Читать книгу Afoot and Afield: Portland/Vancouver. A Comprehensive Hiking Guide онлайн

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You can turn around here and return the way you came, but if you aren’t exhausted from the climb, there are two loop options you might consider. Both loops begin by dropping very steeply down a trail on the northwest side of Elk Mountain. This path, appropriately marked with signs stating CAUTION—STEEP AREAS, is narrow, challenging, and rugged. Subtlety was clearly not the goal of the trail builders, as they scornfully bypassed obvious opportunities for gentle sidehill traverses, opting instead for dangerous routes along the up-and-down, knife-edge ridge. Fortunately, these difficulties end within a mile, as you hit an old road that wanders pleasantly through shady forests. This overgrown road is also well-traveled by wildlife, as frequent elk droppings and piles of bear scat attest. You make several short and gentle uphill switchbacks and then follow a view-packed ridge crest to a saddle and an unmarked T-junction with another closed road.

For the recommended shorter loop, turn right at the saddle, and in 0.5 mile you reach a junction with the road leading back down to Elk Creek Campground. This old logging road often runs near Elk Creek, whose clear, cascading waters are a nice diversion from the otherwise rather monotonous red-alder forest. The total length of this shorter loop is about 8.5 miles.