Lost in the Woods

Funny thing about GPS units, they tell you where you are, but not where you want to go....

I signed up for a 16 mile hike on Sunday with a guy whom I've done some longer and faster hikes this winter. Jeff is great; he knows navigation, he's very fit and he pays attention to the condition of the party. So I gather Nat and Dan for this hike (as conditioning for some of the climbs we want to do this summer). We meet in Portland and head of with Jeff and a few others. Laura works with Washington Search and Rescue and hike with Jeff a lot. Shortish and a really strong hiker, I like going on trips with her. Virginia and Shannon (a guy) are on the hike too. I've never met them but Jeff knows them and figures they're strong enough for the day ahead. And Tom is with us too; he's a great guy. He got me involved in leading hikes for the Mazamas.

We get to the trailhead and set up a car shuttle (the hike ends at a different trailhead than the start.) And we're off. We cruise up Defiance in just over four hours on the Starvation Ridge trail. About two hours in on the way up we put on our snowshoes and truck on in snowshoes until late in the afternoon. Most of our route Sunday is still snowbound. We had fantastic weather at the top of Defiance. I could see the Hood River valley and Mt Hood wreathed in some low clouds with the top poking through. Crystal clear sky over us. We met a couple of other Mazamas on top; chatted with them a while and ate lunch.

Jeff led us down a southeast ridge from the summit so we could work over to Green Point Mountain. We dipped down into the valley area between the mountains and wound our way past a few snow covered lakes. We started up a rise and decided we need to lose the snowshoes for a bit. The slope angle was about 35 degrees and a little steep for snowshoes. We took turned kicking steps up the slope and gained the ridge top and followed the ridge to the second summit of the day. We still had great weather and incredible views. The cookies I brought as a group snack were a big hit. I felt good. The weather was nice.

We started down off the summit and back the way we came for a little bit. We hit a trail junction (visible only as a large clearing in the trees) and headed off on a general heading on the plateau. We tromped along like this for another hour or so. The according to the maps and the GPS, it was time for us to descend a few hundred feet to gain the trail for the way out. We descend and hit a snowfield. No trail. Jeff seems puzzled. He consults with 2 gps units. He checks his maps. We start traversing across the ridge to intersect the trail. And we traverse. And we traverse. And light starts failing.

We hit the top of the ridge that has the trail we want. The trail is not in sight. We know it's to our west and below us. Somewhere. But the sunset just started and we're 3,000 feet above the trailhead. We move to the bottom of a snow covered rock field to lose 300 or 400 vertical feet fast while we have light and an open space. Jeff gathers us together. We make the decision to move into the trees in the dark and go downhill as much as possible without cliffing out somewhere. We take a quick group inventory; everyone has spare clothes, a space blanket, some sort of pad, extra food, a headlamp. Almost everyone in the group has cell phones. We make calls to wives and boyfriends and explain that we aren't lost, exactly, but that we will be delayed coming home. I call Dev and tell her the situation. First thing she says is "Oh God" quickly followed by "They're all Mazamas on the hike, right?" I know she'll be fine as soon as she says that.

We all pop on our headlamps and jump into the woods. We descend carefully in the darkening wood. Jeff moves pretty fast; he's good at this bushwacking thing. Over the next 2-3 hours we go down steadily except for one 60 or 100 foot drop. The slope gets steep and the dirt just slides when we put our feet in it. The vegetation doesn't work as an anchor or a handhold. So we move down this stretch carefully and slowly and one at a time. It feels like an hour goes by while the eight of us move down the slope. Some of us slide a little; some just sit down and slide a bit on their bums. We all make it safely down and regroup again. Jeff leads off one more time and within a very short time we find the trail. We're still about 1800 feet from the trailhead, but it's only 11:20 pm and I feel strong. We regroup again and then speed stumble our way down to the trailhead. Shannon, Virginia, Laura and Dan drive off to the Starvation creek trailhead to get the cars for the ride back to Portland. Tom, Nat, Jeff and I hang out for a short eternity at the Wyeth Campground trailhead. I pull my feet out of my boots for an almost orgasmic sense of relief. We bundle up during the wait since cold air from a creek blows through the parking lot. I doze a couple of times very shortly. I don't even know how long it takes for the cars to get back to us.

And just like that, my first adventure in being lost is done. Twenty one miles and 6600 vertical feet. Three GPS units and 5 maps. And a new pair of boots. Eight backpacks got home safely that morning.