jloomis's blog

We booked two nights at the Clear Lake Lookout Tower six months ago as dates fill up very quickly. The Forest Service opens it up for reservations in the winter months only, as it is still an active fire lookout during the summer. Clear Lake Lookout is located Southeast of Government Camp, Oregon. The trail starts from the Skyline SnoPark. It's about 3.6 miles from the SnoPark along FSR 42 and then up the 240 spur road. It's popular with snowmobilers, snowshoers, and cross-country skiers, so be sure to share the road.

Last night the weather finally turned colder and over a foot of fresh snow fell in the mountains. Our friends Tyler and Holli met us at our house Saturday morning a little late due to icy roads. We hitched up our snowmobiles and headed to Frog Lake SnoPark, which is about 7 miles Southeast of Government Camp off Hwy 26. Traffic was horrible and after about 2.5 hours we finally made it to the SnoPark. It was already quite busy, but we found a place to park and unload the sleds. It was partly sunny and temperatures were in the upper 20s.

The weather has been sunny and cold, so the snow from November's storms is very consolidated up on Mount Hood. My friend Matt and I have been eager to climb and decided on the Leuthold Coulior route on Mt Hood early Saturday morning. This a technical route that starts at Timberline Lodge (same as the popular non-technical South route). Leuthold Couliour is to the West (climbers left) of Illumination Rock. Our plan was to climb up Leuthold Couloir and then return via the South route (approximately 7 miles round-trip).

December has been dry and sunny, but cool, so far. We haven't had any new snow in the mountains since our big storms in November, but thanks to colder temperatures, little has melted above 4,000 feet in elevation. Katie and I took advantage of the gorgeous weather on Sunday and headed to Bennett Pass SnoPark for a day of snowmobiling and snowshoeing. Bennett Pass SnoPark is approximately 9 miles East of Government Camp, Oregon across Hwy 35 from Mount Hood Meadows ski resort. The trails at Bennett Pass are mostly used by cross country skiers and snowshoers.

After spending all day Friday driving to John Day, Oregon to buy a couple snowmobiles, Katie and I were anxious to take them for a ride on Saturday. We have a tradition of heading toward Mt. Hood the Saturday after Thanksgiving to hunt for Christmas trees, so we planned to test out the sleds before looking for a tree. We unloaded our snowmobiles at Frog Lake SnoPark, which is about 7 miles Southeast of Government Camp off hwy 26. We arrived early before the crowds showed up, so we had the trails to ourselves except for a few sled dog teams.

My friend John had spotted a large downed douglas fir tree the last time we were at Shellrock Creek Campground, so we decided to go back with a firewood permit this weekend. A big snowstorm came through Friday night, bringing about a foot of snow. John and I headed up in his truck about 6:30 am on Saturday. Shellrock Creek Campground is located near the mouth of Shellrock Creek, which flows into the Oak Grove fork of the Clackamas River. It's about 33 miles SE of Estacada off FR 58 (near Timothy Lake). It is a primitive campground with only 8 sites and no running water.

It seems like forever since Katie and I have been camping together, but it was just last month. We decided to hitch up our travel trailer and head to Shellrock Creek Campground on Friday after work. Our friend John had the day off and was already there when we arrived. Shellrock Creek Campground is located near the mouth of Shellrock Creek, which flows into the Oak Grove fork of the Clackamas River. It's about 33 miles SE of Estacada off FR 58 (near Timothy Lake). It's a primitive campground with only 8 sites and no running water.

It's been awhile since my last climb, but mother nature cooperated on Sunday, providing ideal conditions for climbing Mount Hood via the South route. My climbing partner wasn't able to join me, so I went up solo on this trip. October is often a poor month to climb Hood due to rockfall, but this year's combination of leftover snow and a couple early season snow storms yielded great conditions on Sunday. There have been several freeze-thaw cycles the past week to consolidate the new snow.

It had been awhile since Katie and I have had a chance to go on a hike together. We were fortunate enough to get a break in the weather on Saturday and took the opportunity to hike to Ramona Falls near Zigzag, Oregon. The trailhead is about 6 miles Northeast of the town of Zigzag off Lolo Pass Rd. (North of Hwy 26). The approximately 6.9 mile loop trail gains about 1,110 feet in elevation, so it is a moderate hike. The first 1.25 miles of the trail follows the Sand River Trail # 770 to a junction.

With my new job as an electrician apprentice, I had to shorten my annual deer hunting trip. Normally I go up Thursday night after work and set up camp, but this year my friends had take over. Luckily they all had Friday off and went up that morning to secure our spot. John, Tyler, and I all had buck tags this year for the White River Unit # 141B. We like to hunt an area in the vicinity of Badger Lake (roughly 12 miles West of the town of Wamic, Oregon). It's mostly forested with noble fir, douglas fir, and pine trees with interspersed clearcuts that are slowly growing in.

I drove back up to our deer hunting spot on Friday night to do some more scouting and check the game camera we set up last weekend. I came up alone and was able to get the spot where we had our base camp last year. My two friends and I have buck tags for the White River unit again and like to hunt an area in the vicinity of Badger Lake (roughly 12 miles West of the town of Wamic, Oregon). It's mostly forested with noble fir, douglas fir, and pine trees with interspersed clearcuts slowly filling in.

After cleaning up our new-to-us 2007 Fleetwood Pioneer 18CK travel trailer over Labor Day weekend, we decided to take it for a test run to Rock Creek Reservoir near Wamic, Oregon. Rock Creek Reservoir is approximately 100 acres when full (only in the spring) and is stocked annually with rainbow trout. The reservoir also supports a healthy population of bass up to 5 lbs. each. Rock Creek Reservoir is located in Tygh Valley within the Mount Hood National Forest. It's about 6 miles WSW of the small town of Wamic.

2011 marked my second year running the Hood to Coast Relay, dubbed "The MOTHER of All Relays". The Hood to Coast is a 200 mile multi-day relay consisting of 1,250 twelve-member teams which begins at Timberline Lodge on Mount Hood, Oregon and finishes at Seaside on the Oregon Coast. Each team normally has two vans of six runners. 2011 was the 30th anniversary of the Hood to Coast Relay, and it is the largest running relay in the world. Each team member typically runs three legs varying in length from about 4 to 8 miles for a total of 36 legs per team.

After hiking to Ice Lake and spending Saturday night, Matt and I woke up at 3 AM Sunday to climb the Matterhorn and Sacajawea Peak. The Matterhorn is the second tallest peak in the Wallowa Mountains at 9,826 feet. Sacajawea Peak is the tallest at 9,838 feet. The West face of the Matterhorn (not the side we climbed) rises steeply about 3,200 feet above Hurricane Creek. The easiest route (and our chosen route) starts from Ice Lake.

Instead of climbing Mount Shuksan in Northern Washington, Matt and I went backpacking in the Eagle Cap Wilderness to Ice Lake. Ice Lake is located in the North Central part of the Wallowa Mountains in Eastern Oregon. It is a productive 46 acre Brook Trout lake sitting at approximately 7,849 feet in elevation with a depth over 190 feet (deepest lake in the Wallowas).