Matthew Singer

 

I’ve been very busy with graduate school, and that has put hiking and exploring on hold, but that also has me itching to get out, especially as my days of decent hiking weather grow shorter and shorter. I’ve been trying to get up to Sandpoint to get in one last snow-free summit for the season, but time just hasn’t been on my side. So this weekend, I headed up to Grandfather Mountain with Erin for what might be our last chance to get up there this year.

I’ve been to Grandmother Mountain many times since moving out here, but each time, we get started late or take too much time exploring the trail to make it all the way to Grandfather. This time, we skipped Grandmother altogether and set Grandfather Mountain as our goal. Grandfather is exactly 4 miles from the trailhead (according to the GPS), and the first half of the hike covers the same familiar ground that we’ve hiked time after time. Regardless, I never tire of the scenery along the trail. At 6000 feet, the views are incredible, and even though the mountains aren’t that big for this area, they’re still impressive. And then there’s the thrill of seeing it differently every time. For example, when we first discovered this trail last September, summer was ending and fall was just staring so we had a hike full of late-summer flowers and huckleberry bushes turning red. In July, Spring was kicking off with a magnificent show of color and wildflowers. On this hike, a fresh two-inches of snow had fallen the night before and we laid witness to the mountain’s transition from fall to winter. Luckily, we were still able to get to the trailhead.

So we made it through the first half of the hike as usual, but stopping less often. But at the spur to Grandmother Mountain, we turned left and continued along the ridge. Not long after, we came across a perfect campsite next to a spring under the canopy of the old-growth forest. Then the forest became a bit younger and denser, but nevertheless, it was great to walk through a forest instead of through open fields and patches of trees. Although it had snowed the night before, when the sun came out, the air felt pretty warm and we could feel the snow melting around us. Steam rose up from the ground encasing the ridge top in a thin cloud. When the sun would shine through, we would catch the rays bouncing off the mist.

Eventually, we ascended out of the forest and into a clearing at the summit of Grandfather Mountain. The views are pretty, but not quite as open as they are on Grandmother Mountain. Still, there’s fewer ridges to block the valley to the north and there’s a different perspective looking back where we came from to the south. So while Grandmother Mountain may be taller and have the better views, it’s still worth making the extra 3-mile (round trip) trek to Grandfather Mountain, if anything for a nice walk through the ridge-top forest.

A year ago this weekend, I set foot in Oregon for the first time and explored one of its most beautiful and least advertised mountain ranges. Last year, we only got a preview of the Eagle Cap Wilderness in the Wallowa Mountains, only able to stay one night. So this year, I arranged the backpacking trip for Labor Day Weekend, which let us spend 3 nights in the wild and explore more of the area. I rarely return to the same place for a second trip as there is so much around to explore, but then, there is the trade-off. Is it better to see a little bit of everything, or thoroughly explore one place?

And so it was, I returned to the Eagle Cap Wilderness with Tyler and we brought Tyler’s fiancee, Genevive, and Tom Poorten, two newcomers to this wilderness. Of course, Rusty and Shadow came as well. Since we couldn’t all fit comfortably into one car, we took two and hiked a shuttled one-way route, hiking up Hurricane Creek to Mirror Lake and heading out down the West Fork of the Wallowa River. This route is a much longer way into the lakes basin than last year’s Lostine River trail, but it’s also the easiest way in, especially when the 12 miles to Mirror Lake are broken up into two days. And that’s just what we did.

Originally, we were to start hiking around 6 or so and hike for about four miles and find camp. But as usual, we were late leaving Moscow and we got into Enterprise at 7. After parking a car at the Wallowa Lake trailhead in Joseph and shuttling over to Hurricane Creek, we got our start on the trail well after dark had fallen. We hiked for an hour, just shy of two miles, before finding a spot in the meadow to make our first camp. Friday night was cold, so cold in fact that we not only had a frost, but I woke up with ice in my water bottle. Temperatures remained near freezing through the morning until the sun had risen high enough to hit the valley floor. We ended up waiting long enough to let the sun warm us up and dry the tents before heading up the valley.

The Hurricane Creek valley is magnificent. The entire trip is a gentle upward slope, rising about 2000 feet over 10 miles while surrounded by giant peaks rising upwards of 4000 feet into the sky. We woke up with a grand view of Sacajawea, the highest peak in the range. I must say it looks quite different without snow covering its rocky summit. After passing the giant mountain, we’re introduced to the white cliffs of Matterhorn, which due to its more vertical nature, looks even more impressive. The terrain is a mix of open meadow and forest, but nothing nearly as wide open as the upper Lostine River valley. Still, the diversity of terrain and scenery makes this trail almost more scenic than any of the other approaches. After hiking 10 miles in the valley, the trail climbs up one of the back walls via a series of gentle switchbacks and descends into the Lakes Basin area. The summit of Eagle Cap becomes visible and excitement washes over with the prospects of finally getting to the lake. Though the trail was relatively easy, we were quite bushed from hiking 10 miles uphill and quite glad to set up camp on the rocks with a great view of Eagle Cap and Mirror Lake.

Saturday night was much warmer, as expected. In the fall, mountains experience a temperature inversion from day to night where the cool temperatures fall into the deep vallies and the warm temperatures rise to the high elevations. As a result, we had a very pleasant night by Mirror Lake. In fact, after eating dinner and packing away the food, we sat out on the rocks looking at the stars.

We spent a relaxed Sunday morning enjoying the area around Mirror Lake. Originally, we had tenative plans to hike up to the summit of Eagle Cap, return and pack up camp and move about 3-4 miles down to Horseshoe Lake and hike out the last 9 miles on Monday. However, we were still tired from our 10 miles of hiking on Saturday, so we decided that a summit of Eagle Cap would have to happen on another trip. Then, pressed with the option of camping at Horseshoe Lake or continuing on into the Valley for a shorter hike out on Monday, we decided it would make more sense for the latter option so that we weren’t getting home super late. Regardless, we left our camp at Mirror Lake around noon and headed down along the lakes, taking short breaks at Moccasin, Douglas, Lee Lakes. We stopped for a long lunch at Horseshoe Lake and found a great jumping rock to plunge into the cold water. Surprisingly, Horseshoe Lake wasn’t too cold and the swim was quite refreshing for a hot day.

Mirror Lake is definitely the desired destination in the Eagle Cap Wilderness. It’s one of the higher lakes, is centrally located, and sets you up for a nice summit trip to Eagle Cap. But Mirror Lake is also quite popular, and the prime campsites near the water are almost always taken quite early. Despite the popularity, it is easy to find a place that is somewhat secluded and gives the impression that you’re not camping among a crowd. But the other lakes have their advantages too. They are quieter, they have more trees around them, they’re better for fishing, and they have some really awesome campsites. You can be certain to have privacy at these lakes, and still have world class views of the high peaks. The peninsula on Horseshoe Lake offers spectacular views of Pete’s Point and Sentinel Mountain, and from certain angles, you can also glimpse Eagle Cap. Horseshoe is still at 7000 feet, but as the last lake in the chain, it is warmer and more eutrified than the lakes uphill from it. In fact, there are a few nice marshy areas along the trail that look like great amphibian habitat. The water is still clear, and the lake is still deep. But there are likely to be more fish in there than at Mirror Lake.

After Horseshoe Lake, the trail drops into the valley of the West Fork Wallowa River. This descent, while not strenuous, is about 3 miles that would be a steeper incline in the other direction than any incline on the Hurricane Creek Trail. I’m certainly glad we chose the direction that we did. Shortly after the descent began, we came upon a rocky shelf looking over the valley. Convinced there was a view to be had, I dropped my pack and ran out to the rocks. Sure enough, there was a magnificent view of the back valley. The Wallowa River valley is a classic glacially-carved U-shaped valley about 3000 feet deep and maybe a mile wide at the base. The views we got from this rock were like those you’d get at a national park. It was glorious. The trail opens up again a few more times on the way down before reaching the valley floor at Six Mile Meadow. There is good camping at the meadow, six miles from the trailhead, but it proved to be a popular site, so we pressed on to see if we could find anything else nearby. Turns out, much of the Wallowa River valley is forested, unlike Hurricane Creek, and camp sites are few and far between. We ended up camping three miles farther at the intersection with the Ice Lake trail. This put us at a second 10-mile day, but would afford us the luxury of sleeping in a bit and only hiking out about 3 miles on Monday.

Sunday night was colder than Saturday night at the lake, but not as cold as Friday with the frost. We built a fire in the fire pit and sat around to keep warm during dinner. The morning was also cold, but not nearly as bitter as our first morning, so we were able to get moving fairly early. We ended up leaving camp around 9 and getting to the car well before noon. We celebrated with a post-hike beer and lunch at the Terminal Gravity Brew Pub in Enterprise, a well deserved treat after two back-to-back 10-mile days of hiking and three nights in the wilderness. Although I was sad to leave such a beautiful landscape, I was glad to be back in the comfort of my bed, take a break from hiking, and have a hot shower.

The Eagle Cap Wilderness is one of the most beautiful and special places I have been to, and that’s one of the reasons I keep returning. This will certainly not be my last visit or backpacking trip in the Wallowas as there are so many more places within these mountains to see and explore. I hope we can keep up this tradition and next year, I’ll get to report on the third annual Eagle Cap Wilderness backpacking adventure.

 

 

The hike to Stevens Lakes itsn’t particularly hard, but it’s no walk in the park either. It’s about 2.5 miles and 1700 feet of vertical gain to the upper lake on a well-used and well-mantained trail. It starts off relatively steep and continues to climb steadily for the next mile before levelling out briefly as the trail emerges from a beautiful forest into an open basin surrounded by walls several hundred feet high. Just atop the headwall, 350 feet up, is the first lake, and Willow Creek drains from Lower Stevens Lake to drop over this ledge with a series of amazing waterfalls. It is at the bottom of this drop that the trail crosses the creek to start the mighty ascent and final approach to the lake. The old trail used to route you straight up the incline, but a new trail routes you along a series of switchbacks across a talus field, but on this July day, we were crossing a fairly significant snow field. As the trail came back with the old route, the final switchbacks were also snow covered, but the snow was soft and kicking steps was quite easy. We passed a view of the upper waterfall, a beautiful 30-40 ft. drop, before levelling out atop the wall. It was not long before the lake came into view along with a seriese of campsites along the northern shore.

I was surprised to see so much snow at sub-6000 foot elevations this late into July, but the upper lake, only a few hundred feet higher, was still mostly frozen over. There was a warm sun, cool breeze, and not a sound from the developed world despite the close proximity to a major interstate. We had only hiked in a little over 2 miles at this point, but it felt like the middle of the wilderness. I was also surprised at how pristine the forest was on this hike. The land closer to the interstate had been logged, and is still being used for timber harvesting, yet the Stevens Lake trail saw none of it. Along with the snow, it was still early spring up there. The Glacier Lillies, Trillium, and Forget-me-nots were in bloom all over the place, and on the lower sections of the trail, I finally saw some Beargrass in full bloom.

Stevens Lakes are a popular camping spot, and it’s not hard to see why. It’s so relaxing with beautiful scenery but not a huge effort to get there. On this day, there were at least 3 groups camping for the night. There are also a handful of sites by the upper lake, but they were stilI  burried under a couple feet of snow. In a few weeks, I may have to return and continue my hike up to Stevens Peak, an easy bushwhack to the ridge and a jaunt to the summit. I braved the snow and made it up to the upper lake for a few shots before turning back and descending to the car.

We finished the day with a dinner in Wallace.

There are many of these alpine lakes all over the mountains of the west. Many of them require long and strenuous hikes, but the reward is often worth it. But for families and non-hikers, the trip can be intimidating. Some of these lakes are accessible by car, but when you drive into one of these basins, you lose some of the magic and serenity. Some of the hikes are easy and require a difficult drive over primitive roads to start your hike in the high country. What makes Stevens Lakes so appealing is that it is easy to get to, right off of I-90, and the hike can be made for all levels. If you’re in shape, you can easily make it to the lakes in an hour and then continue up the ridges. If you’re slower, you can take all the time you want because it’s only 2 miles in. It’s a great way to spend a summer day and get to some great scenery.

View the Photo Album from this hike.

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The celebration of our nation’s independence is a custom dating back all the way to the day the Continental Congress approved and signed the Declaration of Independence. The use of fireworks to celebrate the momentous and historic occasion also dates back to that time. As John Adams wrote to his wife:

“The second day of July, 1776, will be the most memorable epoch in the history of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever more.”

Adams’ reference to the second of July marks the day that the Continental Congress approved a measure to declare independence. The official document, was signed two days later. Regardless, the founding fathers had visions that for years to come, that day would be memorialized with great celebration including the beloved fireworks display we have come to enjoy.

But while most people were celebrating America by blowing a part of it up, I chose a much more solemn way to pay tribute to this great country. We often remember our historical heritage during these days, but we sometimes forget about our natural heritage. On this day, I visited a grove of trees so old, they were standing tall long before the European settlers ever set foot upon the continent. These trees are a testament to the persistence of nature to thrive against the rugged challenges thrown at it. These trees have survived centuries of fire, drought, snow, and winds. And after all of the beatings, the trees still stand only to be taken down in mere hours by the hand of man.

There are few old-growth virgin timber stands left in the United States. When the settlers arrived, they quickly chopped down the forests for farm land, wood, and security. After all, much of Europe’s forests had already been decimated before the Americas were colonized, and the wilderness was a scary and dangerous place. But it also provided raw materials and natural resources with which to create new products and amass wealth. When the West was finally settled, the forests, with their big trees, were quickly taken advantage of. Fortunately, a few of the industrialists and businessmen who were responsible for the massive destruction of the landscape also recognized the importance of preserving some of it for generations to come. And for whatever reason, whether it be inaccessibility or the sheer awe struck by the people who saw them, some of these stands of forest were spared the wrath of the timber and mining industries and preserved for us to see today.

My 4th of July trip took me to the Hobo Cedar Grove and Botanical Area near the town of Clarkia, Idaho. The trees here aren’t the largest, but the forest is impressive. The one-mile walk through this patch of old-growth forest is enough to make you forget that you drove through a clear-cut to get there. At 4500 feet, it’s a great place to beat the heat. Temperatures on the Palouse were over 80 at mid-day, yet when I pulled into the parking area, the air was a pleasant 72. There is a picnic area and restroom at the trailhead, and a one-mile loop through some of the most beautiful forest I have ever seen. There is a shorter interpretive nature trail as well. The trail is well-maintained, though there were several downed trees across the path at this time. I suspect the maintenance occurs later in the summer. The drive to the grove is very scenic as well. From Clarkia, you drive along Merry Creek and then ascend into the mountains. While you do drive through a section of clear-cut forest, the clear-cut does open up views of the mountains to the west.

There are lots of other things to do in the area as well. You can continue driving to the St. Joe River, or take another turn back in Clarkia and head up to Freezeout Saddle. As of a few weeks ago, the road was drivable almost to the Grandfather Mountain trailhead. I imagine that if the road isn’t clear now, it will be in a week or two. Back down in Clarkia, you can search for fossils at the Fossil Bowl or head to the Emerald Creek Garnet Area, one of only two places in the world where you can find star garnets.

I am thankful that somebody had the foresight to preserve and protect the awesome beauty and splendor of our natural heritage, leaving us with great places for recreation and study. Oh, and in case you were wondering, yes, I did partake in the explosive celebrations later in the evening.

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The Upper Basin Trail is a 5 mile loop in the upper basin of Elk Creek just north of Elk River The trail is near the giant western red cedar, thought to be the largest tree in the U.S. east of the Sierra-Cascade crest. The loop is also near the Morris Cedar Grove, another grove of large old-growth red cedar. unfortunately, the road to the Morris Grove was closed and blocked off on Saturday.

If you’re looking for a difficult challenge, the Upper Basin loop is not for you. The trail was built as an interpretative trail with markers along the way. The markers are just numbers and likely correspond to a brochure to carry with you, but there were no brochures to be found at the parking area. The trail itself is quite easy. The total elevation gain is about 400 feet and much of the trail runs along an old railroad grade which is flat and soft.

The trail is scenic, but don’t come looking for grand vistas or picturesque stream scenes. Instead, it winds through some of the typical ecosystems in the area: logged forest (regrowth), marshes, meadows, and some more mature forest. I suspect that hiking this trail early in the morning would provide plenty of wildlife sightings. I passed numerous evidence of moose and elk and a few scat piles that may belong to wolf. This is definitely a trail that the whole family could enjoy and it seems to receive little use compared to the Elk River Falls and the Giant Tree, so it’s also a good way to escape the crowds. To get to the trailhead, travel to the town of Elk River, Idaho (Rt. 8 East from Moscow), turn left onto N. Front Street and stay straight on this road. It will eventually turn into a gravel road. At the fork, take the right Fork onto Forest Service Road 382 toward Upper Basin. In about 8 miles, turn Left onto a short spur that leads to the trailhead and parking area.
GPS coordinates: N46 53.075, W116 09.674
Clearwater National Forest trail #747

About 2 miles beyond is the giant Western Red Cedar. This tree is thought to be the largest tree east of the Cascades and Sierras. It measures 18 feet in diameter at breast height and measures 177 feet tall. It is estimated to be about 3000 years old. This short walk through an old-growth cedar grove is short and mostly handicap accessible, though not 100%. There is also a bathroom at the parking area. If you’re in the area, a trip to the tree is worth the visit.

This story begins with Luke and I itching to get out into the backcountry. Although it’s the middle of June, the combination of an unusually cold and wet Spring with the very productive winter has left many of the high country destinations (above 5000 ft.) still buried under 100+ inches of snow in places. And even some of the lower areas are still blocked with impassible snow drifts on the road. This makes our options quite limited.

The one place we’re sure to have access is Hells Canyon. With the river averaging 1200 ft. in between slopes that exceed 7000 feet, Hells Canyon is the deepest canyon in the United States. The Snake River cut a 200-mile ravine through a basalt plateau forming the western border of Idaho with Oregon. At under 1500 feet in elevation, the Snake River itself rarely sees snow and is warm enough for backpacking as early as March and as late as November. However, to get into the canyon, one must either float in from the town of Oxbow, OR or drive along windy roads over the 4500 ft. Pittsburg Saddle and down to Pittsburg Landing. While the road is plowed in the winter, the journey may still be treacherous to the casual traveler.

It is from Pittsburg Landing that we begin our hike. Our original plan had us hiking 31 miles in 3 days, ascending over 4000 feet out of the canyon from Kirkwood Ranch to Sawpit Saddle, and then returning to the Snake River via Sheep Creek on a trail that hasn’t been maintained in decades. It would have been an ambitious start to the hiking season. But we were unable to take 3 days for this, so we decided to tone it down and just stick to the Idaho Snake River Trail for about 10 miles or so, and hike back out the next day.

We began our hike huffing and puffing in the heat of mid-day. For a river trail, the Snake River Trail sure covers a lot of elevation gain. At our highest, I think we were 300 feet above the river.

Kirkwood Ranch is 5.5 miles south from the trail head. It was a working sheep farm back in the day, though as isolated as it is, it must have been tough living. Today, the ranch is a museum and ranger station. There’s also a backcountry campground on the old hayfield, though it offers such cushy amenities as flush toilets. We had planned to stop at Kirkwood for a late lunch break and then keep going, but we found out that the trail had been washed out less than a mile beyond and was rendered impassible. In fact, the “crowd” set up at the campground was mostly a trial crew in for a few weeks to repair the trail.

We had two options: We could take a detour, which entailed bushwhacking up and over a 2000-foot ridge to get back to the trail and keep going, or camp at Kirkwood and explore the area without packs. As we were already exhausted, the thought of climbing a steep incline with no trail and heavy packs only to be repeated the next day was not appealing. We found a spot, made camp, and went exploring.

Our destination Saturday evening was up the Kirkwood Trail, an ATV road that eventually led out of the canyon. We weren’t going that far, we headed up about a mile to Carter Mansion, and then up the hill looking for a vantage point. We were told that the views at the top of the ridge were first-rate, but the ascent would take about 3 hours. Tired and exhausted, we opted for a lower goal, a tree atop one of the landings on the way up. We made it within 200 vertical feet of the tree when Matt and I gave up and rested on a rock while Luke made way for the summit. When he returned, Matt decided to make a go for it. And when he returned, I felt as though I had to make my push for the top. So we all individually made it to our goal and then made our way back to camp for dinner.

I slept better than I had in a long while. I think we all did. We awoke refreshed and energetic with our eyes set on another high point just across the field from camp. It was a longer, and steeper climb, but we were rested and ready to go. We made it to the top, what was our top. The ridge kept going up. But from our “summit,” 1300 feet above camp, we had a glorious view over the Snake River. When we woke up and started, the skies were grey and overcast. It had actually rained during the night. But as we climbed that last push for the summit, the clouds broke and the sun came out.

Bushwhacking up a steep slope is actually the easy part. Coming back down is when there are more chances for injury. We took it slow and careful and eventually made it down to camp in one piece, though we were hurting. We rested, made lunch, refilled water, soaked our feet in the cold stream and packed up camp. Because we had made that climb, we set ourselves up to hike out in the heat of the afternoon, and there was no shortage of heat. The car read 83 degrees when we finally arrived back at the trailhead. The hike back wasn’t nearly as bad as the hike in, but we were still tired from the morning’s climb and it felt good to be back at the car.

The events that cut our trip short ended up making this a great first trip for the season. The summer temperatures in the canyon will make hiking along the river unbearable for the rest of the season, but we’ll have some chances to explore the high country as the snow melts and roads become accessible. Hells Canyon is a marvel of nature and worth a visit. The scenery is big and awe inspiring, and certainly humbling.

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