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

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DIRECTIONS From the intersection of State Highways 502 and 503 in Battleground, drive 12 miles north on Highway 503 to a junction at the north end of Amboy. Turn right, still on Highway 503, and proceed 5.2 miles to a junction just 0.1 mile past the Mt. St. Helens National Volcanic Monument headquarters. Turn right on Healy Road, which becomes Forest Road 54, and drive 5.2 miles to a major fork. Bear left on gravel Road S 1000, which is often rough and muddy, go 0.4 mile, and then bear right at a second fork, still on S 1000. Stay on the main road for 4.7 miles, passing several minor intersections, until you come to the next major fork. Bear left (downhill), drive 1.4 miles, and then park at an unsigned pull-out where an old logging road goes right (south).

The unsigned but obvious trail goes sharply down the embankment on the southeast side of the pull-out, descends four quick switchbacks, and then skirts the edge of a clear-cut. Once reentering forest, the path settles into a pattern of ups and downs that will continue for the remainder of the hike and add significantly to the total elevation gain of the trip. The abundantly green vegetation is the usual mix of western hemlock and Douglas fir draped with mosses and ferns. Although the trail stays well above cascading North Siouxon Creek, you can always hear this rollicking stream in the canyon on the right.