Not letting winter weather bother us, me, Chris and the dogs, Buddy and Timmy, took a stroll through part of the network of trails around Herman Creek. Herman Creek is located in the Columbia River Gorge, just east of Cascade Locks, OR.
Because of the recent snow at low elevation, we originally were planning on strapping our snowshoes to our backpacks to use when we got into deep snow. A game-time decision was made to leave them at home and to stay at lower elevations.
We started out at 9:00 AM outside the gate to Herman Creek Campground. Normally you can drive the 0.3 miles up a paved road to the Herman Creek Trail trailhead, but the campground is closed in the winter.
Some interesting facts dug up about the Herman Creek Trail: 1) It was constructed for foot access to the old site of a wartime lookout built to spot balloon bomb sent over by Japan. 2) It contains the largest surviving forest of old growth Douglas fir, cedar, and hemlock in the Columbia River Gorge. 3) It doesn’t get close to the creek itself, but parallels it much of the way,
There was a trace of residual snow at the trailhead, so we knew there would be more once we began gaining elevation. We decided to take the Nick Eaton Ridge Trail to try and reach Deadwood Camp at 2900’ on the other side of the ridge. Neither of us had been there before and it sounded interesting.
We quickly gained elevation and the snow slowly got deeper and deeper. It was fun hearing the sound of the crunching snow under our boots. Fortunately someone else has blazed a path in the snow, making it easier to walk and navigate. It was evident someone else a few days prior had used snowshoes when the snow was even higher.
At 2900’ where the Nick Eaton Ridge trail met the Nick Eaton Ridge Cutoff Trail, we initially decided to continue on upward on the main Nick Eaton Ridge Trail proper. This was because there were no tracks in the snow on the cutoff trail, but there were on the main trail.
After resting and letting the dogs play in the snow, Chris and I both agreed to abandon the Deadwood Camp idea and take the cutoff trail back to the Herman Creek Trail via the Gorton Creek Trail. Even though we would have to blaze our own way through the snow, the cutoff trail was much shorter.
It turned out to be a good idea. We could have made it to Deadwood Camp, but hiking in the snow, even in someone else’s footsteps, is much harder than bare ground.
We made it back to the trailhead by 2:00 PM and only saw one other person the entire time. Tired and hungry, we headed to Char Burger for a bacon cheeseburger.
Total mileage: 8.3 miles
Total elevation gain: 2900’ elevation gain
Here is a link to the pictures on my Flick site:
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