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Hamilton Mountain,
Columbia River Gorge |
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Pretty blue skies were all that were seen on our way out to Hamilton Mountain. Hamilton is a mountain with a rather modest summit of 2488 feet. At the parking lot, there were a lot of smiles to go around. Bob was practicing some kind of navigation, but I was too busy staring at the blue skies overhead.
The trail started out rather steep, like Dog Mountain's hike, but soon petered out into a gentle climb. In and out of the forest bands we climbed. With the many viewpoints that are available on this hike, it is hard to get too bored by the forested sections.
Within the first couple miles there are many waterfalls to stop and look at along the trail. The seem to flow year-round but are most impressive, I was told, in the springtime.
The views on this day were simply spectacular. I could easily make out Beacon Rock, a 848 foot prehistoric volcanic plug.
The views of the Bonneville Dam were amazing. The entire complex was visible and high water level made for a very dramatic picture.
At the top we rested only for a few moments, just long enough to take some summit snapshots.
Bob was happy this day as the weather proved excellent. With cheers between us, we set off on back to the car. Full Sail brewery was opening soon and we could not pass it up on a day like this. The thought of lounging, sipping microbrew, and having a solid, home grilled angus burger was luring us in a hurried way back to the car.
A quick shot of Table Mountain and the route to the summit. You cannot see it from this angle from any drivable spot. From the road, the mountain is only seen as a pyramid, the route hidden behind it's girth.
As we were blazing away with the camera, one shot caught our eye. With Table Mountain behind me, complete with Mt. Adams, I was content and ready to beat-feet back to the car.
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