat. And finally, I’d like to share an experi- ence. This approach has been one of the best Butterflies have a hold on Pyle, as they did on Vladimir Nabokov, who was things I’ve ever found to improve my hiking, intensely interested in butterflies. (Nabokov’s theory on their evolution was but I didn’t learn it in a book or from a coach. recently vindicated.) Be careful. The butterflies' names and Pyle’s illustrative I learned this secret by walking behind my descriptions of them are contagious. You might be drawn in forever, too. I now Nepalese friend, Lakpa Rita Sherpa. He walks want to drive to Texas, simply to see the elusive red satyr. And yet, as good as with a grace and softness that is almost impos- Pyle’s descriptions are, I still wanted to have a butterfly handbook nearby to sible not to mimic. When I’m on trail and want see these wonders for myself. There are no photos within the book. an energy boost, I walk like he does. I become completely aware of every footfall landing With most of the journeys undertaken in Pyle’s 1982 Honda Civic named so softly as to try to leave no footprint. I find Powdermilk, Mariposa Road is strong on travel narrative, too. It's as fun to myself walking taller. I breathe more deeply. I read about places you too have visited as it is to get ideas for places to visit explore my connection to nature. on your own future road trips. Pyle encounters Texas state troopers and other unexpected problems, including a “dumpster dive” to retrieve a lost specimen. And this awareness reminds me that I’m He meets friends and enjoys their company, food and the local brews as he doing the very best exercise possible. I am sur- adds to his butterfly count. Along the way, the "by-catch," Pyle’s term for that rounded by beauty, getting fit and improving w which ends up in your net without direct intent (meaning anything other than my health with every single step I take. butterflies), turns out to be some of the most entertaining parts of the book. And there are poignant moments when he describes habitat destruction or his wife's ongoing battle with cancer.

For a list of conditioning hikes This is not your usual dry diatribe on butterfly species, nor is it an uneducated recommended by WTA members, travelogue of banal sightseeing. I would follow this guy anywhere. I could write more about Mariposa Road, but I'm planning my own road trip to Texas visit www.wta.org/ to see that elusive red satyr. conditioninghikes. —Cindy Clark Photo: Lorquin’s Admiral (Limenitis lorquini) by Kate McPeek. 38 » Backcountry May + June 2011 » Washington Trails

Trail Eats » Sarah Kirkconnell Hey, day hikers! Headed to an alpine lake? Treat your body extra-right. Prepare these heart- healthy vegetarian dishes at home, and then carry them into a scenic picnic site. You can even make them vegan if you like. No stove required, just make and eat. Vegetarian Day hiker’s Picnic: —HealTHY Snack, Entree and Dessert Honey-Roasted Almonds and Cranberries Ingredients: • 1/2 cup agave nectar or honey • 2 Tbsp. butter (or margarine if preferred) • 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon • 3/4 tsp. kosher salt, divided • 3 cups whole almonds (or nut of choice) • 6-ounce bag dried cranberries • 3 Tbsp. granulated sugar • 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon Directions: Preheat oven to 325 degrees and Low-Fat Fudgy Brownies line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a heavy medium saucepan, bring the Ingredients: agave or honey, butter, 1/2 tsp. salt and cinnamon to a boil, let cook for two min- • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour utes, stirring constantly. Put the nuts and cranberries in a large heat-safe mixing • 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder bowl, pour the hot syrup over and stir to cover. Spread out on the baking sheet. • 1/2 cup packed brown sugar Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the nuts are golden. Take out and allow mix to • 1/8 tsp. kosher salt cool. Knock the nuts into a large mixing bowl and toss with the sugar, cinnamon • 1 Tbsp. canola oil and 1/4 tsp. salt till coated. Spread out on a new piece of parchment paper to fin- • 4-ounce applesauce ish hardening. • 1/2 cup canned pumpkin purée • 2 tsp. pure vanilla extract Directions: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and Cherry Couscous Salad spray an 8×8-inch glass baking pan with cooking Ingredients: spray. In a medium bowl, whisk the dry ingredients • 2 cups lower-sodium vegetable broth together. • 1 1/2 cups couscous In a large bowl, whisk the wet ingredients together. • 15-ounce can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), rinsed and drained Add the dry to the wet; stir or whisk until combined. • 1/4 cup dried cherries Spread into the prepared baking dish and bake for • 1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted and cooled 20 to 25 minutes, checking at 20, until a toothpick Dressing: in the center comes out mostly clean (moist crumb • 1/4 cup red wine vinegar but not wet dough). Let cool and cut. Carry in small • 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil plastic bags or wrapped in plastic wrap. Eat within • 1 Tbsp. agave nectar or honey two days of baking for best results. • 1 tsp. dry parsley • 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper • 1/4 tsp. salt, if desired Tip: For a cool, crisp picnic, pack Directions: Bring the broth to a your lunch in a lightweight boil in a medium saucepan; add the children's insulated lunch bag. couscous. Remove from heat, cover Include ice cubes double-bagged tightly and let sit for 10 minutes. in quart freezer bags. Fluff up the couscous with a fork. In a large bowl, toss the couscous with Your lunch will stay cold, and the chickpeas, cherries and almonds. after lunch, you will have ice- Whisk the dressing in a small bowl cold water or ice to add to your and taste for seasoning. Pour the water bottle! dressing over the couscous and toss to coat. Let mix chill overnight and Want more? Visit www.trailcooking.com. then pack into lightweight sandwich containers with tight-fitting lids. Recipes by Sarah Kirkconnell. Photos by Kirk Kirkconnell. May + June 2011 » Washington Trails Backcountry « 39 Sage Advice »

Camping With a Crew A young blended family shares their tips and tricks

It was early spring and Marika like that trip to Lower Lena Lake four years ago. My children had been hiking since my daughter was was leading the way, while I one, while Marika and her children had no hiking formed the caboose of our hiking experience. Inexpensive and fun, hiking got our two families out of the house together and led us to have train. Two and a half miles into our hike, our many memorable shared experiences. Since then, girls were up front and singing. The boys had fallen hiking has become something the whole family an- behind as they investigated every boulder, tree and ticipates. It’s truly a focal point in our spring through trench. As we rounded the last corner, all the kids fell fall activities. silent as a pristine lake appeared in a narrow valley between two mountain ridges. Over lunch on a rock Through our hiking experiences with our group of outcropping, we looked out over a partially frozen young children, we have learned many tips that we Lower Lena Lake 100 feet below. On our first day hike feel would be useful for other families with young together, as Marika and I watched our kids playing children, or families making their first trips onto Adam and enjoying nature, we decided that hiking would Washington’s trails. become a large part of our family activities. Scroggins Gearing up Since early That was four years ago, when Marika and I began childhood, Adam dating. Marika has four children, two girls ages Every year in early spring, we take a series of local twelve and seven and two boys ages ten and nine. I day hikes to help the kids get used to wearing their has explored all have two children; my son is nine and my daughter is packs and help us evaluate any new gear needs due that the Northwest six. We are raising our kids together now, and Marika to physical changes from the previous year. Keep- has to offer. In the and I both believe in getting our children unplugged ing the kids comfortable with their gear has paid last 9 years, he’s and out of the house whenever our schedule dividends for Marika and me. If they aren’t miserable, focused on exposing permits. We feel it is one of the ways to raise well- neither are we. his children to the rounded children. beauty and gifts Knowing that kids outgrow their gear from season found in our corner For many of our first outings as a blended family, we to season, we have opted to purchase cheaper of the world. took day hikes on the Kitsap and Olympic Peninsulas, equipment for everyone when outfitting our kids 40 » Backcountry May + June 2011 » Washington Trails

for the first time. As the older kids have grown, we intriguing hikes and group them into spring, summer purchase higher quality gear for them and pass their and fall hikes. older stuff down to the younger kids. As each new season begins, we find all the days that With a little planning, we’ve been able to spread we can reserve for hiking. For each hiking date, we our gear costs out, making a few key purchases pencil in three or four hikes, each in a different part each year, without breaking the bank. The first year of Washington. As our hike date approaches, we we hiked as a family, our four older kids wore check the weather forecast and choose the hike that external-frame backpacks. We chose external- best suits the conditions and the gear we have. This Sharing the Load frame backpacks due to what we felt was a more question is our motto: “Why hike in a rainstorm in the To pack efficiently, we’ve universal fit, which would allow us to hand them Olympics when a warm and dry hike in the Cascades developed a set of guide- down as the kids got older. As each of our kids or Eastern Washington is on the list of hikes?” All of the lines of what to pack in enters their teens, we’re planning to give them an hikes we don’t take that day are then moved onto our kids’ backpacks based internal-frame backpack with a more specific fit hiking dates later in the year or put on a list for the on their ages. that they will be able to use through high school. following year. Ages 4 to 6: Water and snacks Outfitting our kids five and younger with moun- In our early hiking days, we targeted day hikes of 3 Ages 6 to 10: Ten essen- to 6 miles round trip with a maximum elevation gain tials, water, snacks, meals, tain biking hydration packs, which have small of 2,000 feet. As the kids have become stronger and sleeping bag and pad pockets for snacks and lunch, has worked really well. These packs are smaller and lighter than ex- can travel farther, we’ve ramped up our distance and Ages 10 to 13: Ten essen- elevation maximums and added overnight hikes into tials, water, snacks, meals, ternal-frame backpacks. Due to the limited weight our criteria. This year, we are considering hikes that sleeping bag, sleeping pad, young kids can carry, this approach worked better range from 6 to 9 miles with an elevation gain of up portions of the tent (poles than finding hiking backpacks for them and saved to 3,000 feet per day. or tent body), gear other us money as well. kids could not carry, small community items like fuel When our kids were younger and unable to carry canisters or the stove all of their own gear, Marika and I carried some Dinnertime Ages 13 and Up: Ev- seriously large packs. After returning home with As it turns out, our kids do not eat large meals when erything needed to be painful hips and sore shoulders, I invested in a hiking. They’d rather eat small snacks, like dried self-sufficient, including Gregory Palisades internal-frame pack—an invest- apricots and mangoes, all throughout the day. One the ten essentials and a ment that has more than paid for itself as I have of our kids in particular runs out of energy quickly, first-aid kit not had a painful hike since. Last season, Marika so we pack extra Clif Bars, trail mix and beef jerky upgraded to an Osprey Atmos backpack. Our top and feed him every thirty minutes or so to keep his As the hiking season priorities were comfort and fit, and we chose the energy up. Watching how your kids eat on day hikes goes on, we evaluate each packs that worked best for us, without concern for will give you some sense of how they’ll react once on kid’s comfort and make name brand or popularity. overnight trip. small adjustments.

Do you have to purchase the latest and most ex- Two of our kids need constant water, so they carry pensive gear to enjoy hiking with your kids? Nope, larger, completely full water bladders in their packs, and you don’t have to purchase all your hiking gear and we watch for spots to filter water to refill their from a big-name outdoor store, either. hydration systems as needed. We encourage them Keep your eyes open when you’re at Fred to drink as much as they need. It is far easier to take Meyer, Home Depot and Target, or even another potty break than to treat a dehydrated child the grocery store, and you may see similar or, worse, one with heat stroke. gear to what you’ll find at an outdoor store at a lower price. This gear may weigh When we do eat large meals, we typically eat in shifts more, but unless you’re taking your kids of two to three people to limit the amount of cooking to the top of Mount Rainier, it should be gear that we need to pack in. By keeping the amount more than adequate to get you on the of community gear low, the adults and older kids can trails for your initial hikes. carry more personal gear for the smaller kids. Our With a few hikes under your belt, assess children aren’t big fans of MREs or the dehydrated what has worked for you and what hasn’t. food found at your typical outdoor store. Instead, we At this point, you will have a better look for the foods that the kids will eat at home and understanding of what you want to pay use meals that are light and quick enough to bring top dollar for, and you can slowly upgrade on a backpacking trip. Bear Creek makes several de- your gear. hydrated soups that the kids like. Their tortilla soup ends up being served regularly. Uncle Ben’s makes Planning ahead several precooked rice packages which require mini- In winter, we dream about trips we want mal heating over a stove. Salmon, halibut and tuna to take in the coming year and research patties that are precooked and vacuum-sealed heat the trails. We typically identify 15 to 20 up quickly. For breakfast, we bring instant oatmeal, May + June 2011 » Washington Trails Backcountry « 41 vacuum-packed breakfast meats, like Spam, and instant hot chocolate.

Making meals that the kids will enjoy and that are also easy to pack and prepare takes practice at home. The last place you want to try and figure out how to prepare a dinner is under the light of a head lamp at the end of long hike. Spend a weekend car camp- ing, or cook in your back yard using only your hiking gear and food, to see what works and does not work. Remember, when you’re on the trail, you have to be self-sufficient. Is this a good time to figure out what you need or realize what you are missing? No way, especially not when you’re hiking with children!

Settling into camp Making camp is a family affair, and, with our num- bers, it tends to go rather quickly. Marika typically focuses on getting the camp kitchen set up and din- ner going, while I set up the various tents. The kids are responsible for refilling all of the hydration packs 11 Lessons Learned (Some the Hard Way) and our camp shower (which doubles as a water bladder), and for finding firewood if that is allowed. 1. When backpacking, carry more snacks and fewer large meals. 2. Always keep one adult at the front of the group and one at the back. Set up checkpoints every half mile where you can People have different ideas as to how to entertain regroup. the kids around camp. Our philosophy is, “You’re in nature. Go enjoy it.” What this means is explore the 3. If you’re getting an external-frame pack for a child, check to see area around you, find a nice place to skip rocks, find if there is a support bar across the top of the pack. If so, make sure it natural forts, find a nice view and listen to nature. Sit does not interfere with the child’s ability to move their head now and around camp with a book or a deck of cards and en- in the future as they grow. joy each other’s company. If it’s allowed, fishing is a 4. Look for sturdy compression straps. High-quality thick plas- fun activity that provides an additional dinner option tic or metal clips with high-quality stitching are a must. and this bonus: the kid who provides food for the whole family leaves with a real sense of achievement. 5. Many backpacks are not set up with a tie-down point for a hy- dration systems nozzle. Hardware stores sell 4-inch by 0.5-inch Velcro strips in a roll that you can use to add tie-down points to any pack. Personally, I tend to sit back and enjoy watching our children’s imaginations run wild while I sip on instant 6. Each child hikes at a different pace, with a different energy hot chai tea, and tend to any gear or camp issues. requirement. Watch your kids and do not push them harder than needed. Remember, hiking is supposed to be fun. 7. Plan on your hikes taking longer than listed in the guidebooks, In the last four years, our hiking and camping trips especially the first time. Don’t push your kids to try and meet the have provided many wonderful family experiences. posted hiking times. Accept that you may not reach your end goal, As parents, we have learned more about our kids as you may need to turn back based on how fast you are hiking and and what they are capable of, both mentally and how your kids are doing on any given hike. physically. And our kids have developed an apprecia- tion for what nature and our state of Washington 8. Give each kid a whistle, and make sure they keep it on them have to offer. They’ve also learned that by working at all times. Teach them to use it as soon as they feel they may be together, they can reach goals that they could not lost. achieve alone. We hope that sharing what we’ve 9. Hydration systems, for the most part, do not contain inter- learned through our experiences as a hiking family changeable components. Research the systems first, then outfit will inspire your family to find your way to the trails, everyone with the same brand to make cleaning, storage and upkeep or to make your future hiking experiences even more much easier. After using four different systems, we’ve switched ex- memorable.t clusively to CamelBak for their ease of use and mouthpiece function- ality. This spring, the Scroggins-Forsell 10. Baby wipes can be used to clean dirty feet and hands, re- family will test out a number of new move sticky sap, and serve as backup toilet paper. tents, backpacks, sleeping bags and 11. Kids love the taste boost that comes with adding a powdered sleeping pads. Read their review of flavored water packet into their water bladder or bottle. Just make family camping gear in the next issue sure to properly clean and dry your hydration system when you of Washington Trails. return home. 42 » Backcountry May + June 2011 » Washington Trails Take a Hike! Day Hikes & Overnights » Hello, long days! Here are eight fantastic early summer hikes, as suggested by your fellow Washington Trails readers. For best results, hike them soon!

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1 2 If you need more ideas, try WTA’s Hike Finder, online 4 6 7 at www.wta.org/ 5 go-hiking/map.

Safety Notice Neither Washington Trails magazine, the Washington Trails Association, nor their personnel accept any 8 liability for accidents or injuries in connection with articles, trail or road reports published 1 Shi-Shi Beach 5 in Washington Trails Ingalls Creek magazine. The reports If you are seeking the sublime, try sea Rare wildflowers, a rushing creek and a provide updated infor- stacks at sunset. swath of exquisite peaks—not bad! mation of interest to the region’s trail users; 2 readers are cautioned Miller Peninsula 6 Liberty Lake Loop to supplement the Get your sneak peak before the crowds reports with other Enjoy a multitude of hiking options. sources of information find out about this trail. . when planning a trip. 7 Additionally, readers Deep Creek Canyon should be aware that 3 East Bank Baker Lake Beautiful basalt cliffs guaranteed, reported conditions may change, that there You won’t soon forget these stellar megafauna possible. may be errors in the views of Shuksan and Baker. reports, and that certain 8 hazards are inherent in Lewis River backcountry travel. 4 Poo Poo Point A hike for waterfall lovers. Tiger Mountain’s trails melt out early. May + June 2011 » Washington Trails Backcountry « 43

2 Miller Peninsula Olympic Peninsula Shi Shi Beach. Photo by Ken Giesbers. Total Mileage: 5 miles Elevation Gain: Approximately 360 feet Highest Elevation: 360 feet Map(s): USGS Gardiner Managed By: Washington State Department of Natural Resources

Little known even to locals, this sure-to-be- popular future state park deserves a sneak peak before the crowds find it. This hike winds through a vivid green ravine, ending at a se- cluded and isolated beach with clear views of Protection Island. Stroll along the beach to find Thompson Spit and its bird-rich lagoon before enjoying a beach lunch soaking in the sights and sounds that are the ocean. Make sure you time the tide right to have enough time to indulge in selfish relaxation. Bainbridge Island Metro Park and Recreation Outdoor Programs will be leading a guided hike on this very route on July 2, 2011. Round- trip transportation will be provided from 1 Shi Shi Beach Bainbridge Island. For more information, visit http://biparks.org/ Olympic Peninsula Jeff Ozimek Total Mileage: 5 miles Bainbridge Island, Wahington Elevation Gain: 50 feet gain and loss Highest Elevation: Sea level Trailhead coordinates: Map(s): Green Trails Cape Flattery #98S Latitude 48.077125, Longitude -122.938813 Managed by: Makah Nation and Olympic National Park Destination coordinates: Latitude 48.098138, Longitude -122.948984 This scenic Pacific Ocean beach has rugged reefs, sea stacks and headlands, which will combine to lead you onward to the gorgeous Point of Arches. Carry a current tide table. Timing your trip with the tides is essential because you don’t want to be stranded.

The woodland trail is good for the first mile, but reverts to muddy potholes for the remaining 2 miles above the beach. Persist and continue for the rewards.

Switchback steeply down to the beach where you will find good ocean side camps and freshwater sources at Petroleum and Willoughby Creeks.

Beach campfires are allowed here. You will need a Makah Recreational Permit, available at nearby stores.

This is a wilderness beach and the beachcombing can be superb, but take note of landmarks, such as the bull’s-eye target nailed to a tree near the trail up the cliff. Your footprints may be washed away, so don’t rely on following them back to your starting point.

The beach hike on a clear spring day can be beautiful, and so too is a night on the ocean next to the crashing breakers.

Joan Burton Seattle, Washington 44 » Backcountry May + June 2011 » Washington Trails

Check out Mount Baker’s heavy snow from 4 the East Bank Baker Lake Trail. Photo by Poo Poo Point Lois Peterson. (The Long Way Around) Issaquah Alps

Total Mileage: 10 miles Elevation Gain: 2,400 feet Highest Elevation: 3,000 feet Managed By: Washington David Hollenback State Department of Natural Resources

You can certainly get to Poo Poo Point via the Chirico Trail and get your heart rate up. But how about extending your hike to include some of Tiger Mountain’s less-frequented trails? You’ll want to carry a copy of Green Trails 204S Tiger Mountain map. Starting from Tradition Plateau Trailhead, hike the Bus Trail to the BPA Trail to the Poo Poo Point Trail. Over the next 2.8-mile stretch, you’ll gain 1,400 feet and enjoy a water- fall, ferns and mature forest. Pass the intersection with the One View and West Tiger RR Grade Trails and continue southwest to Poo Poo Point proper. 3 East Bank Baker Lake On a calm sunny day, you may encounter hang gliders making a mad North Cascades dash off the astroturf to their landing spot far below, where a van waits to drive them back up to do it all over again. Take in the views of Lake Total Mileage: 4 miles Sammamish, Bellevue and Lake Washington. Head back the way you Highest Elevation: 970 feet came and take a right at the One View Trail until it meets the Tiger Map(s): Green Trails Lake Shannon #46 Mountain Trail near Fifteenmile Gap. (I have travelled this segment a Managed by: Mount Baker Ranger District half-dozen times and encountered no more than a half-dozen hikers!) Head north on the TMT to join the throngs at West Tiger 3 for more views. After your second lunch here, return to Tradition Plateau via the This is a great woodland trail above Baker West Tiger 3 Trail. Aside from this last segment, you will have avoided Lake, with views of snow-covered Mount Baker most of the crowds while seeing some of the better parts of the State reflected in the still water below. Drive across Forest. the upper Baker Dam to find the gravel road leading to the East Bank trailhead. Steve Payne Begin switchbacking down through old Federal Way, Washington second-growth timber and immense old-growth cedar stumps. In early spring, look for skunk cabbage, maidenhair ferns and moss covering every surface. At about 1 mile, cross Anderson Creek (draining from Anderson Lake above) on an old bridge, and in another 0.25 mile reach a junction. Continue downward another 2 miles to Maple Grove Camp. Go left, out to the lake- shore and find excellent old maple tree studded campsites. Maple Grove is the result of a long-ago rock- slide that came down into the lake and formed a small peninsula. You can judge how long ago that was by the age of the old maple trees. In summer the camps are used by boaters, but backpackers can enjoy them now. You may choose to continue along the East Bank Trail all the way to the end of the lake, a total of 12 miles, but this is the best campsite. The views of Mount Baker and Mount Shuk- san at sunset and sunrise are unforgettable.

Joan Burton Seattle, Washington A view from Ingalls Creek Trail. Photo by Louise Kornreich. May + June 2011 » Washington Trails Backcountry « 45

Help Stop The Spread 5 Ingalls Creek Of Invasive Pests & Diseases Central Cascades

Total Mileage: 12 miles Elevation Gain: 1,200 feet help stop the spread of Map(s): Green Trails Liberty 210 and Mount invasive pests and diseases Stuart 209 Managed By: Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest

This is not just another hike along a creek. Within the first half-mile of gentle trail, you encounter wildflowers of many colors and vari- eties you haven’t seen elsewhere, all while am- bling along Ingalls Creek. At about 2 miles in, you’ll find a boulder field in the forest that just asks to be rested upon. Stop for a snack or an early lunch and listen to the creek passing by. Then, farther on the trail, the excitement be- gins; you will see peaks to your right...and not just any peaks, these are the Enchantments. When you see them, you will understand the frenzy that occurs every spring to get a cov- eted Enchantments permit. It looks like a land of fairy tales, with wizards and sharp, rocky peaks with names like Leprechaun and Dragon- tail. Lucky you, you need only to look up to get BUY IT WHERe this view. At mile 5.5, you arrive at Falls Creek Camp and Trail. The bridge is gone here, but it is pos- . sible to cross with a log and good friends. Bet- YOU Burn it. ter yet, just stay on the north side of the creek and have lunch before heading back. If an overnight is the intention, there will be better, more private camps farther on along Ingalls Creek. For the intrepid (and those visiting later in the season when the snow has melted), you can continue on Ingalls Creek Trail to its head- waters at Lake Ingalls and over Longs Pass to the Teanaway trailhead for a 15.5-mile one-way trip, with the mountains of the Stuart Range getting closer with each step. For everyone else, the Ingalls Creek Trail is an excellent choice for May and June, when the snow line is still low, but flowers are Here’s How You Can Help: blooming in the valleys. Here’s how you can help: Ingalls Creek has everything that’s good • Leave firewood at home - do not transport it to about hiking in the Northwest, all in one easy campgrounds or parks. trip. • Use firewood from local sources. • Burn all firewood before leaving your campsite Louise Kornreich if leaving the local area. Seattle, Washington 1-877-9-INFEST or invasivespecies.wa.gov Summertime ... and the hiking is easy ... To recommend a hike for our July+August issue, head to www.wta. org/trail-news/magazine/suggestion- forms/suggestions. 46 » Backcountry May + June 2011 » Washington Trails

6 Deep Creek Canyon Eastern Washington 7 Liberty Lake Loop Total Mileage: 4.6 miles Eastern Washington Elevation Gain: 500 feet Highest Elevation: 2,190 feet Total Mileage: 7.5 miles Map: USGS Nine Mile Falls Elevation Gain: 1,160 feet Managed By: Riverside State Park Highest Elevation: 3,120 feet This hike will take you in and around some Map: USGS Mica Peak geological gems. Some of the oldest fossils ever Managed By: Spokane found in Washington were found in this canyon and the beautiful basalt cliffs and outcroppings County Parks keep many hikers coming back to this area during all four seasons. To fully enjoy this hike, Found in a Spokane the Jack Nisbet book Visible Bones is required County Park on the west- reading. ern edges of Liberty Lake in the Spokane Valley, this The hike begins and ends inside Riverside trail offers a variety of State Park, one of our largest state parks, and early-season opportunities. if you put your boots to trail soon enough you Those with children can won’t even need the new Discover Pass in your put together a great hike windshield to enjoy this hike. The trail is just by working their way out to the cedar grove that is just about 2 miles short of 5 miles, and the elevation gain is very into the hike. Those who would like to start training for longer distances negligible, particularly for what you get to see. and some elevation gain can feel free to complete the 7-mile loop out to a small set of waterfalls and back. The best view comes not long after A few quick words of caution: You may reaching the Cedar Grove when the trail climbs quickly through a series very well encounter horses on the trail and of switchbacks. With a high point of 3,120 feet, this hike is doable for will need to act appropriately while passing most fit hikers. each other. Also, don’t be surprised to find many species of animals who normally reside Recent WTA work parties have rerouted the trail around a problem in much deeper wilderness, such as moose, spot near the end of the 7-mile loop. A local beaver had decided to flood coyotes, and maybe an occasional bear. And, out a good section of the old trail, but a great number of volunteers and finally, the park rangers are strict about closing a few work parties later, we have a new trail that avoids this area. the park at dusk, so please give yourself plenty of time to be distracted by the beauty and still To read more about this hike, find hike 20 in Rich Landers’ hiking return to your car with time to spare. guide 100 Hikes in the Inland Northwest.

Guidebook author Rich Landers gives a Todd Dunfield detailed, turn-by-turn description of this hike in Spokane, Washington the 100 Hikes in the Inland Northwest. Look for hike 17.

Todd Dunfield Spokane, Washington May + June 2011 » Washington Trails Backcountry « 47

8 Lewis River Trail South Cascades WTA Day Trips Date(s) Work Party Location Total Mileage: 6.6 miles Elevation Gain: 400 feet May 1 Pratt River Connector Map(s): Green Trails Lone May 3 - 6 Greenwater Butte #365 May 6 CCC Road Trail Managed By: Mount St. Hel- May 7 - 8 Pratt River Connector ens National Monument May 7 Iller or Liberty Lake May 10 CCC Road Trail Start at the Lower Falls Recreation Area’s day-use May 10 Peabody Creek area and hike upstream May 11 - 13 CCC Road Trail along the Lewis River, past May 12 Iller or Liberty Lake rushing waters churning and diving over three major waterfalls. Taid- May 14 Iller or Liberty Lake napam Falls, nestled in a rocky gorge above Upper Falls, is a bonus if you go the entire distance. Spring is a good time to hike the Lewis May 17 - 20 Boulder River River Trail, when a lot of water is pouring over the falls. The trail travels May 20 CCC Road Trail through magnificent ancient Douglas-fir forest from Middle Falls to May 21 Cougar Mountain where the Lewis River Trail terminates at Forest Road 90. This is your turnaround point. Watch for forest wildflowers, such as windflower, (This is a Family-Friendly trip!) fairybells, and foamflower, along the way. Rocks at the water’s edge can May 21 Larrabee State Park be extremely slippery, and steep cliffs along the trail can be dangerous May 24 - 27 Beaver Lake so always use caution. May 24 Lower Big Quilcene Susan Saul May 26 Iller or Liberty Lake Vancouver, Washington May 27 - 29 Glacier Basin May 27 - 28 West Fork Foss May 27 - 29 CCC Road Trail June 3 Glacier Basin Thanks to WTA’s Corporate Partners! June 3 Barclay Lake Rainier - $25,000+ June 3 Middle Fork Snoqualmie June 4 - 5 National Trails Day Weekend! June 7 - 12 Annette Lake June 10 - 12 Glacier Basin June 10 - 12 Heybrook Lookout June 11 - 12 Baker Lake Olympic - $10,000-$24,999 June 14 - 17 Verlot Area Maintenance June 17 - 19 Glacier Basin June 17 Dorothy Lake June 17 - 19 Snow Lake June 18 - 19 Mount Baker—TBD June 21 - 23 Verlot Area Maintenance June 23 Mount Spokane State Park Cascade - $2,500-$9,999 June 24 - 26 Glacier Basin June 24 - 25 Dorothy Lake June 25 - 26 Mount Baker—TBD June 28 - 30 Stirrup Lake Alpine - $1,000-$2,499 To volunteer, Aveda, Hilleberg the Tentmaker, The Mountaineers Books, sign up online at Outdoor Research, Orthopedics International, Seattle Outdoor, www.wta.org. Therm-a-Rest® and MSR® To find out how your company can support WTA’s work for trails, please call us at (206) 625-1367 or email [email protected]. 48 » Backcountry May + June 2011 » Washington Trails The International Hiker » From the Emerald City to the Emerald Isle Raising money for Washington’s trails while hiking through Ireland’s hillside pastures and enjoying a pint or two along the way

Not your average marmot: Jaime Weber pets a donkey outside Fahamore.

itting high Internet. Government agencies, tourist boards atop a and European hiking clubs are great resources rocky hill for the do-it-yourself planner, and nearly every- with bloom- one can be accessed online or via email. ing purple heather For our hiking vacation, we choose two trails surround- on opposite sides of the country: the Wicklow ing us, we Way, which runs north-south on the east coast, munched on our snacks as and the Dingle Way, a loop trail around the a brisk wind cooled us after the steep climb to Dingle Peninsula on the west coast. This may the top. From this vantageS point, we could see not have been the most efficient decision time- the weather moving in from the Irish Sea and wise, but it did allow us to see a large portion noted that the rain shower currently pouring of Ireland and its varied ecosystems. Moun- down on the city of Dublin below would soon tainous evergreen forests, wide sandy beaches be upon us. The idea of a big city like Dublin and, of course, miles and miles of green hilly seemed out of place, though we’d been in that pastures populated by sheep and the occasion- very city just three days earlier. Hiking through al ornery cow awaited us. evergreen forests, endless green hills and val- leys, pastures full of sheep, and quiet villages We went first to the Wicklow Way and hiked full of friendly Irish folk had erased the notion between the monastic city of Glendalough and that a big city like Dublin could even exist in Dublin. A person from the Pacific Northwest Angella this part of the world. Such are the pleasures could be forgiven for mistakenly thinking they of hiking in Ireland. were hiking back home while on the Wicklow Wieben Way. Everything about the area felt familiar, The idea to take our 2010 Hike-a-Thon even the smell of the moist, mist-laden air. and Jaime campaign international began to take shape Most guidebooks suggest taking three days for Weber in the winter of 2009. We selected Ireland as this hilly and mountainous section; we ignored our destination after researching trail options them, packed a total of 31 miles into an ex- In 2010, Angella in several other European countries. Planning hausting two days and paid the price. and Jaime took an international hiking trip can be as easy their Hike-a-Thon as signing up with a company specializing in Upon arriving in Dublin, we navigated the campaign on a active vacations. However, if you prefer a bit concrete trail of sidewalks and bus routes to European vacation. more of a hands-on approach to planning your the train station. The trailhead for our second travels, organizing your own hiking vacation hike, the Dingle Way, was a four-hour train ride to Europe is not that difficult in the age of the away in the town of Tralee, on Ireland’s west May + June 2011 » Washington Trails Backcountry « 49 coast. What the Dingle Way lacks in forests, it makes up for in uninterrupted ocean views, long sandy beaches, and quiet country lanes Before Hike-a-Thon, It’s Plan-a-Thon bordered by wildflowers. With only one major hill climb, Mount Brandon, it is also a relatively WTA’s eight annual Hike-a-Thon is easy trail. Our plan had been to complete the this August! That’s right, just a few entire loop, ending back in Tralee nine days months away. If you are going to be after we started. However, day eight was prac- hiking in August (and we know you tically perfect and day nine did not offer such are), why not make your miles count promises. On day eight, we hiked 17 miles, by gathering pledges for WTA’s Hike- mostly barefoot, on sandy beaches and enjoyed a-Thon? Registration opens July 1; a long, leisurely lunch at the popular Spillane’s details will be available at www.wta. in Fahamore, a major treat after our simple org/hikeathon in late June. lunches eaten on the trail. That evening, we landed at Boland’s Bar in Castlegregory, where To ensure you have the most success- we made new friends with Finbar, Diedre, ful Hike-A-Thon ever—whether it will Hugh and Maureen while listening to the tra- be your first or your fifth—planning ditional music session and consuming, perhaps is essential. After all, there are just 31 one too many pints of Guinness and Jameson days in August to hike, and if you’re like me, the majority of those days with ginger ale. For us, there was no better require some time inside, at a desk, in front of a computer. With just a few way to end our hike! In contrast, day nine days wide open, I plan carefully in order to explore some new places, visit dawned quite gloomy and carried the prospect some perrenial favorites, and pack in the miles, all while raising funds for of crossing slippery moors again while we trails. retraced the route we’d already covered on day one. Opting for a ride to the bus stop from our bed-and-breakfast host felt like the right deci- Past Hike-a-Thoner Steve Payne has these tips: “Pair a burly Saturday hike sion. with an easy Sunday hike, and plan hotel stays or camping to get to some unusual destinations.” Or if you’re a trail runner like Wendy Wheeler- While in Ireland we proudly wore our Hike- Jacobs, you could sign up for long trail race in August, which encourages a-Thon T-shirts, and pinned “Sponsor Me” signs her to get the miles through the training and actually at the race. And to our packs. We proudly touted Hike-a-Thon with August’s lengthy daylight, she often hikes before work and has and WTA’s work to anyone who asked us noticed that “a day at the desk seems much more reasonable when you why we were doing the hike. We received the have looked down from the top of Tiger Mountain at the sunrise!” admiration of those we met and many offers of a pint, and most enjoyable of all, we met Planning a trip abroad this summer or need an excuse to? Angella and many wonderful people with whom we shared Jaime made their miles count for Hike-a-Thon on their trek through conversation over those pints. As you start Ireland. And of course, WTA is always here to help if you need advice thinking about this year’s Hike-a-Thon, con- when planning your hikes. Check out our Hiking Guide, Trip Reports and sider taking it international. Spread the word Seasonal Hikes found on our website (www.wta.org) for our latest and about WTA and the work it does to hikers all greatest ideas. over the globe.t —Kara Chin If you are interested in getting planning advice from Photo: Evan Beuhler at Grand Pass, Olympic National Park Angella and Jaime, send a note to [email protected] and we’ll pass it on.

Washington Trails Association’s

This August, make your miles count. Registration opens July 1. www.wta.org/hikeathon 50 » Backcountry May + June 2011 » Washington Trails A Walk on the Wild Side » Boys Versus Mountain When is a child ready to climb to Camp Muir and What is it about boys and snow? The guys became ski down? You don’t want to find out midmountain visibly excited when we reached the snowfield a with daylight fading. Two Seattle fathers found the half mile past Pebble Creek. But the new energy was answer on an achingly beautiful August afternoon by offset by the slippery snow and the ascent slowed as putting backpacks and skis on their eleven-year-old young frames balanced 30-pound packs on frozen boys at Paradise, pointing to Camp Muir and issuing crust. At this point I had two competing visions: the simple command, “March!” snow camping with overnight temps of 32 degrees or aborting the climb in exchange for a car ride with whining preteens. That’s when the coercion started. Why ski from Muir? Because it’s one of the cool- est things you can do with a young fella in August. Mount Adams is a two-night commitment and prob- “Let’s climb to those rocks for lunch,” said Joe, the ably too difficult for an eleven-year old. The Muir other father. He picked a scree field just below Anvil snowfield is a green-circle run in pitch and maybe a Rock. Twenty minutes later the packs came off and blue square in terrain quality. Easy peasy. the improvised graham cracker sandwiches went down. All of them. Fully refueled, we rock-scrambled back to the interminable snowfield for more of the “My shoulder hurts,” said William, same. Joe and his son took the my son, barely ten minutes out of lead. The boys learned to stay the Paradise parking lot. Yikes, the in the boot-worn snow path for complaints started early. I wasn’t maximum speed. But now the sure the boys could carry their wind was picking up. own skis but thought we’d give it a try. I tightened his belt and fastened the strap across his ster- We passed hikers descending num to relieve his shoulder. That the snowfield. “It’s not much bought us nearly 2 complaint-free farther,” a woman said to us. We miles. could begin to see the outlines of Camp Muir structures on the other end of the vast field. Victory We arrived at Panorama Point a in sight, we increased our pace. little over an hour out of Paradise. The specter of snow camping and We were running behind sched- William Owen and Michael humbling defeat was replaced by ule. I worried about climbing on Baldwin a profound pride in our boys. It’s melting, slippery snow in late the kind of thing that might bring afternoon. Casual walkers shuffled a dad to tears if he weren’t already past us with cups of coffee from Paradise Inn. Yeesh. crying from the 20-mile-an-hour gusts. The boys needed a rest. Hiking rule number one for parents: Be prepared to take breaks. We reached Muir at 1:30, five hours after we locked the car at Paradise. The wind diminished, and we en- I’m an aspiring backpacker, not an accomplished joyed the kind of electric blue sky that you can only one. I take 6 to 10 hikes a year, with maybe two over- see from 10,000 feet. But maybe we overstayed our nights in a good year. That said, I plan ahead, pay welcome. The boys started complaining of altitude attention to the weather, pack the 10 essentials and headaches. It was time to leave. am not too proud to consult with others. For this trip we relied on guidebooks, WTA trip reports, meteo- rological updates from the University of Washington It’s much easier to climb to Camp Muir without skis. Paul and recommendations from National Park Service But then you’d have to walk down like a common hu- rangers. What could go wrong? man. At 2:30, to the envious consternation of climb- Owen ers returning from Columbia Crest, we strapped on our skis and flew over the snowfield back toward Okay, so we forgot to pack a lunch. There was a mo- Paradise. Fathers and sons bonded with sunshine, Paul Owen is a ment of group silence and blank stares as we took snow, skiing and speed. WTA member who this in at 6 a.m. before breaking camp for Paradise. I knows he’s fortunate improvised by spreading soy-nut butter and jelly on to share the great graham crackers and cramming cereal bars into each We returned to Paradise at 5:30 for iced root beers Northwest with his boy’s pack. We weren’t going to starve. Snow camp- and an intemperate amount of junk food. Would we son and neighbors. ing, however, was a chilling possibility. do it again? Of course, a second trip is already on the books. But next time we’ll pack a lunch.w May + June 2011 » Washington Trails Backcountry « 51

Featured Landscape » Leadbetter Point

Dunes, spruce, marsh and mudflats HIKE IT>> Leadbetter Point Undeveloped and untrammeled, Leadbetter Point at the tip of the Long Beach Peninsula holds dunes, salt Leadbetter Point State marshes and maritime forest. And with more than 8 miles of vehicle-free ocean and Willapa Bay beaches, Park, Willapa National Leadbetter Point holds Washington’s wildest coast outside of Olympic National Park. Protected within a Wildlife Refuge 1,200-acre state park and adjacent 16,000-acre Willapa National Wildlife Refuge, Leadbetter Point provides excellent habitat for seals, bears, bobcats and deer. Birds thrive here too. Nesting endangered snowy plovers, Distance: 10.6 miles elegant wintering snowy owls, pelicans, marbled godwits, loons, grebes, mergansers, eagles—over 100 spe- Elevation: 50 feet cies in all! Map(s): Refuge map available at park headquarters. For hikers, Leadbetter Point offers unmatched adventuring with more than 6 miles of trail traversing it and More Info: Day access to both the Pacific Ocean and Willapa Bay. The 2.9-mileDune Forest Loop offers a great introduc- Hiking: Olympic tion to the area’s wildlife-rich habitats, traversing dunes and Sitka spruce groves before meandering along Peninsula glistening mudflats. Note: Dogs are It’s a 10-mile out-and-back trek along trail and beach to the tip of Leadbetter Point. But note: from No- permitted on-leash vember through April the trail is usually inundated with knee-deep cold tannic water. Plodding across the in the state park limb-numbing waters can be fun in a bizarre sense—like exploring a Louisiana swamp without the snapping and prohibited in turtles, leeches and alligators. the national wildlife refuge.

Once through the “bayou,” embrace a wild beach where vehicles are prohibited and footprints are sparse. Round the wind-blasted constantly shifting point to find more protected bayside beaches. Then marvel at Read our Q&A the second largest estuary on the Pacific Coast. Only San Francisco Bay is larger. But unlike that California with Craig estuary which is home to over 7 million people, Willapa Bay is practically deserted and looks much as it did when British Captain John Meares first sighted it in 1788.w Romano on —Craig Romano, author of Day Hiking: Olympic Peninsula page 6.

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