Month: April 2013

Westberg trail

I’m getting tired of snow (not to mention hauling all that cold weather gear), so I set up a hike in eastern Washington near Ellensburg. What a great choice! There was no snow, and the sun was out.

I figured that this would be most people’s first hike of the year, so I made sure that it was short, but challenging. The Westberg trail was perfect for that. It’s only four miles round-trip, but it has a 1700 foot elevation gain, which is fairly steep. The view at the top makes all that effort worthwhile. You get a fantastic view of the Kittitas Valley and the Stuart Range.

The Westberg trail is a few miles north of the Wenas Wildlife Refuge. It is a memorial to Ray Westberg, a popular Ellensburg wrestling coach, who died in 1997.

The trail description says that after you get to the top, you can walk another three miles to see the University of Washington’s observatory. I knew that nobody had the energy to walk there, so I asked the group if they wanted to drive to it after the hike. They said yes, so we got in the cars and I led them to the observatory, although it wasn’t that simple. There are two ways to get there: a gravel road or a Jeep trail. Obviously, I chose the first one. Unfortunately, the gravel road had a locked gate (I forgot that the state doesn’t open the Wenas area until May or June). On the way back, I asked if anybody minded going on the Jeep trail. That trail is far too rough for a normal car, so only one vehicle followed me up there. There were a couple of steep spots that spooked my passengers, but other than that, it was a fairly easy ride. We finally made it to the observatory, took a few pictures, and headed back. It was a nice little extra.

Onward to the pictures!

When you're a photographer, you're always the last one, because you always want to take just one more picture. :) — When you’re a photographer, you’re always the last one, because you always want to take just one more picture. 🙂

I love the clouds' texture! — I love the clouds’ texture!

Gold Creek Snowshoe

Wow! What a wonderful hike. A friend and I went snowshoeing on the Gold Creek trail. It was the best of all worlds! There was a foot of fresh snow that fell the night before, and we had blue sky and sunshine!

There were surprisingly few people on the trail. Nonetheless, we went off the main snowshoe track to get some solitude, and it worked. We had to break trail in the fresh snow. It’s a bit more work, but it is so worth it! You feel like you are the first person to ever go that way.

You could tell that it was Spring, though. The temperature was above freezing, and snow bombs from the trees were falling all around us.

After about two miles, we came to a wonderful vista. After drinking in the view, we headed back.

Vista 4 – Somehow this got out of sequence. It’s supposed to be the last picture. Oh well. 🙂

This is the view looking back the way we came.

The snow was still clinging to the trees when we started in the morning.

Vista 3. I love the texture of the snow on the trees.

Avalanche training search and rescue k-9s

I did something different the weekend of April 6th. I volunteered to help avalanche train some search and rescue dogs. That sounds more glamorous than it was. What I did was dig a bunch of holes in the snow. 🙂

The search and rescue dogs are amazing! First, you bury “subjects” (otherwise known as real, live humans) in snow caves which are 3 feet deep x 5 x 7. Then a dog, using nothing but its nose, finds the subject, and digs a hole in the snow big enough to get in with the subject. In the training, the subject then rewards the dog with a toy or a snack, not to mention some praise. The dog handler and assistants (if any) finish extracting the subject. I have to confess that I lacked the courage to get buried, even though there was never any danger (all you have to do is basically say “get me out” on the radio, and everybody drops what they are doing to dig you out).

It rained/snowed all weekend, but I didn’t care (I was, however, glad that I had good rain gear 🙂 ). The people who volunteer to be in search and rescue are not only caring people, but they are fascinating people from all walks of life.

One surprise, at least for me, was the accommodations that weekend. I thought that we’d stay in an equivalent to a ski patrol dormitory. No! We stayed in a house! Also, all meals except lunch were provided. Since I was volunteering my time, I didn’t have to pay a cent for all of this! They refused to take my money, so all I could do was thank the hostess profusely.

What a memorable weekend!

This is a photoblog, so I am posting a few pictures. There are a whole lot more on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.318091888317666.1073741827.100003505710998&type=3 Let me know if you can’t access that.

We got to stay in a house instead of a dormitory!

Here's an example of a snow cave. — Here’s an example of a snow cave.

I don't remember this dog's name, but it is obviously seeking a buried subject. — I don’t remember this dog’s name, but it is obviously seeking a buried subject.

A rescuer interviewing a person playing the role of a witness. Some questions include: How many people are missing? How long ago was the avalanche? — A rescuer interviewing a person playing the role of a witness. Some questions include:
How many people are missing?
How long ago was the avalanche?

End of day one. The snow was rather pretty.

A subject, Steve, who is about to be buried in snow.

Palouse Falls State Park

I have always loved Palouse Falls State Park. In arid eastern Washington, there is a big waterfall. What a contrast!

After I left the Juniper Dunes, I visited Palouse Falls since it was relatively close. I have gone there several times, but this time I hiked over to the falls (previously, I looked at the falls from the parking lot). What a wonderful experience! I got to see the falls up close. In addition, I got to see the falls and the Palouse river canyon from a different perspective.

Naturally, I have included pictures. Enjoy!

I shot this from the trail going to the falls. It's still at about the same level as the parking lot. — I shot this from the trail going to the falls. It’s still at about the same level as the parking lot.

This shot shows the falls and the trail.

Still heading to the falls. I wish I had a wide angle lens. This is my best attempt to show the waterfall and the Palouse river canyon.

A marmot. I thought that they were only in the mountains, but I guess that I was wrong.

I love the wall's texture! — I love the wall’s texture!

This is behind the waterfall, which is to the right.

This is an interesting rock formation next to the waterfall.

This is as close as I dared get to the falls. It's a long way down! — This is as close as I dared get to the falls. It’s a long way down!

You can't see this rainbow from the parking lot. Beautiful! — You can’t see this rainbow from the parking lot. Beautiful!

I didn't want to go back the same way, so I followed the trail on the canyon wall. — I didn’t want to go back the same way, so I followed the trail on the canyon wall.

You can see the trail in this shot. See? It's not that bad. :-) — You can see the trail in this shot. See? It’s not that bad. 🙂

Another shot of the falls, further down the trail.

The trail continued down the canyon, but I went back to the car at this point.

Juniper Dunes Wilderness Area

Last weekend was wonderful! I took a road trip to eastern Washington and explored a new place, Juniper Dunes Wilderness Area. I camped out there, and then visited Palouse Falls State Park. However, I will split my trip report, and discuss only Juniper Dunes in this blog post.

Juniper Dunes is about 10 miles north of Pasco, WA (one of the tri-cities), but it’s a world apart. Part of the reason for that is the fact that it is really hard to get there. You need a vehicle with 4-wheel drive to get there (Jeep, Land Rover, and (maybe) a Subaru). It’s not too bad after you get off the highway; it’s just a dirt road. However, after a few miles, the road has “waves”, in which your vehicle bounces up and down. I don’t mean a washboard surface; I mean that the road surface has rises and dips that are two or three feet high. After 3.5 miles, there’s a small sign that says “Wilderness Area gate”. When you go that way, you are driving on a narrow and very sandy track. If you don’t have a serious off-road vehicle, you will be lucky if you don’t get stuck. I wasn’t surprised that I was the only one parked in front of the gate.

Ironically, once you go through the gate, there is almost no sand. Almost all the dunes are either partially or fully covered with vegetation. It’s really beautiful, and surprisingly quiet. The reason I said surprisingly, is because the wilderness area is right next to an off-road park. Very occasionally (5% of the time), you’ll hear an ORV. The rest of the time, all you hear are birds, and there are a lot of them (I think they like to eat the juniper berries).

I should explain that the reason for the wilderness area’s existence is the Juniper trees. This is the most northerly point for them in the US.

I loved it there for many reasons. First, it was comfortably warm (mid 70’s). Second, I didn’t see another person the whole time I was in the wilderness. Thirdly, I got to literally sleep under the stars, because I didn’t bother putting up my tent’s rain fly (I really enjoyed seeing sunrise while in my sleeping bag!).

I almost forgot to mention that there are no trails. You just wander wherever you feel like, and you can camp anywhere. The only slight downside is that fires are not allowed in the wilderness.

Would I go there again? Heck, yeah (although not in the summer)! Would I recommend it to someone else? Yes, but only if they have a capable vehicle.

Now, it’s time for pictures. Enjoy!