tvashtarkatena Posted February 22, 2011 Share Posted February 22, 2011 got a day to kill out there this weekend. Any suggestions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sobo Posted February 23, 2011 Share Posted February 23, 2011 Pat, There're a few hikes around town that won't take more than a couple hours. You could lengthen them, of course, by bringing your trusty camera. Some suggestions: 1. Badger Mountain: The most popular hike in the TC, it's a little hill that the local climbing/hiking club has spent a ton of money on acquiring access and improving the trails to the top. Two different trails to the top (one from the east side and one from the west) can be linked to do an up-and-over-and-back for a 8-mile round trip from one side of the hill to the other and then reverse it back to the car. Elevation gain for one way trip ~830VF. Be prepared for crowds any time of year. See here. 2. Tapteal Greenway: 7-mile round trip walk along the Yakima River outside of Richland. Lots of riverfront/lowland vegetation and wildlife, and a fair amount of solitude... lots more than Badger Mountain. Essentially no elevation gain or loss. 3. Wallula Gap: A 8-mile loop trip to an overlook of the Wallula Gap of the Columbia River. Really pretty, but be prepared for a windy outing. Elevation gain ~850VF. 3. Juniper Dunes Wilderness Area. Check out the last of the native sand dunes in Washington before they're blown away. There's no trails, so you can make this as short or as long as you want. Just park at the trailhead and start wandering through the dunes and the sagebrush. Up to 8 miles out and back. Mebbe 300VF of gain. More info for local (and not so local) hikes here. If you've got a boat, you can put in below Horn Rapids Dam and float the Yakima into the delta with the Columbia. That would be a fun float, nothing serious. About 17 miles, so that would be a full winter's day of paddling. I've never done it, but it's on the list as a beer-drinking summer float. One that I have done, and if you've got lots of time, is a float of the Hanford Reach, the last free-flowing stretch of the Columbia River in the US. Put in at Vernita Bridge, float past the Hanford reactors (now deactivated) and the White Bluffs, and take out at the Ringold Fish Hatchery. This will take a while. It's a 34-mile float with a current of about 5 mph. It's a long day when you consider the put-in/take-out logistics, unless you've got someone who can drop you off at Vernita Bridge and pick you up at the fish hatchery, so you can avoid the car shuttle. I did this trip under a full moon and clear skies last August, and it was freaking amazing. Deer, coyotes, elk, etc. are superbly abundant through the Reach, because of the prohibition against hunting on the Hanford site and access restrictions across the river for the site's security buffer. The bald eagles are "in town" right now at the site. There's a nesting area on the site that you'll float right by. The trees next to the river are lousy with them right now. I saw about two dozen of the buggers on a site visit just last week. Lemme know if you need directions to any THs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tvashtarkatena Posted February 23, 2011 Author Share Posted February 23, 2011 Awesome. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sobo Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 Soooooooooooo... what did you end doing in the state's Sunshine Capitol? I'm understandably curious. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevino Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 Hey sobo, when does the climbing season start out at lightening dome? Kind of related, ever been to spring mtn down near la grande for climbing? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sobo Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 Kevin, LD can "open" as early as late March or April, but it's a crap shoot cuz it's likely to still be dripping that early in the year. I never show up before Memorial Day. Then you have to beat feet by the end of June cuz it's getting too damned hot. July is right out! Then come back around mid to late August and climb clear thru to Halloween, and quite possibly mid to late November. Yes, I've been climbering at Spring Mountain many times. It's relatively close to home and good value for the drive from TC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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