Eagle Creek devastation zone - Feb. 17th, 2017

[MarkInTheDark]

thanks for the report, wow!!!

[drm]

I just heard that PCTA crews want to dig this trail out, the first 4 miles, in four days - this coming week, in order to make way for the Tish Creek bridge contractors. That means one mile per day. Good luck.

[Don's Rabbit]

Wow!
Such an adventure!
kjm

[Guy]

Tilt Shift!

Great photos and report guys, wish I could have gone with you. Well maybe I don't

[dcammack]

I've seen some seriously dangerous trip reports posted here lately. I went there and didn't make it very far at all. Too dangerous for me.

[Chip Down]

Do not attempt this trail beyond the second set of cables-about 3/4 miles in. The going is relatively easy to that point but beyond is seriously dangerous. I mean seriously!!

There are no words that would scare me away from this trail nearly as much as your pictures.

[Don Nelsen]

I just heard that PCTA crews want to dig this trail out, the first 4 miles, in four days - this coming week, in order to make way for the Tish Creek bridge contractors. That means one mile per day. Good luck.

It's really only two miles to the Tish Creek bridge and only about 1 1/4 miles are bad enough that serious dig-out work need be done. I hope they bring pick axes! That's not regular snow covering the trail, it is pellets of ice for the most part and it is really packed densely and is very solid. Peder and I had a hard time kicking steps through most of it because it was packed so densely and solidly. There was a two-inch layer of snow on top but that just slipped to the side when we stepped on it and then we had to kick a toe hold in the ice underneath.

I sure hope the trail crew can get the job done and put the new bridge in. We are really lucky this winter that the other bridges survived-there's no work-around for the next three.

dn

[DouggieFir]

Looks like there will be volunteers out there this week. Looking forward to it!

[BigBear]

Thanks for the pictures, Don. I can't believe you keep doing this trail under such conditions.

For those of us who don't like exposure, angled snow on the trail or the obstacles of repeated fallen trees, have you found any trails that meet these criteria other than the open meadows east of Hood River?

[Don Nelsen]

Thanks for the pictures, Don. I can't believe you keep doing this trail under such conditions.

For those of us who don't like exposure, angled snow on the trail or the obstacles of repeated fallen trees, have you found any trails that meet these criteria other than the open meadows east of Hood River?

Angel's Rest trail is completely clear and of course, all of the Portland metro area trails (but all are muddy!) Portland is particularly blessed to have Forest Park so convenient. Mt. Talbert trails are all in good shape and also the trails on Powell Butte. (though I haven't hiked all of Powell since the snow melted.) Yesterday I hiked all of the interconnected trails at Columbia Springs (off the old Evergreen Hwy just east of the Glen Jackson Bridge.)

There are some lesser known short hikes in the Portland area that are fun too: Grant Butte, Kelly Butte and in WA, just north of Camas, the trails in Lacamas Park.

The above are easy hikes I've done to mellow out after the others - I admit to a bit of stress and some tiredness after some of my other hikes this year. I look for the difficult hikes, consider it a challenge and thoroughly enjoy myself. The hike with Peder was great - he is fearless and hikes at my pace.

I'll go out tomorrow and see what I can find. Thursday or maybe Friday morning I'll head up Eagle Creek to see how the trail clearing crews are doing.

-Don