As I was heading out I-84 somewhat dazed by the time change, it looked like we were going to get the promised sunny day. Alas, no – a pearly gray overcast soon moved in and that was the sky for most of my day. I was braced for a crowd but when I got there (late for me) there were only a few cars (it would be a different story on my return). The trail up Hamilton was its usual straightforward self. I always find there cliffs fascinating – so sheer, so seemingly climbable, such loose junk.
There was no snow on the trail until just before the summit and, even then, it wasn’t much. My only concession to snow was gaiters.
I could see Hardy Ridge across the valley and could see snow in among the trees, but the snow-flocked forest of Saturday had apparently melted overnight.
From the top of Hamilton, I had a good view across to Table (now with a fresh snow cover) and beyond to Adams.
I was mindful that a recovery operation was in progress just on the other side of Table for the hiker who went missing last week and whose body had just been found. So many questions left unanswered here. My one hope is that the family finds some small measure of solace in at least being able to lay her to rest in their own way.
It was very windy and surprising cold on Hamilton, so I headed north to the saddle, then down Don’s Cutoff Trail to the road at the bottom of the valley. A short distance up the road is the “new” bridge – a solid effort obviously designed for horses but a boon to hikers too – which spans Hardy Creek.
Across the bridge is the “new” trail (better names obviously needed here for bridge & trail) which leaves the bridge as a wide trail but soon descends into a meek effort defined largely by flagging. I was just thinking how nice it would be to have a better trail when I turned the corner and ran smack into a volunteer work crew from the Washington Trails Association. They were stretched out quite a ways along the trail moving dirt, building rock walls, felling trees, etc. – basically building more “new” trail. THANK YOU!! While waiting for a tree to fall, my attention was drawn to this unusual tree fungus.
The “new” trail past the construction zone is a veritable superhighway and I was up to the road in no time. Turning right, I followed the road to its end, where a trail heads up to Hardy Ridge. Once on the ridge, it was pretty easy going to Phlox Point – mainly because there were 5 people ahead of me breaking trail. The snow was probably no more than 18” at its deepest. There’s a good view of Hood from Phlox Point (2957’) – the high point on Hardy Ridge.
It wasn’t a whole lot warmer or less windy on Hardy Ridge, so taking a long break there wasn’t all that inviting. The return was anti-climatic – back down the trail to the road, then down the road to its junction with the road that leads either to Hamilton or the Equestrian Trailhead. A left turn here took me to the Hardy Creek trail and hence back to the Upper Parking Lot. My rough estimate of this loop is 12.5 mi & 3900’ total gain – more than enough for a day hike.
