Diamond Head Hike (Oahu): 4/26/2015 (Late Blog Entry)

Hike: Diamond Head State Monument

Date: 04/26/2015

Distance/Gain: 1.5 miles, 560 ft. of gain

Highest Point: 761 ft

Rating: 7/10

Pros: Panoramic views, ease of hike

Cons: Crowds

Well this is a little different from my usual Washington State hikes, but Ill add it in as a Vacation hike.  While not the most taxing hike (more accurately a groomed walking path,) I have ever taken on, the 1.5 mile  560 ft of gain hike will work up a sweat, especially with the Oahu weather!  The drive to the trail head is a shore couple of miles out of town, and your drive up right into the crater.


The Diamond head hike has a nice easy elevation gain, with a switch back or two along the way.  The toughest part of the hike is the staircase (which you can chose to bypass altogether) that leads up to the main bunker.


You will encounter droves of other tourists, wearing anything from dinner clothes to trail running gear, and everything in between.  If you are searching for solitude hiking Diamond head will not provide it, however the people watching can be entertaining in itself.

When its all said and done, its a must do "hike" if you are ever in Oahu. And its cool to think that you are hiking up an old Volcano crater/ converted military base.  But I will take my Washington State solitude 99 times out of a 100!

                                              

Thunder Knob hike: 01/07/15

Hike: Thunder Knob

Date: 01/07/2015

Distance/Gain: 3.8 miles, 635 ft. of gain

Highest Point: 1875 ft

Rating: 6/10

Pros: Views, solitude, ease of hike

Cons: Blow downs, drive distance, many man made items in view.

After seeing that this was WTA's hike of the week, and with how much I love the North cascades, I decided this would be the hike for me. We got an early start on the road because it was a 1.5 hr drive. The road was bare/wet with no real issues, however HWY 20 is shut down just 4 miles up the road due to a slide.

The trailhead was vacant when we got there. We quickly geared up and began walking in 3" of snow that continued to get deeper from the parking lot. Following my GPS we quickly met a 6 foot wide stream that had about 8-10" of quick moving water. After trying some different crossing methods, we headed closer to the lake (Diablo) and found a snow covered log that seemed suitable.


After crossing you make your way through more snow to another stream crossing. This one was doable with some careful rock hopping. Once you find the trail through the 5" of snow, it is pretty easy to follow, even though there were no tracks from other hikers in it. There is enough melted spots to guide you the right way.

The trail has a few minor switch backs, but nothing to break a sweat over, and there are enough peek views to keep the trail entertaining. 

Once you get to the pond, the trail continues to the left, and wraps around the back of the pond, It is just a short walk from there to the first of two view points where you can see: Diablo Lake, the McMillan Spires, Stetattle Creek valley, etc. 


Continue down the trail to the final view point where there are more benches, and you can see Jacks Mountain, and HWY 20 winding through the Mountains ahead.

Heading back was an easy walk, and to our surprise we encountered a group of about 8 heading up the trail.

Overall this is a very easy hike. We never put on our spikes, or gaiters. The gaiters wouldn't have hurt, but they just went needed the day we went. As always be prepared and pack what you may need.

Mt Pilchuck snow hike 12/30/14

Hike: Mount Pilchuck (snow edition)

Date:12/30/14

Distance/Gain: 5.4miles, 2300 ft. of gain

Highest Point: 5327 ft

Rating: 9/10

Pros: Views, quite literally as far as the eye can see in every direction

Cons: None, only that this hike will be closed within days for the season

Wow, what else can I say about this hike today but wow.  We got off to a somewhat late 9:00 start time.  The road to the trail was clear until about a mile passed Heather Lake.  After that the compact snow and ice begins.  Compact snow and ice quickly turned into 10"+ deep snow + large ruts in the parking lot.  I wouldn't take anything but a truck or SUV at this point due to ground clearance issues.

The parking lot had 4 cars in it, which surprised me for the amount of snow, and the fact is was a

Tuesday. The temp was mid teens, and the sky was pure blue, did I mention that it was cold?

A month back when I attempted this hike I was unprepared without my Microspikes, and got turned back at 4400ft due to the extremely icy conditions, what a difference a heavy snow makes. Thankfully some snowshoers had made a very packed nice trail to follow today.  While I don't want to use the word easy, the snow made the trail conditions very manageable.  There were no large rocks, or roots, just a nice, flat steady grade from the snow trail.

We pushed pretty quickly through the short mile of forested area to get to the first Talus field, just as I thought with the clear air, and the snow, made a beautiful view of Rainier.

Continuing on we reached the second opening in the tree line, It was there that I once again got to
experience the sound that I have only heard at Blanca Lake, complete deafening silence.  There wasn't a bug, a bird, a plane or a train, not a sound in the world and a view all the way to the Olympic mountains and beyond, if the hike had ended here I could have been perfectly content. But luckily for us, there was plenty left to see.

Shortly after, you begin winding around to the  northeast and get views of Anacortes, Mount Baker, and much more. Take in the sights as you begin your switchback towards the top, the view growing better and more amazing each climb.  The beauty of this hike is you don't really get tired, you are too preoccupied taking everything in, and too eager to get to the next switchback to see what its views have in store for you.

When we reached the fire lookout, we shared the view with about 7 others.  After spending some time refueling, we began our quick decent back down. It would have been a slippery go without some form of traction devices, but out of the 20 people that were coming up after us I saw a few trying it without them.

Takeaways from this hike, if you can do it in winter on a clear day DO IT.  Bring a minimum of at least spikes, gaiters, and if you want more then poles will help.  We heard rumblings that the gate may be locked tomorrow 12/31, but we spoke with a Sheriff at the trailhead who said he had not been told that yet.  So if you have time this week, take advantage of this weather! This hike could close any day for the season.

Ira Spring trail to Mason Lake hike: 12/10/14

Hike: Ira Spring Memorial Trail to Mason Lake

Date:12/10/14

Distance/Gain: 6.5miles, 2420ft. of gain

Highest Point: 4230ft

Rating: 7/10

Pros:Ease of climb, panoramic views, solitude

Cons:Mason Lake was underwhelming, weather inhibited some views

We chose this hike based off of trip reports of snow, however that was 6 days prior and when we got there the trail was bare and wet. On December 10th in Washington State, in the Cascades you can usually guarantee snow, but not this time. The weather warned of high wind/rain for all of  Western Washington, but we were determined to hike so that wasnt going to slow us down.

The road to the trail head was atrocious. For the last mile or so, its nothing but deep pot-holes. It looks like they are working on improving it though, because there was fresh gravel before the pot holes began. When we got to the trail head we were happy to see that we were the only ones crazy enough to attempt the hike with the weather conditions. We started up the trail at 11:00 am, in a unseasonably warm 56 degrees, with on and off rain.

About a mile in, we reached a waterfall flowing across the trail. There were plenty of rocks/logs to get across, but it would have been a quick ride down if you were to fall in. Trip reports from a week ago stated the rocks on top were covered in ice, but were dry for us.

Once you start the switchbacks you really start to get the views, and for us the high wind. You will encounter panoramic views for the remainder of the hike until you start towards mason lake.The trail is a steady climb on a cliff side, with minor switch backs, there is never really a time where this hike feels difficult.
Once you reach your peak elevation 4230ft, you will continue for about a half mile, and drop down a few hundred feet to Mason Lake. The lake was 2/3rd's frozen over, giving it a unique look. Mason lake was not as stunning as Blanca, or Lake Twenty-two, but is still a pretty area to eat and relax.

Overall, the trail up to the lake is very unique and worth checking out, especially if you go on a sunny day. My hiking buddy said it reminded him of hiking some of the ridge lines on the Wonderland trail. The trail is very well maintained, and pretty wide for the majority of the climb.