Hiking Washington's Fire Lookouts by Amber Casali

Author:Amber Casali
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781680510614
Publisher: Mountaineers Books
Published: 2018-10-14T16:00:00+00:00

As the trail slopes gently upward, another big difference you’ll notice is the smell. It might be the California lilac (Ceanothus), midsize native bushes whose leaves emit a sweet fragrance. You are in the very welcome shade of larger trees, and it’s likely already really warm, even first thing in the morning.

By half a mile in, the trail starts ascending moderately, and the trees become less dense. You can hear Honeymoon Creek rushing in the valley far below to the east as you come into full sun in an area with tufts of grass instead of trees. Then the trail takes a sharp left (west) away from the creek and you will be back to trees. By 1.25 miles you start to encounter more logs and debris on the trail, and the bushes are really overgrown. I highly recommend wearing gaiters on this hike—it might be too hot for pants, but your legs will get scratched up if they are not covered. The trail is not difficult to follow, but you do have to keep a close eye on it through the dense brush. It feels like barely anyone has walked this trail in years.

You will start to get into the heart of the burn remnants from the 2006 Tripod Complex Fires, and by 2 miles in, you can see burned trees on the slope across the river valley as well. Tall fireweed sprouts all around in what I call the telltale chromatics of a burn: the dead-tree white, the charcoal-black burned stumps, the vibrant green of undergrowth, and the bright pink of the fireweed. It is supremely quiet in this recovering forest: just the occasional grasshopper and languid buzz of a big fly. At 3.25 miles the switchbacks begin, and more life appears in the forest—chipmunks, bugs, and songbirds.

At 4 miles you reach a full-on burn and the subsequent fireweed jungle. In another half mile or so, the views will start to open up at around 6600 feet. Now it feels like we’re getting somewhere! The trail flattens out at 4.9 miles, and then you catch your first glimpse of the tall 1947 tower lookout. Enjoy a flattish 1 mile before climbing again. This is your last push, and the lookout feels close, standing sentinel on the ridge above an expanse of dry yellow grass.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.