If you can't keep from treating our forests like a garbage dump, stay the hell out!

Garbage left behind atop Hawk Mt.

First of all, I am no tree hugging preservationist with nothing better to do but file a lawsuit when anyone lifts a chainsaw in the forest. I do not claim to be an environmentalist, although I do think common sense and decency play a part in any trip into our forests. I scoff at any mantra suggesting you leave the wilds in better condition than when you left. How is that possible? If the average Joe left the forest in the same condition as when he entered it would do fine. That is not to say that forests should not be managed for multiple uses – including logging! Industry does have its place in the woods! But that is for another post.

 

Along a 2.6 mile stretch of trail hugging the Salmon River in the Salmon Huckleberry Wilderness, one can see some of the largest old growth trees in the state. At an elevation of around 1,600', this trail can be hiked any time of the year and is easily accessible. A paved road closely parallels the entire trail. Sunset magazine once said, "Though this nearly level trail winds along between road and river, you rarely see or hear traffic; you feel as though you're well away from civilization."

Poor directions, spider webs and blisters don't deter from Hawk Mt. hike

Hawk Mt. cabin and views

It was a web-busting morning. Obviously first on the trail that day or perhaps the entire week, I was breaking through countless spider webs spun from tree to tree across my path. Bad directions gleaned from a website brought about an adventure before even getting to the trailhead. Numerous wrong turns and ample guesswork finally delivered me to the Rho Ridge trail. My destination was Hawk Mt. and its views of Mt. Jefferson, Olallie Butte, Three Fingered Jack, Mt. Washington and at least one of the Three Sisters.