Moffett Creek Bridge, HCRH: It's Not You, It's Me (7-6-08)

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CherokeeDriver
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Moffett Creek Bridge, HCRH: It's Not You, It's Me (7-6-08)

Post by CherokeeDriver » July 6th, 2008, 8:00 pm

If you want to have fun with somebody you've only recently met, a good "first date" hike might be Wahclella Falls, Angel's Rest, or Eagle Creek.

If you want to find out if you and your mate have the foundation for a long-lasting relationship, you might try scrambling up Ruckel Ridge or getting to the top of Mt. Defiance -- together. (Teamwork is everything.)

But if you think your relationship is somehow coming to an end... if the sparks just don't fly off the flint like they used to and your two-person tent always seems to be collapsing on one side, you might try taking a short hike to the Moffett Creek Bridge along the Historic Columbia River Gorge Highway.

Really. It's only about two miles round trip. And it's probably the worst, most completely depressing "hike" to be found anywhere in the Gorge.

I wasn't breaking up with anybody when I headed down the HCRH from the Wahclellah Falls Trailhead on Sunday morning -- I was solo, as usual, and just looking for the Gorge Trail 400 connector to the John B. Yeon Trailhead. Somehow I missed that cutoff, even though the historic bridge at the trailhead is clearly signed "Gorge Trail 400." It's a nice looking bridge, as well.

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But not long after crossing the bridge, hikers will come across this landslide, which has taken out part of the HCRH pedestrian railing:

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After hopping across this, the HRGH (apparently now not Gorge Trail 400) crosses under a pair of Interstate 84 bridges, where historic markers note the original highway's construction and the original "Lancaster Lodge." Still seems like we're in Gorge hiking territory, until the trail emerges on the north side of the freeway. Like, right next to the freeway:

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Oh well... might as well get going and see where it takes us. (If you're breaking up with somebody, now might be the time to mention that you don't think your partner's mother will ever approve of you, and at best will merely tolerate your presence.)

After a bit of walking, the trail improves... a little. The freeway noise is still pretty loud though, and the entire Bonneville complex is pretty much a stone's throw over the nearest hedge:

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You do get good looks at Hamilton Mountain and Table Mountain... sadly, so good that you can only find yourself wondering why you parked at Wahclella Falls this morning and didn't simply get up an hour earlier in order to drive to the foot of one of these Gorge sentinels. (Introducing a general theme of "missed opportunities" to the conversation at this point would be, shall we say... opportune?)

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And thus, after about a mile of walking along a bike trail that's pretty much surgically attached to one of the longest freeways in North America, you arrive at the historic Moffett Creek Bridge. It's small and beautifully constructed, and at one time it was the largest bridge of its type in America.

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But now it's isolated, disused, all but forgotten as the freeway traffic takes advantage of newer bridges occupying higher ground. Even worse, the Moffett Creek Bridge doesn't go anywhere -- there's literally nothing more than a swampy bottom on the west end covered with sticky thorns, leading to some stepped-down grass and even more freeway. You could keep going... but why would you?

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You might as well look over your shoulder at those missed opportunities, one more time, far across the river. You still have another mile to go along a freeway bike path until you get back to the trailhead and figure out what you want to do with the rest of your life.

Or at least the rest of today. And that's if I want to keep hiking at all.

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But really, it's not you.

It's me.

After all, I'm the one who left the map at home.

-Robert ;)
Last edited by CherokeeDriver on July 6th, 2008, 8:29 pm, edited 4 times in total.

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zombie
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Re: Moffett Creek Bridge, HCRH: It's Not You, It's Me (7-6-08)

Post by zombie » July 6th, 2008, 8:11 pm

:lol:

GREAT report! Oh, and you're right...it IS you ;)

-aaron

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Peder
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Re: Moffett Creek Bridge, HCRH: It's Not You, It's Me (7-6-08)

Post by Peder » July 6th, 2008, 10:21 pm

Loved your reflections on first & last hikes... Talking of missed opportunities, at Moffett Creek you are only a few hundred yards from the delightful trail to Munra Point! I do not recognize much in your pictures, the trail I followed from the Wahclella Parking Lot towards Moffett Creek was above (south) of I-84 and not all that bad.
Some people are really fit at eighty; thankfully I still have many years to get into shape…

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Paul
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Re: Moffett Creek Bridge, HCRH: It's Not You, It's Me (7-6-08)

Post by Paul » July 6th, 2008, 10:24 pm

:lol: Very nice report. Thanks for the humor. And sorry about your bad hike.
"If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went."
- Will Rogers

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Stevefromdodge
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Re: Moffett Creek Bridge, HCRH: It's Not You, It's Me (7-6-08)

Post by Stevefromdodge » July 7th, 2008, 6:23 am

I thought I was the only one that hiked that trail!

I had a similar day in Lewis and Clark Pake that wound up as this Field Guide entry.
http://www.portlandhikersfieldguide.org ... _Park_Hike

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Re: Moffett Creek Bridge, HCRH: It's Not You, It's Me (7-6-08)

Post by anna in boots » July 7th, 2008, 11:14 am

Robert, that's the hike that will make the next one, no matter what it is, seem SOOOO much better. Try Munra Point next door, for instance: 1500 elevation gain in less than a mile with a couple mini-pitches of free climbing. My legs were shakin' after the last time. But the view was tasty!

anna in boots
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Re: Moffett Creek Bridge, HCRH: It's Not You, It's Me (7-6-08)

Post by fettster » July 7th, 2008, 11:21 am

Thanks for the well written post. I've ridden most of that before with my bike, but I'm not placing where the now damaged pedestrian handrail stretch is at.

It was reassuring to find that no hearts were broken in the writing of this report.

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-Q-
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Re: Moffett Creek Bridge, HCRH: It's Not You, It's Me (7-6-08)

Post by -Q- » July 7th, 2008, 11:54 am

Stevefromdodge wrote:I thought I was the only one that hiked that trail!

I had a similar day in Lewis and Clark Pake that wound up as this Field Guide entry.
http://www.portlandhikersfieldguide.org ... _Park_Hike
I ended up on this Lewis and Clark trail one day this past winter when route 84 was closed. The road up to Larch Mtn was also closed. It was this or nothing. During the winter months it was a decent trail at best. Kinda spooky to not see a single car on route 84. We re-visited this trail about a week ago for a late evening short hike. Ended up going only about a 1/2 mile down trail until the thorn bushes and spiderwebs drove us insane. We turned around and ended up exploring the Sandy River Delta instead.

If you do find yourself at Lewis and Clark State Park, a fun little adventure is to scramble up Broughtons Bluff. Follow the rock climbers trail, and when you reach the headwall, hike north. Follow the trail up the manageable northface for a great non-technical scramble.

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Re: Moffett Creek Bridge, HCRH: It's Not You, It's Me (7-6-08)

Post by The C-Ws » July 7th, 2008, 2:26 pm

The actual gorge trail 400 switchbacks up to the left just before that landslide in your picture (and just after the Tanner Creek Bridge).
Casey
P.S. On the topic of missed opportunities, from where you turned around you also could have bushwhacked up Moffett Creek, then done some crazy cliff climbing around about a dozen waterfalls to Nesmith Point, then hiked down the nearly nonexistent Nesmith Fire Road to the actual gorge trail 400. Now the boring hike with freeway noise isn't sounding all that bad for some reason.

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vienturia
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Re: Moffett Creek Bridge, HCRH: It's Not You, It's Me (7-6-08)

Post by vienturia » July 7th, 2008, 4:55 pm

Ha! Well written! Sorry your hike was bad, of course, but good post.
- Lindsay

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