Hike MT

Winter in the Sonoran Desert

2012-01-23T14:30:00.000-07:00

Shortly before Christmas, we noticed an airfare sale between Missoula and the Phoenix area, and knowing family would be there in January we bought some tickets. At that point, western Montana's winter had been fairly mild and offered little opportunity for any real recreation in the snow, so we were glad to go south to the Sonoran Desert.

While Phoenix is a sprawling city, there are plenty of opportunities to get out. And while based west of the urban area, we also took short trips to Tucson and into the Superstition Wilderness.

Saguaro National Park: Wasson Peak

There are several trailheads in Saguaro National Park's western unit that provide access to Wasson Peak, the highest in the Tucson Mountains at 4,687 feet. Several years ago - on our first visit - we hiked up via the Sendero Esperanza Trail, which begins along an unpaved road. This time, we used the King Canyon Trail just off a paved road east of the park's Red Hills Visitor Center.

For the first mile, follow the official trail along an old Civilian Conservation Corps road or walk up the King Canyon Wash northeast to a junction near the Mam-A-Gah picnic area.

From the junction, the trail climbs northeast up a saguaro cactus-covered slope for nearly a mile and a half to another intersection that overlooks the city. Turn northwest here and hike for nearly a mile up and across a steep mountainside to a junction with the Hugh Norris Trail at a saddle below Amole Peak. From here, it's a quick third of a mile out a ridge and up the final steps to Wasson Peak.

Wasson provides views across Tucson to the Tortolita and Santa Catalina mountains to the northwest, the Rincon Mountains to the east and the Santa Ritas to the south.

To return to the King Canyon trailhead, we made a loop via the Hugh Norris and Sendero Esperanza trails. From the junction at the saddle, follow the Hugh Norris west past Amole Peak and down the ridge nearly 2 miles. At the Sendero Esperanza junction, turn southeast and continue about a mile and a half past cholla cactuses and an old mine back to the Mam-A-Gah picnic area.

From here, it's about a mile back down the trail or wash to the parking area.

See more photos from our Wasson Peak hike here.

Distance: 8 miles.

Trailhead: The King Canyon trailhead is 2 miles east of Red Hills Visitor Center on Kinney Road in the western unite of Saguaro National Park. (The park entrance fee is $10 per vehicle, payable at the visitor center.)

White Tank Mountains: Ford Canyon to Mesquite Canyon

Located on the western edge of Phoenix's suburbs, White Tank Mountain Regional Park was closest to where we stayed for the majority of our visit.

From the parking lot at picnic area 9, walk northeast from the trailhead sign down through a wash then up to the Ford Canyon Trail. Turn northwest and follow the trail to the canyon through a saguaro- and cholla-covered flat past junctions with the Ironwood and Waddell trails.

After about 1.75 miles, the trail begins to ascend Ford Canyon through white granite boulders and a wash, and leaving views of the urban area behind. The path climbs up a couple of granite walls and a dam, then leaves the wash at about 4 miles.

The trail continues south up grassy slopes, over a ridge and down into Willow Canyon, where ocotillo are more abundant, to a junction at 5.5 miles. Switchback uphill to a junction at nearly 6.5 miles and turn northeast onto the Mesquite Canyon Trail.

The Mesquite Canyon trail continues around a ridge then downhill to the Willow Canyon junction at nearly 8 miles. Here, the trail drops back through a white granite canyon about 1.7 miles to the valley floor near picnic area 7.

Follow the Waddell Trail north about a mile to Ford Canyon, then southeast nearly two-thirds of a mile back to the parking area.

More pictures from the White Tank Mountains are here.

Distance: 11.2 miles.

Trailhead: From Interstate 10 in Goodyear, Ariz., west of Phoenix, take Arizona Highway 303 about 7.2 miles north to Olive Avenue. Follow Olive 4.5 miles west to the entrance of White Tank Mountain Regional Park ($6 per car). The trail begins across from the parking lot at picnic area 9.

Superstition Wilderness: Boulder Canyon and LaBarge Canyon

The final hike of our trip was probably our favorite. The route up Boulder and LaBarge canyons in the Tonto National Forest's Superstition Wilderness provides scenic views of cliffs and cactuses, as well as an off-trail segment.

The hike begins on the south side of Arizona Highway 88, across from Canyon Lake Marina. The Boulder Canyon Trail steadily climbing a hill southeast to the wilderness boundary marker at about half a mile.

At about 1.25 miles, the trail reaches its high point and offers views up Boulder and LaBarge canyons to the squared-off Battleship Mountain and Weaver's Needle in the distance. The trail drops slightly, then rounds a hill and passes an orange, rocky outcrop. Up a hill to about 2.2 miles, the route reaches another viewpoint into the canyons ahead.

From here, the trail descends switchbacks past saguaros and barrel cactuses to the canyon floor, crossing LaBarge Creek at about 3.3 miles. Begin walking up the creek bed - it was mostly dry when we were there but likely flows at other times of the year - here or cross and join it by leaving the trail after a small rise near a campsite.

Once in the creek bed, follow cairns upstream to the south between Battleship Mountain on the west and Geronimo Head to the west, aiming for the triangular summit ahead. Boulder hopping up the creek bed was the most strenuous part of this hike, and we eventually reached a few sections of slowly flowing water that we had to cross.

About 1.2 miles upstream, a box canyon begins with high walls and a spire and pool at its mouth. Stop here to rest and explore the start of the slickrock canyon.

To continue, look for cairns starting under the trees at a campsite on the western edge of the pool that mark a route up to the saddle between the canyon and Battleship Mountain. The climb is not too steep and the cairns are easy to follow, and the saddle provides another view of Weaver's Needle.

Once over the saddle, continue following the cairns downhill to Boulder Creek, crossing it - again, dry when we were there - and reconnecting with the trail on the other side.

The Boulder Canyon Trail travels north, crossing the creek back and forth past a large pool and Battleship Mountain on the east, then the Second Water Trail on the west.

After crossing the creek bed a final time, the trail climbs a saddle past an old mine and drops to the campsite and LaBarge Creek at 3.3 miles from the start. Follow the route back up to its high point, then down to the trailhead near the marina.

Boulder and LaBarge canyon photos are here.

Distance: 10.5 miles.

Trailhead: From U.S. Highway 60 in Apache Junction, east of Phoenix, drive 2.25 miles north on Idaho Road to Arizona Highway 88. Follow Highway 88 northeast 14 miles to the Canyon Lake Marina. (Park in the trailhead parking facing the fence that parallels the highway.)

New Year's snowshoe at Lolo Pass

2012-01-14T20:00:00.002-07:00

After a busy - and somewhat sad - holiday season, we sought to start off the new year right on a short snowshoe adventure with friends at Lolo Pass on the Montana-Idaho border.

Despite cloudy skies, we had a good day making first tracks in a small amount of powder and going sledding back at the Lolo Pass Visitor Center.

Follow the snowshoe trail up the hill to the south of the visitor center and past a junction. At the top, the trail continues out a ridge that offers good views into Idaho then down a powder-filled slope, crossing a groomed road before reaching Pack Creek. The trail follows along the creek then a cross-country ski trail, and loops back to the junction near the start.

See more photos from Lolo Pass here.

Distance: About 3 miles.

Trailhead: From Missoula, drive 9 miles south on U.S. Highway 93 to Lolo, then 32 miles west on U.S. Highway 12 to the Lolo Pass Visitor Center, just over the border in Idaho. (Parking costs $5.)

Farewell to our faithful friend Gigi

2012-01-14T12:01:00.000-07:00

Shortly before Christmas, we lost our most faithful hiking companion, Gigi. Our hound-Lab-shepherd was believed to be 16 to 17 years old.

She was a traveler. From the Pacific Coast to the North Shore of Lake Superior and Montana's mountains to the desert Southwest, she would follow wherever we went.

She was a survivor. From the streets of Philipsburg to a run-in with a minivan to tumors that forced the amputation of a toe to the removal of a section of intestine after she ate a bandage, she always forged ahead.

And she was one of a kind. From her smile to her orange coat and white feet to the howl that let you know it was time to go, there will never be another like her.

We love her and miss her, and know that she will always be just past that last hill in the distance.

Farewell, Garbage Guts, Good Girl, G.G., Gigi!

Miles in Montana, beyond

2011-10-05T23:00:00.003-06:00

Looking at the blog lately, it would appear we've been hiking more outside of Montana than in. The numbers bear that out as a whole, although Montana is the state with the most miles.

Here's our mileage and days on the trail by state since the start of May:

Montana: 37.3 miles over six days
Hawaii: 26 miles, three days
Oregon: 22.4 miles, three days
Utah: 15.8 miles, three days

Note that this also doesn't include dog walks and runs on trails near town.

Oregon's Cascades and coast

2011-10-05T22:30:00.000-06:00

Last week, we returned to my home state of Oregon for a follow-up gathering to August's wedding and to visit friends who recently moved there. As usual, we took the opportunity to get out, hiking on the Oregon Coast and in the Cascade Mountains.

First up was a short trip to Hart's Cove at the Siuslaw National Forest's Cascade Head Scenic Research Area near Lincoln City, an easy drive west from our friends' house in Monmouth. We got a glimpse of the sun through the fog and took in crashing waves and a small waterfall that spills into the sea.

On the way back to Portland from Monmouth, we stopped by Silver Falls State Park in the low Cascades to walk the Trail of Ten Falls. It's similar to the Columbia River Gorge, with water flowing over basalt cliffs.

Finally, we took a day to drive up to Timberline Lodge on Mount Hood and hiked a section of the Timberline Trail/Pacific Crest Trail to Paradise Park. The path crosses the Zigzag Canyon to a wildflower-filled meadow that was still in bloom at the end of September.

Thanks go to PortlandHikers.org, which has helped us discover a couple of these and several other adventures in the area.

Oregon Coast: Hart's Cove

While visiting Monmouth, friends suggested going for a hike to Hart's Cove in the Coast Range near Lincoln City, which they had heard about. The next morning, three of us made the drive to the trailhead.

The trail begins by switchbacking down nearly 1,000 feet through a lush Sitka spruce and Western hemlock rainforest. At half a mile, it crosses Cliff Creek and continues generally north.

After crossing Chitwood Creek, the trail leaves the forest at an open headland at 2.7 miles, the destination. From the south side of the headland, the small Chitwood Falls can be seen dropping into Hart's Cove. A trail also leads closer to the water on the west side. All around, waves crash onto the steep, rocky coastline.

We had a bite to eat and played a game of cribbage while the morning fog cleared, then heard and saw sea lions offshore as we started the climb back to the trailhead.

See Hart's Cove photos here.

Distance: 5.4 miles round trip.

Trailhead: Turn west on the unsigned Forest Road 1861, about 8.75 miles north of Lincoln City on U.S. Highway 101, and follow it about four miles to the end.

Silver Falls State Park: Trail of Ten Falls

The Trail of Ten Falls at Silver Falls State Park, near Salem and Silverton, has a wonderful 8.7-mile trail through lush forest and along creeks that passes nine, 10 or 11 waterfalls along the way - depending on your definition of a waterfall. We broke up our drive back to Portland with a stop to hike. With photos of so many waterfalls, this trip seemed like a good candidate to try Storify's new slideshow feature. Follow along below.

More Silver Falls photos are here.

Mount Hood: Paradise Park

Jen had hiked on Mount Hood on a previous trip but had never been up to the historic Timberline Lodge, so we made a day trip of it from Portland. After a quick look in the hotel, we set out northwest on the Timberline Trail/Pacific Crest Trail.

The path passes behind the lodge and sets out under lifts on ski runs where I learned to downhill as a child. It crosses into the Mount Hood Wilderness and continues gently down through the forest and Little Zigzag Canyon, then past a trail junction. Along the way, the summit of Hood can be seen to the north, and Mount Jefferson and the Three Sisters to the south on clear days.

An overlook of the gaping Zigzag Canyon is reached at about 2.2 miles. Here, the view includes the rushing Zigzag River, the rocky Mississippi Head and above it Zigzag Glacier.

The trail then switchbacks steeply down through the trees for a mile to the river. Depending on the water level, the stream can be forded, or scramble across on rocks. Zigzag Falls can be seen a short distance upstream.

Not quite half a mile up out of the canyon, the trail reaches a junction with the 2.6-mile Paradise Park Loop. Here, we turned northeast and continued climbing out of the forest to the junction with the Paradise Park Trail at nearly 4.6 miles, where we found fields filled with blue lupine, purple asters, red paintbrushes and more.

A short distance above the junction, we stopped at a grassy overlook to take in the view, eat and fly a kite before backtracking to Timberline.

See pictures from Paradise Park here.

Distance: About 9.5 miles round trip. Paradise Park begins about 4.6 miles northwest of Timberline Lodge on Mount Hood, at the junction of the Paradise Park and Paradise Park Loop trails.

Trailhead: Behind Timberline Lodge, three-quarters of a mile east of Government Camp on U.S. Highway 26 and 5.3 miles northeast on Timberline Highway.

Island tri: Snorkeling, hiking, paddling Kauai

2011-09-14T21:00:00.000-06:00

After a busy August of work and hosting family and friends, we jetted to Hawaii for my brother's wedding on Kauai. We packed our backpacks and took the opportunity to explore some classic outdoors spots.

Before the wedding at Anini Beach, we checked out some colorful fish on a snorkeling outing. With equipment rented from a shop in Hanalei, seeing the sea life at Tunnels Beach was as easy as swimming into the mild surf from shore. The activity also allowed us to finally put Jen's underwater point-and-shoot camera to the test - we bought it a couple of years ago for a trip to Australia but never really dunked it. We spent a few hours with it in the saltwater, and it did a fine job on both photos and videos.

After the wedding, we stayed around Hanalei for a handful of days for some post-family fun.

First was a three-day, two-night backpacking trip out the 11-mile Kalalau Trail on Kauai's famed Na Pali Coast. The trail was long, hot, humid and at times crowded, but the views - of the cliffs during the day and the sunsets and stars at night - were well worth it. On the middle day, we hiked upstream through the Kalalau Valley to a deep pool perfect for a swim then strolled out the beach. Read more about the trails below.

Back in Hanalei for our last full day on the island, we rented stand-up paddleboards and made our way up the calm river to the taro fields and down to the bay, where the surf picked up a bit.

From the wedding to the walking, it was a great vacation. Congratulations to the newlyweds, and thanks for the wonderful break!

Days 1 and 3: Kalalau Trail

The Kalalau Trail is an 11-mile route along the dramatic fluted cliffs of Kauai's northern coast, beginning at Haena State Park and crossing into Na Pali Coast State Wilderness Park. Due to packing our bags at the wedding accommodations, last-minute shopping and taking a shuttle to the trailhead, we got a late-morning start on the trail.

The first couple of miles are on a wide, rocky path that climbs westward through shady vegetation then descends to a creek crossing and Hanakapi'ai Beach. It provides good views west along the Na Pali Coast, but is crowded.

After crossing the first stream, the route switchbacks up out of the Hanakapi'ai Valley and leaves behind the crowd - except for the near constant buzz of helicopters in the sky above and procession of boats in the ocean below.

High above the water, the trail continues its westward traverse through thick vegetation, back into hanging valleys then out and around ridgelines that plunge to the water. Many of the ridges are accompanied by sets of switchbacks up and then down, adding elevation gain.

At six miles, the Hanakoa Valley and stream are reached. Here, there's a camp for backpackers not hiking the full 11 miles and a short trail - which we didn't take - that provides views of Hanakoa Falls, spilling from the mountains above. Running short on water, we filtered at a nearby creek then moved on.

From Hanakoa, the trail continues into valleys and around ridges, but the land becomes drier and the vegetation more open. Soon, the trail reaches a rocky ravine that spills to the sea. After a short descent, to about 300 feet above the ocean, it rounds a narrow cliff called Crawler's Ledge - definitely not a place for a misstep.

Beyond Crawler's Ledge, the traverse continues, with Kalalau Beach and the fluted cliffs above and beyond it coming into view. We reached this area in the late-afternoon heat and found our water running short, but pressed ahead.

After passing what appears to be a defunct camp, the trail makes a final climb around a ridge to the top of Red Hill, where the ground is rust colored and the view over the Kalalau Valley and beach is wide open.

Once down, the route crosses Kalalau Stream at 10.5 miles then a final hill before a straightaway to the camp and beach. As Jen filtered water again at the stream, I caught the sun setting before finding a suitable site for our tent under the trees just off a rocky part of the beach.

Two days later, we had a much easier time on the way out due to a couple of changes. First, we started before 8 a.m., allowing us to get through the drier terrain in the morning hours. Second, we made a few more regular stops to filter water, no matter how much we had left, to ensure we had plenty to drink.

A few words about camping at Kalalau: Hawaii State Parks requires permits, which you can buy online and print at home. We met people who didn't have them and ours were never checked; nonetheless, we don't mind paying for management and preservation of special places. Unfortunately, while the trail is one of the most scenic we have hiked, the camps were some of the dirtiest we have seen and obviously the victims of years of abuse and/or neglect. Pack it in, pack it out, people. And don't get me started on the composting toilets.

More pictures from Kalalau Trail and beach are here and here.

Distance: 11 miles one way.

Trailhead: The Kalalau Trail begins at Haena State Park, about 7.25 miles west of Hanalei on Hawaii Highway 560, the Kuhio Highway.

Day 2: Kalalau Valley and beach

The middle day of our backpacking trip was spent wandering around Kalalau.

That morning, we followed the end-of-valley trail upstream through the forest. Along the way we passed several cascades, stands of bamboo and old terraces where taro was once grown. The trail ends at a deep, cool pool, where we took a swim and ate a snack before returning to camp.

Later in the day, we wandered a short distance up the beach past several sea caves - some of which people had set up camp in - at the base of the cliffs.

Distance: The end-of-valley trail is four miles round trip.

Trailhead: The end-of-the-valley trail begins just west of the Kalalau stream crossing, near Kalalau Beach.

Geography of Glacier's Triple Divide

2011-08-02T10:40:00.000-06:00

In the previous post about our backpacking trip in Glacier National Park, I wrote about the hydrological rarity that is Triple Divide Peak. There, water flows to three major North American drainages: the Pacific, Atlantic and Hudson Bay. How rare is this feature? There are two others, one in Canada and one in Siberia.

Here's a map of Glacier's Triple Divide; click the markers for more information.

View Triple Divide Pass in a larger map

Glacier's Triple Divide Pass in three days

2011-07-28T19:30:00.004-06:00

One of the biggest stories in Montana this spring and summer has been the deep snow left in the mountains from winter, and we encountered plenty on our anniversary trip to Glacier National Park.

This year, we wanted to camp in Glacier's backcountry again and had our sights set on a three-day 19.3-mile route from the Belly River in the northeast corner of the park south through Ptarmigan Tunnel to the Many Glacier area. Unfortunately, the opening date of the tunnel through Ptarmigan Wall was pushed back beyond our trip due to lingering snow. We also just missed the last available campsite on an alternate route over Red Gap Pass.

The night before we left, we settled on a three-day 23.5-mile route from Cut Bank on the park's east side west to Triple Divide Pass, then north to Red Eagle Lake and the town of St. Mary. Campsites were still available the night before we left Missoula, but only parts of the route were described in our hiking guide and the trail report said to be prepared for snow.

The next day, we drove north to the park and made the backcountry office in Apgar our first stop. Campsites were still open, so we secured a permit. All that was left was to cross the alpine Going-to-the-Sun Road - which was under construction and had its latest-ever opening due to snow - to the St. Mary area, where we had a frontcountry campsite reserved for the night. That afternoon, we took a short hike on St. Mary Lake, then had a restaurant dinner before heading to bed. In the morning, we woke early to leave the car at our exit point and catch a shuttle south.

While rain fell most of the first day on the trail - fortunately, our shortest - we were rewarded with few clouds and a lot of sun for the longer second and third days. And while the campsites were full, we passed fewer than two dozen people on the trail the entire trip.

Day 1: Baring Creek to St. Mary Falls

After driving up to Glacier from Missoula, we took this short hike around the northwestern side of St. Mary Lake to a couple of waterfalls. The skies looked stormy, but it never rained while we were on the trail.

From the trailhead near Sunrift Gorge, we hiked down Baring Creek to Baring Falls, along the edge of the lake and up to some cliffs, then into the forest to St. Mary Falls and a couple of other cascades.

Along the way, we got our first glimpse of the park's abundant wildflowers and trailed a young deer for a short distance.

See more photos of the hike to St. Mary Falls here.

Distance: 4.2 miles round trip.

Trailhead: Sunrift Gorge parking area, about 10.5 miles west of St. Mary on Going-to-the-Sun Road.

Day 2: Cut Bank trailhead to Atlantic Creek

The next morning, we woke early and made our way to the stop for Glacier Park Inc.'s East Side Shuttle at the St. Mary Visitor Center. I parked at the nearby 1913 Ranger Station, where we would leave the trail, and returned for our pickup.

As we waited, we watched clouds move in and sheets of rain fall in the mountains where we would soon be backpacking. Luckily, I made an impulse purchase of pack covers a couple of days earlier that would turn out to be worth the money.

On this trip, getting to the trailhead was half the journey. The shuttle took us south from St. Mary, but would only drop us on the side of the highway five miles from the trail in the rain. We were prepared to walk up a dirt road to the trailhead, but lucked out when a couple of women who stopped to take pictures of horses in a field offered a ride instead.

The rain briefly let up at the trailhead, revealing a wildflower meadow and mountains through the clouds, but it soon set in again.

The hike roughly followed North Fork Cutbank Creek upstream in and out of the forest, and up a steep hill to the campground at Atlantic Creek. When we arrived, all that was dry was our packs and the parts of our bodies covered by rain gear - Jen had rain pants and a jacket, while I had only a jacket. (For me, the hike ranked among the top three wettest alongside the Costa Rican jungle and Olympic National Park; I wore rain pants in Scotland.)

We pitched the tent on a site with good drainage and waited out the rain inside before dinner. After eating, the clouds broke and we took a short walk to Atlantic Falls.

More photos of the hike to the Atlantic Creek camp are here.

Distance: 4.3 miles one way.

Trailhead: 14 miles south of St. Mary on U.S. Highway 89 and five miles west on Cut Bank Creek Road.

Day 3: Atlantic Creek to Red Eagle Lake

The second day backpacking was our longest and hardest on the trail - and, thankfully, we had partly cloudy to clear skies.

The trail started fairly level, but after a short distance turned uphill at a junction. From the junction, the trail climbs steadily along the southern side of Mount James for about 2.6 miles to Triple Divide Pass.

This section of trail was some of the most interesting of the trip. As it rose out of the trees, Medicine Grizzly Lake, Razoredge Mountain and Triple Divide Peak came into view, and alpine wildflowers grew from the rocks.

This is also where we began to encounter snowfields, short at first, then long on the final stretch to the pass. A couple of these fields provided extra interest. The bottom of one had melted enough to scramble under and cool off in the dripping snowmelt. Another had pulled away from the rock wall next to the trail enough to squeeze through with a pack.

At the 7,397-foot pass, we took a break for food and pictures, and to understand the hydrologic rarity looming above: Triple Divide Peak, above left and at the top of the post. Situated on the Continental Divide, the mountain actually sends water falling on its summit to three different North American drainages. West of the peak, water flows to the Columbia River and the Pacific Ocean. To the east, it flows to the Atlantic via the Missouri and Mississippi rivers. And to the northeast, it ultimately flows to Hudson Bay.

Only about three miles into our day at this point, we began down the Hudson Bay Creek drainage, crossing several more snow-covered switchbacks and passing a group of bighorn ewes and lambs.

Shortly out of the snow, we forded a few creeks as we continued down the valley through shrubby meadows and forest. Soon, we reached forest burned by the 2006 Red Eagle fire, with silvery snags rising into the sky.

After reaching the valley bottom, we crossed Red Eagle Creek on two suspension bridges before rounding the southeastern side of Red Eagle Lake to our campsite above the shore, about eight miles from the pass. A clear night provided for a beautiful sunset and stars.

More photos of the route over Triple Divide Pass are here.

Distance: 11.6 miles one way.

Day 4: Red Eagle Lake to St. Mary

Our final day began by following the trail through rolling burned forestland - thick with soon-to-bloom fireweed - along Red Eagle Creek, crossing it two more times on suspension bridges.

As we moved out of the old burn, meadows thick with wildflowers opened up and stands of aspens provided shade. Red paintbrush, blue lupine, golden blanketflower, white bog orchids and pink geraniums were abundant.

Past a beaver pond, we reached our car at the 1913 Ranger Station. Then it was back across the Sun Road and its construction zones to home.

See more photos of the Red Eagle Lake Trail here.

Distance: 7.6 miles one way.

Trailhead: 1913 Ranger Station, a short distance across Going-to-the-Sun Road from the St. Mary Visitor Center.

Snowy hike up St. Mary

2011-07-14T11:10:00.003-06:00

After spending recent months recovering from leg injuries, we finally got out on our first real hike of the summer in western Montana last weekend.

(Over the winter, I developed very painful Achilles tendinitis in my left leg, and while recovering from that I overcompensated and developed less serious post-tibial tendinitis in my right leg. I've been working with a physical therapist on my running stride and hope to avoid recurrences.)

Jen recently declared her intention to hike up St. Mary Peak in the Bitterroot Mountains south of Missoula for the first time this summer. I've been up it before - once with each of the dogs - but she never has even though she's hiked steeper trails and to higher elevations. On Sunday, we set out early without the dogs and checked it off her list.

The day was beautiful - blue sky, not too hot on the mountain and a slight breeze - and the trail started out clear with abundant wildflowers off to the side. Through the first switchbacks, at about a mile, that changed as snow overtook the path. Though deep, it was firm and the route fairly obvious, so we continued. At one point, we did briefly lose the trail, but turned uphill until we found other tracks in the snow and followed them.

Eventually, the snow disappeared as the trail rose above treeline and revealed a sweeping view of the Bitterroot Valley. In the final mile, we crossed the rocky top of the mountain - which was covered in a variety of cushion plants - and one final patch of snow to the lookout at the top.

After lunch and some pictures, we started down for home, playing in the snow along the way.

More photos can be seen here.

Distance: 7.6 miles round trip.

Trailhead: From Missoula, drive about 25 miles south on U.S. Highway 93, past the Stevensville turnoff, and turn west on St. Mary's Road. Follow the signs about 11.6 miles up to the trailhead.

Far-away car camping in Idaho

2011-07-11T10:48:00.000-06:00

We decided to take a scenic drive and go car camping with the dogs over Fourth of July weekend.

Too busy to go both Saturday and Sunday nights, the question was, where would we find an available campsite on the second night? The answer: The Indian Creek campground along the Selway River deep in Idaho's forests.

The road to the campground is surrounded by wilderness - the Selway-Bitterroot to the north and the Frank Church-River of No Return to the south - and driving there takes about four hours from Missoula. In our time there, we only one other family camped nearby and we saw few other vehicles.

Getting there was something of an accomplishment for us. We have a brand-new SUV and have been reluctant to put the dogs in it. Gigi, in her mid-teens, has a thick coat and sheds constantly; 8-year-old Belle has never traveled well, getting anxiety attacks whenever she's in the car and drooling nonstop. (This was, by far, Belle's longest drive.) With plenty of covers to protect the interior and Belle tethered, we made the drive.

The campground sits next to a horsepacking trailhead where Indian Creek meets the Selway River. There's plenty of soothing sound from the rushing river as well as scenery to take in. A few trails leave from the area, but with Gigi too old for any real hiking, we mostly wandered and lazed during our stay.

Considering all the water from this year's high snowpack, we were surprised that the mosquitoes weren't too bad. We all got some bites, but they really only bothered Belle, to the point that she tried to get in the tent on her own. She succeeded in getting between the ground cover and the floor of the tent. After some assistance, though, she was content inside.

On the way home the next morning, we took a short side trip to the historic Magruder Ranger Station, which was closed but nonetheless in a nice setting.

See more photos here and here.

Directions: From Darby, drive 7.4 miles south on U.S. Highway 93, then turn southwest on the West Fork Road. After 11.3 miles, continue southwest on Nez Perce Road. After 16.1 miles, the road crosses into Idaho at Nez Perce Pass and becomes the Magruder Corridor Road. Turn north on Forest Road 6223 after 18.7 miles and continue 5.3 miles to the campground. This section of the Nez Perce/Magruder Corridor Road is a mixture of gravel and pavement.

Flora, fauna of the National Bison Range

2011-05-23T10:30:00.005-06:00

Spring has finally arrived in western Montana, bringing a bouquet of wildflowers and a bevy of wildlife to the Red Sleep Mountain Drive at the National Bison Range near Moiese.

What all did we see along the 19-mile scenic loop through the refuge?

These flowers:

Arrowleaf balsamroot
Wild hyacinth
Prairie smoke
Prairie stars
Larkspur
Jacob's Ladder
Yellow paintbrush
Lupine

These animals:

Bison, of course
Baby bison, of course
A black bear
Pronghorn antelope
Deer
Bluebirds
Meadowlarks
A pheasant
Red-winged blackbirds
Painted turtles

And more. Now is a great time to make the drive!

More photos from the National Bison Range are here.

Distance: 19-mile loop drive. Near the top of the mountain, there are two short trails: the half-mile round-trip Bitterroot Trail and the 1-mile round-trip High Point Trail. There is also a mile-long nature trail near the range's picnic area.

Directions: From Missoula, drive 35 miles north on U.S. Highway 93 to Ravalli, then turn west on Highway 200. After about 6 miles, turn north on Highway 212 and drive about 4.5 miles to the entrance at Moiese.

To Utah, and to the trail

2011-05-23T10:00:00.006-06:00

We recently returned from a weeklong vacation and visit to friends and family in Utah and Colorado, which also marked my return to hiking since injuring my Achilles tendon over the winter.

A brand-new car packed, we started our trip seeing friends in Salt Lake City and camping and hiking around Moab, Utah. The last time we were in Moab, flash floods drove us to a hotel and then out of the area - this time, we camped for a couple of nights, and found lodging for another. While there, we got into the redrocks in Arches and Canyonlands national parks and on some Bureau of Land Management land. In Canyonlands alone, I traveled about 10 miles of trail in a day - the most since my injury.

A snowy drive took us to Denver and more friends and family, then we traveled the long road home.

Below are the hikes we took in Utah.

Corona Arch

Corona Arch is the first hike Jen and I went on aside from walking our dog Gigi in the Missoula area.

After parking just off the highway, the trail ascends through the redrocks to the northeast, across a rail line, up a wash and then up a couple of ladders to a slickrock area at the base of cliff. Just before reaching the massive Corona Arch - with its 140-by-105-foot opening - Bow Tie Arch is perched high on the rock wall to the north.

Pictures from the Corona Arch trail are here.

Distance: 3 miles round trip.

Trailhead:On Utah Highway 279, 10 miles west of its junction with U.S. Highway 191 just northwest of Moab.

Arches National Park: Tower Arch

Having hiked almost all of the established trails in Arches National Park, we decided to take a longer drive out the Salt Valley to the Klondike Bluffs and Tower Arch. The trail travels west up through the rocks, then down a valley and up again through redrock fins to the robust Tower Arch.

Photos from Arches are here.

Distance: 3.4 miles round trip.

Trailhead: From the park entrance northwest of Moab, travel about 12 miles north on the main road, five miles northwest past the Fiery Furnace area, then 8.3 miles south, northwest and south again to the Klondike Bluffs trailhead.

Canyonlands National Park: Neck Spring

A Canyonlands National Park ranger told us the Neck Spring trail would have an abundance of foliage due to its moisture, and she was right - plenty of desert wildflowers in spring.

After dropping down from the Island in the Sky mesa, the trail loops west then east through two spring areas. Water was trickling when we were there, but I wouldn't count on it in summer. The trail then climbs out of the canyon and onto slickrock, crosses the main park road in the area and returns to the start.

See photos from Canyonlands here.

Distance: 5.8-mile loop.

Trailhead: Travel about 11 miles northwest of Moab on U.S. Highway 191, then about 20.5 miles southwest and south on Utah Highway 313 to the Island in the Sky Visitor Center. The trailhead is 0.4 miles south of the visitor center.

Canyonlands: Murphy Point

The trail to Murphy Point has to be one of the straightest lines I've ever walked. From the main road, it travels southwest for 1.8 miles until it reaches Murphy Point - don't turn off for Murphy Hogback. The views extend south and west into canyon country.

See photos from Canyonlands here.

Distance: 3.6 miles round trip.

Trailhead: Travel about 11 miles northwest of Moab on U.S. Highway 191, then about 20.5 miles southwest and south on Utah Highway 313 to the Island in the Sky Visitor Center. The trailhead is 9.8 miles south of the visitor center.

Cleared to run

2011-04-10T09:41:00.001-06:00

After more than 2 1/2 months on the mend for an Achilles injury, I appear to be in the clear for the most part.

I had a follow-up visit with the physical therapist a little more than a week ago that included a video analysis of my stride. Overall, my form is good, but I need to work on correcting the slight pronation of my right foot and bringing my pelvis forward some. I can still sense that there's a little less flexibility in my right Achilles, but that should work itself out over time.

The PT assigned me a new stretching routine that focuses on the pelvic area, which should also help with the pronation. Best of all, he gave me the go-ahead to increase my mileage by 10 percent whenever I feel comfortable.

I'm back up to three miles a day and just enjoying being on the move outside!

Step-by-step progress

2011-03-21T11:43:00.000-06:00

Two months after injuring my Achilles tendon, I'm running again - albeit not far and not as fast.

It started with alternating walking and running for a mile on a treadmill for a week, then two miles. The first full mile I ran took 12 minutes, but felt great. Next, I increased the pace to a 10-minute mile.

On a sunny day a little more than a week ago, I ran a mile outside - finally, some fresh air and solid ground. Since then, I've doubled the distance to two miles and gotten back to a more normal pace of around eight minutes a mile.

At the end of this week, I check in with the physical therapist. To be sure, I have much further to go, but it's good to be moving again.

My recovery, in 140-charachter installments

2011-03-16T00:06:00.005-06:00

This blog isn't the only place I've been chronicling my recovery from an Achilles tendon injury. I've been on the microblogging service Twitter for a while, and recently came across Storify, a new tool that lets users compile stories using tweets, blog posts, photos and other media. The result is below - and if you're interested, check back as I continue to update it.

Back inside, on the treadmill

2011-02-28T09:30:00.004-07:00

I'm running again. OK, I'm alternating walking and jogging every couple of minutes for about a mile.

Four weeks after injuring my Achilles, the pain is gone. The tendon is still a bit tight, but it feels better every workout. I warm up with 10 minutes on an exercise bike, then switch to a treadmill. After more than a year of running outside rain, snow or shine, I'm back inside - in a storage room at the office with some fitness equipment and a sump pump. I went five miles in the past week.

Recovery is going to be slow, but I'm happy to be running again.

Achilles healing near home

2011-02-21T10:00:00.009-07:00

While I haven't been able to run, snowshoe or cross-country ski due to injury lately, I have been getting out on my usual morning walks with the dogs.

We've been taking it easy to give my Achilles tendon time to heal and hiking the short, level trails at the Tower Street Conservation Area on the edge of Missoula. It's not far from home and there isn't much to it - stands of cottonwood trees along the Clark Fork River - but it has been interesting to see through the winter.

Earlier this season, the river fully froze over and produced a big ice jam. When the water reaches the right temperature, slushy frazil ice forms and gathers in eddies along the river. And there's been a good variety of birds, including pileated woodpeckers, above, great blue herons, bald eagles and Canada geese, below.

See a collection of photos from the past month here.

Trailhead: A little more than 1 mile west of South Reserve Street on South Third Street West in Missoula, then about a quarter-mile north on Tower Street.

Distance: There are a variety of trails; the main loop through the cottonwoods, along the river and back to the parking lot is about three-quarters of a mile.

New view at Hike MT

2011-02-07T11:00:00.003-07:00

With a little downtime from running and cross-country skiing, I decided to give Hike MT a new look. This is only a stock Blogger template, but a bit more modern. And I've learned how to manipulate the background image, which I'll probably change from time to time depending on the season or where we've been.

A run of bad luck?

2011-02-07T09:30:00.005-07:00

I had been debating whether I wanted to run a marathon or a series of half-marathons this year - there are interesting road and trail races around Missoula in every season. Now, it looks like I'll be focusing on getting back on my feet after a month of irregular activity and setbacks.

I finished December with a short family vacation sans running in the Yellowstone National Park area, then caught an out-of-the-ordinary cold, then Missoula was coated by freezing rain, then I ran into a minor complication with blood pressure medication.

Just when I was getting into my routine again, I injured my Achilles tendon. Around mile eight of a 13-mile run into the North Hills a week ago Saturday (below), I started to feel a little sore. I kept running, when in hindsight I probably should have walked the shortest route home. I stretched afterward, which felt OK. Later, pain set in. Sunday was worse. By Tuesday, the soreness had subsided some, but I was at the physical therapist.

I'd like to chalk it up to an increase this winter in running on snow- and ice-packed trails with uneven footing when I previously stuck to roads in the cold months, but I don't really know the cause.

I do know that an Achilles injury should be taken seriously and addressed as soon as possible. The PT put me on some specific stretches and the bike machine in my living room. It's not the North Hills, but I'm still moving. (Cross-country skiing is out, too.)

The first half-marathon of the year - the Snow Joke in Seeley Lake - is out, but I hope to be ready for some other races, or even a full, by summer. We'll see, though.

Photography fun on the go

2011-01-28T11:00:00.002-07:00

Jen and I both recently bought smartphones with decent cameras and have been putting them to use in our travels and everyday life.

You won't usually see the snapshots we take with them among the photos from our adventures, but you can find them online. My Twitpic collection is here, and Jen's is here. I've also started to use Picplz, which has some creative filters. The photo above is an example, from a foggy day at one our favorite dog-walking haunts.

As always, you can find galleries of our hiking and travel photos here, and my Flickr stream here.

We skied the CDT

2011-01-24T09:00:00.005-07:00

Over the weekend, we decided to check out the cross-country ski trails at Chief Joseph Pass, south of Hamilton where the Continental Divide sidles up to the Idaho-Montana border, for the first time.

With 5 1/2 feet of snow on the ground and a fresh dusting of powder, it was worth the 95-mile drive.

There were a handful of vehicles and people in the parking lot when we arrived, but on the trail we found ourselves mostly on our own.

The Bitterroot Cross Country Ski Club maintains a network of 24 kilometers of well-marked, groomed trails that are easy to link together into loops of varying lengths.

Never having skied at Chief Joseph before, we chose to start on the Continental Divide Trail.

About half a mile in, on the edge of Picnic Meadow, we caught a glimpse of a "snowbow" arcing over the Gordon Reese Cabin. After a brief stop to check out the cabin, we skied up and down, through lodgepole pine forest and meadows along Broadway, the Gold Medal Loop, Timber, Solitude and the Vista View Loop. For a while, the sun was shining through breaks in the clouds, and despite the noise of wind, it was never too blustery.

After another stop at the cabin, the sky turned gray and we skied back to the trailhead via Moose and the Lost Trail Loop, shy of 7 miles and satisfied.

See photos from Chief Joseph Pass here.

Distance: About 6 3/4 miles. (24 kilometers of groomed trails available, with more ungroomed terrain.)

Directions: The Chief Joseph Pass trailhead is about 47 miles south of Hamilton on U.S. Highway 93, then 1 mile east on Montana Highway 43.

1,500 miles on foot

2011-01-01T21:15:00.002-07:00

View Larger Map

With the new year here, I thought it would be interesting to take a look back at the ground I covered running with my GPS in the past 12 months. The map above is the result.

I ran 1,508.58 miles with my GPS in 2010. My total mileage was a bit higher, due to setting out without the device a handful of times. More stats?

Number of runs: 196
Time: 211 hours, 28 minutes, 43 seconds
Elevation gain: 60,963 feet
Average speed: 7.1 mph
Calories burned: 195,678

I didn't really have a goal for the year, but as a member of Run Wild Missoula logged my miles for the 1,200 Mile Club. One hundred miles a month didn't seem like much, and I surpassed it.

As you can see from the map, I both pounded the pavement and hit the trail. Click here to view individual runs, or zoom out to see runs that weren't in the Missoula area. Everything from 5Ks to half-marathons to a full is in there.

Next year? No goal again, but I'd like to improve my long-distance pace and endurance, and do more trail runs.

Year-end Yellowstone ski

2011-01-01T17:15:00.001-07:00

With family visiting for Christmas this year, we thought it would be fun to take a quick trip down to Yellowstone National Park. Mom had been to the area before, but was busy with work so didn't get to see the wilderness or wildlife - both of which we found.

Normally when we visit Yellowstone in winter, we look for an inexpensive room in Gardiner. This being the holidays and with family in tow, we booked rooms early at Chico Hot Springs Resort. We had never visited before, and the pools and food lived up to friends' hype.

The first afternoon in the area, we took a drive out the park's north road to the Lamar Valley, viewing winter-white scenery, bison, coyotes and elk along the way. On the way back out of the park, we scheduled an early snowcoach shuttle to go cross-country skiing the next morning. At Chico that night, we ate well and took a quick dip in the warm pool before turning in.

The next morning, we rose before dawn and drove back to the hotel at Mammoth Hot Springs in the park, to rent gear for Mom and catch the shuttle up to the Indian Creek warming hut for some skiing. After a bumpy snowcoach ride to Indian Creek - and a brief panic over the frozen-shut door of the hut - we skied a short loop in windy, snowy weather, then waited for our pickup to return to Mammoth.

On the way out of the park that afternoon, Mom got another wildlife treat - foraging bighorn sheep on the slopes above the road. Back at Chico, we ate and soaked some more, then hit the sack.

The next morning, the forecast for western Montana was foul, so we skipped a morning trip to the park and headed for home. The drive was harrowing, but the trip was worth it.

See photos from our winter visit to Yellowstone here.

Indian Creek Loop

The easiest way to reach Indian Creek is by snowcoach shuttle from the hotel in Mammoth Hot Springs. Compared to other snowcoach tours, it's a bargain at a little more than $16, including taxes. Maps of the trails are available at the ski shop in Mammoth or here.

The trail we set out on from the warming hut makes a 2 1/4-mile counterclockwise circuit through a summer campground and along Indian and Obsidian creeks. It has gentle ups and downs, and the Gallatin Mountains are visible when there's no snow. With a little exploring, we covered about 3 1/10 miles.

Distance: About 2 1/4 miles round trip.

Trailhead: From the hotel in Mammoth, take the snowcoach shuttle about 8 1/2 miles south on the snow vehicle road to Indian Creek.

Jen's picks for Glacier National Park

2010-12-25T11:45:00.002-07:00

We received a new issue of Backpacker magazine recently and opened it to find Jen's smiling face inside.

The January issue contains the annual Readers' Choice Awards, and while we knew Jen was to be featured as an expert on Glacier National Park we weren't expecting its arrival before Thanksgiving.

Turn to the "Our Backyard" feature on Page 56 to see her picks for the park:

Go to Two Medicine for solitude. Jen suggests the Dawson-Pitamakan loop, which at 16 miles (with an additional boat ride) was one of her most challenging dayhikes.
Big bloom at Cobalt Lake. Also in the Two Medicine area, the fields of red monkeyflower near Cobalt Lake can be spectacular. It's about 11 1/2 miles round trip.
Sneak a peek from Mount Oberlin. Check with the rangers at Logan Pass to make sure the easy 1 1/2-mile scramble is open - there are sensitive plants along it. From the 8,180-foot summit, look down on Bird Woman Falls.
Don't forget winter. The park is still open, even though Going-to-the-Sun Road is closed to vehicles. Park at Lake McDonald Lodge and ski or snowshoe instead.

Also, in the masthead on Page 7, Jen's "Where I'd Take an Editor Hiking" pick is Piegan Pass. With an allotment of just five words, the suggestion omitted the stop at the Many Glacier Hotel's Swiss Lounge after the 12 3/4-mile trek from Siyeh Bend.

Update: Backpacker recently put Jen's "Our Backyard" feature online here. Click "The Experts" to see her bio.

Cross-country season is here

2010-12-06T09:30:00.006-07:00

We recently brought our cross-country skis up from the basement and over the weekend went on our first real outing of the season. With partly cloudy skies in town we made the short drive up the Blackfoot Valley to the Lubrecht Experimental Forest.

We arrived to only two other cars in the lot and set out on firm, groomed snow. We chose the 6.4-mile "D" loop, one of five marked trails that can be combined for a distance of your liking.

The counterclockwise loop begins in rolling forestland - a nice mix of up, down and around. At a couple of spots along the way, logs were still piled up from a recent tree-thinning operation in the battle against pine bark beetles.

On the north side of the loop, after the grooming ends but before the trail briefly crosses onto Paws Up Ranch property, the trees open. Here, the forest offered a beautiful sunny view of the surrounding Garnet Range.

Down through the forest again and off of Paws up Property - be sure to close any gates you open - the trail climbs up through a narrow gully called the Luge. Due to the shade of the forest, heavy frost was clinging to moss hanging from branches. This season, there are also a few downed trees to duck under and navigate around.

Out of the gully, the grooming begins again where the loop reconnects with shorter trails. We glided down past Jones Pond and a shelter before returning to a full parking lot. The entire circuit, we saw only one other party until nearing the cars.

See photos from Lubrecht here.

Distance: 6.4-mile loop. (Variety of loops available, from 1 mile to 8.3 miles.)

Trailhead: From Missoula, drive 5 miles east on Interstate 90 to Bonner, then 26 miles east on Highway 200 to the University of Montana's Lubrecht Experimental Forest facilities.

Fall wasn't forgotten

2010-12-05T19:20:00.006-07:00

Been a while since I've posted anything, but we did get out and about in western Montana this fall before the snow fell, albeit close to home.

With Mom visiting in October, we took a stroll up to the lookout atop Blue Mountain. Saw a lot of yellow larch and aspen, some red huckleberry leaves and some drying thistles. See photos here.

We've also gone on plenty of morning walks at Missoula's Tower Street Conservation Area. Since first visiting a little more than a year ago, this has become our go-to spot to take the dogs in the morning; it's not far down the road from the house, but is away from the hustle and bustle of the riverfront downtown. Photos are here - they were a test of sorts from my fairly new cell phone.

Big rocks of Boulder

2010-10-08T09:00:00.003-06:00

While in Denver last week, we also took a quick trip up to Boulder, Colo., for a dayhike among the Flatirons at Chautauqua Park.

The park has a network of trails around Chautauqua Meadow and among some of the Flatiron rock formations that stand above the city.

We started southwest from the park's ranger cottage, through the meadow on the Chautauqua Trail and past trees changing yellow for fall. A connecting trail at the top routed us under the Second and Third Flatirons to the Royal Arch Trail. From there, it was up steeply to the natural stone feature and views of the city below.

After a break, we followed the Royal Arch Trail to it's lowest point, then around the Bluebell Mesa Trail and back down the Chautauqua Trail to the cottage.

View more photos of Chautauqua and Royal Arch here.

Distance: 3 2/3 miles roundtrip.

Trailhead: The Chautauqua ranger cottage is located at Baseline Road and Grant Place, about 1 1/3 miles west of Highway 36 in Boulder.

Colorado's great sandbox

2010-10-06T21:20:00.001-06:00

For our fall vacation this year, we headed south to Colorado to visit family and check out one of the country's newest national parks: Great Sand Dunes.

While the park designation became official in 2004, the dunes have been building at the base of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains for thousands, possibly millions, of years, according to the park brochure. Sand from mountains to the west piles up at the foot of the range, carried by strong winds and creeks, creating the tallest dunes in North America.

We've wanted to return ever since passing nearby on the way to New Mexico in 2001. Last week, after 17 hours of driving from Missoula with an overnight in Denver, we spent three days in the dunes.

Day 1: High Dune

The afternoon we arrived we spent asking park rangers about spending a night in the dunefield then getting acclimated.

The Great Sand Dunes visitor center sits at about 8,200 feet elevation - almost 5,000 feet above home - so we started with a short hike up High Dune, at 650 feet the second tallest in the park.

Within sight of the visitor center and day-use parking lot, the High Dune route is one of the most popular in the park. And while there were plenty of people in the dry bed of Medano Creek and sledding or boarding down lower dunes, we were on our own when we reached the top.

There are no real trails in the dunes, but the well-trod path was easy to follow. Also, loose sand meant plenty of backsliding, but there were also firmer areas - which offered confidence for the next day, when we would be carrying full backpacks.

See photos from High Dune here.

Distance: About 3.3 miles round trip.

Trailhead: Visitor center or nearby day-use parking area, 1 mile north of Mosca, Colo., on Highway 17, 16 miles east on Lane 6 and 6 miles northeast on Highway 150.

Days 2 and 3: Backcountry camping in the dunefield

After spending the night in nearby Alamosa, we arrived at the Great Sand Dunes visitor center the next morning and picked up a free backcountry permit to camp in the dunefield.

Up Medano Creek Primitive Road, we parked our car at the Point of No Return trailhead and set out.

The first three-quarters of a mile down to the Sand Pit picnic area on the edge of the dunes is on a trail, but after crossing Medano Creek it's pretty much your choice. The only caveat for backpackers is that you have to get over the first ridge and out of sight of the visitor center. That and you're limited by how much water you can carry, as there is no source once in the dunefield.

Beyond the creek, we wandered up to a low spot on the first ridge and surveyed our options. My GPS having conked out at the trailhead, we also made a few visual references as to the location of Sand Pit and Point of No Return: a large sign between a couple of trees just up from the creek, and a low summit covered in golden aspens in the Sangre de Cristos.

From the first ridge, we connected several meandering crestlines, climbing higher and higher.

After a few hours of wandering in the sand, we selected a high saddle between two dunes for our campsite. From the saddle, views extended out two valleys, and one of the nearby ridgelines would be a great vantage point at sunset.

After we set up our tent, Jen assembled a cheap children's kite and let it fly. She brought it figuring there would be a good breeze, and was more than right. As afternoon turned to evening, the wind picked up and streams of sand shot across the dunes, spilling over the crests. For dinner, we took shelter in the tent, but even that didn't keep the grit out of our food.

Eventually, the sun dropped, casting long shadows across the sand. Late at night, the wind died and the stars - away from any city lights - were spectacular.

When we woke the next morning, all footprints from the day before were gone - a blank slate for a new day. At some point after the wind settled and we fell asleep, however, we had a visitor of the canine variety, as evidenced by the tracks leading away from the vicinity of our tent.

We packed up and set out after a light breakfast, again following several crestlines, back and forth, up and down. The aspen-covered summit above where we parked was easy enough to see the entire time, so we never felt in danger of getting lost.

Eventually, we made our way to the low spot on the first ridge, back across the creek and up to our car, never seeing another person up close for the entire circuit.

See photos from the dunefield here.

Distance: As far as you want; we probably trekked a couple of miles in.

Trailhead: Point of No Return, about 2 miles north of the visitor center on Highway 150 and Medano Pass Primitive Road.

Backpacking with Gigi

2010-09-08T10:00:00.001-06:00

Over the past year, we've watched our 16-year old dog Gigi slow down quite a bit, and one goal going into summer was to get her out on one more backpacking trip. Between rain showers and a flurry of work, we accomplished that with a night at Heart and Pearl lakes, near Superior, over Labor Day weekend.

The hike is tried and true - we've done it numerous times in our years here - and it's ideal in any season. And with all the cool wet weather we had through August, fall's colors are already evident.

The trail tracks south through the trees along Trout Creek, climbs to Heart Lake at about 2 1/4 miles, rounds the shore and rises east out of the forest to a grassy basin holding Pearl Lake at about 3 miles.

Gigi was a trooper the whole way, but was definitely weary by the time we returned to the car. It helped that we had our younger dog, Belle, pack in both pups' food. It was also wise that we brought along fleece blankets for them, as the partly sunny weather Saturday turned into a cloudy chill Sunday morning.

The trip was quick but worth it, as our two tired dogs can attest.

Find more photos from our trip to Pearl Lake here.

Distance: About 6 miles round trip.

Trailhead: From Superior, follow Diamond Match Road southeast and Trout Creek Road southwest - one turns into the other - for 19 miles.

Gunsight Pass, the video

2010-08-09T09:45:00.002-06:00

Finally found time to edit the hour of video I recorded on our recent three-day backpacking trip over Glacier National Park's Gunsight Pass. Below is the result, in 2 minutes, 16 seconds. Watch for the babbling brook, the bleating sheep, the flying fish and the buzzing bug.

Update: I've replaced the original YouTube video on this post with a Vimeo version, which looks a bit cleaner. They are otherwise identical.

Goats of Gunsight Pass

2010-08-02T11:45:00.001-06:00

We made our annual anniversary foray into Glacier National Park recently and, as usual, were rewarded with plenty of beautiful views of wildlands and wildlife.

Every year, we look for new places to stay and new trails to hike - we've lodged in lodges and camped out of our car, walked paths popular in Many Glacier and quiet in Two Medicine - and this time was no different.

In the past, we haven't spent much time in the St. Mary Lake or Lake McDonald areas, and we've never slept under the stars of the park's backcountry. This year, we secured a short-notice permit to pitch our tent along the Gunsight Pass trail bridging the regions and crossing the Continental Divide.

While the 20-mile route can be through hiked in a long day, we took our time - and plenty of pictures, as usual.

We reserved a car camping site in the St. Mary campground on the east side of the park months ago and arrived under cloudy and rainy skies at dinnertime the first night of our trip. After a meal and a few photos on St. Mary Lake, we headed for bed, opting to roll out our sleeping bags in the back of our Subaru rather than start the trip with a wet tent.

The next morning, we rose early and had our permit in hand by 7:30 a.m., then went about positioning our car at the end of our trip. This required driving west back over the Divide on the scenic Going-to-the-Sun Road and parking at Lake McDonald Lodge, then catching the park shuttle back over to the trailhead on the east side. Unfortunately, this meant going through two construction zones twice, and we didn't set foot on the trail until 1 p.m.

While the route begins and ends in fairly dense forest with little to see but trees, the middle section is what Glacier is all about: sharp peaks, lingering snowfields, the rush of waterfalls, blue lakes, wildflowers and wildlife. In fact, aside from the Logan Pass area, I don't think I've ever seen so many mountain goats. They were lying in the trail, checking out our camp and even circling at dinner one night.

After three days of hiking west over the Continental Divide and two nights of camping, at Gunsight Lake and Lake Ellen Wilson, our delayed start paid off with a quick escape from the park and back home.

Day 1: Jackson Glacier Overlook to Gunsight Lake

Our route began at Jackson Glacier Overlook, dropping through the forest to Deadwood Falls on Reynolds Creek at 1 1/2 miles, crossing on a suspension bridge, then continuing southwest roughly along the St. Mary River.

At about four miles, we arrived at a junction for Florence Falls. We decided to check it out, but afterward concluded it would have been better to stick to the main trail - while the falls are big and beautiful this time of year, the trail was almost too overgrown for backpacks.

From the junction, the trail begins to climb steadily along the base of Fusillade Mountain, rising out of the trees and providing views of Mount Jackson, Blackfoot Mountain, their respective glaciers and Mount Logan.

At about 6 1/4 miles, the trail arrives at the camp on the eastern end of Gunsight Lake. A notch above the west end of the lake marks Gunsight Pass, and waterfalls cascade down the rocky red and brushy green slopes all around. Here, we camped under cloudy skies in the company of a handful of other backpackers, a couple of nosy deer and at least one snowshoe hare.

See photos from the hike to Gunsight Lake here and here.

Distance: About 6 1/4 miles one way with optional 1 1/2-mile round-trip extension to Florence Falls.

Trailhead: Jackson Glacier Overlook is about 13 1/4 miles west of Glacier's St. Mary entrance on Going-to-the-Sun Road.

Day 2: Gunsight Lake to Lake Ellen Wilson

The next morning, we awoke to nearly clear skies, and after some breakfast chat with other campers we packed up and hit the trail. This would be our shortest day of hiking, but also the most scenic.

After crossing the suspension bridge at Gunsight Lake's outlet, we followed the path as it climbed the side of Mount Jackson. In the rocky traverse between two sets of switchbacks, we encountered our first mountain goats of the day lying there in the middle of the trail. They arose and approached us, an inquisitive younger one cocking its head at us under the watchful eye of what was likely its mother.

We continued onward and upward to the southwest, taking in the view across the blue lake and back down the valley, and eventually reaching the first of several lingering snowfields and runoff creeks that we would cross. This high stretch of trail before Gunsight Pass runs nearly level and only the final, high-angle snowfield forced most hikers to detour around it.

At the top of the 6,946-foot pass at three miles, we stopped for a break and to take in the view down to Lake Ellen Wilson, our destination. After a snack and the entertainment of a few marmots that thought they were sneaky, we started down the rockier, drier switchbacks two miles to the campground.

In camp, we pitched our tent at a nice, open site just off the shore of the lake and settled in for some relaxation. Soon, a trio of goats wandered into the area, grazing around us. As afternoon became dinnertime, more arrived and circled our cooking area within spork's reach. We never felt in danger, but at least one of the mother goats was uncomfortable with the close quarters, repeatedly chasing off others that came too close to her kid. At dusk, they followed as I explored the lakeshore, leaving only as the last sunlight rose up the canyon wall.

That evening was clear, so we slept without the rain fly, allowing us to take in the bright sky one night short of the full moon.

See photos from the hike over Gunsight Pass here and here.

Distance: 5 miles one way.

Day 3: Lake Ellen Wilson to Lake McDonald Lodge

The morning of our final day in the park, we rose as the sun arrived on the valley floor, packed and got under way, trailed out of camp by more goats.

We made our way west through the rocky terrain, up and around the end of the valley. There, one final goat perched on a picturesque boulder with the ridge on the opposite side of the drainage in the background. Toward Lincoln Pass, we caught our first glimpse of the Lake McDonald area.

By about three miles, we came over the pass and down to Sperry Chalet, where we rested for lunch. After that, it was a little more than six miles down, down, down and back into more dense forest, arriving on the Sun Road at Lake McDonald Lodge.

After cooling our heels in the lake, we got in the car and headed for home - with me already imagining the next trip to the park.

See photos from the hike back to Lake McDonald Lodge here and here.

Distance: 9.1 miles one way.

Trailhead: Lake McDonald Lodge is 10 1/4 miles east of the park entrance at West Glacier on Going-to-the-Sun Road.

Geography lesson

2010-07-21T09:00:00.006-06:00

Where can you see Montana, Idaho, Oregon and Illinois - Illinois? - on the same dayhike? On the Stateline Trail, southwest of Superior.

In the five miles southeast of Cascade Pass, Montana and Idaho make up the ridge that the trail tracks, then there are the Oregon Lakes and Oregon Peak, and Illinois Peak.

There are a variety of access points to the Stateline Trail, Cascade Pass being a relatively easy, but long approach. It's about 25 bumpy, dusty miles by car from Superior. On Tuesday, my dog Belle and I had the trail to ourselves - only one other vehicle was in the parking area, but we never saw anyone else.

From the pass, I've been northwest to Bonanza Lakes before, but this was the first time I've headed southeast to Illinois Peak.

The route is mostly open, grassy forest with gentle ups and downs. In fact, the terrain bears a resemblance to hiking in Scotland or the Australian Alps, especially with the abundant pink mountain heather, top. I was also quite surprised by the variety of wildflowers in bloom - bluebells, a few varieties of penstemon, bracted lousewort, purple shooting stars, heather, yellow pasqueflower, mountain gentian, phlox and more.

At about 1 3/4 miles, the path passes above the uppermost of the three Oregon Lakes, with its deep blue water. The trail steepens at four miles and climbs through some interesting rocks - look for the ripples of old seabed. At about 4 1/2 miles, take the east fork through two junctions, then it's up the final push to the grassy summit of the 7,690-foot mountain.

A great start to a week of vacation!

Here are some photos.

Distance: 10 miles round trip.

Trailhead: From Superior, follow Diamond Match Road on the west side of Interstate 90 about 1 1/4 miles southeast, then Cedar Creek Road (Forest Road 320) 25 miles southwest to Cascade Pass.

Bluebells, a bighorn and bison

2010-07-19T18:30:00.001-06:00

We took a drive up to the National Bison Range over the weekend, where the wildflowers are still blooming and the wildlife was out for viewing.

We arrived early enough to beat the afternoon heat and for me to make it back to Missoula in time for work. Bluebells and wild bergamot were in abundance going up the 19-mile Red Sleep Mountain Drive, and the way back down and around to the start again featured a lone bighorn sheep, plenty of bison and a handful of pronghorn antelope.

The drive also gave me a chance to play with a new Flip UltraHD camcorder. Watch the short video above.

Also, there are pictures here and here.

Distance: 19-mile loop drive. Near the top of the mountain, there are two short trails: the half-mile round-trip Bitterroot Trail and the 1-mile round-trip High Point Trail.

Trailhead: From Missoula, drive 35 miles north on U.S. Highway 93 to Ravalli, then turn west on Highway 200. After about 6 miles, turn north on Highway 212 and drive about 4.5 miles to the entrance at Moiese.

The finish

2010-07-13T08:25:00.000-06:00

That's me in the white shirt, gray shorts and hat, starting on the right and cutting to the left around two people. Thanks to the Missoula Marathon, KECI-TV and FinishCam.com for providing video of the runners.

Off my mark

2010-07-12T21:00:00.002-06:00

Last weekend's Missoula Marathon didn't go quite as planned.

After months of training with the goal of finishing in 3 hours, 40 minutes, I came in at 4:10:12. Slightly disappointing considering all of the improvement I've made in the last year in training and shorter races - all of my 20- and 22-mile training runs were at a faster pace than last year's 4:01 marathon finish, and last winter and spring I ran my best half-marathon and 5K.

Ultimately, a few things did me in. I choked down a cup of water around mile 17 and promptly coughed it back up. As a result, I fell back from my pace group and never caught up again. This year's race also was considerably warmer than last year's, and I've found in training that heat can quickly drain me. I also have noticed that my body doesn't seem to like energy drinks. I usually hydrate with water, and could feel myself getting sluggish as the cups of energy drink began to add up. Toward the end of the race, I switched back to water and soon felt better. (I suppose some of these could be mental, but I don't feel like I ever hit "the wall.")

All is not bad though - I finished another marathon and feel good today. While I like to see improvement in my running, to me it's more about being outside, being active and clearing my head of everything but the rhythm of my feet. Tomorrow, I'm going for a run.

On my mark

2010-07-08T14:29:00.003-06:00

The Missoula Marathon is nearly here, and I've got just one more short run before race day.

Training went well, and the taper felt great - the short distances are easy and speedy. Now, it's all down to a little visualization and rest.

If my work pays off, I'll be crossing the finish line downtown on Higgins Avenue at about 9:40 a.m. Sunday. If you're in town, come on out and cheer!

Back on the trail, and still going

2010-07-05T09:30:00.002-06:00

It's been a while since we've gone on a real hike here at home in Montana. The last time was months ago, when there was still snow on the ground.

It's not that we haven't gotten out; we walk the dogs on trails in and around Missoula almost daily, and we took a spring hiking vacation to Oregon and Washington's Olympic National Park. Mostly, it's because I've been focusing on my training for the Missoula Marathon next weekend. That and one of our dogs is getting older and has understandably been slowing down (more about that later).

Yesterday, we decided to get the dogs out and tired before the Fourth of July fireworks started in hopes that we wouldn't have a bark-fest after sunset.

We've been up the Bass Creek trail a short distance a couple of times - both in the snow - but with a campground at the trailhead, it always seemed like it would be crowded in warmer weather. We decided to give it a try anyway because it's not that far from home. The trail was fairly busy at the start, but about halfway through our hike we found ourselves mostly on our own.

The wide path starts out by steadily climbing west through the forest along the north side of Bass Creek; there are several places to access the water on the way. Just past 1 3/4 miles, it passes an old log dam with a pond behind it where the valley opens up and you can see the surrounding mountains.

From here, the trail travels a fairly level mile through the forest, into the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness and to a junction. Continuing on the narrower path to the north, you wind up the side of the canyon to an open parklike area with plenty of views down the valley, then above a big cascade at a little more than 3 3/4 miles.

A rough path leads down to the falls, and we took turns snapping pictures from below and keeping our older dog, Gigi, above and out of danger. As previously noted, she's getting up there - we believe she's about 16, but there's no way to know for sure because she was a stray. She remains our very faithful hiking partner and will follow us almost anywhere, albeit with a little help over logs and rocks.

The trail continues about another 3 1/4 miles up to Bass Lake, but this marked our turnaround point for the day.

See some more pictures here.

Distance: 14 miles round trip to Bass Lake. (We hiked about 7 3/4 miles round trip to the cascade.)

Trailhead: From Missoula, travel about 20 miles south on U.S. Highway 93, then turn west on Bass Creek Road and follow it about 2 3/4 miles to the trailhead parking area.

Marathon run-up

2010-06-14T15:00:00.003-06:00

Training for this year's Missoula Marathon is well under way, and so far, so good.

The goal this year is to finish with the 3-hour, 40-minute group that I started my first marathon with last year, but fell back from. I finished that race at about 4:01.

Pace-wise, 3:40 works out to about 8 minutes, 20 seconds per mile. In training, I've maintained that speed up through my 16-mile workouts, and all of my runs have been under last year's marathon pace of 9:16. I've got a couple of 20-milers under my belt that I ran at about 9 minutes per mile, but with those I also introduced some hills - 1,400-plus feet of elevation gain on the North Loop Trail at Mount Jumbo.

Those hills were part of a run-up to last weekend's Pengelly Double Dip, a fairly grueling half-marathon here from the valley floor up University Mountain and Mount Sentinel, then back down. It's billed as having 2,700 feet of elevation gain, but my GPS reported about that in elevation change from base to summit and nearly 3,300 feet of total gain.

Up until a few weeks ago, I had never really run anything like that. I've done the smaller Mount Jumbo a few times and some short segments of the Double Dip, and have hiked almost the entire course in the past, so am familiar with it.

Fresh back from a recent vacation, I ran the lower part of the course - up through the saddle but omitting the two summits for about 1,800 feet of gain - and felt good, so I decided to enter. Based on that training run, I figured I'd finish the Double Dip in about 2:30, which turned out to be fairly accurate as I came in at 2:34:41.

What I forgot about was how steep the upper part of the course is, particularly on University Mountain. In a couple of places, I don't know that anybody ran - all you could see was a line of single-file walkers. The downhill was much faster, but it was clear that many people fell from all the bloody knees and shins at the finish.

Below, you can see the basic details from my GPS; click through to the player and you can watch my run.

While rather difficult, the Double Dip was fun and rewarded with plenty of beautiful scenery, so I could see myself doing it again.

As for the Missoula Marathon, I've got a couple of weeks of long training runs left - including a 22-miler next week - before tapering off to conserve my energy for July 11. There may even be one more race in the lineup: the Mountain-to-Meadow half-marathon, a beautiful run through the forested mountains near Lolo Pass on the Montana-Idaho border.

Rain, and more rain

2010-06-04T08:00:00.000-06:00

Last week, we spent most of our vacation in Olympic National Park in Washington, one of the wettest places in the continental United States - ideal for a spring vacation.

We went into the trip knowing we would probably see a lot of rain, and we were right. Our tent got soaked twice, and we were forced to bail out on camping and seek shelter in a cabin and with relatives. While camping was a bust, we still got out on foot in the Hoh Rain Forest, Sol Duc Valley and on the Pacific Coast. We did see some sun during our day at the beach, but a trip up Hurricane Ridge was pretty much a bust due to clouds.

See pictures from the entire trip here.

Hoh Rain Forest

This classic Olympic hike tracks through temperate rain forest along the Hoh River. On the way, see dense, mossy forest and wildflowers. We hiked a short section after setting up camp the evening we arrived. We cooked and ate under a tarp rigged to the side of our car, and awoke to a soaked tent.

Distance: 17.5 miles one way to Glacier Meadows. (We hiked about 3 miles round trip.)

Trailhead: The trail begins at the Hoh Rain Forest Visitor Center, 13 miles south of Forks, Wash., on U.S. Highway 101, then 16 miles east on Upper Hoh Road.

Sol Duc Valley

Our second and third nights in the park were spent in the Sol Duc Valley, first drying out in a cabin at Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort, then getting wet again in the campground. In between, we hiked the Lover's Lane Trail from the resort to Sol Duc Falls and back. More lush forest, cascading creeks and waterfalls.

Distance: 6 miles round trip.

Trailhead: The Lover's Lane Trail begins in the resort parking lot, 28 miles west of Port Angeles, Wash., on Highway 101 and 12 miles southeast on Sol Duc Hot Springs Road.

Rialto Beach

The first stop during our day at the coast was Rialto Beach, where we hiked north to sea stacks, Hole-in-the-Rock and beyond. Saw a lot of interesting polished rocks and driftwood, as well as a couple of small crabs.

Distance: 4 miles round trip.

Trailhead: From Forks, travel 1 1/2 miles north on Highway 101, then turn west on Highway 110 and follow it about 7 3/4 miles to Mora Road. Take Mora about five miles to the Rialto Beach trailhead.

Third Beach and Taylor Point

With decent weather - hardly a drop of rain - and plenty of time, we opted for a second hike on our day at the coast. The trail begins in the forest before dropping to sandy Third Beach. A short distance down the beach, a second, muddy trail climbs up and over Taylor Point, dropping you at a bay filled with sea stacks.

Distance: 6 miles round trip.

Trailhead: From Forks, travel 1 1/2 miles north on Highway 101, then turn west on Highway 110 and follow it 12 miles to the trailhead, just before La Push.

Marymere Falls

We started the day by driving through heavy rain and fog to Cape Flattery, Wash. - the farthest northwest one can travel in the Lower 48 - and not walking to see the lighthouse there. When we returned to Lake Crescent, it was only sprinkling, so we took a short hike through the forest to Marymere Falls.

Distance: 1.8 miles round trip.

Trailhead: The trail begins at the Storm King Ranger Station, about 19 miles west of Port Angeles on Highway 101.

Gorge green

2010-06-01T08:00:00.002-06:00

Last week, we started off our annual spring vacation with a walk through the lush Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area east of Portland, Ore.

On the recommendation of Backpacker magazine, we linked segments of the Herman Creek, Pacific Crest and Dry Creek trails for a hike in the Mount Hood National Forest and Mark O. Hatfield Wilderness. There were plenty of green leaves, running creeks, wildflowers and a waterfall.

From the Herman Creek Campground, the trail switchbacks uphill, then down to a bridge over the creek at about 1 1/4 miles. A little more than half a mile farther, join the Pacific Crest Trail. Along the PCT, you'll pass smaller creeks, basalt pinnacles and rocky slopes. At about four miles, cross Dry Creek on a bridge, then its a short two-tenths of a mile up a dirt road to a 50-foot waterfall.

Check out the pictures here.

Distance: 8.7 miles round trip.

Trailhead: From Portland, take Interstate 84 about 41 miles east to Cascade Locks. Follow U.S. Highway 30 through Cascade Locks for 1.9 miles, then continue on the frontage road for 1.5 miles to the Herman Creek Campground.

Alpine outing

2010-05-02T21:00:00.001-06:00

A family gathering last weekend brought us to the Wenatchee, Wash., area, a place I haven't been to in years, and I was reminded there are mountains out there beyond the scablands.

Just northwest of Wenatchee is Leavenworth, which I remember as the Bavarian-style tourist town that it still appears to be. But since I last visited as a child, it has perhaps become better known as an outdoor recreation destination.

West of town are the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest and Alpine Lakes Wilderness. On a free morning, we took a drive along Icicle Creek and went on a short hike up the Fourth of July Trail to stretch our legs.

From the parking area, the trail switchbacks up the east side of the canyon. The wildflowers are plentiful this time of year, and once above the trees there are views of the still-snowy peaks, beckoning for another visit.

See a few more pictures here.

Distance: The Fourth of July Trail runs 5.3 miles one way before connecting with the Icicle Ridge Trail on the edge of the wilderness. We hiked only a couple of miles up and back.

Trailhead: 9.4 miles south and west of Leavenworth on Icicle Road.

Missoula Marathon time

2010-04-29T01:04:00.006-06:00

It's that time again - I've got my Missoula Marathon training plan in hand, and 8:20 is the magic number.

Last year, the goal was simply to finish my first marathon. After training all spring and starting the race with the 3-hour, 40-minute group, a sore IT band on the course resulted in a 4:01 finish.

This year, it's about the time - that 3:40, to be specific. A pace of 8 minutes, 20 seconds per mile should bring me in just under.

Last year's training program was about building mileage, steadily increasing my long run each week until I topped out at 20 miles before the race.

This year's plan - put together by the same trainer friend as last year - is similar, with a few changes:

The mileage buildup continues, but instead of running just one 20-miler before the marathon, I'll complete two, plus a 22.
There's also a focus on pace. Those long runs are about distance, so will be slower. One day a week will be a tempo run focusing on building up miles at the 8:20 pace.
The weekly mileage also goes up. Last year, the most I ran was 38 miles in a week, once. This year: 49 miles, three times.

Overall, the plan requires that I slow down from the pace I've been running 13-milers at for the past three months. Surprisingly, it's more difficult than it sounds - but so far, so good.

Check back for more on my progress.

Wildflower walkin'

2010-03-15T09:00:00.001-06:00

Spring is nearly here - officially, that is - which means the blog I write at work is back in season. Stop by WildflowerWalks.com for updates on the bloom and more advice on hiking western Montana. To start things off, take a stroll in search of Rocky Mountain douglasia.

On the run again

2010-03-06T19:50:00.003-07:00

After a long interruption last fall, I'm finally back to running on a regular basis.

I never really stopped after completing my first marathon last year, but travel set back my routine several times. Since the holidays, however, I've worked up to running 30 to 35 miles a week again.

Last weekend, I ran my first race of the year, the Snow Joke Half Marathon in Seeley Lake. I finished in 1 hour, 41 minutes and 47 seconds - 78th out of 196 in the "bushman" division (men ages 16 to 39) and about four minutes faster than my previous best at that distance. Not too bad for a race with a record 660-plus runners.

I'm looking forward to another season of races leading up to the Missoula Marathon, which was recently named the best overall marathon by Runner's World magazine readers.

See you on the road and trail!

Snowy Yellowstone

2010-02-07T15:45:00.001-07:00

A recent three-day weekend gave us the opportunity to explore Yellowstone National Park more than ever before.

For some reason, we've never really spent any time in Yellowstone. Previously, we drove through a couple of times and took in the roadside sights, but the park wasn't our destination. And we spent a long winter weekend there several years ago, but without the right gear and the cooperation of the weather we didn't get out very far.

This time, though, we packed both snowshoes and cross-country skis, and even saw some sunshine.

Yellowstone's north entrance at Gardiner is just a four-hour drive from Missoula, and we managed to find a cheap hotel room a few blocks from Roosevelt Arch on short notice. From Gardiner, you can drive up to Mammoth, Wyo., and out the park's north road, the only one open to automobiles in winter.

Marked ski and snowshoe trails can be found around Mammoth and Tower Junction, and in the northeast corner of the park. Maps are available at the ski shop in Mammoth and here.

Our first day in the park, we went on a sunny ski up the Blacktail Plateau, then drove out the north road to watch wildlife in the Lamar Valley as the light faded.

On Day 2, our only full day in the park, we took a snowcoach shuttle from Mammoth south to Indian Creek and returned on skis, the morning snow giving way to another afternoon of sun. After getting back to Mammoth, we took a short walk through the travertine terraces.

The third day, we returned to the Lamar Valley for the morning, where we took in the sights and sounds of the park's wolves before driving home.

Check out photos here, as well as this video (headphones help for hearing the wolves near the end):

Blacktail Plateau

From its west end, the Blacktail Plateau Trail climbs a groomed road for six miles, then drops two miles to its eastern terminus, providing sweeping, snowy views along the way. We set out the afternoon we arrived and skied close to half of it under blue sky and sun. At one point, we found several canine tracks along the trail - they appeared to be too big to be coyotes and pets aren't allowed, so we guessed they were wolves.

Distance: Full trail is 8 miles one way; we skied about 6 1/2 miles round trip.

Trailhead: West-end trailheads are eight and nine miles east of Mammoth; east-end trailhead is just under 1 1/2 miles west of Tower Junction.

Sheepeater-Bunsen Peak

This was the highlight of the trip - for $15 plus tax, we took the snowcoach shuttle from the hotel in Mammoth south to Indian Creek and skied back to town. We were the only passengers in the snowcoach and wouldn't see any other skiers the entire day.

From Indian Creek, we went a short distance along the road and connected with the ungroomed Sheepeater Trail across Swan Lake Flats. Along the way, the snow stopped falling and the sky cleared some, and at one point we paused for a small herd of bison to move off the trail. We then connected with the groomed Bunsen Peak Trail and dropped steeply down a canyon to Mammoth, taking in views of frozen Osprey Falls and the mountains around town. A short walk down the road from the trail's end brought us back to our car at the hotel.

Distance: About 7 3/4 miles one way.

Trailhead: From the hotel in Mammoth, take the snowcoach shuttle about 8 1/2 miles south on the snow vehicle road to Indian Creek.

Skiing in the new year

2010-01-08T11:30:00.003-07:00

It's been pretty brown in town this winter - the leaves never fully fell, and it seems like there's been more deep freeze than snowfall. Cross-country ski season began last weekend, however, with our annual New Year's outing.

Originally, I wanted to go to the new Como Trails Cross Country Ski Area south of Hamilton, where dogs are allowed. After reading on the Missoula Nordic Ski Club site about having to hike up to snow, though, we settled on a trip up Lolo Pass without the pups.

The day started out with a handful of vehicles in the parking area and the trails shrouded in fog, but after 6 3/4 miles of skiing the sun was out and the lot was packed.

See some photos here.

Distance: Trails from 1.2 to 14 miles are available; some are shared with snowmobiles. We did a 6 3/4-mile loop that incorporated parts of the Glade Creek and Packer Meadows trails.

Trailhead: From Missoula, drive 9 miles south on U.S. Highway 93 to Lolo, then 32 miles west on U.S. Highway 12 to the Lolo Pass Visitor Center, just over the border in Idaho. (Parking costs $5.)

A country and a continent

2009-12-21T14:30:00.003-07:00

View Australia in a larger map

Here's one more look at our trip to Australia last month - through a map. Click the markers for blog entries and photos; if you've been following along, you won't find anything new but will be able to pinpoint our travels.

As you can see, Australia is a big place - a continent, as I've noted before. In two weeks, we covered just this small corner of the country. From Melbourne, at the center of the map, our route took us in a clockwise loop.

With so much more to see, we'll have to go back.

Back to the city

2009-12-09T09:53:00.006-07:00

After spending the morning at Wilsons Promontory National Park, we made our way back to Melbourne for our last night in Australia. We spent the afternoon taking in a few final sights that we missed when we first arrived.

Queen Victoria Market is a massive covered complex just outside the central business district with numerous food stands and merchants selling trinkets, meats and produce. It would have been great to stock up on some fresh fruits and veggies at the start of our trip, but the market was closed the Monday we were in town.

A week and a half earlier, the Melbourne Cup horse race was the talk of the town. Now, the city was decked out for Christmas. (It was still a couple of weeks before Thanksgiving, but Australia doesn't have that holiday, of course.) The big Meyer department store downtown had it's animatronic window display up, decorations were strung high overhead the Bourke Street Mall, and trees and lights could be seen in many shops.

Before dinner, we also walked through the arcades tucked away just off the public mall. We had visited them previously, but all the shops were closed. This time, we were able to look around the stores.

After dinner, it was back to the hotel to pack up and get some sleep before the flight home.

The next morning, we had to hurry out of downtown as a Christmas parade would draw crowds and close streets. Once at the airport, it was only 25 hours to Missoula.

Find photos here.

Going south

2009-12-09T09:50:00.002-07:00

From the mountains, we drove downhill to Wilsons Promontory National Park - or "The Prom" - the southernmost point on mainland Australia.

Unfortunately, in planning our trip this stop was mostly an afterthought; we allotted only one night for our visit because we were trying to break up the drive from Alpine National Park to Melbourne before our departure. In hindsight, it would have been better to spend a full day at The Prom and cut our time in the high country by a day. We'll just have to come back.

Here, the rainforest meets the ocean and the trails are numerous, but we only managed a few short walks.

The afternoon we arrived, we set out from the visitor center at Tidal River, hiking around Norman Point to the white-sand beach at Little Oberon Bay. On the way back to our car, we paused on the trail to watch a stand-up paddler surf the waves of Norman Bay with a sweeping backdrop of ocean and islands.

On the way to our cottage outside the park for the night, we took one more quick walk, along the Lilly Pilly Gully track. Orchids were still blooming but past their peak along part of the trail burned by bushfire. And the flowering stalks of grass trees were a unique sight.

With the sun sinking and our stomachs empty, we turned around short. The next morning, we came back to complete the walk through the rainforest, and before leaving we also strolled out to an empty Darby Beach.

From here, it was an easy drive back to Melbourne for one final night in the city.

Pictures from The Prom are here and here.

Norman Point and Little Oberon Bay

This trail wanders through the tea trees to the beach at Norman Bay, then up and around Norman Point, and back down to Little Oberon Bay. About halfway through, a short path detours down to the rocky cliffs on the point. There are plenty of views of surfers and islands.

Distance: 8.2 kilometers round trip.

Trailhead: Start at the visitor center in Tidal River, 29 kilometers south of the park entrance.

Lilly Pilly Gully Nature Walk

Walk through a bushfire area to a short boardwalk loop in the rainforest. The orchids and grass trees are beautiful.

Distance: 5.2 kilometers round trip.

Trailhead: The Lilly Pilly Gully carpark is about 26 3/4 kilometers south of the park entrance.

Darby Beach

A short, sandy walk to a beach where the Darby River meets the ocean.

Distance: 2.2 kilometers round trip.

Trailhead: The Darby River parking area is about 18 kilometers south of the park entrance.

Head for the hills

2009-12-07T11:20:00.005-07:00

After a long day of driving east from Halls Gap, we arrived in Bright, our entry point to Alpine National Park.

When you hear "Alpine National Park" or "Australian Alps," your first thoughts are likely of tall, pointy peaks. The mountains here, however, aren't that tall or pointy. The highest is Mount Bogong at 1,986 meters, or about 6,516 feet - slightly taller than Mount Dean Stone on the southeast side of Missoula. And the summits are rounded, like many of the mountains around home. This is, however, a popular area for skiing - in fact, we saw some lingering snow on our walks.

I don't mean to belittle these mountains; they can still be a dangerous place, as evidenced by the rescue of a Victorian minister who fell during a snowy September walk to a peak we visited. The region also has been a bushfire hotspot of late, with big burns in 2003 and 2006.

We spent our only full day in Bright driving to the top of the Great Alpine Road and walking out The Razorback to Mount Feathertop. The hike was pretty simple - a long, grassy ridge - but at 22 kilometers round trip, it was the longest and most uncrowded of our vacation. To cap off the full day out in the sun, we stopped at the Bright Brewery back in town to sip down a cool Razor Witbier.

The next day, we spent the morning walking to a couple of waterfalls in nearby Mount Buffalo National Park and the afternoon driving over the Great Alpine Road to Omeo, on the south side of the mountains.

From Omeo, we drove the Bogong High Plains Road - fully paved only a year earlier - up to Falls Creek for a day. Near here, we went on a couple of hikes, including along a short section of the 650-kilometer Australian Alps Walking Track.

After three days in the high country, we next headed for the coast again and Wilsons Promontory National Park, the southernmost part of mainland Australia.

Find all of our pictures here, here and here.

The Razorback to Mount Feathertop

From just below the top of the Great Alpine Road, this trail follows a grassy ridge 11 kilometers out to the top of Mount Feathertop. The majority of the trees along this route were burned in bushfires, and as a result it was a very sunny and hot walk.

Distance: 22 kilometers round trip.

Trailhead: Follow the Great Alpine Road about 49 3/4 kilometers south and east to the pullout for the Diamantina Hut, 2 1/2 kilometers before reaching Mount Hotham. The trail begins across the road from the hut.

Ladies Bath Falls and Eurobin Falls

A short trail leads to a couple of picturesque waterfalls. The pool below Ladies Bath Falls is clear, cool and inviting, though we didn't take the time to dip our feet.

Distance: 1.5 kilometers round trip.

Trailhead: From Bright, take the Great Alpine Road 6 1/3 kilometers northwest to Porepunkah, then Mount Buffalo Road 6 kilometers to the Mount Buffalo National Park entrance. Continue about 2 2/3 kilometers to the pullout.

Rollasons Falls

This trail drops down to an upper and lower falls on Buffalo Creek. View the lower falls from the pool below and the upper falls from the drop-off above.

Distance: 2 kilometers round trip.

Trailhead: From Bright, take the Great Alpine Road 6 1/3 kilometers northwest to Porepunkah, then Mount Buffalo Road 6 kilometers to the Mount Buffalo National Park entrance. Continue about 8 3/4 kilometers to the pullout.

Mount Cope

This trail leads up from the grassy plains, through trees to a rocky lookout.

Distance: 3 kilometers round trip.

Trailhead: From Omeo, drive 38 3/4 kilometers northwest on the Omeo Highway. Turn west on the Bogong High Plains Road and follow it about 22 kilometers to the pullout. The path begins across the road.

Australian Alps Walking Track

The AAWT is a 650-kilometer route across the mountains from Walhalla in Victoria to Tharwa, near Canberra in the Australian Capital Territory. We walked a short section of it from the Bogong High Plains Road to the Cope Saddle Hut and back. Numbered posts every 40 meters make it easy to follow the trail and calculate your distance.

Distance: 6.7 kilometers round trip.

Trailhead: From Omeo, drive 38 3/4 kilometers northwest on the Omeo Highway. Turn west on the Bogong High Plains Road and follow it about 24 kilometers to the pullout. Our route began across the road.

Road rules

2009-12-06T21:09:00.003-07:00

The most frequent question we've received since our return from Australia has been some variation of, "Is it difficult driving on the left side of the road?"

The answer: Not really. Australia was, in fact, the second time in the past few years we've had to drive on the left side; we rented a car in Scotland a couple of years ago, too.

Sure, you frequently have to remind yourself that you need to be in the left lane when pulling out of a driveway first thing in the morning - and you may occasionally catch yourself trying to get into the right lane. And yes, the gas and brake pedals are backward.

But once you get going, it's not really that difficult. No matter which side of the road you're on, the driver is always in the middle.

The hardest part, for us at least, was signaling turns. The turn signal and windshield wiper levers are also reversed, and for some reason that tripped us up the most. It also was the hardest thing to readjust to when we returned home and started driving our own car.

The best piece of advice I received about driving on the left side was to rent an automatic. Cars with sticks can be cheaper, but with an automatic it's one less thing to worry about.

Fortunately, because we parked the car in Melbourne and walked or took the tram, we never encountered what appeared would be the biggest obstacle to driving in Australia: the "hook turn" in Melbourne. I won't even try to describe it, so here's a description.

Rocks and 'roos

2009-11-30T11:30:00.004-07:00

The next leg of our journey through Australia brought us inland to Halls Gap and Grampians National Park, known for its rugged bushwalking, waterfalls and wildflowers. Then there are the kangaroos.

We selected D'Altons Resort as our accommodation in Halls Gap based on the recommendation of Lonely Planet's guide to Australia and the price. Plus, the guidebook mentioned kangaroos and the resort's Web site featured pictures of the animals - both turned out to be accurate.

The evening we arrived, we spotted the first kangaroos of our trip, just off our cottage's front porch on the lawn. The next morning, while sipping coffee and looking out the front window, a line of eight bounced up from our driveway, across the grass and into the trees. Like clockwork, they would return every morning and evening.

(Really, you're likely to see kangaroos anywhere you stay in Halls Gap. And cockatoos. They're everywhere.)

That first morning, we had planned a good day of hiking but decided to try our luck with wildlife on a quick walk near the park's visitor center. Sure enough, we saw kangaroos here and there munching grass in the morning sun, as well as a few red deer. We also encountered something we hadn't expected: cold.

In our first few days in the country - the first few days of the month - the TV news had already said it was the warmest November on record since 1925. And it was quite a change from the early cold spell back in Missoula. We thought we'd never need them, but it was a good thing we packed warm coats and gloves - that walk was a chilly one. It quickly warmed up, though, and we hit the trail on the first real hike of our holiday.

A few hundred meters up the road from our cottage, we set out on the Wonderland Loop. The track follows a creek behind town, then climbs up through rocky mountains before topping out at The Pinnacle, an outcrop above Halls Gap. From there, it descends the face of the mountains back into town. Along the way, we saw plenty of wildflowers remaining from the spring bloom - the result of bushfires throughout the area in 2006. (While there were still plenty of blackened trees, the park appears to be recovering well, with plenty of green growth.)

We spent the next day driving around the Grampians and taking shorter strolls to see waterfalls and scenic overlooks. These included The Balconies, MacKenzie Falls, Lake Wartook, Silverband Falls and Mount William.

After dinner at the cottage that evening, we decided to check out the trail near the park visitor center again to snap a few more wildlife pictures. We hit the jackpot - a field filled with kangaroos big and small, eating and bouncing around. There were probably a couple of hundred or so, and we lingered for a while to watch.

The next morning, we departed early - we had a full day's drive east ahead of us, to Victoria state's high country and Alpine National Park.

See all of our pictures here and here.

Fyans Creek Loop

This short loop walk travels through the bush north along the west side of Fyans Creek, crosses a bridge, then travels south to a field, crosses another bridge and returns to the start. See kangaroos and red deer in the morning and evening.

Distance: 2.5-kilometer loop.

Trailhead: The walk begins and ends at Brambuk - The National Park and Cultural Center, off Grampians Tourist Road on the southern edge of Halls Gap.

Wonderland Loop

This trail was the highlight of our time in the Grampians. From the parking area, it follows Stony Creek behind town and past the Venus Baths - where the water flows though a series of pools and over smooth rocks - then climbs to Splitters Falls and the Wonderland parking area. Here, it ascends through the narrow-walled Grand Canyon, a great place to find some shade, and past Bridal Veil Falls and Silent Street to The Pinnacle, a lookout above Halls Gap. The trail then descends through the forest on the face of the mountains and back to town. (The only downside to this walk is there are many metal railings and steps that look out of place.)

Distance: 9.6-kilometer loop.

Trailhead: The trail begins and ends in the parking area across Grampians Tourist Road from the shops in Halls Gap.

The Balconies

This easy walk travels out a rock outcrop with views north to Lake Wartook, then through the forest to a pair of ledges known as The Balconies.

Distance: 2 kilometers round trip.

Trailhead: From Halls Gap, follow Mount Victory Road 12 1/4 kilometers northwest and turn south on the access road. Drive two-thirds of a kilometer to the parking area.

MacKenzie Falls

A path leads to overlooks and the base of MacKenzie Falls, a large cascade that, I gather, looks much more impressive when there's more water. (At one time a trail continued to the Zumstein picnic area, but the route was closed after bushfires.)

Distance: 2 kilometers round trip.

Trailhead: From Halls Gap, follow Mount Victory Road 17 1/4 kilometers northwest and turn north on the access road. Turn west at the T intersection and drive a short distance to the parking area.

Silverband Falls

This trail travels through a fern forest to Silverband Falls, which cascades down a wall then disappears underground. We had good luck spotting cockatoos here, as well.

Distance: 1.4 kilometers round trip.

Trailhead: From Halls Gap, follow Mount Victory Road about 5 kilometers west and turn south on Silverband Road. Follow the road about 7 kilometers to the parking area.

Mount William

From the parking area, follow the closed road up to the top of 1,167-meter Mount William, the highest point in the Grampians. A lot of wildflowers were in bloom along the road when we visited, and the top provides expansive views west into the park and east out of the park.

Distance: 3.8 kilometers round trip.

Trailhead: From Halls Gap, follow Grampians Tourist Road about 12 1/4 kilometers south, then turn east on Mount William Road and drive about 9 1/2 kilometers east to the parking area.

To the beach

2009-11-27T11:40:00.000-07:00

After a day in Melbourne, we set out west for the Great Ocean Road and Port Campbell. As you can tell from the pictures, it was a little cloudy with a few spots of sun. It was cool and rained a few times, but not really that bad.

The first stop on our journey was Split Point Lighthouse and Eagle Rock Marine Sanctuary at Aireys Inlet, where we stretched our legs with a short stroll down to the beach.

After that it was on to Lorne, where we took in views of the Great Ocean Road from Teddy's Lookout and went on a quick walk to Erskine Falls in Great Otway National Park.

From Lorne, we followed the winding coastal route through Apollo Bay to Kennett River, where we got our first glimpse of Australian wildlife. On a recommendation, we walked a short distance up Grey River Road, spotting koalas napping in the branches of gum trees.

We continued on, driving up through the tree-covered hillsides and back down to the coast before reaching Port Campbell, our base for the next couple of days. Here, we would take in Port Campbell National Park, the site of numerous scenic sea stacks up to 70 meters tall.

On the way to our next destination, we stopped at Bay of Islands Coastal Park to see more sea stacks and arches, and at Tower Hill State Game Reserve, just off the Great Ocean Road near Warrnambool, where we walked around an old volcanic crater and saw numerous emus.

The next leg of our journey would take us inland to Halls Gap and Grampians National Park, where the weather would heat up and the kangaroos would abound.

See pictures here and here.

Erskine Falls

Follow the fern-lined trail and steps down to the base of Erskine Falls, one of many waterfalls near Lorne.

Distance: 700 meters round trip. (There's also a 15-kilometer round trip trail from Lorne to Erskine Falls.)

Trailhead: From Lorne, follow William Street and Erskine Falls Road about 8 1/2 kilometers out of town. Turn right and follow the access road about 1 1/2 kilometers downhill to the trailhead.

Twelve Apostles

A path leads under the highway and out a boardwalk to overlooks of the Twelve Apostles, limestone sea stacks off the coast at Port Campbell National Park.

Distance: 1 kilometer round trip.

Trailhead: Follow the Great Ocean Road 10 3/4 kilometers east of Port Campbell to the Twelve Apostles Visitor Centre.

Loch Ard Gorge

More sea stacks, as well as access to the beach below the cliffs, the Blowhole, Thunder Cave and Broken Head.

Distance: Three trails range from 900 meters to 3 1/4 kilometers round trip.

Trailhead: Follow the Great Ocean Road 7 1/4 kilometers east of Port Campbell to the parking area.

Gibson Steps

Steps were carved down the limestone cliffs to the beach in the 19th century. They're concrete now.

Distance: Unknown; negligible.

Trailhead: Follow the Great Ocean Road 11 3/4 kilometers east of Port Campbell to the parking area.

The Arch

The Arch is pretty self-explanatory - an arch from the cliffs to the sea.

Distance: 280 meters round trip.

Trailhead: The Arch is 6 kilometers west of Port Campbell on the Great Ocean Road.

London Bridge

London Bridge used to be a double arch, but one side collapsed.

Distance: 200 meters round trip.

Trailhead: London Bridge is 7 kilometers west of Port Campbell on the Great Ocean Road.

The Grotto

The Grotto is another arch, up off the ocean.

Distance: 680 meters round trip.

Trailhead: The Grotto is 8 2/3 kilometers west of Port Campbell on the Great Ocean Road.

Bay of Islands

Bay of Islands has numerous sea stacks and arches.

Distance: 1.8 kilometers round trip.

Trailhead: Bay of Islands is 17 3/4 kilometers west of Port Campbell on the Great Ocean Road.

Tower Hill Reserve

Tower Hill is a volcanic formation believed to have last erupted 32,000 years ago. Today, there are a handful of trails through and around old craters. We walked up and around a crater and saw several emus.

Distance: Unknown; probably a few kilometers.

Trailhead: From Warrnambool, follow the Princes Highway 12 kilometers west then turn north on the entrance road and take it 1 1/2 kilometers to the Worn Gundidj Visitor Centre.

Melbourne bound

2009-11-20T10:58:00.007-07:00

Our starting and ending point for our trip to Australia was the metropolis of Melbourne, which sits on the country's southern coast where the Yarra River lets out into Port Phillip Bay. The city itself has a population of just 90,000; including its 11 suburbs, that figure jumps to 3.9 million. Settled by Europeans in 1835, it is the capitol of Victoria state and Australia's second-largest city.

Why Melbourne? We bought our plane tickets during a fare sale on flights to Sydney and Melbourne. While Sydney has its famous opera house and bridge, we're not really city folk, as you can probably tell from this blog. On the recommendation of an extended family member from the area, we chose Melbourne for its access to national parks and bushwalking in the region.

After 31 hours of travel from Missoula - including a nine-hour layover in Denver - we arrived in Australia just after 10 a.m. Crossing the International Date Line jumped us ahead a day, but it went pretty smoothly, as I slept through most of the nearly 15-hour leg from Los Angeles to Sydney. (Australian airports are a little odd, though. It's almost as if you're funneled through a department store of duty-free items between your gate and customs.)

After touching down, we located our rental car - apparently Alamo isn't Alamo at the Melbourne airport; it's Europcar - and made our way to our hotel downtown. Once we were checked in and cleaned up, our adventure began.

We spent our first afternoon getting oriented. Leaving the car behind, we bought tram tickets and a map. Downtown is a decent size but still very walkable, and the tram system makes it even more so. We made our way into the center of town, checking out City Square, Federation Square and the Yarra riverbank; looking in a few stores; and reading a few menus along the way. After some dinner at a local watering hole, we called it a night.

Melbourne has a heavy British influence - especially in some of the older buildings - as well as an Asian and Middle Eastern presence due to Australia's location on the globe. But I was surprised at how American it was downtown, mostly when it came to the retailers. McDonald's, Hungry Jacks (Burger King), Subway, Target. Granted, you probably won't find a foot-long chicken tikka sandwich in the United States.

Architecturally, the city has an old-meets-new feel: the spires of St. Paul's Cathedral across the street from the jaunty, metallic buildings on the edge of Federation Square; the Flinders Street Station dome vs. the modern, wavy roof of Southern Cross Station.

And Melbourne is a busy place, the trams and sidewalks packed with people during the workday. It doesn't let up after quitting time; people crowd the city's many cafes, restaurants and pubs, spilling out into sidewalk seating.

The next day, we set out early, starting with breakfast at a cafe around the corner from the hotel. Next, we hopped the tram up to the top of downtown and the Parliament House of Victoria. From there, we walked back down to the center of the city through Chinatown. We passed ornate archways at the start of each block, as well as a lot of food pictures and even some Peking ducks hanging in restaurant windows.

As we walked back toward Federation Square, we noticed people putting up barriers along one of the main streets. A worker told us a parade would be held in a couple of hours for the Melbourne Cup horse race, so we decided to return later. In the meantime, we took a relatively quiet stroll through the Royal Botanic Gardens on the other side of the Yarra, checking out the flowers.

Back downtown, the crowd near Flinders Street Station had swelled with people from nearby office buildings as well as anti-horse-jumping protesters. The parade took place uninterrupted and featured past champion horses, current jockeys and other celebrities - think Olivia Newton John. As soon as the festivities were over, people clogged the streets on their way back to work.

After lunch, we wandered a bit more, then took the free tram that loops downtown, traveling out to the to the high-rises of the formerly industrial Docklands and back up to Parliament. Next, we found our way to St. Paul's Cathedral for a look inside at its stained-glass windows and alternating rows of light and dark stonework.

After a quick trip back to the hotel to clean up, we grabbed some dinner at the James Squire brewery in the Portland Hotel, then picked up some groceries and turned in early for the night. The next day, we would set out on the Great Ocean Road west of Melbourne.

Find more pictures from Melbourne here and here.

Up from Down Under

2009-11-15T23:00:00.022-07:00

We're fresh back from two weeks in Australia, and in the interest of getting something posted fairly quickly I'm starting with some numerical odds and ends from our visit.

18,912: miles flown round trip from Missoula to Melbourne, with layovers in Denver, Los Angeles and Sydney. The longest leg was about 15 hours from L.A. to Sydney.

Oct. 31: Halloween, the day we didn't really see because of crossing the International Date Line. (We did get to carve pumpkins with our niece and nephew in the Denver area during a long layover on Oct. 30.)

Nov. 14: the day that seemed double, again due to crossing the International Date Line.

17: number of hours Melbourne is ahead of Missoula.

92: value of the American dollar in Australian cents at the time of our trip. We came out ahead even with foreign exchange and ATM fees.

One: the number of Australian states we visited - Victoria. Hey, it's a big country. A continent, in fact.

Six: the number of cities and towns we stayed in - Melbourne, Port Campbell, Halls Gap, Bright, Omeo and Yanakie.

2,702: kilometers driven in our rental car. That's about 1,679 miles.

1.20: rough estimate of the average price we paid per liter of gas in Australian dollars. Equals about $4.18 per gallon in U.S. dollars. It cost more than $45 Australian to fill up.

6.80: price for a full-day tram ticket for Melbourne's central business district in Australian dollars. Downtown is extremely walkable, made even more so by the trams.

60, 80, 100 and 110: the most common speed limits we encountered, in kilometers per hour (about 37, 50, 62 and 68 in miles per hour). Sixty was normal in urban areas (occasionally it was 40 or 50 kph), 80 entering and leaving urban areas, 100 on most highways, and 110 on freeways.

Six: also the number of national parks we visited - Great Otway, Port Campbell, Grampians, Alpine, Mount Buffalo and Wilsons Promontory.

85: low estimate of the kilometers we walked in the bush; couldn't find distances for a few walks. That's almost 53 miles. Our longest outing was the 22K (13.7-mile) round trip out The Razorback to Mount Feathertop and back.

Four: number of mountains we walked up - The Pinnacle, Mount William, Feathertop and Mount Cope.

26 and 12: average high and low temperatures for our time in Victoria in Celsius (about 79 and 53 in Fahrenheit). By comparison, the high and low temperatures the day we returned to Missoula were 36 and 22 Fahrenheit (about 2 and minus 6 in Celsius).

30 and 70: SPF of sunscreens we wore. Still got probably the best tan of my life.

One: also the number of bushfires burning in areas we visited. Saw smoke from The Razorback.

Five: the number of koalas we saw. Also saw a handful of emus, wallabies, kookaburras and rosellas, and too many kangaroos and cockatoos to count.

Two: the number of AC/DC references we saw in Melbourne - ACDC Lane and a poster of Angus Young advertising an art exhibit we never found.

Six: also the number of microbreweries we visited - James Squire in Melbourne, Flying Horse in Warrnambool, Halls Gap Brewery in Halls Gap, Tooborac Hotel and Brewery in Tooborac, Bright Brewery in Bright and Grand Ridge in Mirboo North. (Victoria is home to 35 of Australia's 120 microbreweries, according to "The Beer Lover's Guide to Victoria's Microbreweries.") Bright's Razor Witbier hit the spot after walking The Razorback out to Mount Feathertop. Six is also the number of bottles of craft beer that made it home to Missoula in our checked bags without breaking.

One: also the number of distilleries visited - Timboon Railway Shed in Timboon. Tasted five liqueurs. The Nocino green walnut-based liqueur is delicious.

One: also the number of wineries we visited - Heytesbury Ridge outside of Timboon. Tasted four wines.

One: also the number of cheesemakers we visited - Apostle Whey in Cooriemungle. Tasted 14 cheeses.

Zero: meat pies or pasties eaten. Sorry, vegetarians here. The vegetable roll at the High Plains Bakery in Omeo was great, though.

Of course, there was much more to our holiday than this, and more posts will be coming.

Prairie plunge

2009-10-12T19:32:00.011-06:00

More travel, more celebration and more sights to see. Our stop at Palouse Falls State Park was more of a quick detour on the way home from the Tri-Cities in Washington, where we spent the weekend marking my grandmother's 90th birthday.

About 35 miles off the highway between Richland and Ritzville, the Palouse River gouges a canyon through the surrounding prairie and drops about 180 feet into a basalt bowl. Listen carefully, and you can hear the low rumble of the tumbling water before you see the falls.

A few pictures are here.

Distance: Several short paths are beaten along the canyon rim.

Trailhead: From Connell, Wash., drive 24 miles east on Highway 260. Turn southeast on Highway 261 and drive 8 3/4 miles to Palouse Falls Road. Turn northeast and follow the gravel road two miles to the state park parking lot.

Mapping our adventures

2009-10-04T11:32:00.005-06:00

I recently updated the map of our trips - it now shows most everywhere we've been this year. It's always kind of interesting to see our travels from this perspective. Check back for more adventures!

Sunset on summer

2009-10-02T11:01:00.016-06:00

Last weekend, we got what will likely be our final glimpse of summer for the year while in Tucson, Ariz., for a wedding. There was plenty of sun, and temperatures in the city in the Sonoran Desert reached the high 90s and low 100s.

While we spent a good deal of time seeking the solace of air conditioning, we did manage to get out.

Our first excursion took us up into the Santa Catalina Range via the scenic Catalina Highway. The drive ascends 6,100 feet in 27 miles to the village of Summerhaven and Mount Lemmon, where the temperature was considerably cooler. Here, we took a hike through a fern, ponderosa pine and aspen forest in the Pusch Ridge Wilderness.

Later the same day, we took a short drive and walk through the Cactus Forest of Saguaro National Park's Rincon Mountain District. We timed our visit to see the sun sink in the sky to the west, pictured above, and the moon rise in the east.

The next morning, as we drove to the airport, we stopped in Saguaro's Tucson Mountain District to view some petroglyphs.

The trip was quick and there's more to see, so we'll be returning - albeit when it's cooler. And congrats to the newlyweds!

Marshall Gulch-Aspen Trail, Santa Catalina Range

The trail begins by following Marshall Gulch west through a ponderosa pine forest, parts of which were burned in a 2003 wildfire. At about 1 1/4 miles, the route connects with the Aspen Trail, turning southeast. Just uphill from the junction are views of the Wilderness of Rocks and Tucson. The trail turns east, then north, traveling 2 1/2 miles though through more burn areas, a forest carpeted with ferns and aspen stands before returning to the trailhead.

See photos here.

Distance: 3.7-mile loop.

Trailhead: Drive 26 miles north and west up the Catalina Highway from northeast Tucson to Summerhaven. Follow the road one mile through the village to the Marshall Gulch Picnic Area. The Marshall Gulch trail begins next to the restroom.

Cactus Forest Scenic Loop Drive, Saguaro National Park

On the east edge of Tucson, the Cactus Forest Loop makes for a quick escape. Several trails are located along the paved road, including a fairly level 2.5-mile path that bisects the loop north to south. We arrived with enough time to hike out this trail a short distance and back before staking out a place along to road to watch the sun go down.

See photos here.

Distance: 8-mile loop drive, 5-mile round-trip hike. (We only hiked a short portion of this trail.)

Trailhead: On the east side of Tucson, follow the signs from Old Spanish Trail to the entrance of Saguaro's Rincon Mountain District. The Cactus Forest Scenic Loop Drive begins just past the visitor center. Cactus Forest trailheads are located on the north and south sides of the loop, roughly one-quarter and three-quarters of the way through the drive.

Mount St. Helens or bust

2009-09-10T10:33:00.015-06:00

Seven months ago, Jen and I bought permits to hike up Mount St. Helens in southern Washington on Labor Day. Little did we know it would be raining all weekend. Fortunately, there were still permits available for the next day and the forecast was for clear skies.

After spending the long weekend waiting out the weather with relatives in Portland, Ore., we rose early on the morning of our hike and drove to Cougar, Wash., to pick up our permits and sign the register at the Lone Fir Resort. From there it was a quick drive to the trailhead at Climbers Bivouac.

The route up Mount St. Helens is fairly steep, ascending about 4,500 feet in five miles. The first two miles are on a shady trail that rises about 1,000 feet through the forest to timberline. Once out of the woods, the real work begins as the hike climbs 3,500 feet over three miles to the crater rim. The trail fades and becomes rough as you scramble Monitor Ridge's boulder fields, following wooden posts about two miles and 2,200 feet up. The final mile and 1,300 feet of elevation gain are through loose pumice, ash and, in our case, snow from the previous days' storms. The powder wasn't much of a problem - there was only a few inches and earlier hikers had pretty much cleared a path to the crater rim.

From the rim, you look about 2,000 feet down on the steaming lava dome. To the north are Spirit Lake and Mount Rainier. The peaks of North Cascades National Park stand to the northeast, Mount Adams to the east and Mount Hood to the south.

After spending about 45 minutes at the top snapping pictures and eating lunch, we made our way down. The descent went much quicker, as it was easier to navigate the boulders by looking down from above. After returning to Cougar to sign out, we sped back to Portland, arriving in time for dinner.

Permits are required year-round for hiking above 4,800 feet on Mount St. Helens; only 100 are issued each day from May 15 to Oct. 31. The Mount St. Helens Institute has more information, including the fee structure. Check permit availability here.

See pictures from our trip here and here.

Distance: About 10 miles round trip.

Trailhead: Climbers Bivouac is about 14 miles northeast of Cougar, Wash. Drive about 6 1/2 miles east of Cougar on Highway 503 and Forest Road 90. Turn northwest on Forest Road 83 and follow it about three miles to Forest Road 81. Turn northwest on FR81 and drive two miles. Turn northeast on Forest Road 830 and continue 2 1/2 miles to the trailhead. All but the final 2 1/2 miles are paved.

Glacier in the rain

2009-08-09T08:53:00.020-06:00

We recently returned from our annual summer trip to Glacier National Park, where we managed to get in a few hikes while dodging thunderstorms. It's been a wet summer here in western Montana, but it hasn't discouraged us from getting out much.

The year, we camped at the St. Mary Campground, which gave us a chance to try our new ultralight tent. We went with a three-person model this time thinking it would be a bit more spacious for backpacking trips with the dogs while about the same weight as our old two-person tent. It stayed dry in the rain, and because all of the walls are mesh, it had the best ventilation of any tent I've slept in.

Our first day in the park, we did a quick scramble up Lunch Creek to a wildflower-filled basin below Pollock Mountain before the rain rolled in.

The next morning was wet and gray, so we decided to take a drive up to Waterton Lakes National Park, just over the border in Canada. There, we poked around the town and took a short walk through the woods to a waterfall. That afternoon, we came back to the States and did another short waterfall walk in the Many Glacier area.

Day 3 was the best weatherwise, with mostly clear skies after a morning shower, so we headed to the Two Medicine Valley for our long hike of the trip: 16 miles on the Dawson-Pitamakan Loop.

The next morning was wet again, so already having gotten in our big hike, we hit the road home.

Despite the nightly storm, the trip was worth it - Glacier always is.

Day 1: Lunch Creek

After arriving at the park and getting settled at St. Mary Campground, we headed back up Going-to-the-Sun Road for a short hike. The scramble up the east side of Lunch Creek is fairly simple, but steep in places. Above, you'll find a couple of waterfalls and a flower-filled basin with views of the peaks and Sperry, Jackson and Blackfoot glaciers to the south. This hike is the beginning of the route up Pollock Mountain in "A Climber's Guide to Glacier National Park."

See the pictures here and here.

Distance: About 1 mile round trip.

Trailhead: About three-quarters of a mile east of Logan Pass on Going-to-the-Sun Road.

Day 2: Lower Bertha Falls and Apikuni Falls

Our second day started out quite stormy, so we spent the morning in the car, driving across the Canadian border to Waterton Lakes National Park in Alberta. After a stop at Prince of Wales Hotel, the rain abated and we took a short walk to Lower Bertha Falls. The trail runs along the mountainside next to Upper Waterton Lake, then turns up a draw that leads to Bertha Lake. Below the lake, this waterfall cascades down and around a corner.

Distance: 3.6 miles round trip.

Trailhead: Access is from the Waterton Lakeshore trailhead, all the way through Waterton townsite on the north side of the lake. (Bring your passport; you'll need it to cross the U.S. Canada border.)

With the weather clearing some in the afternoon, we returned to the U.S. side of the border and the Many Glacier area, where we took another short walk, to Apikuni Falls. The steep trail leads to a nice cascade down a cliff wall. As the clouds moved in again, we headed back to the car and our campsite.

See all of the pictures from Day 2 here and here.

Distance: 1.6 miles round trip.

Trailhead: The Apikuni Falls trailhead is a little more than 2 3/4 miles inside the park from the Many Glacier entrance.

Day 3: Dawson-Pitamakan Loop

Our final full day in Glacier was marked by much better weather, allowing us to get out on the trail we had set our sights on before the trip: the Dawson-Pitamakan Loop in the park's Two Medicine area. Originally, we wanted to backpack it and spend a night at either Oldman Lake or No Name Lake. We missed out on a permit, though, so decided to try it as a dayhike. It made for a long day, but worth every step.

The route starts out through the trees around the base of Rising Wolf Mountain, then travels up the Dry Fork Valley to Oldman Lake. From the lake, it quickly switchbacks up the valley wall and out of the trees to Pitamakan Pass, just below Mount Morgan, where the real views begin. You can see back down Dry Fork Creek, across Oldman to Flinsch Peak, and just over the pass to Pitamakan, Katoya and Morning Star lakes in the Cut Bank Creek drainage. The trail rounds Mount Morgan topping out above Cut Bank Pass on the Continental Divide, where you can see peaks of the Lewis Range and Pumpelly and Harrison glaciers deep in the park. From here, the path follows the Divide around the back of Mount Morgan and Flinsch Peak and above Nyack Creek to Dawson Pass. At this point the views are of the Two Medicine Valley and Lupfer Glacier. The trail quickly drops into the forested Bighorn Basin, passing No Name Lake then connecting with the Two Medicine Lake Loop. At this point, you can either walk a short distance to the top of the lake and take a boat back to the trailhead area, which we did, or return along the north shore of the lake.

See the pictures here and here.

Distance: 16- or 18-mile loop, depending on whether you take the boat back across Two Medicine Lake.

Trailhead: The trailhead is at the far end of the Two Medicine Campground near the outlet of Two Medicine Lake, 4 3/4 miles in from the entrance station.

The finish line

2009-07-17T14:16:00.006-06:00

After four months of training, I ran and - as many have already heard - finished the Missoula Marathon on Sunday, my first marathon.

Officially, I finished in 4 hours, 1 minute and 22 seconds, 245th out of 596 runners to make the timing cutoff. The pace works out to 9:13 a mile, which is faster than what I trained at by about 20 seconds a mile.

The race started in Frenchtown at 6 a.m. - just as the sun was coming up - which meant the alarm clock went off at 4 a.m. The first 16 miles were a breeze (in hindsight, I probably went a bit fast at the start). By mile 20 I had slowed some. I had to walk a little at mile 23 after my iliotibial band tightened up, but soon was running again for the final stretch over the Higgins Avenue Bridge downtown.

One of the best parts of the race was having friends in a relay team cheer me on throughout the course and at the finish with some of my family. I even got my own "GO JUSTIN" sign. Jen worked as an official race photographer and from her vantage shot some video, including the clip of me crossing the line above.

The past few days I've been resting - read busy at work - but I went for a short jog this morning and everything feels great.

Do I plan to do it again? It's a big time commitment, but yes. Mostly I feel like I need to drop that 1:22 off my time to get under four hours, but I've also come to enjoy the longer runs. Insane, as Jen would say.

See the official race photos here.

The big bloom

2009-07-05T22:17:00.010-06:00

Last weekend, it was hiking with my mom - this weekend, Jen's mom. With more family in town, we took a short drive up to the Seeley Lake area to hike to Morrell Falls.

We get to the falls nearly every year, but this year our walk coincided with the beargrass bloom. For weeks, I've been hearing through my other blog - WildflowerWalks.com - that the big, white flowers have been particularly plentiful this season, but I haven't been able to get out hiking anywhere where they are until now.

I've seen beargrass on the Morrell Falls trail before, but not like this. Along the path, the trees are fairly evenly spaced a couple of arm lengths apart, and between most of them the puffball-like flowers were growing in patches.

If you get the chance, see it while you can. Oh, yeah - and cool off in the mist of the falls.

See the pictures here.

Distance: 5.2 miles round trip.

Trailhead: From the north edge of Seeley Lake, follow Morrell Creek Road east about 1 mile and then north about 5.7 miles. Drive east again 0.8 miles to the end of the road, turning north where it forks.

Glacier for a day

2009-07-03T14:32:00.005-06:00

Last weekend, we headed north to Glacier National Park for the first time this year - just two days after scenic Going-to-the-Sun Road opened for the season. My mom was visiting from California, and the park always makes for a nice day trip.

This early in the season, the trail up to the Hidden Lake overlook from Logan Pass is still covered in snow. It's not that long or difficult of a hike, but it is fun with the last of winter's white underfoot, summer's sun overhead - and wildlife walking your way. While in the saddle between Mount Reynolds and Clements Mountain, we came across a number of mountain goats that were perfectly content up close to us.

This trip was quick, but with the park in our backyard, there are always plans to return.

See our pictures are here and here.

Distance: 3 miles round trip.

Trailhead: Logan Pass is 34 miles northeast of West Glacier on Going-to-the-Sun Road.

Time to taper

2009-07-01T23:30:00.005-06:00

After more than three months steadily increasing my mileage while training for the Missoula Marathon, I'm down to the last two weeks and the "taper."

I closed out my long runs over the weekend with a last-minute entry in the Mountain to Meadow half marathon on dirt roads just across the border in Idaho's Clearwater National Forest. With beargrass and camas in full bloom at Lolo Pass, it was a fun and beautiful run. And I finished a little quicker than I thought I would considering the 2,200 feet of elevation loss and gain over the 14-mile course - in 1 hour, 58 minutes and 50 seconds.

In this last part of training, my longest run is eight miles, with the average distance a little more than 4 1/3 miles. The theory is to rest you legs for the big event, but it's a little strange, really, after heading out regularly for runs in the high teens.

My main goal for the marathon itself is to finish. The pace I've been training at should bring me in at about four to 4 1/2 hours. After the half last weekend, though, a co-worker and fellow marathoner tells me I could come in under four hours.

We'll see on July 12.

The long run

2009-06-13T08:28:00.005-06:00

I'm officially on the final stretch of training for the Missoula Marathon, having topped out with a 20-mile run this week. And it was quite a wild run.

First, while crossing over the North Hills, I saw that the bitterroots are beginning to bloom (I need to get back up there with my camera). In the residential part of the Rattlesnake Valley, I came across a few deer during their morning munching.

Then, just a mile up the main trail in the Rattlesnake National Recreation Area and eight miles into my run, I rounded a bend and found myself looking at a large bear about 100 feet away - and it was looking back at me.

In the end it wasn't all that big of a deal. I stopped, yelled and clapped at it, it stepped off the path, and I turned around and ran up a different trail. Sure, there's an initial adrenaline rush, but I've encountered bears while hiking before and know the protocols. Mostly, I was thrown off by having to change my route and refigure my mileage - and having to yell "Hey, bear!" - on the run.

As far as the marathon training is concerned, it's going great. I've been able to keep a steady pace on my long runs, and the recovery has gone well.

People have asked me several questions about my big double-digit days: Do I get tired? Not while running; afterward my legs feel like they've had a good workout. Sore? Not really after adjusting to the distance; that's the point of going slow and stretching. That's a lot of energy expended - what about food and water? I take some energy gummies and a hydration pack with me, and yes, it does mean carrying a few extra pounds. What about the final 6.2 miles? My trainer-friend says most marathoners only get up to 20 or 22 miles before the event and think of the last stretch as just another 10K.

I've got a couple of runs in the high teens left, then I taper off until the big day, Sunday, July 12. I'm looking forward to crossing the finish line.

Red rocks and rain

2009-06-06T08:58:00.014-06:00

We recently returned from red-rock country in southern Utah - a place we visit every other year or so. This time, however, we had to change our plans a bit due to heavy rain and lightning.

Originally, we had wanted to camp around Moab and in the San Rafael Swell and hike some slot canyons, but the deluge brought flash floods to the region, and forced us to delay our trip a day and find a hotel room. (On the drive down, I saw a car on a road next to the highway being pummeled by rushing water.)

The night we arrived in Moab, we waited out a storm and took a quick hike in Arches National Park to stretch our legs.

On our only full day in Moab, we managed to get out on a hike in Canyonlands National Park just before another storm rolled in. That evening, the entire town lost power - we ended up cooking dinner on our camp stove in the hotel parking lot.

The next day we drove west, to Zion National Park and Springdale, where the weather was much better and we were able to camp. It rained briefly the first night - just as we were staking down our tent - but the weather the next couple of days was sunny and warm, and we got in two good hikes and a few short walks.

With storms rolling back in, we retreated to Missoula a day early, arriving to a beautiful pink and orange sunset - a sure sign that summer is on the way.

Arches National Park

The night we arrived in Moab, we waited out the rain and lightning, then took a quick walk around North Window and South Window arches (above) as the sun was sinking in the sky.

See the pictures here and here.

Distance: 1 -plus-mile loop.

Trailhead: Arches National Park is 5 miles north of Moab, just off U.S. Highway 191. From the entrance, it's 12 miles on park roads to the Windows trailhead.

Canyonlands National Park

In Canyonlands, we hiked the Syncline Loop in the Islands in the Sky district, which drops down 1,300 feet, follows a couple of washes around Upheaval Dome, then climbs back to the trailhead.

The trail provided great views on the descent (top), some canyon hiking, a scramble up through a boulderfield and plenty of desert wildflowers, such as the sego lily (above).

Syncline is one of Backpacker magazine's "Best Dayhikes" - and while the write-up suggested hiking the loop in a clockwise direction, it seemed we were the only ones doing so.

See the pictures here and here.

Distance: 8.5-mile loop.

Trailhead: Canyonlands' Islands in the Sky district is 32 miles north and west of Moab via U.S. Highway 191 and State Route 313. Park at the Upheaval Dome trailhead, which is 11 miles from the visitor center on park roads.

Zion National Park

In Zion, we went on a couple of 8-mile hikes and several much shorter sightseeing walks.

The first full day we were there, we took the West Rim Trail out a ways. About halfway through the hike, we climbed out a narrow ridge - about 3 feet wide at its skinniest - to Angels Landing, a point 1,400 feet above the floor of Zion Canyon with a fabulous view (above). Chains are installed along the ridge for hikers who feel they need to hang on.

Our second day in the park, we hiked out the East Rim Trail and up to Observation Point, another promontory that looks down on the canyon (and Angels Landing) from 2,100 feet above. At one point, the trail winds through a water-carved slot in Echo Canyon (above).

In all, we figured we walked up at least a couple of hundred switchbacks - we'll be sticking to out-and-back valley hikes for a while, thanks.

See the pictures here and here.

Distance: 8 miles round trip on the West Rim Trail and up to Angels Landing. (Angels Landing alone is 5 miles round trip.) 8 miles round trip to Observation Point.

Trailhead: Spring through fall, Zion Canyon is only accessible via the park shuttle. From the visitor center just inside the park entrance at Springdale, take the bus up the canyon to the Grotto trailhead for the West Rim/Angels Landing, and the Weeping Rock trailhead for the East Rim/Observation Point.

Where the buffalo roam

2009-05-11T11:15:00.014-06:00

The 19-mile Red Sleep Mountain Drive at the National Bison Range opened for the season over the weekend, so we took our first trip there this year to see the wildlife, wildflowers and scenic views.

There were a handful of bison roaming around the road where it parallels Mission Creek, but we probably saw more pronghorn antelope and turtles. We also heard of, but didn't see, a black bear and two year-old cubs.

There were also plenty of wildflowers. On the drive up the west side of the mountain, we saw plenty of shooting stars, yellowbells and prairie smoke. Down on the north side, fields of arrowleaf balsamroot are making their way up the hills.

See the photos here.

Distance: 19-mile loop drive. Near the top of the mountain, there are two short trails: the half-mile round-trip Bitterroot Trail and the 1-mile round-trip High Point Trail.

Trailhead: From Missoula, drive 35 miles north on U.S. Highway 93 to Ravalli, then turn west on Highway 200. After about 6 miles, turn north on Highway 212 and drive about 4.5 miles to the entrance at Moiese.

Half-marathon man

2009-05-06T10:56:00.006-06:00

I'm six weeks into the training plan for my first marathon - the Missoula Marathon on July 12 - and so far, so good. If only the weather were better.

Distancewise, I'm a little more than halfway there. Last week, I did my long run of 13 miles in about one hour, 50 minutes with snow falling the whole way. This week, it was 14 miles in about two hours, the final three miles into a cold downpour.

Actually, it's not that bad considering the alternative: the treadmill in the same dingy, gray basement room at work that houses the building's sump pump. After running 10 miles down there one night, I decided that mentally I couldn't do my long run on a machine anymore.

I've been steadily adding a mile a week to my long run, but that's about to change as I'm scheduled for 16 next week. And my four short runs a week are increasing to the five- to six- mile range from three to four miles.

There have been a few minor strains and pains as I adjust to the increased mileage - I had to take a few days off at one point after running too hard the week before - but my body seems to be adjusting and is recovering quicker now.

Check back for more progress reports, and I'll see you at the finish line.

In season

2009-04-19T21:00:00.005-06:00

I've started up my wildflower blog - WildflowerWalks.com - at work again. Watch it for updates on wildflowers blooming in western Montana. And, if you're in the Missoula area, look for my column in the Missoulian newspaper.

Fun in the sun - and snow

2009-04-19T20:06:00.009-06:00

With the weather warming up, we got the chance to stretch our legs for the first time this spring, on the Blodgett Canyon trail near Hamilton.

This classic Bitterroot Valley hike parallels Blodgett Creek, steadily climbing first through forest burned in the wildfires of 2000 and then through boulder fields. The first three miles up to a bridge over the creek afford views of the rocky spires of Printz Ridge.

While the sun was shining and the temperature reached up into the 60s, there was still plenty of snow on the trail after the first couple of miles, and we created our fair share of postholes.

See the photos here.

Distance: 6 miles round trip, turning around at the bridge over Blodgett Creek. (Trail continues).

Trailhead: From U.S. Highway 93 just north of Hamilton, turn west onto Bowman Road. After about three-quarters of a mile, turn south on Ricketts Road and continue 1.7 miles. Here, the road turns west and becomes Blodgett Camp Road. Follow it about 4.25 miles to the trailhead.

Backpacker's best

2009-04-07T23:33:00.008-06:00

We received the May issue of Backpacker magazine in the mail the other day and were surprised to see some familiar ground listed in the "America's Best Dayhikes" article, which features 100 trails broken down by region.

We've hiked a handful of the selections in recent years - see the list below and follow the links for photos from our travels.

West
Best waterfalls: Eagle Creek, Columbia River Gorge, Ore.

Rockies
Best wildflowers: Siyeh Pass, Glacier National Park.
Best wildlife: Swiftcurrent Pass, Glacier National Park, and Lamar Valley, Yellowstone National Park, Wyo.

Southwest
Best canyons: Zion Narrows, Zion National Park, Utah.
Wildest geology: Navajo/Queens Garden Trails, Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah.

Midwest
Best lakes: Itasca State Park, Minn.

Watch the watefowl

2009-04-07T23:20:00.008-06:00

Here's a video I shot for the newspaper on our recent trip to see the spring waterfowl migration at the Freezout Lake Wildlife Management Area, near Fairfield and Choteau.

The sound is really what makes it, so be sure your speakers are on.

Freezout flocks

2009-03-29T00:01:00.010-06:00

We're fresh back from the Freezout Lake Wildlife Management Area, near Fairfield and Choteau on the Rocky Mountain Front, where hundreds of thousands of snow geese and other waterfowl species stop each spring on their migration north.

At the time of our visit, there were about 100,000 snow geese and 1,400 tundra swans, most concentrated on Pond 5, according to a hot line run by Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Call (406) 467-2646 for updates.

As we were driving from Fairfield the first thing we noticed was the V-shaped formations flying high above us, the geese on their way back from feeding in nearby fields that morning.

Once we arrived, the sights and sounds were truly incredible. What I thought was the frozen pond surface from a distance was, in fact, thousands of white birds crowded together. And there was a constant cacophony of squawks and buzz of wings.

Our first day there, we lucked out on the weather, the sky clearing almost upon our arrival after a night of early spring snow and wind. The next morning, however, the weather turned foul again. We stuck around long enough to catch the geese coming back in from the fields, then moved on to visit friends in Helena.

Check out the pictures here.

Distance: Several roads run through the wildlife management area, from which you can walk among the ponds.

Trailhead: From Fairfield, drive 4 miles north on U.S. Highway 89 to the main entrance and information kiosk.

Marathon plan

2009-03-25T14:13:00.008-06:00

I met with my trainer-friend last week and have my Missoula Marathon workout schedule in hand.

Basically, there are a several short runs and one long run each week. The long run is surrounded by days of rest and increases by a mile or two each week until a couple of weeks before the race, then tapers off. Here's how the long runs work out:

March 24: 9 miles
March 31: 10 miles
April 7: 11 miles
April 14: 12 miles
April 21: 12 miles
April 28: 13 miles
May 5: 14 miles
May 12: 16 miles
May 19: 16 miles
May 26: 18 miles
June 2: 16 miles
June 9: 20 miles
June 16: 18 miles
June 23: 16 miles
June 30: 6 miles
July 7: Rest
July 12: 26.2 miles

So far, so good - but it'll be interesting when I get up to that 16- to 20-mile zone, and then the race.

Buttercups at Blue

2009-03-22T10:34:00.007-06:00

Buttercups are coming up at the Blue Mountain National Recreation Area on the southwest side of Missoula.

The snow is melted, the mud is drying out and green leaves are sprouting from the brown ground - spring is officially here.

I first saw these flowers only a day after it snowed last week. And there are more on the way: Prairie smoke leaves and either yellow bell or shooting star shoots are poking through.

Marathon man

2009-03-08T18:17:00.006-06:00

About 3 1/2 years ago, I had a bad slip on a trail in the Swan Range and managed to tear my quadriceps just above my right knee - my first serious injury since breaking my arms as a youth.

At the time, it didn't seem to hurt and I made it out of the woods without trouble. It wasn't until a couple of days later when the pain set in - when I went to the doctor I couldn't bend my leg, couldn't bear weight on it and couldn't go up or down stairs.

The prescription for my recovery was two months of physical and ultrasound therapy. It started with a lot of stretching and resistance band work. Later, I moved onto a stationary bike, then an elliptical machine. Eventually, I started jogging on a treadmill and got back into running regularly for the first time since high school, when I competed on the track and cross-country teams.

In the past few years, I've kept it up, running on the treadmill in the basement at work after my shift or in the morning on the riverfront trails or at the Pattee Canyon National Recreation Area. I've dropped 20 pounds, run in a few races and am hiking stronger than ever.

For a few weeks now, I've been mulling over the idea of entering the Missoula Marathon. This weekend, after consulting with a trainer friend, I decided to go ahead and try it - just to say I did it.

We're going to set up a training program so I can do this as safely as possible and fit it in around my work schedule, dog walking and weekend hiking with Jen.

As with all of our adventures, I'll be posting updates on my progress here. And if all goes to plan, I'll be crossing the finish line at Front Street and Higgins Avenue on Sunday, July 12.

Hiking at home?

2009-03-06T11:17:00.006-07:00

I came across a link to word cloud generator Wordle on another site recently and thought I'd try it with this blog. What you see above is the result.

What's a word cloud? It's a visual representation of text on a Web site that is weighted by the frequency with which each word appears.

It makes kind of a nice image, but a co-worker pointed out that one of the most prominent words is "home" - kind of odd for a blog about being outdoors.

Thinking of spring

2009-03-01T18:09:00.006-07:00

With the snow melting and the weather warming, I've been thinking of spring a lot lately. I even went on my first "official" buttercup hunt of the year at the Blue Mountain National Recreation Area today (unsuccessful).

Since we stuck pretty close to home this weekend, I spent some time putting together a slideshow of pictures from my Wildflower Walks column in the newspaper last year.

Enjoy!

St. Helens, here we come

2009-02-28T09:35:00.007-07:00

Last week, we secured permits to "climb" Mount St. Helens in Washington state in September - now we just have to keep our fingers crossed that the weather will cooperate.

I made this ascent in the snow as a teenager with the Boy Scouts about 20 years ago, and am looking forward to sharing it with Jen this time around.

I'm a little reluctant to call this a "climb" because it's a non-technical, five-mile hike that gains 4,500 feet. Sure, that's up, but it's very similar to several hikes we've done around home and elsewhere in recent years, only lower (it tops out at 8,365 feet).

And for any of you worried about this being an active volcano, the U.S. Forest Service and U.S. Geological Survey say the lava dome-building eruptions that began in the fall of 2004 have ended and the alert level has been lowered to normal. And, if the rumbling begins anew, the agencies will close the mountain to climbers.

Find out more about St. Helens here.

Moon dance

2009-02-28T09:13:00.004-07:00

This is just a quick shot of the moon and Venus in the sky above Missoula shortly after sundown on Friday. While there are special techniques for taking pictures of the night sky, none were used here other than a tripod and the camera's timer.

I saw a story about the "convergence" earlier in the day, but forgot about it until I was walking home from work for dinner - there it was, big and bright.

Read more about it here.

Sunny Sentinel stroll

2009-02-22T16:42:00.013-07:00

It was quite a nice weekend, and after spending a day finishing up some work and running errands, it was good to get out and stretch our legs on a walk up Mount Sentinel.

Only two weeks ago, I was skiing up Crazy Canyon Road at the Pattee Canyon National Recreation Area. While there's still a decent base of snow on the old dirt track, it's quickly turning to slush and mud. Aside from the warm weather, other signs of spring's approach were the many chirping birds and the season's first green leaves poking out from the ground.

I've been up Mount Sentinel too many times to count, so I didn't take too many pictures (and Jen left her camera at home), but there are a few here.

Distance: 7 miles round trip. (Numerous side trails can be used to shorten or lengthen the hike.)

Trailhead: In Missoula, drive 3.5 miles up Pattee Canyon Drive from South Higgins Avenue to the Crazy Canyon trailhead.

Back to Lubrecht

2009-02-16T09:55:00.011-07:00

We made our second trip of the winter up to the Lubrecht Experimental Forest cross-country ski trails near Greenough over the weekend. And after weeks of being stuck at home with a cone on to protect stitches in her ear, Belle got to come along, too. (Another dog bit her back in January.)

Looking for a bit more of a challenge, I suggested we take part of the difficult loop, which the brochure says is steeper and requires "advanced braking and turning techniques." I got what I asked for.

After a quick ski out from the lower loops, we began to climb, putting down the first tracks in a fresh dusting of snow and gaining a total of about 900 feet. There was a payoff though: We encountered no other skiers for much of the day, and the view from the high section of trail included the Blackfoot Valley below and the whitecapped Swan Range in the distance (and we had a couple of tired dogs later that night).

Of course, what goes up, must come down - fast. Despite our not-so-advanced techniques, we descended to the lower loops and made it back to the car in one piece.

See more photos here.

Distance: About 7.25-mile loop. (Variety of loops available, from 1 mile to 8.3 miles.)

Trailhead: From Missoula, drive 5 miles east on Interstate 90 to Bonner, then 26 miles east on Highway 200 to the University of Montana's Lubrecht Experimental Forest facilities.

Blue sky skiing

2009-02-08T16:47:00.007-07:00

After being cooped up for a few weeks, we finally got out, just over the border to the Lolo Pass cross-country ski trails in Idaho. (The dogs stayed home, though, as they're not allowed on the groomed trails.) And, as you can see from the picture above, it was a perfect blue sky day.

Arriving before the crowd, we put together a route roughly seven miles long by connecting part of the Glade Creek Loop and the Packer Meadows Loop.

The last time we skied the Packer Meadows Loop, we started on the northern portion, which seemed to send us up a lot of the steeper sections of trail. This time, we started on the southern portion and got to enjoy glide down those sections.

See more photos here, and check out those brand-new skis Jen is sporting.

Distance: About 7-mile loop. (Variety of trails available, from 1.2 miles to 14 miles.)

Trailhead: From Missoula, drive 9 miles south on U.S. Highway 93 to Lolo, then 32 miles west on U.S. Highway 12 to the Lolo Pass Visitor Center, just over the border in Idaho. (Parking costs $5.)

In the news

2009-01-16T11:34:00.004-07:00

Here's a story I wrote for the paper about our last ski outing. Too bad that's not all I do at work.

New and improved

2009-01-10T11:28:00.003-07:00

OK - not so new, but slightly improved.

I made some adjustments to the code of this blog so we could display larger pictures and full-width YouTube videos. For example, now you can actually see Mia snowshoeing in Dad's backyard in the White Christmas post below.

Yea, exciting fun with HTML!

First foray of '09

2009-01-04T17:26:00.010-07:00

Today, we went on our first adventure of the new year - cross-country skiing in the Lubrecht Experimental Forest near Greenough, east of Missoula.

After an icy drive up the Blackfoot River corridor, we set out on a dog-friendly trail under sunny skies. At the end of the day, we had covered 6.4 miles and racked up one high-speed face-plant (Jen) and one back flop as a result of showing off (me).

As usual, there are plenty of photos and a video (below). And even though I was behind the camera, I managed to get some footage of myself - look for red skis me, shadow me and me me.

Distance: 6.4-mile loop. (Variety of loops available, from 1 mile to 8.3 miles.)

Trailhead: From Missoula, drive 5 miles east on Interstate 90 to Bonner, then 26 miles east on Highway 200 to the University of Montana's Lubrecht Experimental Forest facilities.

White Christmas

2008-12-25T12:57:00.012-07:00

A snowy holiday season isn't all that unusual in our neck of the woods, but this year we got to share at Dad's house in Portland, Ore., where more than a foot of fluffy stuff fell in the weeks preceding Christmas.

For one guest in particular - my brother Stefan's girlfriend, Mia, who grew up on the far side of Maui - it was the most snow she'd seen in her life. What's a girl to do? She strapped on Jen's snowshoes and took to the backyard, playing in the powder.

For more holiday photos, go here.

Also, check out the videos at right or here.

At last, snow

2008-12-13T17:55:00.006-07:00

We received our first real snow of the season - 4 to 6 inches around the yard - unfortunately, we weren't really able to get out and play in it.

When we woke this morning, sometime after 8, it was about 18 degrees. By noon - after a brisk walk with the dogs - it was down to about 14 degrees. And by 6 p.m., it had fallen to 2 degrees, with a wind chill of minus 20, according to Weather.com. (Our house happens to be right off the river in town, too, where the wind funnels through from Hellgate Canyon.)

The temperature's supposed to drop some more Sunday and Monday, so it looks like we'll have to wait till next weekend.

Ice capades

2008-12-07T18:43:00.004-07:00

Between our regular errands, Christmas shopping and decorating the house this weekend, we thought we'd take a quick hike up to a small, scenic waterfall in the Bitterroot Valley.

Unfortunately, the weather wasn't exactly cooperative - it tried its best to snow, which mostly ended up as rain, and the trail was coated in an icy slush. I think that's the wettest walk I've been on since tramping around Scotland in the fall of 2007.

Still it was good to stretch our legs, even though we didn't end up with much photo-wise. (What you see above is about the extent of it.)

Distance: 3 miles round trip.

Trailhead: From Victor, drive 3.3 miles south on U.S. Highway 93, 2.3 miles west on Bear Creek Road, 0.8 miles north on Red Crow Road and 3.2 miles west on Red Crow and Bear Creek roads.

We've moved

2008-11-30T23:12:00.005-07:00

Here we are on Blogger.com, a move we made because this site looks a bit nicer and has more functionality (see the working map, below).

We'll still be posting photo galleries through our old site - it offers more storage - with links from here, but for future musings about our adventures, you'll have to point your browser to hikemt.blogspot.com.

We hope you like our new location and continue to visit!

Snow dogs

2008-11-30T23:08:00.016-07:00

After a month of weekends spent raking leaves, cleaning gutters or indoors due to rain, we finally got back out into the woods with the dogs - and while it's still brown around here, we got up high enough to get into our first real snow of the season.

Check out the latest photos of us at Heart Lake, west of Superior, here.

Distance: 4.4 miles round trip.

Trailhead: From Superior, follow Diamond Match Road southeast and Trout Creek Road southwest - one turns into the other - for 19 miles.