August 31, 2011--Where did my August go? Somewhere over the rainbow!

I had lots of big plans for today--too many plans, really.  And mother nature had a few plans of her own!

What I did manage to do was hold today's cross country practice at Iller Creek.  I have turned the majority of the team into dedicated trail runners.  When I said we were going to the top, the girls cheered!  That's a tough run, so I'm thrilled that they love it so much.  In fact, several of the girls who were just introduced to the trail in the past year through cross country practice have told me that they have returned with their families in order to share it with them, too.  One girl told me that when she took her mom, her mom couldn't believe that Iller Creek was public property (and so close to home!).

After the run I had a few errands to take care of, and then I intended to either go to Coeur d'Alene or Mount Spokane for another hike.  In fact, I already had my day pack stocked with lunch, snacks and water and it was in the back of the car, ready for anything.  Then I came out of a store to a downpour.  There seemed to be a break in it, but I decided to hang out in the garden for awhile just in case.  I got distracted by my veggies and spent a couple hours harvesting things (until I had about 50 pounds-worth in the wheelbarrow!).  By then the storm clouds were moving in and it looked like a thunder storm was on the way.  I decided that perhaps my knees had had enough.  I started hike-a-thon by camping in the biggest thunderstorm ever in the Wallowas, and I ended hike-a-thon by watching a relatively tame thunderstorm from the comfort of home.  Mother nature even rewarded me with a gorgeous double rainbow in my front yard: 

So I fell a little short on my mileage goals...okay, a lot short.  But hey, rainbows are there to remind us that things will be better in the future, right?  Next year I'll hike more (and avoid illness and hopefully funerals!).  Besides, Hike-a-Thon is really about the fundraising, and that has gone better than I could have possibly imagined!  Donations are still coming in, and I have far surpassed my original goal!  I'm calling this H-A-T a huge success!

Total mileage = 5.5

Hike-a-Thon 2011 grand total = 252.8!!!

August 30, 2011--getting back to work

I had an all-day meeting with the 10th grade GVC team in my district today, and cross country practice was scheduled to begin as soon as the meeting ended.  Since the cross country team had a hard workout at the school, I knew that my only chance to get in some miles would be during our lunch break at the meeting.  The meeting was at district office and the Centennial Trail is nearby, so I drove to the Barker Road trailhead and ran 4 miles out-and-back, and then returned with just enough time to scarf down my lunch before we got back to work.  I wish I had hour-long lunch breaks during the school year!

Total Mileage = 4
River visited = Spokane River (3rd visit for H-A-T)

August 29, 2011--back to civilization

Today I hiked back out, adding huckleberries to my water bottle as I went.  I was a little disappointed that I didn't see a bear along the way; I'm pretty sure yesterday's large animal was a bear, but I haven't actually seen one at all this summer.  By this time last year I'd seen several.

I returned to the car and drove down to Mill Pond and hiked a short section of the Mill Pond Interpretive Loop.  I didn't hike the whole thing this time; instead I tried to fish a little.  I didn't have any luck.

After that I made a stop at Sweet Creek and hiked the trail there--and saw the funniest trail sign ever:

It was, of course, a perfectly manicured trail.  It was paved up to that point, and when it changed to gravel it became dangerous.  I wonder what the sign makers would have said about the Shedroof Divide?

Mileage = 8.5

August 28, 2011--Salmo Priest Wilderness and solo backpacking!

I left home super early to return to the Salmo Priest and hike the Shedroof Divide.  I had an ambitious plan to hike in about 17 miles, spend the night, and then hike out the next day.  The problem was, I was tired.  Really, really tired.  So tired I wanted to take a nap alongside the trail when I stopped for lunch.  Well, I'm used to modified plans at this point--so that's what I did.

I hiked as far as the intersection with the Thunder Creek Trail and scouted a campsite near that intersection and the intersection with the Jackson Creek Trail.  I set up the tent, stashed all of my overnight gear, and set off to hike the Jackson Mountain Trail--according to the sign it was only 3.5 miles to the Jackson Mountain Lookout.  Unfortunately, it was only .25 miles until the trail completely disappeared in the underbrush.  I returned to my campsite and took the Jackson Creek Trail instead.  This trail had been cleared recently--within the last week, I'd guess.  However, it was fairly evident that whoever cleared it used a chainsaw.  Even the small logs that had been cut had sawdust only on one side of the cut and 2-3' back from the log.  Crosscuts and bow-saws just don't cut like that.

So it was nice that the trail had been cleared, but I was angry that whoever did it wasn't following wilderness rules.  The Jackson Creek Trail is really nice, though.  It passed through some great huckleberry patches (I ate so many berries I'm surprised I wasn't sick!) and then slowly descended into a gorgeous cedar forest.  It was overgrown with thimbleberries on the upper portion, and there were a few wet areas with drainage problems, but otherwise it was a great trail.  I'm not sure if I hiked far enough to cross into Idaho or not (I haven't had any luck finding trail info online or in guide books), but I know that the trail ends at Hughes Meadows in Idaho; I found an old USGS survey marker that dated to 1912 but it didn't have state names on it.

Based on hiking time, I estimate I turned around after five miles.  When I passed the good huckleberry patches on the way back up I decided to fill my empty water bottle instead of just eating them on the spot.  As I got to the best patch I could hear a very large animal that was concealed in the thick bushes.  I talked to it and talked to it, and it continued to rustle the bushes and not pay any attention to me...until suddenly it became aware of my presence and ran off.  I'm pretty sure it was a bear, but there's no way to know for sure.  At any rate, I decided I'd better skip that huckleberry patch and get back to my tent.  I made sure I cooked my dinner and hung my bag of food a long way from my tent as the good huckleberry patch was actually pretty close to where I was camping. 

Mileage = 17.1