Oregon - Mt. Hood - 11,239 Feet - June 10, 2014

Sunday, June 8, 2014 - I flew to Portland via Dallas. Driving to the airport, I thought maybe I left the pump to my stove at home. I stopped at the rest stop and checked. Sure enough, it wasn't packed. Luckily, REI in Portland had one. I got fuel there too. I sprang for an AWD vehicle with back seats that folded down so I could sleep at the bottom of Timberline.

Monday, June 9, 2014 - I snowshoed to 9000' and set up camp. It was very windy. It was hard to sleep even with earplugs. I had my new Hillberg tent and was glad for it.



View from 9000 Foot Camp
Tuesday, June 10, 2014 - I got up at 1 am and started to hike. It was too windy. There was ice and water in the wind, maybe from the vents. I got to about 9500 feet and returned to the tent. Around 6 am, I melted snow for coffee and headed to the top. Above 10,000 feet, it was very steep. There were steps kicked in at the steepest parts. I reached the top around 10:30 am. Clouds blew in and out, but while I was on the top, it was beautiful. I could see Mt. Rainier, Mt. St. Helens, Mt. Adams, Mt. Jefferson, the three sisters, and even Mt. Shasta in California. The hike down was tough. I stopped and packed up the tent, then snowshoed down to the parking lot, arriving around 3 pm. I then drove to a Chinese buffet and then Ft. Stevens State Park in the NW corner of Oregon.

At the Summit with Mt. Adams in the Background	Vent near 10000 Feet

Wednesday, June 11, 2014 - Ft. Stevens State Park is in the corner of Oregon where the Columbia River empties into the Pacific Ocean. I drove out to the beach and saw what is left of the wreck of the Peter Iredale, a ship that ran aground in 1906. From there, I went out to the south jetty. The jetty was constructed to help keep the shipping channel open in the Columbia River. This seahawk was perched there.

Wreck of the Peter Iredale	Seahawk on Jetty

From there, I went to the reconstructed Ft. Clatsop, the second winter home of Lewis and Clark. I walked the trail to Netul Landing. Lewis and Clark crossed the Columbia River from North to South from Station Camp and ascended the Lewis and Clark River (Netul River previously) to Netul Landing. They took out there and constructed Ft. Clatsop. I saw these elk on the drive back to Ft. Stevens Campground.

Reconstructed Ft. Clatsop	Foxglove along Lewis and Clark River
Interior of Reconstructed Ft. Clatsop	Elk

Thursday, June 12, 2014 - Today I went to the Lewis and Clark sites on the Washington side of the Columbia River. The first stop was Dismal Nitch. Lewis and Clark were pinned against the north shore here for a week while a storm raged. After the storm broke, they canoed downstream a few miles to Station Camp. Station Camp was their last camp on the Columbia River. They hiked from here to Cape Disappointment, the westernmost point on the Columbia River in Washington. There is a lighthouse at Cape Disappointment and the North Head Lighthouse is a few miles north. I hiked the trail in Cape Disappointment State Park to the North Head Lighthouse.

Dismal Nitch	Station Camp
Cape Disappointment Lighthouse	North Head Lighthouse

Friday, June 13, 2014 - There's still a little left of the Lewis and Clark story out here. They sent a team to the ocean from Ft. Clatsop to make salt to cure meat. A reconstruction of the salt making site is located in Seaside, OR. A little further down the coast is Cannon Beach, where some of the party hiked to see a beached whale. There are some great views of the ocean in Ecola State Park, between Cannon Beach and Seaside. I hiked from Ecola Point to Indian Beach and back in Ecola State Park.

Reconstructed Salt Works at Seaside	Haystack Rock at Cannon Beach
Starfish at Cannon Beach	Cannon Beach from Ecola Point
Tillamook Rock Lighthouse from Ecola State Park	Indian Beach and Tillamook Rock Lighthouse

The day was still early so I drove up to Astoria and climbed the Astoria Column.

Astoria Column	Astoria from atop Column

Columbia River from Astoria Column
Saturday, June 14, 2014 - I had some time before I had to drive back to Portland and I was staying at the Fort Stevens Campground, so I decided to take the walking tour of Fort Stevens. The fort was constructed to protect the entrance to the Columbia River during the Civil War. It was upgraded during World War II to keep out Japanese submarines. It was fired upon by Japanese submarines on June 21, 1942, but did not fire back since they were out of range.

Replica of Six Inch Rifle on Disappearing Carriage	World War II Defense - Part of Battery 245

Sunday, June 15, 2014 - Flew home by way of Phoenix.