Olympic Coast (August 8-10)

We are trying to go on an awesome backpacking trip each year and this year we decided to go to the Olympic Peninsula.  There are two main trips on the coast, the Northern Coast and the Southern Coast.  We did the Northern Coast which consists of 17.2 miles one way from Rialto Beach to Sand Point.  This trip was a big step for us because it was Alison's first multiple-day backpacking trip.  It was also our first chance to try out our ultra-light gear.  Nick constructed his own ultra-light shelter made out of Tyvek tarp.  He also built his own alcohol stove.  Both of these proved to be great gear ideas.  Our overall pack weight went from 40-45 pounds to a mere 20 pounds (including food, pads, sleeping bags, etc).

When you hike on the coast you need to have a bear canister (which can be rented from the ranger station, but weighs about 2 lbs and is awkwardly huge), a tide chart and a topo map that includes high-tide dangers.

The first day we set out a little later than anticipated and this made our first day hiking a little more nerve-wracking than we wanted. We weren't sure what to expect for this hike and we were both very thankful that we bought trekking poles because many of the rocks we had to climb over were covered in algae.  While we were hiking we saw a couple of red foxes race past on the beach.  It was very exciting! 
Since we left late that day we ended up racing the tide and daylight trying to find a campsite.  We both prayed that we would find a site before the night came.  God certainly answered prayers! In the last half hour of daylight we found our first campsite. We hiked 6 miles overall on the first day which was quite a bit less than we we originally planned to do.

The second day our alarm didn't go off and so we woke up when we were planning to leave our campsite, which created a little bit of stress in the morning.  We packed our campsite quickly and ate our breakfast (pop-tarts) on the run.  We were once again racing tides in the morning and ended up waiting in a cove for a little bit for the tides to go out.  While we were waiting we saw our first person on the coast.  He was an older man and wanted to take our pictures for a "forest people album" he was creating. Alison started to get pretty bad blisters on her feet about halfway through the day (mainly because she forgot her insoles).  We weren't planning on going all the way to Sand Point, but somehow we ended up hiking 11 miles non-stop all the way to Sand Point! The beach here was gorgeous and the campsites were very cool.  We built our shelter right on the beach and we even had a table and chairs.  We walked barefoot for quite awhile and later climbed to the top of the hill at Sand Point and watched the ocean and some seagulls fighting over a dead seal carcass.  It was very peaceful and relaxing (minus the seagull drama).

On the third day we left pretty early.  Our goal was to reach the Norwegian campground because we heard it was a great place to camp.  We had a pretty nice hike and reached our destination point of 8 miles by 1:00 pm.  The campsites were endless here.  We found one that was on the edge of the beach up in the forest.  There was a nice campfire area as well as a handmade toilet seat!  After we set up camp the sun finally graced us with its warmth for about 3 hours.  Before this the sky was overcast the entire time. 
We walked around the beach for quite some time and even enjoyed a short nap in the sun.  Around dinnertime we realized that we didn't pack enough food and we had to figure out a way to budget the rest of our food for the night and the journey home.  We still had 9 miles left to go.

We slept very well the last night and finally made our last journey to Rialto Beach.  By this time Alison's blisters were going crazy and Nick was starting to get a few.  It took us a little longer than planned and we somehow ended up racing tides (again) even though according to the tide chart we were 2 hours ahead of schedule.  By the end of the trip we were very hungry and tired, but very satisfied.
The trip was a great success and the only problem we had was being low on food.  We saw many bald eagles, four dead seals (which was very strange), many live seals and even a couple of otters. We thoroughly enjoyed our experience :)

Marriage

Just a note to those who don't know, but we are tying the knot, getting married, jumping the broom, etc!! The date is set for July 3rd, 2010 in Yakima, WA at the Holy Cross Orthodox Church.  We are extremely excited to be starting the next chapter in our lives :) :)

Twin Falls (May 8th 2010)

Hey guys!

Hiking season has officially started, hooray! We took full advantage of the season and nice weather over the weekend and decided to try out a hike from one of our new hiking books.  We took our friend Birkin and headed out to Twin Falls, which is around the North Bend area. 
The hike itself is said to be a 4 mile loop trail with multiple waterfalls to enjoy.  We, however, did not know what the loop was and ended up walking an extra couple of miles.  The actual "loop" is just down and back, not a real loop.  The hike was a fairly easy.  There were many families hiking around there and the trail head parking lot was packed.  We advise going on a weekday when the crowds are few.  We did go off the main trail and hiked along the river which led us straight to the waterfall.  Nick and Birkin ventured over the river to the waterfall, but that journey is not advised for people with little confidence in rock jumping. 

We would love to hear feedback from you readers, even if it's just to know that we have readers :)

Ancient Lakes (March 25-26, 2010)

For spring break this year, Nick and I decided to try a cool and new backpacking trip to get ourselves pumped for the start of backpacking/hiking season. Our destination was Ancient Lakes near Quincy, WA.
 The trail head begins at the beginning of an old jeep trail.  There are many side trails along the jeep trail, but Nick and I just stuck with the main jeep trail.  Eventually, however, the trail turns into a couple smaller trails.  We looked on the Washington Trails Association website before we left and a review said to head left when the road forks (pretty funny considering there are many forks in the road!).  So, we headed left and made that our motto for the trip to the lakes.  The trail was very flat and was about 2 miles to the lakes themselves.  Eventually we headed over a slight slope and saw the lakes as well as a beautiful gushing waterfall coming down the cliff (surprising for the desert landscape).  There were about three lakes that we could see and camping spots are all around them.  You won't see wildflowers in our pictures because we went so early in the year, but we hear that it gets quite beautiful a little later in the spring.

We stayed for 2 days and 1 night, but would've been fine with just a single day there.  The area was beautiful but there is only about one days worth of hiking and exploring to be done (which we took full advantage of, exploring the ridges around the lakes for hours) before we ran out of things to do.  Unfortunately since the lakes are so easy to get to there is a bit of pollution and graffiti scattered around the lakes.  Overall it was a great hike to do early in the year, but we think its going to be a one time hike for us.  Below is a picture of the waterfall we could see from our tent site.

Sheep Lake (August 23-25)

Last August we went with Nick's family on a two-day backpacking trip to Sheep Lake.  The trail head is located off of Chinook Pass and the trail itself is actually a part of the Pacific Crest Trail or PCT (super cool!).  We hiked for 2.5 miles surrounded by forests and occasional viewpoints.  The great thing about this hike is that its basically a high alpine lake but at the same time its so easy to get to.  After the 2.5 mile marker we reached Sheep Lake...

...and we headed out in search of a camping spot.  There are quite a few located on the Eastern, Western, and Southern sides.  The Northern side was a meadow and had quite a few streams running through it.

We found our spot on the Eastern side and set up camp.  Once there we decided to grab a snack and then head out to explore the area.  If you follow the PCT trail for 2 miles or so you'll find a fork in the road.  If you go the right (also downhill) you'll continue on the PCT and if you proceed straight you'll eventually reach a gap.  This is called Sourdough Gap.  Once we reached the gap Nick's parents heard of and a moderately easy scramble to the left that would provide a great view of Mt. Rainier.  We decided to go for it, even though it didn't look easy.

This is the view we got from the top of the scramble.  Was it worth it?  Oh yes :)

 

Neahkahnie Mountain (July 2009)

We would like to start off our blog by telling you about a few of our favorite hikes from the past year.  We aren't going to include Mt. Si and other very popular hikes, but more of the unique and not-so-popular hikes. 
Last summer (July 2009) we went to the Oregon coast and climbed a little mountain called Neahkahnie mountain.  Nick's band, Camaraderie, had been playing a song called "Neahkahnie Perspective" for many years so we figured we should at least see the view from the top.  

The trailhead was about half a mile off the main road and not too difficult to find.  It had rained the day before so the trail was a little muddy.  The hike held a consistently moderate climb for its full three miles.  The trail wound through a typical beautiful coastal NW forest with occasional views giving glimpses of what was to come at the top, as well as providing nice resting spots.  While our surroundings did not seem like typical snake country we were surprised by numerous small garter snakes that would pop out of the bushes in front of us and slither across the path.  It made the hike more interesting and exciting because we never knew when another snake was going to jump out!  The top of the hike provided a gorgeous view of the ocean and coastal area around the mountain.

Overall this was a fairly easy hike with a rewarding view.  Its a great afternoon activity for anyone happening to be exploring the Oregon Coast on a Sunny day.

We have two pictures for you guys, but unfortunately they were taken with a disposable camera so the quality isn't the best, but you still get the idea.