It's springtime in the Northern Oregon Cascades

[JaniceL]

Yesterday I went on a hike to Salmon Butte in the Salmon Huckleberry Wilderness in the Mount Hood National Forest. This would normally be a mid spring hike, not this year!

It was a 7 mountain day. This is Mt. Hood and Adams. In addition, I could see St. Helens, Jefferson, three sisters, black butte and one that I can't identify.

Trip details: If you look for this in some of the local guidebooks the info is out of date because the road to the trailhead has been decommissioned. It was 8.8 mile round trip hike with an elevation gain of 2,840 feet. The added distance on the nicely decommissioned road adds about 500 feet and another 1+ miles each way. That's okay, the trailhead used to be a local party spot where you found beer cans and shotgun shells scattered about.

 

[Leia]

Beautiful shots. I really do need to get out and explore more. Such a breathtaking view. It looks like it was well worth the walk.

 

[JaniceL]

Beautiful shots. I really do need to get out and explore more. Such a breathtaking view. It looks like it was well worth the walk.

It is very well worth it.

Now I'm going to add a little caveat for some who are unfamiliar with hiking our trails and may think this is a great place to go. It is, but only for the prepared.

Although, it is definitely a hike and not a walk. Guidebooks rate it as difficult. I'm making a point of that only because I saw several unprepared hikers heading up the trail in the late afternoon as we were going down, with the summit as their goal. They had very small packs if any and maybe a very small bottle of water. There was often one member who was near exhaustion with the other wanting to press on. In one case, if they did not turn around when they asked us about how far it was to the summit I am certain they would be coming down in the dark.

On a side note, I went hiking last weekend and met up with search and rescue personnel on Mt. Hood (the rescue never made the news as apparently many don't). They said that they have been spending the summer retrieving inexperienced hikers from the forest because of the strange season we have been having.