Saturday, August 6, 2011

50 Mile Hike on the Pacific Crest Trail

We took a bunch of boy scouts on a 50 mile hike along the PCT.

Originally the plan was to start at Timberline lodge on Mt Hood, but with the extra snow, we started lower and hiked up to the alpine line.

Some boys needed more incentive to get started, so snack bags strategically placed got them running!



Several places to ford rivers. Here we cross the Sandy river.









Of course, we also took the time to soak our feet frequently.

Nice, cold water for hot toes.

Hopefully the good people of Sandy, OR don't have to drain the river because of our sweaty toes...





The mountain above was beautiful.









Another river crossing, heading north on the PCT.

The boys did great.







More trail-side foot care.

With all the steep up and down, toes and heels were tired.







The sausage-n-biscuits were a big hit again.

The sticks made a big difference, allowing the biscuits to bake instead of fry.






Duct tape added miles to soft feet.










The second day we had a stop at Lost Lake to camp.


We put a LED lamp at the south end of the lake... look for it!







Another training tip for the boys - use clothes clips to keep stuff on the line and out of the dirt.









Pancakes with lots of syrup were a big hit - no one ever got tired of them with lots of butter and buttermilk syrup.


The handy tubes worked well for butter, peanut butter, syrup, or mayo.






We also had dutch oven cooking at Lost Lake, and replaced sweaty clothes.


Resupply of food made all the boys smile.






Another great piece of gear - small, disposable toothbrushes.











Eventually the trail led to the Eagle Creek trail - here the boys found Tunnel Falls.


The Eagle Creek trail is always a hit. Beautiful.






On the ride home the boys quickly gobbled up icecream.










And as soon as the ice cream was gone, they passed out.






Kayaking in Scappoose Bay

The nice weather lately chased us out to the water again.

Fishing has been slower for us, so we spent an afternoon kayaking instead.

The boys did well, and liked the kayaks better than canoes.





We checked out the usual spots...








The water levels in the bay have dropped about 5' from last visit, so we were able to do some beach combing and exploring this trip.








Lots of debris floated up in the woods from high water all winter.









The weather was gorgeous.









Besides beachcombing, we also followed several of the side-channels up deeper into the woods.


Reminded us alot of "swamp people", but we didn't see no gators.






Caught some big snakes, though.










Found lots of old iron in old log floats washed up.


Sure enough, most of it was forgotten out in the yard by the next day.


A fun day - and definitely recommended for a great afternoon adventure in the Pacific NW.

Sturgeon on the Estuary



We found a day to get out to the lower Columbia River before the fishery closed, and put a few FAT sturgeon in the boat.


Fishing was slow, but when we found the herd's grazing on the bottom it got crazy, fast!


We ended with two keepers, and 6 oversized fish that were 6-7 feet long. A great day!