by Paty | Oct 21, 2021 | Books, Gear, Oregon Coast Trail
Do you want to know my biggest challenge while thru-hiking the Oregon Coast Trail (or OCT)? It wasn’t the road walks along busy Highway 101. Nor was it the long stretches of solitude without a trail family. It wasn’t even trying to time the ocean’s...
by Paty | Oct 19, 2021 | HP blogs
It’s October, and my highpointing season is finally is over for this year. The weather is changing. Snow is starting to fall in the mountains. I have no more peaks or obscure places left to visit until next spring. Yet, as I look back, I’m pretty...
by Paty | Oct 1, 2021 | Oregon Coast Trail, West Coast
I’ll be the first to admit, I didn’t hike the Oregon Coast Trail (OCT) exactly the way I wanted. My itinerary was less than ideal! In retrospect, I should have gone much, much slower. Eighteen days wasn’t nearly enough time to appreciate everything...
by Paty | Sep 30, 2021 | Timberline Trail, West Coast
Although the Timberline Trail was just a short ~40-mile loop around Mt. Hood, this three-day backpacking trip was quite an adventure. And so, as with many of my other longer hikes, I’ve decided to put together a “by the numbers” roll-up of my recent...
by Paty | Sep 21, 2021 | Oregon Coast Trail, West Coast
Once again I’m back with a quick overview of the stats and metrics for the things I encountered on my most recent thru-hike – the Oregon Coast Trail (aka the OCT). This end-to-end trail begins at the state’s northern border with Washington and runs down the...
by Paty | Sep 19, 2021 | Gear, Timberline Trail, West Coast
My 40-mile trek around Mt. Hood was my last backpacking trip of the 2021 season. The mid-September weather was still dry and warm, so I was able to pack pretty light for this adventure. Nonetheless, I still wanted to try out a few pieces of gear that weren’t on...
by Paty | Sep 15, 2021 | Timberline Trail, Trail Journals, West Coast
Tuesday – Sept. 14, 2021 Start Point: Cloud Cap Saddle Campground End Point: Timberline Lodge Today’s Mileage: 14 miles Total Distance: 39 miles I slept much more soundly at Cloud Cap Saddle campground last night. Probably because no one was shining a headlamp...
by Paty | Sep 14, 2021 | Timberline Trail, Trail Journals, West Coast
Monday – Sept. 13, 2021 Start Point: North of Ramona FallsEnd Point: Cap Cloud SaddleToday’s Mileage: 15 milesTotal Distance on Trail: 25 miles So….I went to bed last night mentally kicking myself for forgetting my stove at home. I...
by Paty | Sep 13, 2021 | Timberline Trail, Trail Journals, West Coast
Sunday – Sept. 12, 2021 Start Point: Timberline Lodge Trailhead End Point: Just beyond Ramona FallsDaily/Total Mileage: ~10 miles The day started with a drive. A really long one. To get out to the closest trailhead today, I’d need to drive 160 miles from...
by Paty | Sep 7, 2021 | Oregon Coast Trail, West Coast
The Oregon Coast Trail (or OCT) is not your typical backcountry thru-hike. In fact, some might hesitate to call the OCT a trail at all. This walking route down the Oregon coast strings together existing hiking paths through forests and headlands, adds in long...
