Salmon River Overnighter 5/13/13

[solarjinx]

Hey all, this is my first trip report, I'll try not to disappoint. Left Salem and arrived at trailhead around 1:30pm Monday afternoon. Originally, I had planned this to be a motorcycle trip, but upon checking out the forecast I decided to take the car instead. Good call. Approximately 20 minutes from the trailhead it began pouring rain, so when I arrived I just sat in my car and waited it out. Once the worst of it had passed, I geared up and hit the trail. This was my first solo overnight hike, and also my first time trying out my Osprey Atmos pack. Overall, the trip was a success, although I will say that the Atmos really bears down on your hips and by the time the hike was over, I was pretty damn sore from it. Not sure what that was all about, maybe I'm just not used to it yet? Anyway, here are some pics:
(I couldn't find a day pass box anywhere, so I just left a friendly note)

(Trees over trail)





(Do you see the elephant too?)



(Ahh yes, the view)



(Camp)



(A deer appeared during my morning stretching)

(Chem trails, lovely bastards)

(It was a good trip)

In closing, it was a gorgeous adventure and the weather (for the most part) held up. Windy and spits of rain at times, a little cold at night, but it was great. Oh and one more thing: if you passed me on the trail as I was hiking in, then you noticed a gun on my hip. I have two fears in life, and one of them is being eaten alive by a predatory animal. Bears scare me, period. They do not possess the "kill first" instinct, they just grab onto wherever and start crunching. The thought of that sends a shudder to my core. That being said, I was nervous and took my gun. I know how many of you feel about that, but oh well. As my hiking adventure developed, though, I felt more comfortable, and on my hike out the gun was packed away inside my backpack, my earbuds were in and I was in a happy groove, until... I came upon a blind curve in the trail and was greeted by three startled dogs. We all had quite the fright, my heart was skipping so fast, and the dogs turned and ran back to their owners, barking wildly. The couple that greeted me told me they had just encountered a bear 100 yards back on the trail, so the dogs were still a bit skittish. They told me to be cautious, I thanked them and hiked on... slowly... scanning the woods like a madman... scared shitless and wishing my gun was back on my hip, lol. I never saw the bear, and I realize the chances of being attacked by one are very slim, but it still freaked me out a bit.

So there you have it, my first trip report, unBearable as it may be

Here's a link to a video I put together of the hike: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0UMjwes ... e=youtu.be

[Grannyhiker]

Bears are a LOT more scared of you than you are of them. That's especially true around here where they are hunted for quite a few months out of every year. You've obviously been reading too many grizzly bear stories. If you feel you absolutely must have protection, take bear spray, not a firearm. Unless you have an extremely heavy caliber firearm and are a truly crack shot able to hit a small vital spot with your first shot at a rapidly charging target, hell hath no fury like a wounded bear! 99.99% of the time, any bear you see around here will be moving rapidly away from you. Even in Alaska with lots of grizzlies (none of those here), those in the know carry spray, not a firearm, for protection. I strongly suspect that if you shot a bear around here you'd be cited for hunting out of season without a license. Our timid black bears don't require self-defense--just give them room/time to get out of the way. Dot be sure to hang or otherwise protect your food--we don't want our bears to discover that hikers carry food!

You need to get an annual Northwest Forest Pass; it's far cheaper than buying a onetime pass per trip. A lot of places they're required, there is no way to pay at the trailhead (a lot of pay boxes are being removed due to vandalism). Most sporting goods stores carry them. If you also visit national parks and federal fish and wildlife refuges, you may prefer the America the Beautiful Pass. If you're age 62 or older, get the Senior Pass which is a fantastic bargain (one time fee of $10 for a lifetime pass for national parks and all other Federal lands as well as the NW Forest Pass).

Do note that not all trailheads require the Northwest Forest Pass, either. Certain amenities and, of course, signs are required. And, of course, there's last year's 9th Circuit Court decision, which the USFS appears to be ignoring in hopes it will go away. In other words, you could fight a ticket and probably win, assuming you can afford the considerable hassle and the legal fees. As Jerry says, none of this info is applicable to Washington State lands where you have to have Washington state's Discover Pass.

Please take that pack back right away--either the pack doesn't fit or your gear is too heavy for the pack's support structure (this latter info can be found on the manufacturers' websites). It might be that all you need is a different hip belt. I personally cannot get a good fit with any Osprey pack--they are just not made for my body, and a big part of that problem for me is their hip belts. (Your Mileage May Vary, of course.) Box up your gear and take it with you when trying on packs. Sandbags and weights are just not the same as the gear you're actually going to carry inside! Call for an appointment or go at an uncrowded time.

For ideas on lightening the load, which might be part of your pack problem, check the articles and gear lists in the left-hand column here: http://www.backpacking.net

[retired jerry]

Nice! Good report

If you park at a Washington State Park without a permit, don't bother with your note, you'll probably get ticketed regardless.

If you park where a Northwest Forest Pass is required, don't bother with your note, they'll probably not bother you, maybe the friendly ranger will put a note on your car telling you to please buy a permit. But if you listen to me, you'll probably get ticketed But may as well buy the $30 annual pass because it's so cheap and at least some of the money goes to trail maintenance. Ranger stations sell them. REI. other places.

[solarjinx]

@ grannyhiker It's funny because I took with me a canister of bear spray AND a gun, that's how scared I was. I know what you say is true, and eventually I will look back and laugh at all the hikes I did "packing heat" due to bear terror, bur for now I just have to get comfortable being in their territory. No big deal, I can do it, but going solo makes it a little harder. In time, though!

I'll be purchasing a Northwest Pass today, thanks for the tip. I did a quick search and they sell them at Bi-Mart here in Salem. As for the pack, this really sucks. Now that I used it out in the woods (setting it down in the dirt, etc) I wonder if they'll even accept it as a return. Grrrr, I thought I did enough research before buying. I'll look into it though and see what's what. Again, thanks for the help on that.

If you park at a Washington State Park without a permit, don't bother with your note, you'll probably get ticketed regardless. If you park where a Northwest Forest Pass is required, don't bother with your note, they'll probably not bother you, maybe the friendly ranger will put a note on your car telling you to please buy a permit. But if you listen to me, you'll probably get ticketed

That made me chuckle

[kepPNW]

I gotta go do that trail again. When we went, it was already dinner time, so we only got a bit past the Wilderness boundary, and never climbed up the side of the valley like that. How far in did you go?

Enjoyed the video, too! Thanks...

EDIT: Regarding bears, maybe this will help? But remember what GH said, we just have big ol' wussie black bears here - no grizzlies.

[Grannyhiker]

Where did you buy the pack? If at REI, they'll take it back any time, no questions asked. Many reputable backpacking gear outfitter stores will do the same, since you've used it on only one trip. If you got it at a discount/big box store you are probably out of luck, but you can undoubtedly sell the pack used to recoup about 60% or a little more of the purchase price. If the pack was fitted to you by a clerk in the store, you have an excellent case for returning it, because it definitely should not cause pain. I suspect you may have the wrong torso length. Or you may need a different size hip belt or a lighter load.

[solarjinx]

I gotta go do that trail again. When we went, it was already dinner time, so we only got a bit past the Wilderness boundary, and never climbed up the side of the valley like that. How far in did you go?

I hiked a little ways past where I camped, had the intention to go to Goat Creek so I could be near a water source, but that damn Osprey pack was really making my waist and hips painful, so I turned back to the cliff. I think that's about a mile shy of Goat Creek? It's possible I overloaded the pack, but according to my kitchen scale the total weight was something like 38lbs? I dunno, I'm a little upset that it didn't turn out to be "the backpack of my dreams". It sure LOOKS neat, though That article you shared about bear spray was terrific, and it really helps ease my mind. I appreciate that very much.

Where did you buy the pack?

A local outfitter here in my town, and yes, they said I could bring it back and shop around some more. Phew! I almost feel that I should take it out one more time though, just to be sure, maybe weigh it down again but just go on a quick day hike. Eh, return policy only lasts another week or so, we'll see.

Thanks again, everyone. Your input is appreciated.

[kepPNW]

I gotta go do that trail again. When we went, it was already dinner time, so we only got a bit past the Wilderness boundary, and never climbed up the side of the valley like that. How far in did you go?

I hiked a little ways past where I camped, had the intention to go to Goat Creek so I could be near a water source, but that damn Osprey pack was really making my waist and hips painful, so I turned back to the cliff. I think that's about a mile shy of Goat Creek? It's possible I overloaded the pack, but according to my kitchen scale the total weight was something like 38lbs? I dunno, I'm a little upset that it didn't turn out to be "the backpack of my dreams". It sure LOOKS neat, though That article you shared about bear spray was terrific, and it really helps ease my mind. I appreciate that very much.

So maybe somewhere in the vicinity of the arrow, about 3.5 or 4 miles in? (The red is a loop I hope to do sometime soon!)

Glad you liked the article. I sure found the stats eye-opening. Again, I think GH nailed it -- you really don't want to piss off a bear, and "plinking one with a peashooter" seems like a really great way to do that.

[solarjinx]

So maybe somewhere in the vicinity of the arrow, about 3.5 or 4 miles in? (The red is a loop I hope to do sometime soon!)

Wow, I had no idea that marvelous looking loop even existed! In the future I plan to have all this "backpacking gear" dilemma sorted out, and hopefully be light as a feather out there on the trails, that way I can hike forever-long loops like that, no sweat. Okay, maybe a little sweat

Yes, I'm pretty sure you drew your little arrow in the correct spot. It looks to be where I camped.

After Salmon River, I drove over to Lost Lake, but by then my body was killing me and I didn't get to hike up the butte for the great view. I simply hiked all the lakeside trails and called it good. I don't think I'll bother posting those pics, nothing but a mess anyhow with huge trees that fell and destroyed parts of their wooden boardwalk.

[kepPNW]

That loop's probably 15-16 miles, or so, and about 5000' EG. I'll definitely be carrying a lot less than 38 pounds, and probably still sweating a bit! There's a great treat on top of Devil's Peak, too.