Category Archives: Moderate Hikes

Mt. Si Hike, April 2012

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Mt. Si
Date: April 13, 2012
Difficulty: 6 out of 10
Distance: 8 miles roundtrip
Elevation Gain: 3,400 Feet
Time: 3 to 4 hours
Location: Near North Bend, Washington
Users Group: Hikers & Dogs Only
Permits: Discovery Pass
Trail Conditions: Dry to packed snow on top
Hiking with: with my wonder dog Macho

With the amount of snow in the mountains, you are not going to find a hike without snow. Right now Mt. Si and Mailbox is your best bet for elevation gain and view for the central Cascades. I decided on Mt. Si since I was by myself…of course I had man’s best friend with me.

I started around noon and got to the top in 1 1/2 hours only stopping once to put on my traction devices at the 3 mile mark. Up on top I threw snowballs for Macho while munching down a peanut-butter sandwich. After the hike I stopped by North Bend Bar & Grill for a cold beer.

Mt. Si Hike, February 2012

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Mt. Si
Date: February 11, 2012
Difficulty: 6 out of 10
Distance: 8 miles roundtrip
Elevation Gain: 3,400 Feet
Time: 3 to 4 hours
Location: Near North Bend, Washington
Users Group: Hikers & Dogs Only
Permits: Discovery Pass
Trail Conditions: Wet to packed snow on top
Hiking with: Rick Massie, Andrew Whitford & my wonder dog Macho

I and two other co-workers, Rick Massie and Andrew Whitford from Ipswich, UK decided to hike Mt. Si. It really didn’t matter what hike or peak we chose, there wasn’t going to be a view due to the soupy cloud cover. We met at our usual spot in North Bend, Washington and then headed to the trailhead. As we all know, Mt. Si can be quite busy on weekends, but….it wasn’t so bad this morning. I parked in my usual spot near the service entrance and we got geared up.

For February, it was actually not so cold; I just wore a dri-fit shirt to the top. Near the summit it started to snow, but only for 10 minutes. This was Andy’s first Northwest hike and I think he was exhilarated by all the spiraling trees, ferns and moss. At the top I boiled up some water for some instant Starbuck’s coffee, the hot coffee reduced the wet chill in our bodies.

At the end of the decent, I gave Macho the wonder dog a bath in the creek near the trailhead. After getting out of our wet gear, we met with my wife Linna Wei at Blue Ginger in Bellevue, Washington for some Korean barbeque.

Granite Mountain Hike, August 2011

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Granite Mountain
Date: August 11, 2011
Difficulty: 7 out of 10
Distance: 8 miles roundtrip
Elevation Gain: 4,000 feet
Time: 4 to 5 hours
Location: Exit 47, I-90
Users Group: Hikers & Dogs Only
Permits: WTA Pass Required
Trail Conditions: Dry, if you take the rocks.
Hiking With: Yuta Hagi & my dog Macho

For the past week, I have been waiting for a sunny day to take Yuta Hagi hiking with me. Yuta is Japanese and lives about one hour South of Tokyo. He came over to spend one week in Seattle to enjoy and study Northwest culture. I thought Granite Mountain (exit 47, I-90) would be the perfect choice for my friend….it’s challenging, great views and I knew there would be lingering snow yet. I decided on a later start hoping the clouds would vanish by the time we reached the top, the forecast was calling for sunny skies later in the day.

We started around 11:00 a.m., which was sunny at the trailhead and then got cloudy about two miles in. The cool part, we got above the cloud cover and then had an awesome view of the clouds below and the mountains surrounding us. Yuta did very well on his first Northwest hike, he stayed right behind me; I think this was his toughest hike yet. When we reached the pond, I threw some sticks in so Macho could fetch and cool his body off, we stopped at the pond on the way down too. The last time I did this hike 5 weeks ago, the pond had 3 feet of snow on it.

We took the rock scramble up and the snowy backside down. I helped and coached 3 ladies on the rock scramble, they were stopped at the beginning of the scramble and were thinking about heading back down. After relaxing on top in the sun for 1/2 hour, we headed down the back trail. Coming down in the snow was actually a lot fun, plus it was easy on my old knees. As usual, we stopped in at the North Bend Bar & Grill for a 9 Pound Porter and a cup of Jambalaya soup.

Granite Mountain Hike, July 2011

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Granite Mountain
Date: July 1, 2011
Difficulty: 7 out of 10
Distance: 8 miles roundtrip
Elevation Gain: 4,000 feet
Time: 4 to 5 hours
Location: Exit 47, I-90
Users Group: Hikers & Dogs Only
Permits: WTA Pass Required
Trail Conditions: Dry to Heavy Packed Snow (only on top)
Hiking With: Rick Massie & my dog Macho

I haven’t hiked Granite Mountain since last year with Doctor Robert McElroy and I was overdue. I met up with Rick Massie at Starbucks in North Bend on a beautiful Friday morning. After a Starbuck’s egg sandwich and an americano to wash it down we headed to the trailhead. We got started around 9:15 a.m., not an early start…but we both had all day to finish this hike.

The trail was pretty much dry until we broke out into the open and started to hit a few patches of snow. Soon, it was all snow and very deep snow at that. The pond was completely covered with 2 to 4 feet of snow yet….on July 1st! Snowshoes or crampons were not needed, but….we did put on our boot traction devices. We took the snow-ridge along the rocks, very stable and no post-holeing. The summit was filled with sun and fantastic views. After getting down, changing into dry clean clothes, we headed to North Bend Bar & Grill.

Church Mountain Hike, June 2011

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Church Mountain
Date: June 4, 2011
Difficulty: 7 out of 10
Distance: 8.5 miles roundtrip
Elevation Gain: 3,750 feet
Time: 4 to 5 hours
Location: Near Glacier, Washington
Users Group: Hikers & Dogs Only
Permits: No Permits Required
Trail Conditions: Dry to Packed Snow
Hiking With: Linna Freeman & my dog Macho

My wife Linna and I spent the weekend in Glacier, Washington….the last town on highway 542; the highway ends at the Mt. Baker Ski Resort. We decided to hike up Church Mountain on a beautiful Saturday morning, it was close to Glacier and close to where we were staying. We had to drive 2 1/2 miles on Forest Road 3040 to reach the trailhead. Looks like they just installed a new bathroom this year, which means this trail gets busy, but…even though it was a warm sunny weekend, we were the only ones there. If this trail was near Seattle, it would have been packed.

As we got started, there were posted bear warnings….hmmm, at this moment I was thinking it would have been nice to have my .45 Kimber on me. The trails starts off on a 1/2 mile gradual grade on a nice wide trail enough to fit 3 or 4 people wide. Soon after that 1/2 mile the trail narrows and it gets much steeper. Even though it was steep, the trail is quite nice to hike on….no rocks or tree roots to worry about.

The higher we got the older the trees were, it was very sunny so I appreciated the old growth canopy to protect my old skin. Every once in awhile you could see the North Fork Nooksack River….which was roaring with the June snowmelt. Most of the trail is on the Southern slope, which is why there wasn’t any snow; as soon as we traversed around the mountain heading North…we hit snow and a lot of it. We lost the trail and we decided to head up the mountain making our own tracks. The problem was the deep snow and I left my trail map in the car. We finally turned around 4,600 feet and called it a day. We knew we missed the beautiful view that was waiting for us at the top.

Turtlehead Peak Hike, March 2011

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Turtlehead Peak
Date: March 27, 2011
Difficulty: 6 out of 10
Distance: 5 miles roundtrip
Elevation Gain: 2,000 ft.
Time: 2 to 3 hours
Location: 20 Minutes From Las Vegas
Users Group: Hikers Only
Permits: $7.00 Park Fee
Trail Conditions: Dry
Hiking with: Linna Freeman

Linna and I had some extra time in Las Vegas during the day and a sunny hike was in order.  I did a quick search for hikes near Las Vegas and Turtlehead Peak had the most elevation gain with a 360 view on top.  This hike is located in the Red Rock Canyon area with numerous other hikes located along the one-way 12 mile route that loops through the canyon.   The trailhead parking was overflowing with cars so we had to park along the road, which I suppose is normal during a weekend. 

We got started on the gravel trail with the sun beaming down overhead.  The trail starts off fairly easy on a river bed and soon picking up some elevation.  Once you get to the gully, it;s a scramble until you get to the ridge.  Once on the ridge, pretty much just follow a couple of trails to the summit.  The 360 view on top was worth the steep scramble in the gully.  Las Vegas was off to the East and the surrounding mountains were glowing red from the sun.

Angels Landing, March 2011

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Angels Landing
Date: March 25, 2011
Difficulty: 5 out of 10
Distance: 5 miles roundtrip
Elevation Gain: 3,838 ft.
Time: 2 to 3 hours
Location: Zion National Park, Utah
Users Group: Hikers Only
Permits: $25.00 Park Fee, Valid (1) Week
Trail Conditions: Wet
Hiking with: Linna Freeman

Linna and I was due for some sunny skies and warmer weather; Seattle was getting dumped on this month and it has been cooler than normal.  I was already down in the Vegas area for work, so Linna joined up with me on Thursday.

Mt. Teneriffe Hike, March 2011

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Mt. Teneriffe (via forest road)
Date: March 18, 2011
Difficulty: 7 out of 10
Distance: 11 miles roundtrip
Elevation Gain: 3,838 ft.
Time: 5 to 6 hours
Location: Near North Bend, Washington
Users Group: Hikers & Dogs Only
Permits: None Required
Trail Conditions: Snow starts at 2 miles and gets deeper
Hiking with: my dog Macho

After a couple of weeks of snow, I knew snowshoeing anywhere today would be fabulous. I wanted something close to home and plenty of room on the trail for Macho. Mt. Teneriffe forest road can be boring at times, but….I knew 7 miles of open road would keep Macho entertained. We hit snow at 2 miles and I stopped and put on my gators and snowshoes. Of course the snow just got deeper and deeper….what a workout.

Source Lake Hike, February 2011

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Source Lake Trail
Date: February 24, 2011
Difficulty: 6 out of 10
Distance: 4.8 miles roundtrip
Elevation Gain: 1,400 feet
Time: 3 to 4 hours
Location: I-90 exit 52; Alpental Ski Area
Users Group: Hikers & Leashed Dogs Only
Permits: No Permits Required
Trail Conditions: 12” to 20” of fresh fluffy snow
Hiking with: Mike Curry & Lance Leasure

The Cascades have been receiving snow for the past week and I knew snowshoeing on Friday morning would be perfect timing.  I picked up a couple of good friends, Mike Curry and Lance Leasure at 8:00 a.m. in Seattle and we headed off to Source Lake.  I took our normal route out of town, first avenue to Starbucks by the baseball staduim and onto I-90.  We parked at the last parking lot in the Alpental Ski area and got out in the 18 degree weather.  I brought Macho (dog) along and he got out with us, he stayed busy bothering strangers in the parking lot as we put our snowshoe garb on.

We got about a hundred yards in on the trail when Macho stopped, he had ice balls on the bottom of his paws.  I decided to take him back to the car, because it would only get worse for him the further we went.  There really wasn’t anybody else snowshoeing today, maybe it was too cold or it was a Friday morning….but, there were a few skiers that had their ski skins on.  Besides the cold weather, it was a great day for snowshoeing, tons of fresh snow and the sun was out.  We decided to trek past Source Lake and up to Snow Lake following a couple of skiers.  We stopped near the top of the bowl at 4,600 feet and headed pretty much straight down in waist deep snow.  The snow was deep, but light and actually easy to snowshoe in.  After getting back to the car, changing into some warm dry clothes, we headed to my favorite after hike hangout, the North Bend Bar & Grill for a hot bowl of Jambalaya soup and a cold beer.

Hunchback Mountain, February 2011

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Hunchback Mountain
Date: February 19, 2011
Difficulty: 6 out of 10
Distance: 9 miles roundtrip
Elevation Gain: 2,900 Feet
Time: 3.5 to 4.5 hours
Location: Zigzag, Oregon
Users Group: Hikers & Dogs Only
Permits: No Permits Required
Trail Conditions: Damp to Lighty Snowpacked
Hiking with: Linna Freeman & Macho

Linna and I drove down to Portland on Thursday evening for a little shopping and dining on Friday.  Before we started our shopping excursion, we had lunch Bluehour www.bluehouronline.com in the Pearl district and later that evening we had a dinner reservations at 9:00 p.m. at Genoa www.genoarestaurant.com, both were fantastic.  Saturday we had planned a small hike near Portland, but the drive to Wahkeena Trailhead, Linna and I had this urge to see Mt. Hood up close.  I was already checking out Hunchback Mountain Trail, which was along the way to Mt. Hood in a small town called Zigzag, so I thought….oh hell yes, let’s go for it.

Saturday started off to a beautiful sunny day and it only took us about a hour to drive from Portland to Mt. Hood.  Before we hit the windy road up to Mt. Hood, we stopped at a grocery store in Zigzag to pick up some trail lunch.  I really didn’t know where the Hunchback trail started, but I knew it was close to the Zigzag Ranger Station, but….they were closed today.  Funny, why would they be closed on a Saturday, isn’t that a busy day for people to be outdoors?  I knew the trail was very near, but….I decided to look for it after our little excursion up to Mt. Hood and to the famous Timberline Lodge.  The road up was semi-snow packed with sand/gravel on top for traction.  We had no problem driving up the steep windy road with Linna’s 4 Matic Mercedes. 

By the time we got to the famous Timberline Lodge, it was a little cloudy, but the wind was horrendous.  The wind was blowing so hard, I thought I might have to put a rope around Linna so her 100 pound frame wouldn’t be blown off the mountain.  The Timberline Lodge  was constructed in 1938 as a WPA project during the Great Depression.  I stayed here a couple of times about 17 to 18 years ago.  After a little play time and getting Macho out for a while, we heading back down to search for the Hunchback Trail near Zigzag.  I actually had a trail map and I could tell the trailhead was very close the Ranger Station, so we drove back to the parking lot and eventually found the Hunchback Trailhead.

Hunchback Mountain rises sharply to the top of the ridge which extends 6 miles Southeast.  The first two miles you gain over 1,700 feet of the 2,900 total elevation gain; the rest is pretty much of a walk along the ridge.  Even though you have some nicely graded switchbacks the first couple of miles, it makes your legs and heart work overtime!  The trail started off damp, but eventually we hit snow about a mile up.  Along the ridgeline the snow was 4 to 5 inches deep, not bad considering it was February at 4,000 feet up.  I was throwing snowballs for Macho to chase, which reduces his jam-packed energy he has.  After the hike, we headed home and stopped in Federal Way, Washington to eat at one of our favorite Korean restaurants, Miraks.