Summit is exposed to wind, rain, sun (and good views)
On 21 June the family and I headed out to Ritzville, WA to pick up my oldest daughter, Lily. Of course you know that I cannot drive 2/3 of the way across the state of WA and not find a SOTA to do. As I was looking at the map I noticed that there was a geocache (http://www.geocaching.com/) on the top of Red Top Mountain, which normally means it is reachable.
When you consider this peak for an early season trek, think "beautiful flowers, peaceful solitude, and great views". Early in June this year the hills are festive with colorful wildflowers. There is no trail, no signage, no parking lot... no hikers! And finally, the view - an unubstructed 360 degree view of green valleys, and snow-capped mountains. If you're comfortable with a little cross-country navigation, I recommend this one.
Dragontail Peak, near Leavenworth, WA, is a committed and remote alpine climb - it can't really be considered a hike. This trip report can only give an impression and some basic facts - you will need to prepare carefully and appropriately by reading guidebooks and climbing websites, and making sure you have the necessary skills, experience and equipment. You will need to be able to handle wilderness route finding, high angle snow ascent and descent, rock climbing, and challenging terrain. Adequate physical conditioning is critical to ensure success and safety.
On a brief vacation in Southern California to visit family, I managed to activate three (3) SOTA peaks. This is report 1 of 3 for this trip.
San Gabriel is 1,878 Meters, 6,161 feet elevation. It is a 6 point SOTA Summit.
When the snow is gone, this is a easy two point summit not far off of Highway 26 east of Mount Hood.
A bit past milepost 63 and just before Blue Box Pass there is a right turn onto two forest roads - take the right one (pictured). A carefully driven passenger car might be able to navigate this road, but having high clearance would make it easier. And the distances are reasonably short so parking when the road gets too rough and walking a mile or so on a forest road could be an option.
There are at least four trails that approach the summit of Big Huckleberry Mountain - we choose the Pacific Crest Trail from the south for about 8.6 miles round trip and 1400 feet of net elevation gain (1900 total).
Here's a six point summit to tackle on a nice summer day - we tried it with lots of snow and found a blizzard at the top in mid-April. The trail is on a road of about 7 miles round trip and about 1800 feet of gain.
On 27 March Etienne (K7ATN) and I activated Silver Star mountain. The weather report called for rain with a break around mid day. We headed to the trailhead, Route: Washougal, WA to Washougal River Road (approx. 10 mi), to Skye Rd to 412th AVE to Skamania Mines Rd. Follow the signs to silver star. We reached the TH at about 0840 and started up the trail. At about 1/8 of a mile the trail splits, take the right split. We found out the hard way and got about 1/4 mile down the trail before I checked the map and realized we were on the wrong trail.
