Hello from new member

[LarryMoiola]

Hi. My name is Larry Moiola.

I've lived in Portland for over 20 years and did some hiking but it was during the pandemic that I really kicked it into to high gear.

When I was a kid (1980s), I did a 5 day backpacking trip in Canada, from Jasper, AB to Mt Robson, BC. I was with a group my mom found in a magazine. It was lead by two college students; about 9 of us. I flew from SoCal to Vancouver, BC where we took the trail to Jasper. We got shuttled to trailhead and started the adventure. I'd borrowed a frame pack and didn't know that the hip straps were there to carry the weight of the pack until midway through the first day.

Fast forward to 2018. I took a road trip through California and did a lot of driving but squeezed in a few hikes on the northbound leg: near June Lake, CA and Hetch Hetchy. It wasn't until I started using AllTrails that the idea of recording my hikes dawned on me. In the fall, I took a trip to Norway and did a sunrise hike to Preikestolen.

Since then, it's been a great motivator. I know there are different challenges, like the 52 hikes which I've adopted. I created a software program to keep my own stats.

In 2020, I started tracking my hikes, distance, and elevation gain. I ended up doing 77 hikes, over 550 miles and 120K feet. I summited MSH in Sept and explored a bunch of trails like Boundary to Coldwater Peak, Truman, Loowit Trails, Ape Canyon, Butte Camp, trail from June Lake. I also spent a week in central and northern WA. I hiked Kendall Katwalk, Crater Lakes near Lake Chelan. On my last day on the road, I drove through the Mt Loop Highway and earmarked some future hikes.

Last year I participated in WTA Hike-A-Thon and did my first Mt Adams hike on the Stagman Ridge Trail.

Some of my favorite hikes are Forest Park (conditioning), Hamilton Mountain and Phlox Point, Archer Mountain. Like many, I've been very wary of getting my car broken into so avoid places like Angel's Rest & Dog Mountain even though I like them.

This year, I'm trying to take my passion for the PNW and hiking by getting involved with some organizations like Mt St Helens Institute, WA Trail Association, Mazamas, TKO .. more TBD. I pretty much hike alone but would like to find a community to find some hiking friends. I would like to take some skills courses for mountaineering.

I'm in good shape now but I have rheumatoid arthritis so my mobility may change so I want to try to cross some items off my bucket list while I can.

I want to hike MSH again, and/or Mt Adams, some other trails in Snoqualmie Pass, Mt Si cuz I'm a Twin Peaks fan, and something in the Mt Loop Highway area.

Thanks for reading my long introduction.. good to join the TKO community!

~Larry
Web: www.roadtripsandhikes.org
Photos: IG @roadtripsandhikes

[drm]

Larry - Looks like you like big hills! You certainly live in the right place for somebody who want to gain a lot of altitude on your hikes. A lot of hikes in the Gorge to satisfy that.

[retired jerry]

Based on your likes, try Three Sisters. Like Lava Camp south on the PCT - interesting volcanic features

Welcome