A Windy Hamilton Mountain 11-Jan-2011
Posted: January 11th, 2011, 4:22 pm
As I drove back on Monday from a meeting in Bend, the weather forecasts were abuzz with dire warnings (Snowmageddon! Snowpocalypse! Glacierzilla! The Iceinator! and so on...) about a winter storm due in Tuesday afternoon. Despite these forecasts (or maybe because of them) I figured I could squeeze in a hike of Hamilton Mountain on Tuesday morning – a little mileage and gain then out of the Gorge before the winter wonderland arrived (again). Going out I-84, the wind was making my little car skitter around like a June bug on a hot griddle and it was also blowing full blast across the parking lot at Beacon Rock. But things calmed down a lot once I got up the road and on to the trail. Although the air temp was at or below freezing, Rodney Falls wasn’t the ice fall I’d expected.
The Hamilton Mountain trail was snow-free up to the first good view point at 1600’,
but soon thereafter picked up about 6” of new snow – just enough to fill in the old boot tracks. I had snowshoes and Microspikes but used neither. It was clear enough early on (before 9am) for a view of Hood.
The wind came back with a vengeance on the summit and extra layers of clothing were immediately needed to stave off its bite. The summit sign seems to be taking a beating - either from the weather or excessive memorializing of reaching the top.
Using the sign as a brace (it was very hard to hold the camera steady in the wind), I got this shot of a very snow covered Table Mountain, with an even snowier Adams in the distance.
I continued N along the ridge to make a loop and ran into very strong winds (30+ mph) at the saddle. The wind had scoured the snow off the saddle in some places,
while piling it into 3-4’ drifts in others. In one location, frozen boot tracks had served as a resist to the etching action of the wind, leaving “prints” of boots that were 2-3” thick.
Once past the saddle, the wind ceased and I was able to hike down the road in calmer, but not any warmer, conditions. There was about 6-8” of snow on the road, but it was over a solid base so, once again, there was no need for snowshoes (but I take comfort in the extra exercise gained from carrying them up and down Hamilton).
Just after I reached the Hardy Creek Trail, the clouds moved in and direct sunlight became but a memory. This was also where my camera’s battery finally succumbed to either overwork or the cold. Back at the TH, the wind was still going full blast – to the point where I had to lean into it to move forward. This must have looked odd to drivers zooming past on 14 but ... I ... just ... wanted ... to ... reach ... the ... heater ... in ... my ... car...
The Hamilton Mountain trail was snow-free up to the first good view point at 1600’,
but soon thereafter picked up about 6” of new snow – just enough to fill in the old boot tracks. I had snowshoes and Microspikes but used neither. It was clear enough early on (before 9am) for a view of Hood.
The wind came back with a vengeance on the summit and extra layers of clothing were immediately needed to stave off its bite. The summit sign seems to be taking a beating - either from the weather or excessive memorializing of reaching the top.
Using the sign as a brace (it was very hard to hold the camera steady in the wind), I got this shot of a very snow covered Table Mountain, with an even snowier Adams in the distance.
I continued N along the ridge to make a loop and ran into very strong winds (30+ mph) at the saddle. The wind had scoured the snow off the saddle in some places,
while piling it into 3-4’ drifts in others. In one location, frozen boot tracks had served as a resist to the etching action of the wind, leaving “prints” of boots that were 2-3” thick.
Once past the saddle, the wind ceased and I was able to hike down the road in calmer, but not any warmer, conditions. There was about 6-8” of snow on the road, but it was over a solid base so, once again, there was no need for snowshoes (but I take comfort in the extra exercise gained from carrying them up and down Hamilton).
Just after I reached the Hardy Creek Trail, the clouds moved in and direct sunlight became but a memory. This was also where my camera’s battery finally succumbed to either overwork or the cold. Back at the TH, the wind was still going full blast – to the point where I had to lean into it to move forward. This must have looked odd to drivers zooming past on 14 but ... I ... just ... wanted ... to ... reach ... the ... heater ... in ... my ... car...
