Better late than never.

It was a long winter in the Pacific Northwest but I'm finally emerging from my seven month blogging hibernation. We didn't stop hiking when the weather turned last fall - we still did plenty of it in the rain and snow - I just lost momentum with writing up our hikes. (I remember sitting down to write after a solo hike along the Eagle Creek Trail a few days after the election but couldn't muster the energy or will to do so. And somehow that lack of will to write continued for months.) 

A lot has also changed in our lives since my last post on our trip to the Canadian Rockies. We are pregnant and due August 28! Lindsay is feeling good and the baby is moving a lot, which is exciting. We have also embarked on the journey of finding and buying a home. As a result, we've slowed down a bit with our weekend adventures and are focusing on preparing for these exciting, daunting life transitions. We still relish every opportunity to get outside and into the woods, even if it is less often.

Lindsay and I knew that early June would probably be our last opportunity to go backpacking before welcoming our new addition in August, so we jumped on it. We were looking for a relatively flat trail that was not too far from Portland. My brother Myles and his girlfriend Rosemary made a last minute decision to join us.

The Salmon River Trail is a true gem. Just a little over an hour from Portland, it is a super accessible trail that winds along the river through lush old growth forest. There are numerous areas along the river to camp. The trail climbs from the Salmon River a few miles to a bluff with multiple viewpoints of the Salmon River Gorge. The entire 33.5-mile river is a protected National Wild and Scenic River.