First trip report.. long time lurker and I can say I have gotten most of my trip ideas from this board so thank you all very much.
For the second summer in a row, my buddy and I got to explore the NW. Our first trip in 2017 was highlighted by a trip to South Sister (an unsuccessful summit attempt) but this year we were determined to make it.
We started by flying out to Seattle. Took in the city for a day and saw a Sounders game. Off we went to Hidden Lake Lookout, by far my favorite part of the trip. Had a night to ourselves in the lookout and although there was a haze, the views were incredible.
Part of the Northern Cascades
Only about halfway through the hike
Lookout in the distance (zoomed in)
No better spot
Inside the ol' Fire Lookout. Beautifully maintained
Hidden Lake Lookout
View from Hidden Lake Lookout
Next, we drove down to the Mt. Rainier area and unfortunately the haze was so bad we weren't able to enjoy it to the fullest and got virtually 0 views and pictures.
After that we made the journey back to Bend and this time we made it. We camped at Moraine lake and woke up at 1:30 to catch the sunrise. Well worth it! In the future, I would love to camp up there.
Moraine Lake with South Sister in plain sight
Sunrise on South Sister
Summit of South Sister
View from South Sister
The trip mellowed out after that as we hit the coast and explored the Redwoods all the way down to San Fran. 10 days and some great experiences (except our shoes getting stolen while drying by our campsite, that was a real bummer but a lesson learned to keep them nearby).
Welcome to the forum with your first post!
Don't feel too badly about your compromised views. Fact is, it is either smokey or raining/snowing here about 90% of the time.
Why does anyone want to live here?
Passing rocks and trees like they were standing still
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Passing rocks and trees like they were standing still
We were quite lucky in 2017 in Oregon, Wyoming and Colorado. I think we were spoiled thinking it was always like that. Nevertheless, it was still fantastic even with the haze!
I think we were spoiled thinking it was always like that.
I am glad you had a good time, but you were fortunate. Lucky for you, one of our many active volcanoes didn't erupt, especially the South Sister that you were on.
And you didn't get to experience one of our frequent scary earthquakes.
Just joshing....come on back any time for a visit! As you are learning, we have a tremendous variety in biomes and appropriate activities in the Pacific Northwest.
Passing rocks and trees like they were standing still
0
Passing rocks and trees like they were standing still
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