Oregon Hikers

The last time I drove to Indian Heaven Thomas Lake Trail Head I came across a severe washout on Road 65 about 1 1/2 miles from the trail head. Is that washout still there? Can I get a better estimate how far it is from the trail head? GPS coordinates would be great. Thanks. I felt lucky that my low ground clearance car made it.

If the washout IS still there, it's easy to bypass by taking Wind River Highway to Forest Road 6507.

Thanks, Adam.
I have mapped that route on my Delorme GPS.
It's about 30 miles up Wind River Rd., which changes name to Meadow Creek Road, to 6507 and then 5 miles to the Road 65 near the Thomas Lake Trail Head.
I'll give that a try. I can get to the washout from there and get the GPS coordinates that I need.
Thanks
PS: have you been up there lately??? Snow conditions on the drive up?????

No, I haven't been there since the fall of 2018! But that washout was there then.

There is a relatively current road report at: https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/gifford ... ecid=74394

It was fixed, and it washed out again. If you're coming up the Wind River Road from Carson, I think the newer route using 6507 is probably faster than the traditional route. It certainly has fewer miles of unpaved road. I believe the washout is minor and 4WD, and probably AWD, can get past it. But unless you are coming over from Trout Lake for some reason, I see no point in going that way.

Since all of Indian Heaven is in Skamania County, which is still closed to recreational hiking, I have not been to Indian Heaven this year. The nearest snotel, at Surprise Lakes on the other side of IH says there is still over 5 feet of snow. It's about the same altitude as Thomas Lake. That's actually below average snowpack.

NF-65 near IHW is still under 2-5 feet of snow. If you leave now, the washout should be irrelevant as it is filled with snow.