The Creaky Knees Guide Pacific Northwest National Parks and Monuments: The 75 Best Easy Hikes
Language: English
Pages: 320
ISBN: 1632170116
Format: PDF / Kindle (mobi) / ePub
Timed perfectly with the National Park Service centennial celebration in 2016, this guidebook features the 75 best day hikes in national parks and monuments throughout Washington and Oregon including:
North Cascades National Park
San Juan Islands National Monument
Olympic National Park
Mount Rainier National Park
Mount St. Helens National Monument
Newberry National Volcanic Monument
John Day Fossil Beds National Monument
Crater Lake National Park
Oregon Caves National Monument
Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument
Written in an informative style that will appeal to anyone, regardless of age, each trail description includes elevation gains, including a topographical map; clear, up-to-date driving directions; mileage and estimated hiking time; trail conditions; and more. Creaky Knees hiking guides are perfect for aging baby boomers, seniors, those traveling with small children, and anyone else interested more in a stroll than a climb.
by Jeff Clark, Bureau of Land Management Oregon and Washington, https://www.flickr.com/photos/blmoregon/8970070779, CC BY-SA 2.0 this page: Red Crossbill by Jason Crotty, https://www.flickr.com/photos/46789814@N05/14487200986, CC BY 2.0 this page and this page: Courtesy of Marlene Blair this page: Views from Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument – Pilot Rock by Bureau of Land Management Oregon and Washington, https://flic.kr/p/sgzrj3, CC BY 2.0 All other photos: Courtesy of
and popping loudly like an ancient pair of giant knees. GETTING THERE From I-5, follow Highways 18 and 164 to Enumclam, then take Highway 410 about 43 miles to the White River Entrance of Mount Rainier National Park, where you’ll be asked to pay a fee. Beyond the entrance, turn left at the road leading to White River Campground and drive to the large day-use parking area below the campground, 4,350 feet above sea level. The trailhead is located at the west end of campground Loop D. Parking GPS
difference between a cedar and Douglas fir before, you’ll be able to give a lecture on the subject when you return. When you reach the end of the loop, turn back to the bridge and trail. GOING FARTHER The Eastside Trail on the north side of the suspension bridge climbs all the way to Cayuse Pass. That’s a bit of a trek for a day hike, but if you’d like more exercise, wander up the trail a mile or two under a green umbrella forest along the Ohanapecosh River valley. The Eastside Trail is much
Falls. Follow FR 99 to its junction with Forest Road 26 and turn right. Follow FR 26 for about a mile to the parking area and trailhead on the left, 3,710 feet above sea level. GPS coordinates: N46°18′17″; W122°04′58″ THE TRAIL A reader took me to task for describing this trail as an “easy walk” in an earlier guide, and she was correct. I blame an old analog altimeter; my wife, B. B. Hardbody, insists it was operator error. Anyway, Norway Pass is no easy walk, but rather a steady climb that
meanders through huge old-growth fir and hemlock, accessible to those who hike in wheelchairs with assistance. The hike doesn’t draw as big crowds as those along the crater rim, and an autumn walk might feel lonesome. A sign at the Plaikni Falls trailhead outlines the hike ahead. Another reason for taking this hike late in the season is to avoid the bugs of summer. Where people may not crowd the trail, mosquitoes and biting flies do. The trade-off is that the myriad wildflowers of summer won’t