Day 10, 2022 - Moving Day and Mt. Hood Wilderness

July 26th

Mt. Hood from the south on highway 26.

Beau woke me at 0515 so I threw on some long pants, a coat, and my hat with a mosquito net. The mosquitos were waiting for us. We went for a bit longer walk this morning and even found Clackamas Lake. Returning to the trailer I coaxed Beau to drink some water which he did and even ate some breakfast. We had a leisurely morning that included two cups of coffee, a banana, and egg bagel. I did some more reading and then slowly got things ready to make our move just after 0900. At 1000 the temperature was already 82 degrees and I was hoping Runningbird would stay well hydrated.

Early morning on Clackamas Lake, OR.

Mt. Hood from the Southeast on hwy 35.

The drive down from Timberline along highway 35 into the Hood River area was beautiful and peaceful. Not many cars and those that were there were taking it easy. At the Columbia River I took Highway 84 to Cascade Locks and then through town to the Marina. There is a tunnel under the railroad tracks with 12’ clearance and I kept trying to remind myself my rig was 10’ 6” and not 12’ 6”. Yikes! Once in the Marina Park I easily made my way to the small (12 sites I think) campground and backed into site #3. It was a far better choice than Lucky 13 at Clackamas Lake. I only needed to do minimal leveling and I plugged into power and hooked up the water hose. Dumping the waste tanks would wait until we are ready to leave. I met my neighbors in site #2 from Washougal who had arrived just minutes before I did and then I took Beau for a walk. The temperature was now 95 degrees and it was noon. We walked across the old locks bridge onto “Thunder Island” and along the grassy shaded path and looked out across the Columbia River.

Looking west from the old locks. Thunder Island on the right. Cascade Locks, OR.

We’re parked near a large pine tree that lends us some shade and there is a light breeze coming off the river which I’m sure has the temperature a few degrees cooler than it otherwise would be. Regardless, I have the A/C in the trailer on high. Opening the door to go outside is like opening the pizza oven door. Hmmm. Did I mention I like pizza? The lawns here and on Thunder Island are kept well watered off the river and the gardens are nicely managed. It is owned/managed by the Port of Cascade Locks which hosts weddings and gatherings on the island and the stern wheeler Columbia at one of its docks. There is a park, museum, and maintenance station for the town. No bakery here but they do have a market, several hotels, and two breweries.

Cascade Locks Marine Park Site #3, looking west, and looking east & Thunder Island.

After we took another walk along the main drag and returned to our rig I checked on Runningbird’s SPOT. At a campground she branched off onto a different trail and thoughts of dehydration and disorientation entered my scattered, often confused brain. I went onto Guthooks, now known as FarOut, and found a notice that the Eagle Creek Trail was now “one of the most popular alternative routes to the PCT”. It winds its way down along scenic Eagle Creek to the Cascade Locks area. One of the comments from another hiker - “Steep sometimes, yeah…The first 3 miles were eh, but holy shit. The river and falls are perhaps some of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen.” 7/21/22. Hope she gets some good pics! I’m anxious to hear about it. There was also an entry about ripe blackberries which seems to make the route slower than it otherwise would be.

The mountains to the south and Mt. Hood where Runningbird will hike down from.

The heat persisted into the evening and I kept the A/C on until bed time. It was one of those sleep-on-top-of-the-sheets kind of nights. Tomorrow Runningbird would arrive in the morning to finish the Oregon section of the PCT. At some point she would probably want to come back and complete the section that was closed.