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Heather Meadows – North Cascades National Park
Moved around the sound, through Olympia, Tacoma and Seattle and moved up to Bingham to camp for a few days.  On the 7th I went into North Cascade NP and on up the mountain to Heather Meadows another sub-alpine area with a spectacular view of Mount Baker.  There are several good hikes in this area and lots of good photo opportunities.  There is also a good location for skiing and snow-shoeing as well.  I could have spent more than just an afternoon here.

  
Mount Baker (twice) and Me!!!

On Tuesday, I left the RV behind and went north to spend a day in Vancouver BC.  Little did I know it would take me almost two hours to get through customs.  Apparently, I set off the red flags and had to move over for inspection.  Had to empty my pockets, get frisked, have them toss the gear about in the Durango.  They ran my ID and passport a number of times and finally let me go.  But not without confiscating my firewood that I have carried the entire trip since Gainesville.  I have now been flagged by the BC Canada customs as ‘Michael Owens, the notorious international firewood smuggler’.

God Bless America!!!

Cape Flattery
Moved camp today around the peninsula to Port Angeles, dropped the RV and headed back north to Cape Flattery which is the Northwestern most point in the continental United States.  This was a much longer drive than I had anticipated, and it took the better part of the afternoon to go out an back.

To get to Cape Flattery, you have to cross the Makah Indian Reservation through Neah Bay and out to the point.  Then it’s about a mile and a half walk down hill to the lookout over the ocean and the Strait of Juan De Fuca.

Lake Crescent
On the 3rd I got out the door early and went back through the north part of Olympia NP.  First stop was Lake Crescent for an early morning photo opportunity.  I cannot add anything to these photos.

Sol Duc Falls
After Lake Crescent, I went up the mountain to Sol Duc Falls.  The road ended at the trailhead to the Falls including a loop trail up the canyon and back.  This river is frequented by migrating Salmon and Trout.  You are supposed to be able to witness this in the fall, but today was not my day.  The Mushrooms were found along the trail, just as I was ready to turn back to the trailhead.  The amazing part of this besides the color was that this was the only tree for hundreds of yards with these fungi.

Lake Crescent Lodge
More amazing photos along the Lake Crescent shoreline at the Lake Crescent Lodge.  This looks to be a great little spot for a vacation.  Adirondack Chairs and all.

Marymere Falls
A quick little hike up the hill on the other side of the highway is Marymere Falls.  Not a bad hike until the stair climb at the end of the trail.  I did get to see a Pileated Woodpecker which gives me a siting of this rare species in Washington state AND Florida.

Olympic National Park & Olympic National Forest
Spent two days touring various areas in these two national treasures.  I am just beginning to discover that these parks encompass an amazing number of ecosystems.  I have already visited some forested areas and rain forest in the last couple of days.  Now I head to the shoreline where Olympic NP reaches the Pacific Ocean. 

First stop was the beach overlook of Destruction Island Lighthouse.  This stretch of beach runs about 30 miles along the coast and includes a hiking trail along the coast that can only be walked during low tides.

That’s Destruction Island amidst the trees in the distance.

The next day I head out early to Hoh River Rain Forest and hiked three different trails, each of which demonstrate the vastly different foliage and terrain.  After those hikes, I went back down the mountain and headed back out to the coast, first to visit Rialto Beach and then across the river to the little town of La Push on the Quileute Indian Reservation.

Rain Forest DougFirs, Wind blown blow down and the Hoh River.  Note the milky coloration of the Hoh River from the glaciers hundreds of feet above that grind the surfaces of rocks together to make a fine powder that is washed away by melting ice.

Cavalcade of Trees, and two views of Rialto Beach.  Note the trees in a line.  This is called a Cavalcade, which occurs when a larger tree falls and begins to decay.  New trees sprout from the fallen tree which is then called a nurse tree.  As the new trees mature, they all stand in line like good little soldiers.
 

Pelicans on Patrol, Coast Guard sculputre in La Push, and a two masted schooner headed up the Quillayute River.

Stayed in an RV park just before the river on the north side of this little town, which is the northern most city of a chain of four adjoining cities on Grays Harbor starting with Cospmopolis to the south, then heading north into Aberdeen, next is East Hoquiam and finally Hoquiam.  This is a very blue-collar area right on the coast with the typical moderate temps, heavy mist and lots of green hills surrounding the cities.

The primary industry in the area is lumber, and this manifest itself in the numerous mills and thousands of lumber trucks running up and down US101.

Toured the coast both north and south of here.  Found the Westport Lighthouse, beaches you can drive on and some very quaint port cities, some of which were Indian Reservations.  The town of Westport was very much a fishing village.  There was a four or five block business district adjacent to the marina with a half dozen restaurants, nearly as many gift shops, twice that many fishing charters and a Maritime Museum with a huge USA flag flying above.

The lineup of flags below was on the road headed into town.  Besides the US flags there was also the flags of each of our 50 states.

While having breakfast in a local diner one morning, I overheard some old Lumbermen discussing marriage and what makes a good marriage successful.  One of them in a very loud voice shared the following philosophy . . . .

‘You tell those kids to marry their best friend!  None of that other shit matters.’

From the mouths of old gassers . . . .

Drove into Mount Ranier today and headed up the mountain.  The drive is amongst some very tall pines and so there is only the long green tunnel on the approach.  That is until you come into a small opening just before you reach Paradise, then all of a sudden, this massive white form comes into view directly in front of you.  I was able to get several good views before reaching the visitors center.  Unfortunately for me, I failed to take a picture thinking I would get a better view from there.  I was mistaken.

Toured the visitors center reading through the displays and talking to the Rangers about day hikes.  Then stepped out to see what I could of the mountain.  Here is where I realized I had goofed.  There was a nice low-lying layer of clouds blocking the view for the balance of the day.

There are lots of paved trails surrounding Paradise and the sub-alpine meadow at the base of the mountain.  Spent a couple of hours wandering about the meadow and taking lots of wildflower pictures.  I will identify below those flowers that I know.

Flag above Paradise, Sub-Alpine Meadow and a Doug fir

Sitka Vilarian, then Pink Mountain Heather and a Daisy

An Aster, Broadleaf Lupine and a Harebell

Magenta Paintbrush

After my wander about, headed down and back out of the park.  Stopped at a number of pull off viewpoints and hiked some short trails on my way back.  Saw some waterfalls and hiked through some old growth forest including Red Cedar, Alder and Douglas Fir.

Drove back south today to visit the south end of Mount St Helens.

Went directly to Ape Cave on the south end of the park.  Ape Cave is actually a 2000-year-old lava chute formed during an eruption at that time.  It was discovered in the late 1940’s by a farmer who nearly drove his tractor into the cave entrance.  A group of boy scouts eventually dropped down into the cave to explore and document.  They would soon be leading trips down into the cave and promote preservation.

Not having ever caved before, and being totally unprepared, I was only able to explore about 100 feet into the cave.  Really just wanted to see what it was like and to see how dark it really was.  I am here to report that this is the definition of dark.

Worked my way back out to the entrance and found the return trail that leads to the upper entrance to the cave.  Followed that along for a little over a mile through pine forest and old old lava fields.  It was very interesting to watch the abrupt change over from one ecosystem to the next.  As I got closer to the top, there were several fields of open lava vents and small tunnels.  A very unique landscape.

As I progressed along and reached one of the larger lave fields, I noticed that I had lost the trail.  Turned around to find a landmark and saw that it was well posted and in view.  Did a 180 degree turn and found no other signs of the trail.  Then I heard voices.  Turned to see that a couple was emerging from underground.  I had walked right past the upper entrance.

Here is the oddest thing.  Stopped to talk to these folks and worked our way through the obvious first time meeting questions.  How was the cave, where are you from, what are you doing in this part of the country?  The conversation eventually worked its way to the point where we discovered a common string.  A number of years ago, they lived in Farmington Hills, MI on my old street.  Just a couple of short blocks where we lived for 13 years.  Amazing.

Broke camp this morning and move further north closer to Mount St Helens. Found a really nice RV Resort that was all but brand new and a really reasonable price.

On my way into the region, stopped at the Mount St Helens Visitor Center to view the movie, read through the displays and get some hiking information.  The movie was not great, a little outdated and the displays were interesting.  Certainly not a destination unto itself, but a good source for an initial introduction into the park, the services, but most of all, the volcano and the events of 1980.

For those of you who don’t remember, Mount St Helens erupted in May of 1980 and destroyed a very wide swath of pristine timberland and recreation area.  1200 feet of mountain top was destroyed, thousands of acres of trees and forest land, mud slides over 50 miles away, blocked the shipping channel in the Columbia River, sent ash flying all the way around the world covering 11 US states in the process, and killed 57 people.

The debris field did manage to naturally damn a couple of valleys and in the process created two brand new lakes.  The eruption and subsequent recovery period did provide scientists with an unprecedented look at an active volcanic event, and mother nature’s natural recovery process and the evolution of new lakes.

Dropped the motor coach and setup camp, then ate a quick lunch and headed further in towards the volcano.  SR504 ends at the Johnson Visitor Center on a ridge overlooking the north side of the mountain.  The US Forest Service runs this park and they have a great interpretive center right on the hill overlooking Mount St Helens.  There are hiking trails that provide fantastic vistas of the mountain side and the barren valley the eruption left 18 years ago.

The negative side is that you have to pay $8 whether you want to hike, just look at the mountain or visit the displays.  Kind of excessive if you ask me.  It was quite crowded when I was there as well, but five minutes down the hiking trail and you will leave the crowd well behind.

The US Forest Service has left the volcano and the mountain side much as it was in May 1980.  Leaving mother nature to recover in her own due time.  The hill side hosting the visitor center has slowly recovered some green and there are a ton of wildflowers growing everywhere.  The biggest problem is keeping people on the path and off of the fragile growth and recovery areas.

One final note, this is still considered an active volcano.  You don’t see the steaming
bowl of lava at the top like you do on TV, but there is a crown in the middle of the mountain that is slowly growing.  Scientists have an extensive monitoring grid in place and are constantly watching for signs of activity.

Mount St Helens

Moving out today and headed to the dealership to pick up my Durango pusher.  Going out mid to late afternoon to give them time to finish up, but early enough for them to correct a couple of minor issues with the coach.

Took a nice little 4+ mile walk to the Butteville General Store, the oldest continuously operating business in the state of Oregon.  The hike was on bike trail and a little country lane walking.  Lots of pines and birch and loads and loads of ripe blackberries.  The General store wasn’t much to look at but the homemade black cherry ice cream and cup of coffee I had for breakfast were delicious.

Went back to camp, cleaned up and headed on into Salem.  Stopped for lunch before I hit the dealership.  Spent a short while there wrapping up business and saying goodbye.  Moved out by mid-afternoon and headed for Washington in earnest.  Found a nice little parking lot style campground next to the interstate, with a strip mall right next door for some dining options.  Grabbed some dinner and settled in for the night.

I can now move on beyond Oregon and range out more than a couple of hundred miles away from Salem.  I have the freedom to park the motor coach nearby in a nice comfortable location, and take the Durango exploring and out to hard to reach trail heads so I can hike some more.  And I can get my bike down off of the motor coach and get it down where I can reach it and use it just a bit more often.

Michael’s excited face!!!

Camped overnight in Champoeg SP and went exploring on foot this morning.  Walked the whole park for a total of about 7 or 8 miles.  There are nature trails, bike paths and some road walks.  There is the old abandoned town of Champoeg which was destroyed by floods in 1861 and again in 1892 and subsequently abandoned.  There is a very small cemetery with the grave of the daughter of a pioneer Trapper and his Nez Perce wife.  They also have a small museum which was under destruction when I was there, a gift shop and a Kitchen Garden which is said to duplicate the typical kitchen garden of the mid 1800’s.

There is also a barn on site that has been restored to look as it did when it was built in 1862.  During the restoration process, they discovered that much of the material used in the construction was not ‘new’ or original to the barn, but most likely salvaged material from s pre-flood barn, which they state that this makes it the oldest still standing building in Oregon.  The old farmhouse is gone, but the staff at the SP have built a kitchen garden with much of the same kind of produce that would have been used 150 years ago.

No pictures today as it was quite rainy and threatening all day.  Since I was on foot I did not want to take the chance of getting my camera equipment soaking wet. (pictures taken the next day)

Got some good news today.  The parts needed to hook the Durango to the RV have finally arrived.  The RV dealer expects to have it ready tomorrow afternoon.  So I will spend the night here at the SP again, walk to one more historic site in the morning, then head out around noon to grab some lunch and work my way down to Salem to pick up my Durango and head north to continue my grand adventure.

Views of the Kitchen Garden at Champoeg SP

Left the RV dealer yesterday and headed east to Silver Falls State Park for the night and a planned day hike in the morning.  Got to the park, and they had one site left.  It was a tent site with no utilities, but that is no problem in the new rig.  Would not have been much of a challenge in the Fleetwood either.  Probably the biggest inconvenience was the lack of cell service.  That might be an issue.

Overnight it rained.  Hard.  All night.  I was concerned that this would put my day hike in jeopardy.  Fortunately, the weather broke about daylight, and so I moved out early to hit the trail.  I was the first one in the parking lot, and the first one on the trail.

This was a good hard hike, that had some physical challenges but was not strenuous.  The key feature of this trail is that there are ten (10) waterfalls along the major portion of the trail.  Two of these fall on some very short side trails.  The really neat part about these falls, is that you can walk under about half of them.  I got some great shots of these as you can get up close and personal.

I started at the South Falls, and worked my way north on the Canyon Trail, slowing down long enough to take photos along the way.  The trail drops down into the canyon below South Falls and gradually descends about 500 feet or so as you hike along South Fork Silver Creek for the first couple of miles.  Then you begin a slow 500+ ascent up North Fork Silver Creek where the majority of the waterfalls are, all the way out to the top of the canyon.  From there, I stayed on the canyon ridge line on the Canyon Rim Trail and hiked back to the parking area.  All total I hiked about nine (9) miles in less than five (5) hours.  Saw just a handful of people along the way, except for the Cleveland (Portland OR) High School Cross Country team who were there running the trails for training camp.

The no cell services turned out to be an issue, as I had not yet heard from Liz and she was supposed to be flying back to Tampa from Long Island NY today, and TS Fay was making her presence known in Florida.  It turned out that she was fine and had already landed in Tampa when I stepped off of the trail, but it took me a little while to confirm that for sure.

South Falls, Lower South Falls and Lower North Falls

Double Falls, Drake Falls and Middle North Falls

Twin Falls, North Falls and Upper North Falls

Winter Falls