Timberline Trail 2024
Day #1 - 8/5/24
Daily Miles - 41.72
Total Miles - 41.72
Daily Elevation Gained - 9929 ft
Daily Elevation Lost - 9837 ft
I camped last night about .2 up the hill in front of Timberline Lodge with a ton of other people. Most were probably PCT Thru-Hikers of some sort. A little after 1AM I was woken by an extremely violent thunder and lightning storm. For almost the next three hours the sky boomed and my tent lit up. The storm seemed to circle around me and then back right over me. When my 3:30AM alarm went off, the storm was still going on. After another 45 minutes or so, the last of the lightning was over and I could see stars. I packed up, walked back to my car and got on my running vest. Temperatures were in the 50s, quite comfortable for running. By about 4:45AM I was on the Timberline Loop Trail. I truly have no idea how long this will take me, but I’m confident I can finish. Walking by headlight with the shadow of the mountain above is spectacular.
The loop trail was somewhere between 39 and 42 miles on your exact route. I hit my watch and got started. The first couple miles were in the dark downhill and through sandy like conditions. White River was my first crossing and it was still pitch black so finding somewhere suitable where I didn’t have to take off my shoes was quite challenging. It took a while.
About an hour later my headlight was put away and I was cruising.
I hit the high point of the trail around 8:30AM and started downhill towards Copper Spur Campground.
I filled up from the tap there and then continued on towards Elliot Creek. I had heard this crossing was a challenge with possibly some logs tied together and a rope on the far side to pull yourself up the sandy cliff. All the information was correct. The walk across the logs was quite easy and the rope easy to find and use. Over the next hour, I crossed in and out of an old burn zone and over many creeks. They were all small rock hops. Eventually, I got to Coe Creek. This was a creek that many hikers I’d passed had told me to be careful on. I ended up finding a pretty easy rock hop through the violent torrent of water. But immediately after crossing realized that crossing it backpacking, the other direction, was going to be the real challenge.
A bit later I got to Elk Cove and the campsites around it where I’d be staying in a few nights with the boys. For the second time I took off my running pack, filtered water, and filled my 1 liter hydration pack on my back and the two 500 ml bags on my front. The one on my back was just pure water. One of the ones on the front was packed with electrolytes while the other was packed with Hammer nutrition and lots of calories. I had some solid food with me as well but counting on the liquid calories to sustain me.
Miles 16 through 22 passed by pretty uneventfully. I felt good through this hot section and was able to run rather than “power hike“ much of the time. That all changed around mile 24 when I hit a section with many more blow downs than I could count. Some I had to go over while others I had to go under and because of this, there was no running, or rhythm, to be had. It was at this point for the first time that I started to worry that I wouldn’t get back to Timberline Lodge early enough to be able to eat dinner from the dining room. I did some quick math and things didn’t look good. After what felt like forever, I passed through the blowdown section and ended up at Ramona Falls. This is where I would be the following night, on the first night of my clockwise backpacking trip with the boys. Ramona Falls is a stunning area like no other part of the Timberline Trail. It’s a very wet environment and hosts ferns and rhododendrons found nowhere else on the trail. It also marked the last 11 or so miles of my loop. This 11 miles started the beginning of what, at times, would feel like an endless push uphill. At about mile 35 I realized that I was just gonna be too close to the dining room closing time so I found a bend on the trail which was exposed and looked like it might have cell service. I flipped my phone out of airplane mode and called the Cascade Lodge dining room. My hope was to place a to-go order and make it there to pick up as they closed. I was told two things. One - they didn’t take to-go orders unless you were there in person, and Two - the restaurant was open a half hour later than I had been told. This was the buffer I needed.
With about 6 miles left I gave it everything I had to make the best time I could. While running I thought a lot about my second concern, which was a shower. The day before I made a reservation at the Timberline Lodge for one of the bunk rooms. Their bunk rooms are blocks of rooms that are private, but they share a common bathroom. My fear was that when I got to my room, the line for the shower would be too long and I wouldn’t be able to get clean to fully enjoy my dinner. I tried to put this out of my mind knowing things would just work out. Mile 37 on was almost all uphill and extremely difficult. I was spent and really in need of solid food.
Pushing my very hardest, I reached the end of my loop at mile 41.72 at 7:20PM.
I walked straight to the check-in desk and was greeted by a very kind girl. In the five minutes from finishing the trip to approaching the desk, I decided I’d ask if a queen room with a private bath was available. Knowing this would cost me substantially more, it would be worth it for a quick shower and many more showers later. When I asked, she responded that she had a room with two twins, and a private bath that she could give me for the same price I was paying for the bunk room and a shared bath. I was exhausted and ecstatic. I made my way to my room, stripped off all my gross gear and clothes, and hopped in the shower. It was glorious. Afterwards, I went down to the main Cascade Dining room and had a wonderful dinner with a beer.
I’ve been told that there was a washer and dryer, singular washer and singular dryer, available to guests. When I got back to my room, it was nearly 10 o’clock, and I decided that it probably would be better to do my laundry the next morning.
Day #2 - 8/6/24
Daily Miles - 9.6
Total Miles - 9.6
Daily Elevation Gained - 945 ft
Daily Elevation Lost - 3625 ft
I slept well until about 3AM and woke up completely wide awake and couldn’t immediately fall back asleep. I took a very hot shower, laid back down and fell asleep till just before my alarm was going to go off at 6:30AM. I threw on some clothes and walked to the washer and dryer, which was empty, and threw in my load from my trail run. Then went back to my room and repacked all of my gear to be ready for the backpacking trip. I took a break in the middle to switch my laundry from the washer to the dryer and then took some things down to the car in the interim. Once my laundry was dry, I brought it back to my room and headed down to the famous Timberline Lodge breakfast buffet. When I made my reservation for the Timberline Lodge, I was hoping they had the same special as July which was rooms half off, but instead they had a $75 food credit with your room. This would make my dinner and my breakfast completely free. I ate as much food as I could at the buffet in a very slow manner. Seated at one of the lodge windows I was able to watch the sky grow brighter as the morning grew later. When finished, I had plenty of time to go back to my room and lay down for a bit before the boys showed up.
At about 9:45AM I got dressed after my final shower, walked to the parking lot and drove to the overflow area to meet my backpacking buddies (Jason, Jeff & Ben).
We got on the trail about 10:30AM with a goal of hiking about 10 miles to Ramona Falls. The boys didn’t know about my trail run so I took the opportunity to share about it and all the knowledge I’d learned about the trail while running. The hike to Ramona Falls was beautiful. I was able to appreciate it in a completely different way than the night before. Most of the 10 miles were downhill. There were some short uphill sections with plenty of available water. We chose to camp about a half a mile before Ramona Falls. We arrived just before 4PM, set up camp and all laid down in our tents for a short nap. Naps were followed by sitting around having fun conversations and later making dinner. A very enjoyable day one and evening.
Day #3 - 8/7/24
Daily Miles - 24.30
Total Miles - 9.6
Daily Elevation Gained - 3986 ft
Daily Elevation Lost - 1982 ft
Woke up at 6AM with a plan to be out by 7AM. I was the first one done and told them I’d meet them at half a mile up trail at Ramona Falls. I got there about 15 minutes before they arrived and had the entire area to myself. It was very serene and relaxing.
Twelve hours earlier when I was there, there were probably 20 to 25 day hikers and backpackers. It was a much different scene. A little while later, the boys arrived and we got going. The next section was the blowdown area. This time I’d be going uphill with a backpack. Surprisingly it was much less frustrating and “easier.”
Moving at a slow pace, only having a couple miles under my belt for the day and not being stressed about the end of the day all made for a very different experience. Later in the day, I met a gentleman who suggested I take a different route. The McNeil Point Trail and rock Shelter were stunning. It climbed up about 800 feet above the Timberline Trail and some of the prettiest areas I’ve seen yet. The boys were waiting for me where my trail met the Timberline Trail. The rest of the afternoon continued through a burn zone with very little shade. Luckily, there was a slight breeze which, the majority of the time, kept the temperature down and the persistent flies away. I got ahead of the group again and was just going to hike on to the Elk Cove campsite to find a good spot big enough for four.
I ended up finding a spot that was great for the group, but just for a few minutes lost the group. They had taken a side trail looking for a campsite as well. I hooked back up with them and we hiked up to the trail and dropped our packs. We walked the short distance back to the creek to filter and fill all our water containers and then walked the .2 or .3/10ths of a mile to our campsite. After some rest we visited, made dinner, visited some more and went to bed.
Day #4 - 8/8/24
Daily Miles - 12.79
Total Miles - 37.09
Daily Elevation Gained - 2972 ft
Daily Elevation Lost - 3061 ft
Had a great night of sleep and got up at 6AM for a 7AM departure. We left as a group and mostly stayed together until we crossed the Coe Creek together. We hiked together on and off until we got to the Elliot Creek Crossing. I pointed out where the rope was, and we all made our way down to the logs that were tied together to cross. It worked out well with no incident. Next would be the biggest climb to the highest point with some of the best views. A very enjoyable trail section.
The climb was indeed long and enjoyable. I hiked alone to the high point and then with Ben to our campsite at Newton Creek. On the way, we passed two women with two kids. Ironically, three days earlier, I’d seen these four camped and suffering a bit. They were back on the trail and almost done with the loop. The kids were 8 and 5. Amazing.
We got to the Newton Creek campsite, crossed the creek and found a nice spot away from the river and other campers. Our last night was a mellow one. Some conversation, snacks and food. We were in our tents by about 8. Looking for an early start again as we have 7.4 miles left.
Day #5 - 8/9/24
Daily Miles - 7.87
Total Miles - 44.96
Daily Elevation Gained - 2073 ft
Daily Elevation Lost - 1614 ft
Another wonderful night sleep in the backcountry. As I wake up on my last summer break backcountry morning, I’m reflecting on what an amazing summer I’ve had. Starting just days after my school year ended, I flew to Vermont and spent 16 days in that beautiful state walking fromMassachusetts to Canada with a stop in Stowe to run my first 50k. It was the most challenging hike of my life. Along the way I met people and formed friendships that I’ll be forever grateful for. Immediately afterwards, the two most important people in the world flew across the country and our family spent just over 2 weeks on vacation, first with family then throughout the beauty of New England and onward to one of my dearest friends on earth’s camp in northern Maine. We finished by making our way down the Atlantic coast enjoying the air, the food and the time together.
We flew home where I spent about a week getting caught up on front country responsibilities and also catching up with my closest friends. I then made the long drive to Washington and Mt. Rainier where I spent 5 glorious days on the Wonderland Trail in a completely different environment than I’d been in all summer. The weather, views, flora, fauna and people were amazing. Unlike a similar trip around the mountain 19 years earlier, it didn’t rain once.
From there, I drove south into Oregon and to Mt. Hood. I spend a night in my tent in an incredible lighting and thunderstorm before setting off to complete the longest trail run of my life. Forty-one miles around Mt. Hood on the Timberline Trail threw every obstacle possible at me. It was amazing. I was lucky enough to stay at the historic Timberline Lodge for the night before my good friends, and a new friend, showed up the next morning for our 4 day relaxing hike around the mountain in the opposite direction of my run. Again, amazing.
It’s not lost on me just how lucky I am. Lucky to have summers off. Lucky to have the means to adventure like this. Lucky to be in the physical shape to not only attempt, but succeed and enjoy my time in nature. And lucky to have a family that supports my wild adventures.
