Overnight Backpack Trip

Up and down the West Coast, we have had unusually warm and clear weather this last week. On Wednesday, I decided to take advantage of it and embarked on an overnight trip in the Cascades.

About 40 miles from my front door is a section of the Willamette National Forest known as the Goodman Creek Area. Within its borders are mountains, creeks, hiking trails, biking trails, a few forest service roads, and border-to-border forests including some old-growth groves. It is my go-to camping place to get away from it all.

After a 45-minute drive, I parked the car in a pullout along gravel Goodman Creek Rd. There is a trail along the creek, but I chose to walk the gravel road for the first half of my hike. The trail is a bit gnarly, and since this was the first hike in several months with a fully loaded pack, I wanted to start out easy.

The road more or less follows the creek, but fifty to a hundred feet above it. There is dense forest whether one takes the trail or the road, and I wound my way up through the 100-year-old second growth that presses in on the road. The only people I saw were a couple of mountain bikers.

After three miles, the road crossed the stream and headed away to the south, leaving its namesake creek behind. At that point, I left the road and continued on the trail, now called the Eagles Rest trail. I did stop for a quick lunch, then pressed on through the forest up toward Eagles Rest.

After about two and a half more miles, I came to a grove of old-growth trees about three-quarters of a mile by trail from, and 400 vertical feet below, the summit. There was a nice campsite there, so I set up in the shadows of a half dozen massive old trees.

With camp set up and after a snack and short rest, I climbed the last 3/4 of a mile to Eagles Rest. The summit, of what would have been an inconsequential peak, has bare rock on top, giving it a commanding, unobstructed view. Such a view is rare in the Cascade foothills, so Eagles Rest is a popular destination. From this vantage point, I could see June and Hardesty mountains across the valley with their tree-covered peaks.

After spending time on top enjoying the view and taking in the sunny blue sky, I headed back down to my camp in the old-growth grove. Along the way, I stopped to look at a 400-year-old giant which had been brought down by an ice storm a couple of years ago, blocking the trail. It had been cut out of the way, and someone has since carved its age and “Carbon Bank” into this chest-high log.

Back at my hammock, I gathered my camp stove, food, and water and moved far away from camp to prepare dinner. This was bear habitat, and if one were to show up that night, I wanted the food smells to be somewhere other than in my hammock. Lasagna, spring vegetable soup, and pita bread were on the menu, along with a chocolate almond protein bar and hot cocoa for dessert.

After dinner and cleanup, I packed all my food, trash, and my stove in a smellproof bag, put that in a bearproof bag, and tied it to a tree even farther from my hammock. I noticed a few clouds had moved in, so I decided to hike back up to Eagles Rest to catch the sunset. Boy am I glad I did. It was quite a show. I spent over an hour on top and had to come down to camp in the dark, but it was worth it.

I got back to my hammock by headlamp. I spent some time jotting down a few notes on the day and figuring out the weather for the next day, and generally puttered around camp for a while, then headed to bed.

5 a.m. came early. I broke camp by headlamp, fixed my oatmeal, mocha coffee, and breakfast protein bar, ate, and then hit the trail. Walking back down Eagles Rest Trail in the moonless darkness, my world was the limits of the beam of my headlamp. I sang as I walked, mainly so I wouldn’t surprise a bear or mountain lion in the pitch-black forest.

I finally got down to Goodman Creek Road as the darkness was lifting. The sunrise was quite nice, but my view was limited by the trees. I followed the road down and reached the car by 8 a.m.

So, a successful overnight trip. I hiked about 14 miles and climbed almost 2,500 feet. I spent a night in an old-growth forest and caught a stunning sunset. Overall, it was a great trip.

Until next week safe travels and happy trails…