Elevation Gain: Around 1500 ft.
Time: 11:00 am - 4:00 pm
Weather: Cool, overcast, and rainy but with long, sustained sun-breaks.
This was a great hike. It was one of those classic Pacific Northwest fall days. The weather people claimed it is going to be raining all morning and raining off and on in the afternoon. So when I woke up, I started to psyche myself up for rain. I got up early, and due to the time change, it was still dark. As I showered, dressed, and packed, I noticed the sunlight coming in through the windows. It was a glorious morning. The clouds had parted and I thought we were going to have a perfect day for a hike.
I say "we" because this was the first hike of an outdoor club I helped start at work. Most of you readers know me personally, for those that do not I am a high school teacher. My school has a great outdoor education program which gets kids out in the backcountry and is responsible for giving me this outlet for expressing my love of nature. There were five of us for this hike, two teachers (including me) and three students. We set out from the trailhead right at 11:00 am.
The trail set out along the Wallace river and climbs up to three distinct waterfalls. All three have spectacular features, but the middle falls are jaw dropping in their towering majesty. Took great photos and had great conversations as we climbed up and up. The hike to the upper falls took about an hour and a half. We continued on outside the state park to Wallace Lake. The hike was along an old road, so we were all able to walk together. It had stopped raining, and the sun came out. We walked along the road and when it came to an injunction we stopped and had lunch in the sun.
We continued on to Wallace Lake. Had a good shot of the lake through the trees, and then we continued on back to the trailhead. Soon after the lake we came back to a trail. The trails on this hike were great. Lots of fun, and some good elevation gain and loss. We took a ton of pictures, which are already helping me relive the hike. So lovely.
Orchid: Maintaining a good pace throughout the hike.
Onion: No low point, a grumpy old man claimed we ruined the light for his photo. But that was more funny for me.
Picture:
Google Map
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