Paved Lolo Pass Road to Cascade Locks
We definitely made the right decision to stay in the cabin last night. When we got back to the trail it was still raining. It would have been a miserable night in the tents, plus we would still be soaking wet and cold and having to hike with a full bag. Now we are clean, dry, and able to slack pack the 29 miles to Cascade Locks. Wait...what...29 miles?!? Since we decided to slack pack it, we have to make it since we don't have our camping gear with us. We thought we should be at the trail by 7:00 AM, but we ran late and was finally ready to hike just before 7:45 AM.
It seems that our last full day in Oregon is going to be a dreary one. At least we have a hotel room to look forward to at the end of the day. Today's hike is a two-parter. The first 14 miles gets us to the Eagle Creek alternate trail. The next 15 miles is the much anticipated Eagle Creek trail that is supposed to be amazing.
For the first 14 miles the rain never tapered. We were forced to eat lunch in pouring rain not allowing us to get the proper break we needed to hike another 15 miles.
The Eagle Creek trail started out with a steep 2 mile downhill where we lost 2,000 feet of elevation. I was quite happy we didn't have to climb that hill. After the sharp decent, the trail continued to decline, but not as drastically. As a matter of fact, by the end of the day, we will be down to about 200 feet. I don't think I have been down that low since leaving Florida six months ago.
Wow...it may be raining, but this trail is just amazing.
For the first 14 miles the rain never tapered. We were forced to eat lunch in pouring rain not allowing us to get the proper break we needed to hike another 15 miles.
The Eagle Creek trail started out with a steep 2 mile downhill where we lost 2,000 feet of elevation. I was quite happy we didn't have to climb that hill. After the sharp decent, the trail continued to decline, but not as drastically. As a matter of fact, by the end of the day, we will be down to about 200 feet. I don't think I have been down that low since leaving Florida six months ago.
Wow...it may be raining, but this trail is just amazing.
Just before 4:00 PM we made it to the part of the Eagle Creek trail that makes it what it is.
Just after 4:00 PM the sky actually opened up to blue skies...great timing.
And then the waterfalls started appearing. This one was just incredible:
And then, at 4:15 PM we made it to Tunnel Falls:
Why is it called "Tunnel Falls"? Because you walk behind it through a tunnel:
Just after hiking past Tunnel Falls, friends of Share Bear's met us on the trail. Sarah and XXXX were awesome people, plus, they brought us some homemade baked goods that were so good.