Great report as I'm looking to do this next year. I was coveting that high route but as Jerry mentioned I was hesitant as it was (I thought) part of the protected watershed. It sounds like even if it was legit that you wouldn't recommend it which is interesting as it looks on Google Earth like it'd be pretty cool. Thanks for that insight.
Mike (aka GoalTech)
Mark O. Hatfield Trail 2016 (proposed alternate included)
Re: Mark O. Hatfield Trail 2016 (proposed alternate included
Earlier this year (I think in April or May - Eagle Creek was theoretically closed due to a bridge outage, but that is as specific a time frame as I can remember), I did an abbreviated version of this hike. I went with a friend who doesn't like getting up so early, hiking so late, or taking as few breaks, so we took 2.5 days on our route. We dropped in at Wahclella Falls and hiked up to Tanner butte from there, and then followed your route almost the rest of the way. We spent night 1 right where the Eagle Creek / Tanner Butte trail crosses Eagle Creek (about 1/2 mile up from the Wahtum Lake junction). There is a campsite right at the stream crossing there, but there was a small slightly worn trail in the bush on the east side of the creek that I followed upstream about 500 feet until I/we found a wonderful private site. It had easier water access, more comfortable rocks to sit on, more flat ground for tents, less immediate undergrowth, and much more privacy.
If anyone camps near that crossing, I highly recommend that site.
Day 2, we got a leisurely start and made it to Wahtum lake for lunch. It started to get cloudy and rainy and foggy here, so we didn't spend much time enjoying the lake itself before getting back on the trail. As we headed towards Herman Creek / Anthill the amount of snow on the ground really began to slow us down. Hiking up and down banks with 3-4 feet of snow dropped progress to about a mile an hour for this stretch. We decided we were going to spend night 2 at North Lake, so we cut off the Defiance trail towards Rainy Lake and by here the elevation/exposure and made the hike much smoother, but it was close to 4 pm and we were soaked from rain and snow, so we just wanted to get to camp early and dry off. North Lake was a mile or two out of the way from Defiance, but it was dry and sheltered enough we created a small little fire, and even met 2 other hikers who chose it as their campground for the night. Though both of them hiked in from the Herman Creek trailhead rather than down from Wahtum or over from Defiance.
Day three we got back on the Defiance Trail, and even though it was a decent uphill slog, the distance from our campsite was short enough and the elevation was minimal enough that it didn't seem like a backbreaking exercise. No snow anymore, but tons of fog, and drizzle. We hit the top about 10 am, and headed down to the Mt Defiance trailhead where we had parked our shuttle car and on to Hood River for lunch by noon. We saw a couple dozen people hiking up that morning, but had the summit to ourselves, except for a bunny, a radio tower, and the raindrops. Nice to see a challenging hike drawing a crowd of boots even when the visibility was limited to 50 feet.
I sort of hijacked your post with my trail report, but it felt like an appropriate place to tag along. Loved seeing all your pictures. Brought back many good memories, and nice to see what the last 20 miles of the trail looked like.
edit: Highlights definitely included summiting Tanner butte on Day 1 and getting spectacular views, the campsite on night 1, and watching the clouds roll over Wahtum lake and start drizzling as we ate Salami and Tortillas on a log.
If anyone camps near that crossing, I highly recommend that site.
Day 2, we got a leisurely start and made it to Wahtum lake for lunch. It started to get cloudy and rainy and foggy here, so we didn't spend much time enjoying the lake itself before getting back on the trail. As we headed towards Herman Creek / Anthill the amount of snow on the ground really began to slow us down. Hiking up and down banks with 3-4 feet of snow dropped progress to about a mile an hour for this stretch. We decided we were going to spend night 2 at North Lake, so we cut off the Defiance trail towards Rainy Lake and by here the elevation/exposure and made the hike much smoother, but it was close to 4 pm and we were soaked from rain and snow, so we just wanted to get to camp early and dry off. North Lake was a mile or two out of the way from Defiance, but it was dry and sheltered enough we created a small little fire, and even met 2 other hikers who chose it as their campground for the night. Though both of them hiked in from the Herman Creek trailhead rather than down from Wahtum or over from Defiance.
Day three we got back on the Defiance Trail, and even though it was a decent uphill slog, the distance from our campsite was short enough and the elevation was minimal enough that it didn't seem like a backbreaking exercise. No snow anymore, but tons of fog, and drizzle. We hit the top about 10 am, and headed down to the Mt Defiance trailhead where we had parked our shuttle car and on to Hood River for lunch by noon. We saw a couple dozen people hiking up that morning, but had the summit to ourselves, except for a bunny, a radio tower, and the raindrops. Nice to see a challenging hike drawing a crowd of boots even when the visibility was limited to 50 feet.
I sort of hijacked your post with my trail report, but it felt like an appropriate place to tag along. Loved seeing all your pictures. Brought back many good memories, and nice to see what the last 20 miles of the trail looked like.
edit: Highlights definitely included summiting Tanner butte on Day 1 and getting spectacular views, the campsite on night 1, and watching the clouds roll over Wahtum lake and start drizzling as we ate Salami and Tortillas on a log.