Skagit Lowlands

When the persistent storms of winter darken the sky and provide only momentary respites from the wind and rain; experienced club members know that it’s the perfect time to explore or revisit the lowlands of Western Washington. During the course of a few weeks a series of Short-Notice-Outings of the Mt Baker Club provided opportunities for enjoying nature while dodging the worst of the weather. These outings included hikes, walks, and nature observation over a fascinating selection of sites.

Some of the highlights were: the summit bushwhack (reported trails were non-existent) of Bow Hill and the new trail construction at the north section of Deception Pass State Park; another trip to explore the Tommy Thompson & other trails near Anacortes with a short geology fieldtrip down the Chuckanut Coast and Padilla Bay; sunset beach walks with glorious golden light escaping under the dark clouds; while further up the Skagit Valley we explored the Northern State Recreation Area with it’s extensive trails and historic structures; walks along the Skagit provided examination of various bygone ferry crossings that now make excellent paddle put-ins; another day we drove with numerous stops and hikes down Friday Creek (Squires Lake included) and then up the Samish River to the high ground of Saxon Cemetery; gushing waterfalls, abandoned mines, ghost towns, flooded roadways, unique mountain viewpoints, and the massing of the Nooksack Elk herd gave us many vivid memories; the occasional shower seemed a small price to pay.

Chilliwack Valley and Hope Explorations

With a break in the cloudy weather a group of us headed up the Chilliwack Valley to explore new sites and check conditions at familiar ones. We drove on snowcovered road to the gated Chilliwack Lake Provincial Park. From there we snowshoed through the forest and trails to the new bridge over the Chilliwack River. A pleasant morning of touring brought us to the new connection to the Radium Lake trail. One of the highlights of the morning included the fresh bear tracks leading through the otherwise vacant campground. None of us had expected this. On the way out we stopped at numerous trailheads discussing our plans for future trips.

Continuing up the Fraser Valley we arrived at the obscure Dog Mt trailhead. A surprisingly beautiful old-growth forest was our afternoon reward for visiting this little known trail. Obviously constructed for extreme mountain bikers we marveled at the size and difficulty of the obstacles and near vertical descent of the course. By late afternoon we were still able to see the summit of Hope Mt, clearly visible across the Fraser River. It was a wonderful outing resulting in plans for many return trips. A pleasant dinner in Hope rounded out an exceptionally enjoyable day.