Sasquatch22 and I have been conversing for a while now about doing a hike up around Mount St Helens. Before today I've never done any hiking up there, and I have been eager to check it out.
Sasquatch22 put together a plan: Go up the Cinnamon Trail #204 from Red Rock Pass, tag the Kalama Horse Camp, and head back on the Toutle Trail #238. Possible side trip at the end of the day for photo opportunities at Goat Marsh.
At the Redrock Pass Trailhead off Road 81.
Crooked shot of the trailhead sign.
We started up, with high hopes and great expectations!
Very soon we could see the mountain, sort of, through the clouds.
As we progressed up the trail we started seeing lots of signs of animal passage - tracks and scat galore. Not many human prints though... Very soon we started to encounter solid patches of snow, and eventually the trail was completely obscured by the white stuff.
Side note: what made this?
Eventually we started completely losing sight of where the trail was, and everything pretty much looked the same - trees and snow, with little indication of where the trail was, and no markings or flagging to be seen. We snooped around a bit... Sasquatch22's brother, um, let's call him Brother-of-Sasquatch? or B.O.S.? Okay, I'll call him Bill, since that's his name. Bill did some diligent scouting ahead of us and had no luck finding where the trail was. So, feeling frustrated and slightly defeated, we turned around and headed back down. At that point we'd made it about a mile up the trail.
Arriving back at the trailhead, - Crusak aka Jim, Sasquatch22, and B.O.S. aka Bill.
Now we had to come up with a plan B, or just bag it and head home. My hiking partners were a little frustrated by the snow. My mind was racing though, as I considered the potential! A new and amazing area for me to explore. I was already dreaming of a return trip, once the snow melts...
I deferred to S-22 and B.O.S. and their expert knowledge of the MSH area, and they decided to go check out Goat Mountain and Goat Marsh. Since it was all new to me, I was in.
Arriving at our next destination.
We hiked into the Goat Marsh area. Such an interesting place to visit! More pics.
Fortunately the morning clouds started parting, and we got some fantastic views of Mount St Helens from Goat Marsh Lake.
Part 1 of the TR is done here... Part 2 follows, with more pics (since I've reached the 15 attachment limit)
Toutle-Cinnamon attempt, Goat Marsh Success! 6/16/12
Re: Toutle-Cinnamon attempt, Goat Marsh Success! 6/16/12
Here's Part 2 of the TR.... where was I, oh, yes, the OMG moments...
Some other shots. Here's an interesting view:
We saw signs of beavers hard at work around the marsh.
And one more shot of the mountain. What a great day of adventure.
Final thoughts: Thanks for inviting me on your hike today Sasquatch22! It was great to meet you and your brother. I'd like to get out hiking with you guys again when you're up in the MSH area. Soon. And sorry I was a little late getting to the trailhead. LOL that one missed turn had me checking out real estate along the reservoir instead of driving to the trailhead.
Some other shots. Here's an interesting view:
We saw signs of beavers hard at work around the marsh.
And one more shot of the mountain. What a great day of adventure.
Final thoughts: Thanks for inviting me on your hike today Sasquatch22! It was great to meet you and your brother. I'd like to get out hiking with you guys again when you're up in the MSH area. Soon. And sorry I was a little late getting to the trailhead. LOL that one missed turn had me checking out real estate along the reservoir instead of driving to the trailhead.
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- Posts: 267
- Joined: October 5th, 2010, 10:43 pm
Re: Toutle-Cinnamon attempt, Goat Marsh Success! 6/16/12
It was great meeting you, Jim. Kneedrgr13 and I had a good time hiking with you. Too bad the Cinnamon Trail attempt was only a reconnaissance mission. I'd think that by the second week of July most of that snow at 3,800' will be absent. At least the hike into Goat Marsh was a success (I think).
- roadtripmom
- Posts: 304
- Joined: March 3rd, 2010, 9:20 pm
- Location: Vancouver, WA
Re: Toutle-Cinnamon attempt, Goat Marsh Success! 6/16/12
Shhhhhh....Goat Marsh is my secret spot
Filling my bucket, one hike at a time.
Amanda
Amanda
Re: Toutle-Cinnamon attempt, Goat Marsh Success! 6/16/12
I can see why, roadtripmom! It's a cool place. We did a bit of scrambling to get past a couple of places along the trail, but it wasn't too bad.roadtripmom wrote:Shhhhhh....Goat Marsh is my secret spot
I hope that people who visit there tread lightly. We found trash along the way up there... bottles, cans, wrappers... actually a bit of trash along the road and on the trails in both places. It's hard to understand why people can't pack out an empty can or bottle. like Bill said yesterday, "doesn't the bottle weigh less after they drink the contents?"
Sasquatch22: nice pictures! Thanks for taking that shot of me with the mountain and marsh in the background. My girls liked that one.
Re: Toutle-Cinnamon attempt, Goat Marsh Success! 6/16/12
I like how St Helens shows above Goat Marsh/lake - really scenic spot!