White River Snowshoe

white river west sno-park mt hood

Mt. Hood from the White River West Sno-Park

Instead of baking all Christmas Eve day, Steve, our friend Angie and I decided to head up to the mountain for some winter fun and I was only minimally harassed when I showed up to Christmas Eve dinner without pumpkin cheesecake. We were on a bit of a time crunch, so we decided on the White River trail because of it’s accessibility, shortness of the hike, and killer views of Mt. Hood. Apparently everyone else had the same idea because the Sno-Park was packed with families and their furry friends sledding, snowshoeing and cross country skiing. There was also a mountain rescue going on the same day because three people had gotten lost while snowshoeing to a cabin two days prior. The group was thankfully found before the day was over.

Quick Stats

Distance: 3 miles roundtrip to the power lines; longer options abound (we hiked about a 1/2 mile passed the power lines and had a beautiful view of Mt. Hood and the Meadows chair lift)

Time: 2 hours

Difficulty: Easy-moderate to the power lines (beginning elevation ~4200 feet) on ungroomed trails

Season: December-March

Dog Friendly: yes, in fact our dogs got spoiled with attention and were complimented for being so well behaved :)

Pros: great views of Mt. Hood; relatively easy; tons of sledding hills

Cons: busy, busy, busy

white river mt hood

The view from the parking lot was beautiful too

From the parking lot you follow the masses along a road/path along the river and passed several sledding hills, one of which you actually hike up…and would be a total pain on cross country skis. This sledding hill is really the most difficult part of the snowshoe and you probably won’t even notice yourself huffing and puffing as you watch all of the tubers flying by.

white river sledding

The sledding hill and most challenging part of the snowshoe.

Continue along, either on the trail or off, if you prefer, until you reach the power lines that power Mt. Hood Meadows Ski Resort. If you turn around at the power lines you will have completed about a 3 mile roundtrip. For more fun, continue further up the hill toward the mountain…you will be rewarded with amazing views of Mount Hood.

white river autumn and steve

Stopping for a break and a photo.

On the way down Angie decided to give Sal a great big hug…so we took another picture.

white river angie and sal

Hugs!!!

The parking lot was still very full with families out having Christmas Eve fun and with the volunteers, medical teams, and sheriffs department that were out looking for the lost snowshoers. Just makes you realize how important it is to be prepared and to pack the 10 Essentials.

white river rescue

Portland Mountain Rescue, new trucks and the “entire” Hood River Sheriffs department were all still on the mountain when we were heading out.

We really can’t wait till we get to go snowshoeing again…hopefully it will be sooner rather than later.

A note about snowshoes: Steve and I have both been using the MSR Evo Snow Shoes
and they rock. They get awesome traction and just the right amount of “float” and they even have “tails” that you can add on if you need some extra lift. Bottom line…they rock and they aren’t nearly as expensive as some of the others. We also added a couple extra strap bindings to ours, so now they are super secure and never come undone. If you just want to try out snowshoeing rentals are usually super cheap…usually about ten bucks a day.

Don’t forget your Sno-Park pass!!!

Resources

Directions and Sno Park info

 

Hershey’s Warm Chocolate Pudding Cake

After weeks of craving chocolate one of my girlfriends convinced me to make this ridiculously easy chocolate pudding cake. You probably have everything you need in your fridge and pantry…we had everything, but the milk, so we used heavy cream instead…not quite healthy but absolutely delicious. We served ours with French vanilla ice cream and it was perfect. The recipe is found over at Hershey’s Kitchens and here’s a picture of our ooey-gooey chocolaty dessert.

hersheys chocolate pudding cake

Chocolate, chocolate, chocolate!!!

Chipotle Black Bean and Sweet Potato Tacos

chipotle black bean  and sweet potato tacos

Super quick and easy gluten free, vegetarian tacos!!!

Recipe

Serves 2-3.

1 can organic black beans, strained
2 small-medium sweet potatoes or yams, peeled and cubed
2-3 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, diced
1 cup red cabbage, sliced into thin ribbons
1 avocado, sliced
cilantro
1/2 cup pico de gallo (diced tomato, red pepper, jalapeño,onion, lime, cilantro, salt and pepper toss them all together)
6 corn tortilla shells
2 teaspoons grapeseed oil (veg oil work too)
crumbled feta or cotija cheese
cumin
chili powder
salt and pepper
lime

 

 Instructions

1. In a small sauce pan combine black beans and chipotle and heat over low-medium heat.

2. In a saute pan heat the grapeseed oil over medium-high heat and add the sweet potatoes. Saute until tender and golden. Drain on a paper towel lined plate. Season with salt, pepper, chili powder and cumin.

3. Warm your tortillas and dress them the way you like.

 

 

Life is Hectic

I apologize for not posting recently….we’ve been super busy and life has been a bit crazy lately. With the holidays upon us, packing and getting ready to store our entire lives, helping a friend with wedding stuff, selling things on craigslist, taking artwork down, planning our trip and buying flights….I’ve hardly had time to cook let alone eat. The crockpot has been amazing….we’re trying to empty our pantry and freezer…so we’ve made pulled pork and slow-cooked pinto beans with chicken (for tostadas)…and a warm cabbage salad and vegetarian tacos, but I haven’t had time to post or edit the photos. Hopefully I’ll have an hour or two this afternoon or tomorrow to get some posts done. Until then….happy holidays!!!

Eagle Creek

eagle creek punchbowl falls

Punchbowl Falls from the Eagle Creek Trail…if you hike down the Lower Punchbowl Falls side trail you get an even better view of the falls.

Eagle Creek is one of those hikes that is beautiful year round…even in the rain. The trail itself is pretty easy as long as you don’t mind steep drop-offs on one side and the occasional section of slippery wet rocks. The trail follows Eagle Creek up a narrow gorge and can be done as an easy day hike or a (much) longer loop. I’ve hiked as far as Tunnel Falls, but plenty hike up to Wahtum Lake and turn it into an overnighter. I would love to do this hike as a overnighter…it’s so close to Portland….and there’s only a small (a handful of miles) section where you’ll actually break a sweat. Could I convince Steve to go on a winter camping trip? As always, don’t leave anything valuable in your car, let someone know where you’ll be hiking and stay safe by packing the 10 Essentials.

Quick Stats

Distance: ~4 miles to Punchbowl Falls roundtrip; ~8 miles to Tenas Camp roundtrip; ~13 miles to Tunnel Falls roundtrip; ~28 miles to Wahtum Lake roundtrip; 25 miles for the Eagle Creek-Tanner Butte Loop (28 miles or so for the others…depending on side trips)

Time: 2hrs. to Punchbowl rt.; 3 1/2 hrs. to Tenas Camp rt.; 5 hours to Tunnel Falls rt.; 2 days backpacking trip to Wahtum Lake, or 2-3 days to do the Eagle Creek-Tanner Butte Loop (or many of the other loops ie. Ruckle Ridge, Herman Creek, etc.)

Difficulty: Eagle Creek to Tunnel Falls is relatively easy…beyond is moderate to difficult (Ruckle Ridge is more challenging)

Season: Year round to Tunnel Falls; beyond you’ll need snowshoes Nov/Dec to Apr/May and GPS or excellent route finding skills

Dog Friendly: Steep drop-offs….we took ours and plenty of people do, but if your dogs act like a furry tornado when on the trail you might want to rethink taking them

Pros: waterfalls, views of the Columbia River Gorge, clear streams and pretty little lake

Cons: BUSY trail (Eagle Creek) and isolated parking area ie. don’t leave valuables in your car

The trail from Eagle Creek to Punchbowl Falls gradually gains elevation as it follows the creek up the canyon. Stretches of the trail are on sheer drop-offs (in some places there is a cable to hold on to for those who need it) while other sections meander through the forest.

eagle creek ferns

Ferns line the Eagle Creek trail.

I definitely recommend hiking down to the Lower Punchbowl Falls viewpoint…it’s postcard perfect. I unfortunately don’t have pics because I have no idea where I put them…so you’ll just have to “google it.”

Pretty Loowit Falls is across the canyon from the trail….it has a pretty and scenic pool…if only there was a way to reach it.

Loowit Falls on the Eagle Creek trail

I always love that pool in the middle of the falls…for some reason I always want to swim in it, too bad it’s not possible

Once you reach High Bridge the canyon narrows and becomes deeper and then widens out a bit before reaching Tunnel Falls. On the way to Tunnel Falls you’ll pass Tenas Camp which is approximately 4 miles from the trailhead.

eagle creek view from high bridge

Here is the view from High Bridge

On our most recent hike (from which these pics were taken) we turned around at the bridge just passed Tenas camp because we had started late and didn’t want to get caught in traffic…and it was December and we didn’t hit the trail until around one and we didn’t want to be hiking back in the dark with our black dogs.

eagle creek wet trail

This trail is wet from fall through spring, so be prepared to get splashed, trickled on, rained on….it’s all part of the experience.

I apologize for the lack of pics, but I can’t seem to find any of the pics from previous Eagle Creek hikes. I know they’re here somewhere….I just don’t know where, so until then this is all I have to post.

eagle creek trail

Just so you get an idea…this trail really does have some steep drop-offs….in this spot the trail is fairly wide, but that’s not always the case….

If anyone has any tips or pointers about doing Eagle Creek as a loop including Wahtum lake I would love to hear them. I would love to do a winter hike/snowshoe before we leave on our big trip.