Don’t move!

Part 2 of our Columbia River Gorge winter hikes feature is the Eagle Creek trail! This is one of the most popular trails in the gorge due to its close proximity to downtown Portland and relative easiness. The trail gently slopes and you can pick how far you want to go – if you only make it to Punchbowl Falls, you’ll log 3.8 miles round trip. The furthest people tend to hike in a single day trip is Tunnel Falls, which would be a solid 12 miles round trip. You can go a total of 26.5 miles to Wattum lake, which people tend to turn into a multi-day backpacking trip to make it more doable. Any way you slice it, the Eagle Creek trail is a crowd-pleaser with a lot of options. But that being said…it should be noted that you’re not going to get very far on this trail in the dead of winter. Or at least, we didn’t.  Continue reading →

the view from a lookout along the Cape Horn Trail in the Columbia River Gorge.

This is part 1 of 3 of our favorite winter hikes in the Columbia River Gorge! This post covers the Cape Horn Trail. As far as PNW beauty goes, it’s hard to beat. The trail is a loop that runs a hair over 7 miles long with an elevation gain of 1350 ft. – moderate, but totally doable. It’s a newer trail with a lot of varied views, from deep woods to great lookout points to waterfalls to even some black sheep on the way back! Enjoy: Continue reading →