B2
THE ASTORIAN • SATURDAY, MARCH 21, 2020
OSU Extension Service | Clatsop County
Watch the Hatch!
Ron Baldwin
The logging road to Bear Mountain.
Bear Mountain: Summit
is not what writer expected
Continued from Page B1
source of information for
aerial photos and ownership
information is pacifi cwa.
mapsifter.com , provided by
the Pacifi c County Asses-
sor’s O ffi ce.
Most cultures have had
a time in which mountains
were perceived as being
imbued with spirits. Over
the years of peering at this
silent sentinel I have come to
sympathize with this concept
so it was not without some
trepidation that I approached
the road head this spring.
The logging road here
deserves mention. It is not
a new road but one that has
been upgraded to haul out
the logs that were harvested
recently in the most effi -
cient and expeditious man-
ner. This is a road that was
put here to stay.
The road roughly paral-
lels state Route 401 for the
fi rst mile while gaining only
a few feet in elevation until
you come to the base of Bear
Mountain. From this van-
tage point it is easier to see
the lay of the land and how
the 1,014 foot mountain fi ts
into the landscape.
Both sides of the road
have been logged recently.
At the base of the mountain
the road begins to ascend
rapidly around the north
side. Hemlocks, possibly
40 to 70 years old, stand
straight on both sides.
The road continues to
wind upward around the
steep slope in haunted-castle
fashion until it approaches
the top without a view,
owing to the tree cover.
As I approach, I’m treated
to a chorus of screeching
from a fl ock of shiny blue
Steller’s jays, their black
heads bobbing from every
tree limb around. These
birds don’t want me around.
After a few minutes they
calm down a bit and I start
to look around. In a fl ash, the
jays have gone. It becomes
exceedingly quiet .
The summit is not what I
expected. There is no view.
Like most hikers, I pre-
fer a reward, but this time
to no avail. Instead of the
depression or caldera that
I expected, the summit is a
sharp, narrow ridge about
200 yards long.
A clearing along the
ridge affords a roadbed.
Although things have prob-
ably changed here in 60 mil-
lion years or so, there is no
indication that this has been
a volcanic vent. I am disap-
pointed, if not crestfallen
that reality has not fulfi lled
my hopeful imagination.
At least the mystic powers
could have come up with
even a small castle and a few
witches and hobgoblins.
Ron Baldwin is a musi-
cian, photographer and
writer living in Chinook,
Washington.
Follow the OSU Extension
Chick-Cam
Expected hatch date is April 1 st , No Joke! but follow
the live streaming chick-cam starting March 27 th to
learn about egg hatching and the brooding of baby
chicks. Fun for the entire family!
www.extension.oregonstate.edu/Clatsop
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