Pacific Northwest Trail

I came across a hike for anyone wanting to experience the Northwest. It's called the Pacific Northwest Trail.

The Pacific Northwest Trail stretches 1,200 miles, between Washington and Montana and was designated in 2009.

The trail begins in the Olympic National Park in Washington and ends in Glacier National Park in Montana.

Being so new, the trail doesn't have a "designated" route yet and hikers must navigate forest trails, highways, logging roads, city streets and even a ferry.

According to an article by Terry Richard of the Oregonian, it will take years -- perhaps decades -- before a formal route is surveyed and marked.

But just how many years could that be? Richards says in his article that, trails are works in progress. As an example, the Pacific Crest Trail was conceived in 1932, designated by Congress in 1968 and officially completed in 1993. Even now, the trail gets rerouted as storms damage sections, or as land ownership issues are resolved.

Imagine the views that you will have though. From the coast of Washington to the Rocky Mountains. All with desert, forests and rivers in between.

The Portland office of the U.S. Forest Service has been charged with the task to coordinate official designation of the route. I'll keep you updated as the route is designed.

Northwest is very bicycle friendly

Bicycle Magazine released their list of the top 50 bike-friendly cities in the United States and the Pacific Northwest dominated the list with three of the top five!

Ranking in the top 50 were:

Portland, OR #2

• Innovative programs, from designated bike-only areas at traffic signals to free bike lights, make riding in Portland practical even for new cyclists.

Seattle, WA #4

• Seattle has a 10-year, $240-million bike master plan that seeks to triple the number of journeys made by bike and add 450 miles of bike paths.

Eugene, OR #5

• Ample bike parking, lit bike paths and the Smart Ways to School program are just three of Eugene’s cycling-friendly characteristics.

Salem, OR #19

• In a region that includes Portland, Eugene, Seattle and other cycling hotbeds, Salem is sometimes forgotten—but the city of 152,000 has 60 percent of its arterial roads accommodating cyclists, so it certainly holds its own.

You can view an interactive map and the full list by going here.

(This is from Just Northwest)

Outdoor Photo of the Week: A Northwest Fall

This picture was taken 10/21/09 at a pumpkin patch in Everett. Photo by Lindsay W./Covington, WA.

*JustSON Note: We think this really shows fall in the Pacific Northwest. We personally love the wheelbarrows all lined up. Thanks for sharing!

Click on the photo to make it larger.

Think you've got a great outdoor photo? Want to see it hosted on Just South of North? Send your submissions to justsouthofnorth@gmail.com.

Please include your name, a short caption about the photo (date, location, and what makes it special) and your location.

Check back each Sunday for a new Outdoor Photo of the Week.

Hiking in High Winds

For anyone who pays attention to the blog and saw the video yesterday posted by Casey you may have noticed that it was sort of windy yesterday in the Pacific Northwest and up on Mount Si. I always figured that in high winds while hiking you would have to watch out for falling branches or trees and of course if you were near a cliff not to get blown off.

Another risk that came to mind was the possibility of getting crushed by a boulder. When Casey and I were on our way up the mountain we heard something in the distance which sounded like thunder. When we came back down we saw this in the trail:

As the wind was blowing and the trees were swaying it appears that the base of the tree moved enough to dislodge a large rock from here:

The rest of the rock ended up on the other side of the trail here:

If we had come down the trail about 15 or 20 minutes sooner than we had you may have been able to see one or both of us squished by the rocks. So I learned something yesterday about hiking in high wind and that's to not do it. Just thought I'd pass the friendly reminder along to beware of more than just falling of cliffs and getting smashed by falling trees and or branches. Have a good Tuesday everyone!!