Washington's Canyon Country

The view from 6,379-foot Diamond Peak, the highest summit in Garfield County, Washington's least populated county ( population 2,060) is unlike any other in the state. It's a view of deep canyons and barren hillsides and huge gorges cuts by snaking rivers. Here in the extreme corner of southeastern Washington is the Evergreen State's Canyon Country. And aside from deeply-cut canyons, you'll also be granted views of snow-capped jagged peaks in Oregon (the Wallowas with summits reaching nearly 10,000 feet) and cloud-piercing peaks across Hells Canyon in Idaho. The Blue Mountains along with the Kettle River Range in northeastern Washington are perhaps the loneliest and least explored mountain ranges in Washington. They're two of my favorite places and I have lined up four fantastic adventurous hikes in my upcoming Backpacking Book to help entice you to make the long trip to explore these peaks. And while a good portion of the Blues are protected within wilderness, the Kettle River Range still remains unprotected. This guidebook author would love to someday write about a Kettle Crest Wilderness when describing the area. Perhaps the reality of an expansive Eastern Washington wilderness system may come soon--but only if you are willing to let your elected representatives know that it is something that you want to see happen-something that you believe in-and something that you are committed to achieving.

Watch Out Ceder Butt!

Here comes Oreon Butte!

Oreon? Was this Butte named for a favorite cream-filled cookie? A constellation? Oreon the hunter! Nope! Just another topographical typographic error! Did Joe Biden and George W. Bush survey the Blue Mountains? Nope-but whoever did, did indeed work for the federal government and they literally left their mark here on West Butte in the Blue Mountains of southeast Washington by leaving this botched benchmark. West Butte at 6,292-feet is the fourth highest summit in Washington's Blues. It commands an excellent view of Oregon Butte which this geodetic marker is pointing to and referring to), the highest summit in Washington's Blues. But almost as interesting as the views from West Butte is this misspelled marker. And just like Cedar Butte's famous geodetic marker, "Ceder Butt," Oreon goes down in the geographic gaffe hall of fame! Are there more out there? I want to know about them-possibly they'll make fodder for my next book, "Day Hiking Wahington!" And if you are interested in hiking to West Butte, I refer you to the excellent guidebook by James P. Johnson, "50 Hikes for Eastern Washington's Highest Mountains," and of course my upcoming Backpacking Washington book (due spring 2011).

Misery Loves Company

or rather I love Misery!

I love the Blues and I love Misery! Let me explain. That is, I love the Blue Mountains of southeastern Washington and the Mount Misery Trail which traverses them. I just got back from a week long trip in eastern Washington which had me pitching my books in Kennewick, Spokane, and Chelan and hitting the trail doing research for my Backpacking Book in the Wenaha-Tucannon Wilderness and the Salmo-Priest Wilderness. These two federally prtoected wilderness areas are among only three wilderness areas (the other being Juniper Dunes) in all of eastern Washington. But both the Salmo-Priest and the Wenaha-Tucannon are among the wildest of all of our wildernesses. I spent 19 miles hiking the Mount Misery highline one day in which I only encountered a couple of hunters setting up their camps for opening day. On my drive out, just past the trailhead I watched in amazement a cougar trot across the road! It was the first time in my 20 years hiking the trails of Washington state that I finally witnessed one of these large and impressive beasties. Glad I saw it from behind the wheel than in front of my boots! I'm a cat person, but who knows how the cougar feels about it. And I'm a UW grad too, and I was deep in cougar country so it was best to lay low! Seriously though, if you haven't hiked yet the mile high ridges and crusied above the deep canyons of the Blues-a truly unique section of our state -you are in for a real treat. But avoid this place in the height and heat of summer. Fall is best! But Fall is when this area sees the most human visitation-the hunting here is legendary. Wear your orange and hike away the blues today!

Washington's hottest wilderness

-literally!

Last month I had the opportunity (finally) to hike in the Juniper Dunes Wilderness. Other than the Washington Islands and San Juan Islands Wildernesses-all this leaves for me to visit for Washington wildernesses now-is the tiny trailless Wonder Mountain Wilderness. In essence, Juniper Dunes is trailless too-just hike willy-nilly over an amazing dune system-the last intact protected interior dunes in the state. The wilderness is small, 7,100 acres-surrounded by agriculture and ORV-thrill parks. The Dunes too were once molested by ORVs and 4x4 scars still exist in this harsh yet fragile environment. Rainfall is scarce here-only 7 to 8 inches a year. This is the closest thing to a desert ecosystem that we have here in Washington. And with that said-now is not the time to visit. Being just outside of Pasco, the Dunes lie within the hottest part of the state-not unusual to have over 100 degree F days here throughout July and August. Visit in the fall or spring-definitely, spring when you can access the wilderness through the north easier-too-get-to trailhead and enjoy the amazing flowers. This place is hot! But, go check it out when it isn't!

Falling for the Palouse!

I just had to stop by Palouse Falls on my way to the Juniper Dunes Wilderness two weeks ago. I have stopped to admire these falls several times in the past while in the area. They are in my opinion the prettiest major waterfalls in the state. You can have Snoqualmie Falls. There is no hoity-toity resort teetering on Palouse's edge nor or there scores of latte-sipping label-flashing oh-that's-pretty-lets-go-shopping-now types cluttering the viewscape (Okay-just a few!). Seriously- Palouse Falls are absolutely gorgeous. What makes them so? Well their height is certainly a factor-but so is the stark desert-steppe surroundings and the grand canyon that the river rushes through afterwards. And no development-just a wild rugged section of the arid and geologically fascinating southeast corner of the state. The falls are protected within a state park (that I'm surprised former governor and now Obama administration lackey Gary Locke didn't close when he liquidated about seven parks in Eastern Washington in 2002). Make sure you support this park and our other priceless gems by making the $5.00 park donation on your vehicle registration renewal. Five bucks is the price of one of those lattes over at Snoqualmie Falls. Five bucks for our parks is a bargain and it won't leave you jittery or add a pound to your waistline.

Flour Power!

If you find yourself heading out to the Blue Mountains sometime soon, you absolutely have to check out the Pataha Flour Mill just east of Pomeroy. The mill operated from the 1880s to the 1940s supplying flour for various staples, among them macaroni for my paesoni in San Francisco! There's not much else in Pataha these days, even though it was briefly the county seat of Garfield County. The US Congress helped the seat go to Pomeroy. Never before or since has the US Congress declared a county seat. Damn Arthur administration meddling with state's rights! Anyhow Garfield county is a fascinating place. Washington's least populated county-only 2,350 residents-1,500 of them in Pomeroy-I love this place. In 1910 the county had over 4,500 residents. Now, if only King County could shrug 50% of its populations it too would be fun to visit!

Hike the Blues Away!

Whenever I take to the trail I hike my blues away. But in the southeast corner of Washington I praise the blues-I welcome the blues. The Blue Mountains that is! Quite possibly Washington's least known and least hiked mountains -unless of course you hail from Walla Walla or are an elk hunter from eastern Washington-then you know these mountains all so well.

I've only made two trips to these mountains so far-and was just there last month on my Eastern Washington spring road trip. Still quite a bit of snow on the higher elevations and a little too in the Tucannon River Valley. But on the southern slopes-not much white stuff. I hiked 4.5 miles up the Tucannon River Trail then hiked another 2.5 miles up to Hunter Spring at elevation 5,700 feet. What did I get in return? Views! Wildflowers! and a few ticks too~

The floral show was stunning and the views down the Tucannon Valley and out to Diamond Peak (pictured right) were wonderful. I'm including two treks in these mountains in my upcoming Backpacking Washington book. If you are looking for a good day hike-and one that won't be incredibly hot in summer try the Tucannon River trail (described in my Best Hikes Dog Book). Summers can be brutal out here on the ridges; hotter than a nun's dream! Autumn is perfect. I'll look for you then. I'll be trekking across the Mount Misery Trail detailing the route for your reading pleasure. I'll also be singing the blues!

Railing for Trails

In the golden hills and pine cloaked mountains of northeastern Washington, a broad coalition of folks have gotten on board to create the state’s next great rail trail.
The proposed 28-mile Ferry County Rail Trail will not only provide hikers, cyclists, and cross-country skiers with stunning views of the Kettle River and the lofty and wild Kettle River Range rising above it, but it’ll also become the first international rail trail in the western United States.
Named after the sparsely populated county it traverses, the trail will run from just outside of the historic gold mining town of Republic north to the riverside burg of Danville on the Canadian border. From there the trail will tie in with B.C.’s extensive Kettle Valley Rail Trail. Utilizing a rail bed that served as the local timber industry’s lifeline for nearly a century, the new trail has great potential in promoting an economy based on sustainable ecotourism.
A major highlight along the trail, Curlew Lake, is home to one of Washington’s loveliest state parks, Curlew Lake State Park (where Heather and I tied the knot in 2006), with lakeshore camping and wonderful swimming, fishing, and paddling opportunities. At the north end of the seven-mile long lake is a historic trestle, destined to be a popular feature along the trail.
While local support for a non-motorized trail is strong, spearheaded primarily through the efforts of Bob Whittaker and the Ferry County Rail Trail Partners (FCRTP), a small but vocal faction would like to see the proposed trail open to motorcycles and ATVs. Don't let that happen! Help the Ferry County Rail Trail Partners make this trail Washington's next great non-motorized rail trail!

Wildest not-yet-wilderness canyon in Washington!

Last week I had the opportunity to once again take a hike up Thirteen Mile Creek in the Colville National Forest in remote Ferry County. Accompanying me was Jasmine Minbashian of Conservation Northwest. Jasmine worked with me on my book, Columbia Highlands: Exploring Washington's Last Frontier. This area is truly Washington's last frontier and both Jasmine and I have an immense love for this wild country and would like nothing less for Thirteen mile Canyon, the Kettle Crest and other roadless areas in the Colville to be designated as Washington's next federally protected wilderness areas. If you haven't hiked here yet-this is a good time right now before it gets really hot later in the summer. Be mindful that this is one of the rattlesnakiest trails in the state. Jasmine and I watched a good size one (she claimed it wasn't so big-I have a different view!) slither in front of us while she was photographing a lone Ponderosa pine snag on the canyon rim. Want to learn more about this area? Check out my book and pay a visit to Conservation Northwest's website. See you in the Kettles!

Trek on over to Vulcan Mountain

Continuing on my reporting of my recent Eastern WA-northern Idaho road trip:

I headed over to Republic for a couple of days to do some hiking for my upcoming backpacking book. Trouble was there was too much snow on the Kettle Crest and I was forced to abort my intended hike-will need to return in a month or so. With a half a day of gorgeous weather still on my side though I decided to check out nearby Little Vulcan Peak, a prominent mountain that rises above the Kettle River and the community of Curlew. There are so many neat and "undiscovered" mountains in Northeastern WA, this one being one of the many. Of course Vulcan and Little Vulcan aren't really undiscovered-they received their names from early prospectors due to the iron ore (not Captain Spock) found on its slopes. But with the miners long gone, very few bipeds traverse this mountain these days. Today the area is managed primarily for grazing and wildlife management. There are some neat ledges along its summit and some spectacular views of the Kettle River Range from the lower open slopes. My advice if you want to explore this area-mountain bike! The roads are a little too roady for hiking-but perfect for mountain biking with nothing extreme or radical. Beam me back to Republic Scotty! Little Vulcan and other peaks are calling me!

(photo- Kettle Crest from Little Vulcan)

Supreme Courthouse Picks

I have an affinity for old buildings. Hey-I am a Native Englander, you know! Some of my favorite old and historic buildings in Washington are a handful of the county courthouses. And out on the eastern Washington plains and hills there are some real gems. So while President Obama is messing around with picking a Supreme Court Justice- I offer you a few of my supreme courthouse picks. My six favorite courthouses in Washington are:

Douglas County Courthouse in Waterville (pictured Here)
Columbia County Courthouse in Dayton
Garfield County Courthouse in Pomeroy
Pacific County Courthouse in South Bend
Grays Harbor County Courthouse in Montesano
Okanogan County Courthouse in Okanogan

These buildings are architectural, historic, and aesthetic gems. I never get tired of stopping by them and photographing and admiring them. What are some of your favorite courthouses-Washington and elsewhere?

Back from my Eastern Washington (and a little bit of Idaho too) Whirlwind Tour

Last night at around 11:30 pm I returned from an 8 day trip that was quite productive and fun and a tad bit exhausting. I apologize for the lack of blog entries during my absence-but I don't travel with a laptop. Wouldn't have had any time to use it anyways even if I did travel with one. So where did I go and what did I do?
Okay-
Book and hiking talk and presentation in Wenatchee.
Run 6 miles on the Golden Tiger Rail Trail in Republic Washington
Hike 10 miles on the northern Kettle Crest and Little Vulcan Mountain
Hike 5 miles in 13 Mile Canyon Roadless area
Book talk and presentation in Spokane
Hike 4 miles on Tubbs Hill in Coeur d'Alene Idaho
Walk a few mils on the Centennial Trail
Run 10 miles on the Trail of the Coeur d'Alenes at Heyburn State Park, ID
Hike 14 miles on Tucannon River Trail and Hunters Spring in the Blue Mountains, Umatilla National Forest
Hike 4 miles in the Juniper Dunes Wilderness
Book talk in Walla Walla
Run 6 miles on the Mill Creek Trail and Bennington Lake Reserve in Walla Walla
Visit the Whitman National Historic Site
Hike Hat Rock State Park, Oregon
Hike Crow Butte
Run a 10K race in Moses Lake
Visit Dry Falls
Drive way too much thanks to a road closure on the North Cascades Highway

Quite a bit of activity there for 8 days uh? Tell me about it! I'm exhausted- time to rest on this Memorial Day Weekend. I'll tell you more about some of the places I recently visited in the my upcoming posts. Its great to be back home!

(photo-Garfield County Courthouse in Pomeroy-the middle of nowhere and one of my favorite corners of Washington)