Mt. Hood Area

August 21

We left Portland a little after 7 am to get to the Mt. Hood area for a little run on the Pacific Crest Trail with some fellow participants in the trail running camp Larry attended earlier in the summer. We got a car shuttled and were on the trail by 10am for a mostly downhill jaunt from Barlow Pass to Little Crater Lake - just over 13 miles. The trail was mostly in the woods, but we got a few nice photo opportunities for Mt. Hood, and took plenty of stops to regroup, snack on huckleberries, etc.

Goofing around on a 'Giants Ladder'

One of many nice view of Mt. Hood

Little Crater Lake was super little! A pretty blue, cold, artesian well that is apparently 45' deep in one spot, and only 1/4 mile from a trail head, had plenty of visitors!

In case you're interested in the formation of Crater Lake...

Post run, the organizer provided some nice refreshments and we had some good socializing - runners love talking about running! Next weekend's Hood to Coast relay was the big topic, most of the group was participating somehow.
 
Happily, Rudy's feet held up better today (socks help I guess!). The rest of the group departed back to the start, and Rudy and I did a little exploring of the nearby Trillium Lake - still tons of people around on Sunday afternoon, so we avoided the main congestion of the lake and found a nice little spot to park for the night on a relatively quiet forest road.  We took a short stroll along the road and noticed there seemed to be a lot more diversity of the plants and trees than at least what we've observed at other places.

At one point we heard a loud crashing and thump as something fell to the forest floor, followed by a couple more - we found a large pinecone to be the culprit - I believe this was what Larry was describing to me earlier as 'noble fir' - it was fun to make that connection!
 
Also notable were trailing blackberries - apparently the only blackberry actually native to the PNW.
 

Tunnel for the bike path under the old Oregon Trail

We had plenty of time in the evening to relax, make a good meal of fried potatoes and black beans with a farmers market jalepeno, and get a start on the second season of Game of Thrones!

August 22

Cool morning in the early 50s! At least the sun was out, that helped things warm up. I spent a little time picking some huckleberries to get incorporated into breakfast. We basked in the sun just a little, then made our way to Government Camp to check out some of the biking trails there. We opted for some 'easier' trails near town - I just did a little out and back of ~8 miles while Rudy went all the way to Timberline Lodge and back down for ~14 miles. There were quite a few clouds around, and it only reached ~60F, so I was actually bundled up and whining about the cold most of the day - lame. We parked for the night at Little Zigzag Falls trailhead, and took the short easy hike to check out the falls before making dinner. 

Little Zigzag Falls

We finished off the millet I bought for some recipe long ago and will probably never buy again - there are just more enjoyable grains out there! The addition of sundried tomatoes, basil, parmesan, and balsalmic vinegar made it taste great though. Another early evening with time for Trivial Pursuit, another GOT episode, and another book finished for me!

August 23
40s this morning! We kept the van closed up, so weren't too cold, just dipping into the 50s inside, but still a good excuse to set up the stove and have some hot beverages and oatmeal for breakfast. Today was pretty clear and the sun warmed things up pretty quickly, while Rudy did some window shade maintenance and awesomely picked up some trash around the trailhead, and I scoped out the cliff and learned about the local geology - a lot of dacitic and andesitic lava and some intrusive formation too - dorky!
 
When we were about ready to move on, I ran the Pioneer Bridle Trail to Rhodedendron, where Rudy planned to catch a shuttle back to Timberline Lodge and bike the 15 miles of trail back down. The trails are pretty decent - a lot of soft piney stuff, but also some loose rocky areas that dulled my interest for much biking on it - of course Rudy loved it! Temps reached the 70s, but a good breeze kept it from feeling 'hot'. While Rudy was still riding, a guy showed up that was waiting for his friend to finish the trail too - turns out they had started out with Rudy! So chatted with him, and even accepted a fantastic beer they picked up in Hood River.

Delicious

And looks cool

These guys also informed us the Hood River trails we were considering are not in such great shape right now, so made us feel better for skipping them :) We found some camping near Sandy River - another open woods area with lots of people for a Tuesday. Made a fancy dinner of mac 'n cheese with farmers market jalapenos and had another chill evening.

August 24
Another late morning, but a little nicer temps. I looked around at the rocks in the river, I think volcanic tuff - cool!
  
The Sandy Ridge Trails were checked out today - I stuck with the easier ones - mostly downhill runs with a paved road to climb back up - overall, a nice little system. We got our spot back on the Sandy River, and I got in a little jog, we played in the river a bit more, and had another fancied up dinner of ramen noodles with bell peppers and basil and another quiet, early evening.

Rudy thinks river pushups are fun

Another view of Mt. Hood

Portland, OR

August 20

We started the day with a group run at Forest Park with the run club Larry likes to hang out with. Nice, simple up for 2.5 miles to Pittock Mansion. The air was a little hazy, but still cool view of the area, and could just make out Mt. Hood.








Always nice to run back down. Rudy actually kicked my butt both directions! He ended up with a few blisters though - hope to get that worked out before pacing duties for Wasatch...
Portland State University Farmers Market next - so huge!

Spent over an hour there, pretty much had a meal of samples - lots of cheeses, cured meats, fruits and veggies, vinegars, some kombuchas, even a little whiskey! One vendor was much too generous with cookie and scone chunks - oof! Ended up buying a little produce, some goat cheese, and a fantastic loaf of sourdough rye, totally worth $6!

Early afternoon, we picked up cousin Doug, and Larry drove us out to the Columbia River Gorge for some hiking and waterfall viewing with cooler temps. It being Saturday with a forecast of 100F in Portland, there was a ton of people there - worth it though! We made a big loop to take in Triple Falls, Ponytail Falls, and Horsetail Falls.

Triple Falls

Horsetail Falls

Ponytail Falls

Looking up the Columbia River

We returned to Portland fairly late, so spent a little time chatting, watching Olympics, and sharing some pizza and beer, before a relatively early bed time to get enough rest for an earlyish morning run outing Sunday.

Western Washington

August 16

Another latish morning snd a slow farewell to Spokane. Sad to get back on the interstate, but at least we had a clear day versus the last time we drove toward Seattle - could actually see Mt. Rainier! We made it to the Duthie bike trail system just east of Seattle. This was  interesting - pretty geared toward beginners and included a skill park and more easy level trails.  I actually spent a good hour tooling around on 'skinnies' and jumps - I still have a long way to go!! After the ride, there was just time to stop by Snoqualmie River to clean up then find a parking spot along a forest road. Rice and lentils made for an easy dinner - then we got a start on Game Of Thrones 2nd season.

August 17

Cool, nice morning for a stroll around our camping area of pretty open woods that are easy to get around, so unfortunately, not really any trails since you can walk wherever, and little wads of tp next to seemingly every tree - kinda sad. A short drive brought us to the Tokul trails - the actual biking trails a little overgrown - I opted for an easy run along the Snoqualmie Valley Trail - flat and gravel. A few hours at Tokul, then on to Tiger Mountain for more purpose built biking trails.  I'm glad I saved my bike ride for here - nice new climbing 'green' trail that was worth an hour crawling up for a fantastic view of Rainier!! And the port of Seattle too...


 
I definitely surprised myself with some of the trails we took - luckily starting with smoother, flowy trails. Things got a little more challenging and technical that I fell apart on - 3 hours was just an hour too much for me...character building? Rudy had lots of fun though! We found a calmish spot in the somewhat raging White River to clean up in, then made camp at the Greenwater trails northeast of Rainier National Park (Skookum Flats trailhead) and settled for mac n' cheese late dinner.


August 18
A long bike ride for Rudy and run for me - glad I didn't bike! Not super-technical, but above my skill level - great for my hike/runs though. There were great views of Rainier, through big cedar woods that smelled wonderful and had some cool flowers. 


Rudy managed to visit a watchtower where people volunteer for 2 night shifts. Following our activities, we got the swim in early enough that glacial White river wasn't too bad. Chatted with a guy from MO that has been doing a lot of driving around the country, living out of his truck for weeks at a time - he actually watched fireworks in Duluth last 4th of July! After the cool swim, the evening was comfortable enough to make split pea soup a nice meal choice. The original plan was to head to Mt. St. Helens, but we decided to take a day off from driving and spend another day in this area and check out more of these trails. SO! Plenty of time for a little game of Trivial Pursuit :)

August 19
Near repeat of the prior day, but the views and sights and smells were still much enjoyed, as were some of the 'features' of the trails.
 

The trails were not too crowded, but noticeably more people coming in - glad we were leaving Friday! Headed to Portland, a little later than hoped, so just enough time to go to The Caldera for some decent food and beer and visiting with uncle Larry.

More Spokane...and a little more Idaho

August 14
We said farewell to Spirit Lake once again and headed to Spokane to bike and hang out with Cory, since we'd be passing through. Back to Beacon Hill - really a pretty exposed for a hot and sunny day (mid-90s!!). I for one was happy to get some heat training in, but sadly it did me in a little sooner than I was hoping for - I took a break just before 3 hours of running and couldn't get myself back out there! I took a dip in the Spokane River instead - much cooler than I expected and just what I needed!

Spokane River

Rudy and Cory got started on their bike ride a little later and had slightly more comfortable conditions - I don't think they enjoyed their post-ride swim as much as I enjoyed mine though. The evening included making some fantastic veggie stir fry and staying up too late just chatting - all good!







August 15
We didn't get too awful late of a start - Rudy treated us to one of his specialties - omelettes! and without much hurry, we were back to Coeur d'Alene and Caribou Ridge about noon. Rudy and Cory planned out a couple biking loops while I checked out the trails on foot. The temps stayed in the 80s and there was a lot more shade here, and little creeks to soak my hat in, and hiking, so I easily made 4 hours feeling fine. Pretty cedar woods and views of pined hills, I only stopped for one picture though.

A nice view from somewhere along Caribou Ride

Post run I found a spot in the little Beauty Creek to get in - hot days make cold water so much nicer!

Beauty Creek indeed

Cory was busy in the evening, but Rudy and I still abused his hospitality, making giant salads and gnocchi for dinner. We are spending way too much money on food! And still have a lot of dried grains and such from home, so going to really start making an effort to use up what we have and buy less new stuff every three days!

Book List

Maybe some type of reviews/little opinions will be added too, but for now, just a list of what we have been reading.

Leslie:
Thich Nhat Hanh 'no death, no fear'  ~ inspiring
Jon Krakauer 'Into the Wild'  ~ intriguing
John Steinbeck 'Tortilla Flat'  ~ enlightening
Dougal Dixson 'The Practical Geologist'  ~ educational
Roald Dahl 'Boy'  ~ amusing
John Steinbeck 'Cannery Row'  ~ awkward
John Steinbeck 'The Red Pony'  ~ sad
John Steinbeck 'Of Mice and Men'  ~ more sadness
John Steinbeck 'The Moon is Down'  ~ actually kind of funny
John Steinbeck 'The Pearl'  ~ even more sadness
William Shakespeare 'Henry IV'
William Shakespeare 'Much Ado About Nothing'
William Shakespeare 'Hamlet'
Barbara Kingsolver 'Homeland and Other Stories'  ~ nice easy reading after a bunch of Shakespeare
Benjamin Hoff  'The Te of Piglet'  ~ a nice perspective
Daniel Quinn 'The Story of B'  ~ much to contemplate
Barbara Kingsolver 'Flight Behavior'  ~ makes me feel better about Southerners
Vladimir Nabokov 'Lolita'  ~ I don't know enough about literary stuff to feel anything besides creeped out
Daniel Quinn 'My Ishmael'  ~ more to contemplate
Margaret Atwood 'The Robber Bride' ~ interesting, not dystopic, more entertaining
Bill Bryson 'A Walk in the Woods' ~ surprisingly educational
Amy Tan 'The Bonesetters Daughter' (currently working on)

Rudy:
John Grisham 'A Time to Kill'
Jon Krakauer 'Into the Wild'
Thich Nhat Hanh 'no death, no fear'
E.L. James 'Fifty Shades of Grey'
Daniel Quinn 'My Ishmael'
Benjamin Hoff  'The Te of Piglet'
John Steinbeck 'Cannery Row'
John Steinbeck 'The Red Pony'
John Steinbeck 'Of Mice and Men'
John Steinbeck 'The Moon is Down' 
John Steinbeck 'The Pearl'
David Lagercrantz 'The Girl in the Spider's Web'
Vladimir Nabokov 'Lolita'
Michael Crichton 'State of Fear' (currently working on)
Some physics textbook (currently working on)

A little more Idaho

Another week of some brief summaries - I didn't get a whole lot of pictures, and we spent more time visiting people - yay! The next couple weeks will be Seattle and Portland areas, then down the Pacific coast - anticipating more new sights and experiences soon!

August 9
A rainy morning is a slow morning for us. Today was Kalispell to take care of some 'town' stuff, then a stop at a Flathead Lake boat landing for some dinner - pasta!, and camping at Flathead Lake - same spot as last time - apparently there are more trails right there for us to check out!

August 10
More rain and 50sF - was supposed to be done and maybe warm a little noonish. In the morning we sought out a Flathead cherry stand (got 2 pounds of deliciousness for $5) and spent another $5 on some Hutterite veggies. The rest of the morning we did some reading - each finishing a book! I'm thinking I'll start a list of books read here, I think Rudy may end up with more this year than his whole life thus far! Early afternoon, it did stop raining, and we prepared for our outings on the Beardance trail.  This was a little overgrown, so wet grass and brush made clothes wet quickly, and it didn't really warm up, so the damp and cold made a little challenge - luckily I overdressed and was hiking and running. Otherwise nice trails (though I'm glad I didn't bike, with all the slick rocks and roots) mostly in denser woods - I didn't see much for fauna, but flora can still be cool no matter the weather!
 
Unfortunately Rudy had pretty cold hands and feet biking, but sitting in the running van drinking hot tea got us warmed up enough to jump in the lake! An early meal of burritos with jalapenos warmed us up some more. Also finished Game of Thrones first season - feeling more accomplished than yesterday!

August 11
We drove around the south end of Flathead Lake to depart Montana and head to the Lost Creek trail in the Idaho Panhandle. I planned an out and back on the trail for ~16 miles of hike/run (a few more miles than the Beardance Trail) while Rudy made a loop, going up the less steep gravel road and down the trail. Going up the trail, however, I crawled over 200+ downed trees! There was a few nice views though, and a cool little rock slide to cross.

I met Rudy near the top of the trail - he had already encountered a few downed trees, and after my report, opted for the road back.  I also took the road for ~12.5 speedy descending miles for me - I don't think I have run a sub-7 minute mile since Grandma's marathon, let alone sub 8 or 9 even! Probably not the best 'training' for Wasatch, but fun. And I saw a coyote and a moose! I'm not familiar with moose size range, but I think it was a good size bull moose that I kept chasing down the road, that I had to pause and walk a few minutes until he was out of sight. I Didn't get a good picture though. Sunny and warmer, but in the evening it cooled off enough for hot food to sound good - grilled swiss and sundried tomato sandwiches and creamy mushroom soup - almost gourmet! Then another early bed time, I was incredibly tired with 21 miles/5 hours on my feet!

August 12
Yeah, legs a little tired and sore! Mount Coeur d'Alene (Beauty Creek Road, Caribou Ridge - seems to be a few names) was the next stop. I stuck with an out and back on the road while Rudy explored more of the trails - hotter and sunnier again - 80s here. Following the rides, we headed for groceries - back in WinCo land! We spent way too much time there restocking on some bulk goods and getting some dinner iems before making our way back up to Spirit Lake to visit Ryan and Mara a little more and see progress on the place - coming along slowly but surely! I am so impressed with the challenges some people take on! We cooked up some steaks, chicken sausages, and corn on the cob, and Mara whipped up some amazing peanut butter cookies - all incredibly satisfying!

August 13
No adventures, just more good visiting and kind of helping out around the house - I snuck in a little road run. Ryan had some family come in from MN, they had some jet leg to deal with so early bed time was agreeable for everyone!