Its the last day of May 2014 and we finally had some really nice weather this weekend, cool at night, not too hot in the day yet, mid 70’s, but very clear skies. Took advantage of it and hiked a new trail – Easton Ridge, overlooking the town of Easton WA about a 50 minute drive east on I-90. I had camped in Easton many times growing up, so it was nice to get “high” and look down on the area. It was not a crowded trail, just a few people in the parking area when I got there at 0815. A group of about 10 that were putting boots on and getting ready to go just ahead of me. There were a few different trails at the parking area, so I didn’t know which one this group was taking. If they were on mine, I’d eventually catch up to them.
about 10′ before this sign my trail broke off to the right. I did not follow this sign.
I started at 0830 and started taking pictures almost right away, as there was a nice creek the trail started along. Crossed the creek on a footbridge in front of a small dam, lots of water falling over. A beautiful little area.
Not too long after the creek, the climb up began fairly steep. The guide I read said it would gain a 1000 feet in 3/4 mile. That seemed about right. It was a good work out. There were a number of blowdowns over the trail that were too large to go over, making it a little difficult to go under.
At about the 1.25 mile point, I arrived at a junction where the trail split east and west. I went east, and the climb continued. The guide indicated it would be more gradual, but I didn’t feel it that way. It was pretty steep all the way up. There were a few areas where it eased off but not many.
It was at this point that I caught up with the group of 10. They just took a few moments to rest then continued on. I let them get ahead again while I rested briefly. I caught up to them again at a rock outcropping viewpoint, they again departed and I got some more photos.
At this point I was about an hour in and didn’t know how much longer I had to the top. I realized at this point I had forgotten my hiking poles and really wished I’d had them. To ease the knees! I also realized that going up was still going to be easier than coming down without them, so I slowed down a bit and continued on. There was a point about 1/2 mile further where the trail leveled out considerably and even started downward as I moved east. Looking up from the trail I could see what appeared to be the ridge line, so I went off trail and started climbing straight up where it was grassy and not as steep. I soon found my resting point and was all alone in the sun and soft breeze. Had my sandwich, and took some more photos.
After a 45 minute break, I decided it was time to head down. If I’d had a nice chair to sit in, I could have spend hours there. But rocks are hard on the butt. I could also have continued on the trail to find where it ended, followed the group from earlier, but I knew it would be a downhill battle with my knees and without sticks, so I would just go as slow down as I did up. I was back at the car about noon, and there were probably 25 cars in the parking area and down the road. I figured most of them were on the Kachess Ridge trail, not mine, because I ran into a few, but not that many. As I drove out, I stopped under the power lines and took this picture of the mountain that I was on top of. What a great day! 6 miles RT approx.
I have posted these and more photos with brief comments at https://picasaweb.google.com/cattrain1989/2014_0531HikeUpEastonRidge