The Great Outdoors – Page 12 – Not Your Average Engineer

August 22, 2011July 1, 2020

Devils Lake at Night

Last Saturday, Dmitri and I went out to Devils Lake to spend the night in preparation for our South Sister summit attempt. Click through the image above for the full panorama effect.

We setup our camp in the woods across the road from the trail head. The main campground was already full and we didn’t feel like being around so many people anyway.

There was a creek just below our camp.

I don’t think anyone will be camping in the lake.

Dmitri drinking a beerski.

A 360 degree panorama from the top of a lava flow near Devils Lake. Mount Bachelor is to the right of center with snow on the top. The fading rays of light on the far left side of the photo are in the direction of Devils Lake.

Dmitri and me up on the lava flow. I climbed up there wearing flipflops while Dmitri had proper shoes. It’s impressive that I didn’t slice my feet open on those rocks.

My bivy sack setup. The air was very dry at Devils Lake. No condensation on the inside this time. I used some sticks to prop up the tie-down ropes a bit. That seemed to help, too.

August 20, 2011July 1, 2020

Old Growth Trail, Soap Creek, and Sushi with Melissa

Melissa and I went on a hike yesterday through the patch of old growth forest that the College of Forestry has built a trail through

Yeah, that’s a tree.

We stopped by the pond full of newts.

And then went on a drive down Soap Creek. It’s gorgeous out there this time of year.

Afterward we went for some sushi. The rainbow roll was my favorite on this sushi boat.

August 16, 2011July 1, 2020

Chip Ross, Dimple Hill, and McCulloch Peak in an Afternoon

This afternoon I went on what turned into a 15 mile hike from Chip Ross Park to Dimple Hill then onward to McCulloch Peak and finally terminating at Oak Creek when I ran out of light. Brent was kind enough to pick me up and take me back to my car. On the path between Chip Ross Park and Dimple Hill, I stumbled upon this rather large snake. No clue what species it is. The head didn’t look correct to be poisonous and there was no rattle. I still gave it a wide berth.

After reaching the top of Dimple Hill, I descended down the north face. This was the first time in a number of years that I had taken this route. It is still just as fun as the last time I did it.

A panorama from partway down the trail. Click for a much larger version.

On top of the false summit of McCulloch Peak. There is a gravel quarry operation just below me.

The real summit of McCulloch Peak. After taking this, I ran down the mountain to Oak Creek where Brent came and collected me. 15 miles in four hours is quite good. Next time maybe I will continue onward to Fitton Green and end up at Bald Hill.