Hike #1 - Ape Canyon (Last Hiked: 10/26/2013)

Ape Canyon plus hike onto Plains of Abraham
Walk up old growth ridge to plains of Abraham.  Continue on to the Plains of Abraham for as far as you like.
The Details
Miles:  16
Elevation Gain: 3930
To Trail-head: Drive to Cougar WA, then Rd 83 to the trail-head
Season: Summer through October
Link to route map and GPS
Link(s) to other trail descriptions:

• Paul Gerald (60 Hikes)
• Portland Hikers Field Guide

My Experience
Woke up at 5 am and drove up to Ape Canyon trail head before sunrise.  To my surprise there was a car in the parking lot and a pair of headlamps making their way up the ridge.  About a mile into my hike the sun came up creating a stunning alpenglow over St. Helens.  The fall color was amazing but the peak colors were probably 1 week ago.  I cursed all the downhills but was thrilled to be adding to my total elevation gain as I headed back up the ridge once more.  At about 6 miles you reach the Ape Canyon viewpoint itself and just a little further on you arrive at the junction with Loowit trail which travels all the way around the mountain.  Feeling good I decided to continue up onto the Plains of Abraham to the junction with Abraham trail.  Was so fascinated by the Pyroclastic "bombs" that dot the surface of the plain that I almost did not notice the mountain goat making a parallel hike to mine.  Enjoying the solace the mountain solitude was providing me; I felt I could have continued hiking all the way around the mountain if I had the time.  But ultimately my watch beeped and let me know that I had been hiking for nearly 3 hours and 8 miles and it was time to turn around.  I did a slow but heart rate elevating trail run back to the car (16 miles, 5 hours in total) greeting all the mountain bikers making their way up.  Feels good to have an epic hike completed by the noon hour.

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The End / The Beginning

If all goes to plan this weekend I will be taking my 52nd hike since I conceived the "52 Hikes" concept.  In 2010 the day after my 34th birthday I was reflecting on how great it felt to complete the long and strenuous hike to the top of Larch Mountain.  If I kept up that pace for 52 hikes in a row I would surely lose the extra 52 lbs i had gained since college while also documenting my journey.

As in life, the 52 hikes journey has been full of ups and downs.   In 2010 the 3 hikes after Larch Mountain ended with a broken into car, a hurt leg and the first and worst blisters of my life.  In 2011 I ended up hiking 24 times including the most memorable hike of my life Munra Point.  In 2012 I had full intentions to continue the journey but my leg gave out (hernia) and I made it an excuse to give up after just 2 hikes.  This year, shortly after my 37th birthday and an 18 month hiatus from hiking I decided it was time to stop making excuses.  I had gained nearly 30 lbs, missed hiking tremendously and was just tired of being tired.

I walked to the end of our street, probably no more than a quarter mile and had to call Isobel to come pick me up.  From there I tried a few small hikes (around 2 miles) walking VERY slowly.  Things started to change on Herman Creek when I discovered that if I could make it past a few miles the endorphins kicked in and the pain in my leg was manageable....too much advil helped too.   By mid-summer I found myself hiking 15 to 18 miles on the Wildwood trail and over the past two weekends I earned nearly 8000 ft of up and 24 miles in the Columbia River Gorge.  So 52 Hikes, is coming to an end.

But this is just the beginning.  I will post my next 52 hikes

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