Summer really starts right after the Fourth of July in Western Washington. We all know this. The weather for the coming three months will be the best of the year.
So, The Columbian’s Outdoors Department has compiled a summer bucket list. Here are a half dozen summer outings that need to be experienced to make a resume of a semi-serious outdoor enthusiast in Southwest Washington.
1. Catch a salmon
If there was ever a summer to go salmon fishing, this is it.
The ocean season off the Washington and northern Oregon coast is open now. The lower Columbia River is open through Sunday, then closes until Aug. 1.
A massive run of 1.6 million fall chinook is predicted to enter the Columbia this fall. That’s 26 percent more than the record of 1.26 million last year that resulted in harvest records from the lower Columbia through Hanford Reach.
Add to the chinook prediction a huge forecast of 964,000 coho destined for the Columbia.
Links to five ocean charter operators can be found online at ilwacofishingcharters.com. An ocean charter salmon fishing trip costs about $125 per person.
The best in-river salmon fishing will be Buoy 10, the lower 16 miles of the Columbia between Buoy No. 10 and Tongue Point east of Astoria, Ore., in mid-August.
But there also will be plenty of good fishing upstream of Tongue Point all the way to Bonneville Dam, particularly near the mouth of the Cowlitz River.
To find a fishing guide, simply type “Southwest Washington fishing guide” in to any search engine.
2. Raft the White Salmon River
Want three hours of almost non-stop fun? Taking a whitewater trip down the White Salmon River is the way to find it. The White Salmon offers far more whitewater in 8 miles than most rivers in twice the length.
Depending on water conditions, 10-foot-tall Husum Falls is raftable with the entire raft underwater for a second or so.
The White Salmon River also has some “new” water, the lower few miles made accessible with the removal of Condit Dam. The lower section offers some dramatic canyon scenery, although lacks some of the whitewater thrills of farther upstream.
At least a half dozen companies offer rafting trips on the White Salmon. A half trip costs about $60 to $65 per person.
3) Camp in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest
The Forest Service lists 43 campgrounds in the 1.3-million-acre Gifford Pinchot National Forest. The forest straddles the crest of the Cascades from the Columbia River and Mount Rainier National Park.
Some campgrounds are operated by the Forest Service, while a concessionaire operates most the larger and more popular camps.
Here are five suggestions for campground choices — four of these are for the amenities and one because it’s relatively close to the urban area.
o Takhlakh Lake — This is generally acclaimed as the most scenic campground in the Gifford Pinchot.
Takhlakh Lake is 33 acres and stocked with trout by the state Department of Fish and Wildlife. With Mount Adams towering above the lake and reflecting in its clear water, the location is a calendar-cover scene.
The campground has 46 single and seven double sites. A single site costs $18 per night. There is no water system here. It was removed years ago, so campers need to bring their own supply.
Besides the fishing in Takhlakh and other nearby lakes, there are many trails within 20 miles of the campground.
Reservations can be made by calling 1-877-444-6777 or online at www.recreation.gov.
o Walupt Lake — This campground is deep in the center of the Pinchot and takes about three hours of serious driving to get there.
Yet, it’s worth it.
Walupt Lake is 384 acres, second largest in the Gifford Pinchot. It has not stocked by the state, but has naturally reproducing rainbow and cutthroat trout. It’s a gorgeous lake.
The campground has 41 sites. Sixty percent of the sites can be reserved at 1-887-444-6777 or www.recreation.gov.
Two trails heading into the Goat Rocks Wilderness have trailheads at Walupt Lake.
o Forlorn Lakes — Twenty-five sites are scattered about on a series of small, but pretty, lakes west of Trout Lake. The lakes have fish, but the angling is not great.
The sites are available on a first-come basis for $10 per night. Goose Lake, which does have decent fishing, is only a few miles away. The trailhead for East Crater trail No. 48 also is nearby. The trail is the easiest route into Indian Heaven Wilderness.
o Lower Falls — The 43-site campground is adjacent to Lower Falls on the upper North Fork of the Lewis River. The falls are, arguably, the best in the Gifford Pinchot.
Sites cost $15 per night. Water is available. Lewis River trail No. 31, one the best in the forest, passes through Lower Falls campground. Hiking from the campground upstream for 3 miles provides views of three additional large waterfalls.
This location, along large river, is one of a cool locale during hot weather.
o Panther Creek — In the Wind River valley only 8 miles from Carson, this campground makes the list because it is close.
There are 33 sites.The campground was upgraded in 2010. Sixty percent of the sites are on the reservation system. Sites cost $18 per night.
The Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail passes through Panther Creek campground.
4) Hike in a wilderness area
This is the 50th anniversary of the 1964 Wilderness Act. To commemorate such an important piece of legislation, take a walk in one of the Gifford Pinchot National Forest’s seven wildernesses.
The wilderness areas all contain several trails and the best hiking opportunities in the forest. Free, self-issued permits are required and available at trailheads.
Indian Heaven and Trapper Creek wildernesses are the closest to Clark County.
Indian Heaven is a high plateau of almost 21,000 acres straddling the crest of the Cascade Mountains. It is dotted with small lakes and meadows — thus many mosquitoes until about mid-August.
However, the gentle terrain makes Indian Heaven a hiker’s dream.
Trapper Creek is almost 6,000 acres encompassing the drainage of an important tributary to the Wind River. It is steep and heavily forested.
Mount Adams Wilderness is 47,000 acres around Washington’s second tallest peak. It is a splendid place of forests, meadows, glaciers and a handful of small lakes. The moist west side of Washington and dry east side meet at Mount Adams. Often the weather at Mount Adams is sunny, when Western Washington is covered with clouds.
If Mount Adams is splendid, well, the Goat Rocks Wilderness is even better. It’s large — 108,000 acres — and offers exceptional ridgetop hiking on several trails. The Goat Rocks are the remnant of an ancient volcano. Although a bit a long drive from Vancouver, the Goat Rocks are worth the trip.
Three wildernesses — Glacier View, Tatoosh and William O. Douglas — are at the north end of the forest. Tatoosh and Glacier View are small, while William O. Douglas is shared with the Wenatchee-Okanogan national forest.
5) Pick some huckleberries
Around the first of August at the lower forest elevations, and closer to Labor Day up high, visitors will find the finest of free fruit — the huckleberry.
They may be small, but they are oh so tasty. It takes only a few to turn a muffin or a dish of vanilla ice cream into a treat.
Some years the huckleberry crop is dense, some years sparse. Crops have more to do with short-term weather patterns than soil, sunlight or shade. But look around a bit and there are always some to find.
In the Gifford Pinchot, three gallons of huckleberries a year can be picked without needing a commercial permit.
To start, there are the Sawtooth berry fields in the Mount Adams District near Indian Heaven Wilderness. A portion of the Sawtooth fields are reserved for Indians only.
Panther Creek road No. 65 west of Indian Heaven Wilderness often has plentiful berries in the forest clearcuts.
6) Visit a coastal park
Cape Disappointment State Park at Ilwaco is our favorite, but both the Washington and Oregon coasts are dotted with parks.
Cape Disappointment is 1,882 acres with ocean beach, two lighthouses and an interperative center. There’s a paved bicycle trail from Ilwaco to the north side of Long Beach.
The park has five primitive campsites, 137 standard sites, 60 sites with full hookups, 18 with just water and electricity, 14 yurts, three cabins and 14 showers.
The Long Beach Peninsula is a nice (as in flat) place to ride bicycles, especially on the Willapa Bay side near Oysterville.
In northern Oregon, there is the large and popular Fort Stevens State Park just outside Astoria plus Saddle Mountain, Ecola, Oswald West and others.
Fort Stevens is 4,200 acres including a historic shipwreck and historic military fort. It has 170 full-hookup camping sites, more than 300 sites with water, 15 yurts and 11 deluxe cabins.
