B10 The BulleTin • Friday, July 23, 2021
TOP PICKS
WHERE TO EXPLORE
Areas south of Bend
Crater Rim — The moderate 19.5-mile trail travels around the rim of the
caldera of Newberry Volcano. Traveling counter clockwise from the Paulina
Lake Trailhead, bikers and hikers will climb towards Paulina Peak and beyond
to see stunning views of the entire national monument that the volcano is
a part of. With fun downhill sections, the trail is currently clear of snow and
deadfall (though that can change), so now is a great time to check it out.
Big Obsidian Flow — An easy hike that is just over a half-mile can be
too hot for midday walks, but during cooler days and morning explora-
tion, Big Obsidian flow is an interesting bit of trail. The flow is the young-
est of its kind in the state clocking in at a spritely 1300 years old, so the
trail can still be a bit of a scramble and offers stunning examples of ob-
sidian. Remember, foraging rocks within the Newberry National Monu-
ment is illegal so take only pictures.
Wake Butte — The eroded tuff ring from the Pliocene age has left Wake
Butte looking more like something you’d see in the southwest than
among a thick ponderosa pine forest. The moderate 0.9-mile trail trav-
els steeply uphill to the top of the layered-rock butte that offers great
views of the forest and hills beyond plus views of Mt. Bachelor and Broken
Top to the northwest.
— Makenzie Whittle, The Bulletin
Eric Morton, left, and Michel Waller, both of Bend, soak in the
views of East Lake and Paulina Peak while riding the Newberry
Crater Rim Loop trail. Mark Morical/Bulletin file
Gorge
Continued from B1
Mark Morical/The Bulletin
Coopey Falls is along the Angel’s Rest Trail in the Columbia River Gorge.
The trail started out in the
shade of a lush green forest.
The bases of some large Doug-
las firs showed scorch marks
from the 2017 Eagle Creek fire,
which burned over much of
the trail’s route.
Due to its proximity to
Portland, Angel’s Rest is a
popular trail, and on this
day, a federal holiday observ-
ing July 4, it was noticeably
crowded.
As we yielded to descending
hikers and let some others by,
we passed two waterfalls: 150-
foot Coopey Falls and smaller
Upper Coopey Falls.
The trail continued along
switchbacks up and up, and
soon we were out of the forest
canopy and feeling the heat of
the sun on the exposed path.
At one point, when we knew
we were close to the top, Cindy
looked straight up to the top of
the bluff.
“We’re going up there?!” she
lamented.
I shared some of her dis-
may but kept it to myself. But
the switchbacks made the
climb doable and not terribly
challenging.
We even saw several small
children making the ascent
with their parents.
As we neared the summit,
we negotiated several rocky
areas and the Columbia River
appeared far below, wind-
ing its way toward the Pacific
Ocean.
At the top, a long, rocky
perch was surrounded by cliffs
and offered an impressive pan-
oramic view. Just across the
river on the Washington side,
we could see Beacon Rock,
Larch Mountain and Silver
Star Mountain. To the west, the
river flowed impressively to
Sand Island and toward Port-
land.
We took in the views and
snapped photos along with
dozens of other hikers.
As we descended the trail,
we were relieved to return to
the shade of the forest on the
hot afternoon. Predictably,
the trip down was much faster
than the trip up, and we com-
pleted the entire trek in about
three hours. It was the perfect
amount of hiking on a perfect
summer day in the Columbia
River Gorge.
Other hikes in the
Columbia River Gorge
Multnomah Falls: The most
popular hike in the Gorge be-
gins at Multnomah Falls, Or-
egon’s tallest waterfall at 620
feet. The paved trail crosses a
few scenic bridges then climbs
to an overlook at the top of the
falls. The loop, 5 miles with
1,600 feet of elevation gain,
continues on Larch Mountain
Trail and to Wahkeena Falls, a
moss-covered 242-foot falls.
Dog Mountain Trail: Lo-
cated on the Washington side
west of White Salmon, this
hike is known for its wild-
flower displays in May and
June, but the views across the
Gorge make it popular all
year long. The Dog Moun-
tain Trail climbs 2,820 feet in
only 3 miles, making it quite
challenging. The trail returns
back down 3.8 miles on Aug-
spurger Mountain Trail. The
Veteran, Locally Owned & Operated
total hike is 6.8 miles.
Latourell Falls: Located
in Guy W. Talbot State Park,
this trail offers picturesque
bridges, deep forest and the
249-foot Latourell Falls, as
well as a second double-tiered
falls. The main falls can be
seen from the parking area.
A short hike leads to the base
of the falls and continues on
a 2.4-mile loop to Upper La-
tourell Falls and then back
down.
Cape Horn: Just east of Van-
couver on the Washington side
of the Gorge, this trek includes
a high bluff that has stunning
views and a forest of big-leaf
maples. The hike is 7 miles
round-trip and climbs 1,630
feet, making it difficult. The
trail begins off Salmon Falls
Road and leads to a forested
summit area, before descend-
ing to an underpass below
Washington’s state Highway 14.
The lower section of the trail
features 2 miles of waterfalls
and views of the Columbia
River.
e
Reporter: 541-383-0318,
mmorical@bendbulletin.com
CCB# 133106
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