Awarded the Phil and Debb Seal of Approval

A warm sunny day, a Friday off and these days you'll likely find me in Packwood, sitting outside at my favorite coffee shop having a morning pastry with my double-tall, perusing the maps and getting the GPS ready for more explorations into the Gifford-Pinchot National Forest.

I've been riding over Cayuse Pass to have a coffee or lunch here in Packwood for years, but lately its become a jumping off spot for further explorations into the wilderness on my '93 KLR650. There are miles and miles of forest roads and trails in the Gifford-Pinchot to explore. Check out some of the links below for more information and the location of a Ranger Station to learn more.

About a month ago, I came here and explored Forest Road (FR) 21 as far as I could. Near the 4000 foot level, snow blocked the road and any further progress, so I've been eager to come back when the weather and my schedule permitted. I hoped that by waiting a month most roads would be open, but it still a little too early for the highest roads to be free of snow just yet.

Friday is a good day for lots of reasons, not the least of which is any day in the woods is probably more fun than a day at work. Also, the Ranger Stations are open and its a chance to get the latest info on road conditions and what's open or not. Of course, its always less crowded than the weekends.

Looking south along FR23

So by 10, I've had my coffee, fired up the GPS, loaded my camera, figured out a route, checked in with the Rangers in Randle and am headed south toward FR23. I sure didn't expect so much of it to be paved. Nice twisties once you get past the fields and farms near Randle and the speeds pick up a bit.

There are several sections of this road that are just amazing. The trees completely overhang the road and on a bright day like today the patterns of light and shade are a photographers dream. I shot 20 or 30 pictures trying to capture the feeling of these sections. I probably could have shot 20 or 30 rolls.

There was another section of FR23 that at 40mph, was almost perfectly spaced left and right corners along the river. One-Thousand One, One-Thousand Two, push left; One-Thousand One, One-Thousand Two, push right. Repeat as necessary. If that doesn't make you feel good, nothing will.

East Canyon Creek

Just before the pavement ends you cross East Canyon Creek. What a delightful stream. Lots of water in it this time of year. You can walk right down to the water from the south side of the bridge.

Typical section of road in the National Forest

Once the pavement does end, the road is still quite good. There isn't much gravel, so its easy to stay in the car tracks and make good time. There are some washboards and a few potholes here and there, and in the bright sunshine and deep shade they can be hard to see. Be thankful for your long travel suspension. This road seems in pretty good shape though, so I suspect they must grade it at least once a season.

About 30 feet north of the Subaru
is where most of us stopped

By the time I got to where the snow blocked the road I was kind of disappointed that I hadn't seen Mount Adams yet. Most of FR23 runs along a stream or down in a canyon so there really aren't any spectacular views along this stretch. Oh well, the weather was just perfect and since FR21 was open I was going to see all that I missed on my earlier trip.

I wonder if these were struck by lightning

I took a break near the snow and started taking pictures of various trees and waterfalls that captured my attention. There is so much water running off the mountains, it seems amazing we could ever run out. Even hillsides that were bare of snow had large amounts of water running down them. What's left of the snow is melting fast this time of year.

You must take this road at least a little way...

Coming back along the road about three miles or so I turned up Squaw Creek Trail Road. Best decision I made all day. Just up from FR23 it makes a big right hand turn up the mountain and there in all its glory is Mount Adams! It is so close it almost takes your breath. On such a clear day as today it was just stunning. I took a couple dozen photos of it from as many different viewpoints as I could find.

and this view of Mount Adams is your reward!

I followed this road until it turned south and away from the mountain and then I turned back. I found a nice turnout with an unobstructed view of the mountain and decided this was lunch. I spent half an hour eating my trail mix and drinking lots of water and watching the chipmunks play hide and seek in the rocks. Very cool. I tried to coax the chipmunks with promises of nuts from the trail mix, but they weren't letting me get any nearer than 20 feet before they dove under cover.

Looking west from the Squaw Creek Trail Road

As I ate lunch, I watched several people ride by on the road below but no one looked up to see me waving or my bike parked in full view. They weren't going very fast either, but after I headed back down toward the junction with FR21, I never saw anyone else on a bike.

Looking west on FR21 surrounded by Lupin

The western end of FR21 is paved and in excellent shape. Even after the pavement ends, you can keep the pace up. There are one or two sections of pretty deep potholes, but they seem all grouped together so once past you're on your way again. There are some straight sections with excellent visibility where you can wick it up.

They smell like vanilla to me. Wonderful!

Almost all the paved section is one lane with turnouts. All along it the vegetation grows up right next to the pavement. In some sections the flowers and bushes are quite tall and you feel like you're driving down a canal of wild flowers.

I finally found something for a dirt bike

At first I thought no, but after a moments consideration I changed my mind. I wanted to go somewhere that not just anybody in a car would try. The sign said 6 miles to Mud Lake, but I could only go three before the snow blocked me again. But what a fun three miles! Lots of little water crossings to ford and plenty of small trees blocking the road to navigate around. Finally a decent dirt bike road! There were lots of deep gullies carved out by water runoff so anything on four wheels coming this way needed some serious ground clearance.

You can get through here, it easy!

Just past this section of snow and mud the fun ended. I'm sure thankful for some real dirt bike experience over the winter on my XR400. Just the thing you need for the confidence and skill to get past a stretch of mud and snow like this. Piece of cake! Coming back down was fun too!

Walupt Lake

The afternoon was getting along so I zipped eastbound, headed for where I had to stop on my last trip. I had set a waypoint on my GPS, so I was heading for it. This section along the 'top' of FR21 is a really nice stretch.

Just before descending the last 20 miles back down to US12, I took the turnoff for Walupt Lake. Its paved! Out here in the middle of nowhere. And what a road; nice switchbacks, good visibility and fairly smooth pavement. This 6 mile stretch is Highly Recommended. Whee!

The section of FR21 that descends back to US12 is the most heavily graveled of all I have ridden. Not sure why, but combined with the generally steep descent it is much more fun going uphill than down for me. At the valley overlook just before the highway there is a pleasant view of Mount Rainier I hadn't noticed last time because of the overcast. A welcome surprise.

It is 117 miles from my house in North Seattle to the Texaco station on the east end of Packwood. Normally it takes just over two hours. I rode west to Randle then to the end of FR23, backtracked to the junction of FR21 and then east and north back to US12. With detours up Mud Lake road and Walupt Lake road, I traveled 116 miles and used 2.5 gallons of gas. In Packwood I took a break, filled up the bike, called home and was back in my driveway by 7PM. All in all a very good day.

Maps

Waypoints

• Cowlitz Valley Ranger Station
  the official source for maps and info
  N 46.53395
  W121.93329
  
• End of the pavement on FR23
  N 46.30039
  W121.72448
  
• Where FR23 is blocked by snow
  elevation: 4130 feet
  N 46.27788
  W121.61070
  
• Intersection of FR23 and Squaw Creek Trail Road
  this road affords great views of Mount Adams
  N 46.28580
  W121.65280
  
• The junction of FR23 and FR21
  all paved here
  N 46.37146
  W121.72516
  
• End of pavement on FR21 eastbound
  N 46.35395
  W121.61798
  
• The road to Mud Lake blocked by snow here
  N 46.41026
  W121.58126
  
• The intersection of FR21 and the road to Mud Lake
  N 46.37891
  W121.56811
  
• The intersection of FR21 and US12
  this is two miles west of Packwood just west of a bridge
  N 46.57311
  W121.69613
  
• Gourmet Cup and Bistro in Packwood
  my recommendation for coffee in Packwood
  N 46.60653
  W121.67045
  

Links

The Gifford Pinchot National Forest is full of dual sport riding areas, as well as quite a lot of dirtbike trails. Check out their website at:

http://www.fs.fed.us/gpnf/

The Recreation Report with current road and trail conditions is here. Also the phone numbers and hours of the Ranger Stations:

http://www.fs.fed.us/gpnf/recreation2002/current/roads-report.shtml

And here is a nicely detailed description of the off road trails with pictures:

http://www.fs.fed.us/gpnf/biking/trailbike_riding2.htm