Good Parking At Trailhead

This was my first SOTA summit activation.  Due to the weather (rain and heavy fog) I chose a summit close to home. Davis Peak is a major radio repeater site about 13 miles east of Woodland at Exit 21 from I-5.

Devil's Peak is an easy hike, even if it's not an easy drive. After starting your hike from the Turnaround Trailhead you'll be at the summit after only a mile and a half and 700 feet of gain (there are other ways to get there). At the top you'll be treated to a tour of one of the few remaining fire lookouts in the region and have a chance to enjoy great views of Cascade volcanoes, including Mt. Hood and Mt. Jefferson.

Here is my video trip report from August 11, 2012 of Sauk Mountain in Skagit County, WA.  This is a relativaly easy hike (less than 2 miles, about 1,200 ft. of gain) and is right off of Highway 20 near Concrete, WA.  If you're traveling over the Cascade Pass, it's a must do.  Be aware that it's a very popular hike. 

When I heard that the long-standing dry and sunny weather we'd been having for weeks was about to end on Friday, I cleared a day off work on Thursday and determined to take another stab at Mt McCausland.  The drive to the trailhead is pretty straightforward.

The trail was difficult at this time of year with significant blowdown from an ice storm in February. I actually turned back twice but then decided to give it one more try. (Well, two more.) The attached photo shows the obliterated trail - the blowdown went on for almost a mile. I also hit continuous snow at 2200 feet (Augspurger tops out near 3700). I eventually lost the trail again in the snow kicking steps and then was postholing for about an hour. I ended up being an hour and a half late to my activation altogether.

THIS Mount Scott (Scott, Mount in the ARM) is a volcanic cinder cone (extinct) southeast of Portland, Oregon. The summit is 1095 feet ASL. This summit is in a suburban neighborhood with little public space within the activation zone.

A good address for activating the summit is 11500 SE Ridgeway Drive, Happy Valley, OR 97086. Note that access is from the south and east - there are restricted streets on the west side of Mount Scott. SE Idleman Road to SE Taylor Road is a suggested route. 

Let's start by making sure we are talking about Oregon's Larch Mountain and not one of the two Larch Mountains in Washington, and not the one in Idaho either.

UPDATE MARCH 2022 - Permits required weekends April 23 to June 12, plus Memorial Day. 

Dog Mountain is a wonderful climb nine months of the year - but in March we went from spotty sun and 38F to snow blowing sideways at 25 mph and perhaps 27F in a partial white out. It's a bit less than eight miles round trip with 2900 feet of gain.

This is a straightforward drive-up activation about an hour south of Bend with great views. Paulina Peak and North Paulina Peak are both in the Newberry National Volcanic Monument - you might consider a double activation of these peaks and an overnight stay in one of the campgrounds. 

This would be a great activation on a mountain bike - the single track looks like a good time. On busy weekends hikers might be outnumbered by bikes - however, for this early fall, late evening activation I saw no one on the trail. The trail is about 4.1 miles one way with about 0.3 miles of that cross country and 1300 feet of elevation gain. Here is a map of the trails in this area.