On a beautiful, warm early May Sunday I hiked the Augspurger/Dog Mountain loop in the direction recommended by Art Kruckeberg's "Wildflower Hikes Washington" and was amply rewarded. This was the perfect route for me: I always like some balance of solitude and cheer, I don't do well hiking uphill in the heat, and I'm always entertained by flower hunting (though note without the patience to develop good identification skills). When I went to use the Dog Mountain trailhead restroom, 100 yards up the trail, I saw so many people headed up the trail that I turned around and went up the signed Augspurger trail. This trail served up a dish of peace and quiet, with only a handful of hikers coming downhill as I reached the top. The shade afforded by trees and a slight breeze kept me comfortable all the way. It was cool as I gained elevation in forest on good tread. There appeared to be an awful lot of poison oak plants waiting to grab me, if I got the trailhead picture right. After awhile, I developed that momentary "did I leave the lights on in the car" panic, only it was "I think I brushed poison oak" (and no, I didn't). The forest floor was rich with flowers: yellow spikes of low or creeping Oregon grape, soft white of woodland strawberry, a few triliums farther up, a few fairyslipper and lovely fairybells. Fringecup, vanilla leaf, and star-flowered Solomon's seal. A shrub with a froth of white flower spikes (looked like Ceanothus). Even a few paintbrush and pretty yellow violet. The trail comes out of the forest at a junction with Dog Mountain trail. I went right at the junction and kept going up in increasingly thinner forest, finally reaching the flower gardens and open slopes of Dog Mountain. And here I got my company- lots of sweaty, smiling folks and happy, toasty dogs. The views were fabulous- Mt. St. Helens lovely in snow, sweeping views up and down the Columbia River Gorge, the cap of Hood peeking out over the Oregon side ridge. Flowers were resplendent and gorgeous- purple larkspur and lupine, a little ballhead waterleaf, balsamroot, buttercup, and lovely little checker lilies. I ate lunch sitting by a side trail at the top, listening to the laughter and happy chatter of dozens of happy hikers also taking a break. Then downhill, on the steep Dog Mountain trail. It was not too crowded, with one of the several hikers I saw an older teenage boy with a decent camera stopping along the way to get down on his knees- and take flower pictures! I sustained a few mild blisters due to the toe-jamming elevation loss. I highly commend the smart people who brought ski poles-they're a real benefit to the knees on trails this steep. All in all, one of my new favorite loops in the Gorge- will put it on the calendar for a weekend of flower hikes next year.

It was a glorious day on the gorge. We got to the parking lot of Dog Mountain at 8:10Am, there were only 2 other cars on the parking lot. We started the hike at around 8:30AM. We headed towards dog mountain, we followed the trail on the right, this one is the exterior trail, so we got beautiful views of the gorge. We even sat for a quick bite on the bench and enjoyed the views. The trail was in great condition. Beautiful flowers blooming all around, absolutely gorgeous. After we submitted Dog, we went through the Augspurger trail to summit Augspurger Mountain. This part of the trail was heavely overgrown in some areas. We did pass an area where some blowdowns had been cut and moved away from the trail. Thank you so much!!!! We reached an old mining road?, and here things got a little dicey. This part of the trail was unmarked and little difficult to follow, we went the wrong way and had to backtrack. We enjoyed complete solitude, everyone else was left behind at Dog, and we didnt see anyone else until we were back at the intersection with Dog trail. Here are some directions so you know where to go.... Starting at the Dog Mountain Trailhead, take the dog mountain trail on the right,follow the trail till you come to an intersection to the summit of Dog, (if you want to summit dog continue, this will only add .4 miles to your trip). (if you do not want to summit then follow the trail on the left this is the Augspurger trail). From the summit of Dog, go back down and there will be a trail on your right about .2 of a mile down, this is the Augspurger trail follow it till you reach an interesection, one will take you back to the car, and the other says Augspurger trail. Keep to the right to stay on the Augspurger Trail and go downhill on a smaller, brushy path into a basin. After .6 miles, the trail intersects with an old road. Take a right and head uphill another .6 miles, continuing straight through a four-way junction. When the road takes a hairpin left turn, look for some pink ribbons and a faint trail to your right. Continue on the Augspurger Trail as it climbs and switchbacks through the woods for 1.1 miles until you pop out onto an open ridge. There are powerlines below the ridge and fantastic views down the Gorge. Continue along the ridge and follow the faint trail as it climbs through brush and forest another 1.1 miles to the forested summit of Augspurger Mountain. The views from Augspurger ridge were amazing. The total loop was about 17 miles with about 6000 feet of elevation gain. Needless to say we were very glad when we reached the parking lot. All in all it was an awesome hike!!!

I hiked the Dog Mountain and Augspurger Mountain trails on a beautiful day. Trail: Gifford Pinchot National Forest Dog Mountain Trail 147 and Augspurger Mountain Trail 4407. Find the trailhead at the east end of the parking lot for Dog Mountain. Plan to arrive early on weekends because the parking lot fills up. There are two ways to begin hiking to the top of Dog Mountain. Plan to take trail 147 on the right for spectacular views of the Gorge and the incredible wildflower display in May and early June. Walk up the gravel road, passing the bathrooms in a short distance. From there, trail 147 switchbacks and you’ll soon get views of the Columbia River and the Gorge as the trees on the slopes become sparse and the mountainside becomes rockier. Poison oak abounds along the first .6 mile, where you reach the first trail junction. The right trail has a more gradual climb but is .4 mile longer. Take the left trail and enjoy the level stroll through the forest for about .1 mile. The trail climbs steeply away from the level forest along what must have been the old jeep road to the site of the old fire lookout. The trail climbs steeply for about .5 mile before leveling off at another small plateau in the forest. Here the road noise has been left behind and the sounds of birds chirping surround you. Once you reach the next trail junction, turn left and travel uphill. This section feels like the steepest section on the Dog Mountain Trail. After climbing from the trailhead for 2 miles, you come out into the first big opening with vistas of the Gorge. From here the views shortly become spectacular as you climb past the last of the trees and have an unobstructed view looking south and west into the Gorge. As the trail climbs further you get views to the east, including Hood River. The whole expanse of the Gorge is laid out before you. After climbing for less than another .25 mile you reach the site of a former fire lookout. People call it Puppy Dog Lookout because many people turn around here and head back. From here you have more than 180 degree views of the Gorge. There is another trail junction at the lookout. Continue up the trail on the exposed slope to the summit. The trail to the right goes through the forest and comes out near the summit of Dog Mountain. At 2.4 miles from the trailhead, you reach the junction for Augspurger Mountain and the summit of Dog Mountain. Take the time to walk the .1 mile on up to the summit of Dog Mountain for the nice views then come back down to this junction and head towards Augspurger Mountain. The open slopes provide terrific views of the Columbia River Gorge. On a clear day from the summit of Dog Mountain you can see Mt. Defiance across the gorge at 4960 feet high. In the distance you can see Mt. St. Helens, Mt. Hood. In the spring there is a succession of flowers until early summer. The wildflowers usually peak around Memorial Day but the balsamroot can peak as early as the second week in May. The yellow balsamroot flowers are spectacular when their blooms cover the hillside. Follow the trail across the mountain meadows then downhill into the second-growth forest. This part of the trail is still muddy and there were a few muddy spots with small puddles. The understory plants here enjoy these moist slopes. Cow Parsnip, ferns, piggy-back plants and duck’s foot grow in profusion here. Reaching the junction Take a right turn at both the first trail junctions just below the top of Dog Mountain. Descend about a mile and take a right at the Augspurger Mountain trail. Be careful about wandering off-trail because there are steep cliffs just west of the trail. From the junction the trail drops down rapidly through a large field of Thimbleberries. From here on out, the trail isn’t brushed out but it is mostly logged out with just a few deadfalls across the trail. It is a very narrow and somewhat steep and slippery on this section of trail. Descend several swithcbacks then ascend a bit to a forest road. Turn right at the forest road look back to remember where to turn off the road on the return trip. There is a tree with a blue diamond on the uphill side of the road. There are several trees marked with blue diamonds along this section of trail. Walk about .4 mile to high-voltage power towers. There are no signs here to mark the trail so you have to know the correct direction. The left access road goes steeply uphill and the right access road drops down to a stream. Continue straight on the road, passing under the powerlines. Follow the road as it gently goes uphill for about .2 mile and look for the trail leading off to the right. The trail may be marked by a very small rock cairn or a nearby tree may have a blue diamond marker. Follow the trail uphill towards Augspurger Mountain. This part of the forest is a pleasant second-growth forest and has Vanilla leaf, Vine maple, and False Solomon’s seal on the forest floor. The trail isn’t used very often so it is carpeted with fir needles and other forest duff. After leaving the road and walking for about .75 mile the trail comes out into a clearing with patches of wildflowers and a glimpse of the Gorge. The trail climbs up along the lower edge of this mountain meadow then reenters the woods, heading generally north. At 5.6 miles from the trailhead, you walk through another clearing, a rocky spur of Augspurger Mountain, approaching a set of powerlines. Just before reaching the powerlines the trail reenters the woods. The trail parallels the powerlines for a short bit and continues along the rocky spur. The trail heads generally northeast, passing through several brushy meadows. The trail here has tall Thimbleberry growing into the trail which means that anytime there is rain or dew on the plants you will need a raincoat and rain pants to keep from getting soaked by the water that comes from pushing by the wet brush. The trail climbs steadily and sometimes steeply up the shoulder of Augspurger Mountain through forests and mountain meadows. After about 6.5 miles the trail begins to level off and gains the ridge that leads to Augspurger Mountain. The trail goes along the ridge and then eventually veers away from maps that mark Augspurger Mountain and drops down off the ridge on the east side. Descend fairly steeply down a ridge towards the northeast to several viewpoints. The trail re are 3-mountain views of Mt. St. Helens, Mt. Rainier, and Mt. Adams and to the south, Mt. Hood can be seen from some vantage points. I stopped at the last rock knob before the trail drops steeply down to powerlines. From this promontory there are nice views of Mt. Adams and St. Helens and a partial view of Mt. Rainier through a gap in the neighboring mountains. Looking east you can see the Columbia River and two powerline right-of-ways that head east and west through the Gorge. There are some nice views with lone trees silhouetted against the sky and green forests all around. The sketchy trail continues downhill to another trailhead about a mile away. Retrace your steps back to the Augspurger Mountain junction, remembering to walk along the forest road for .6 mile then looking for the trail on the left. The switchbacks climbing up to the junction for Augspurger Mountain Trail seem to take forever but eventually you reach the junction and head downhill towards the parking lot. The nice wide trail drops steadily downhill and comes to spots with rocky slopes and open to the sun. There are two things to watch for here, Poison Oak and rattlesnakes. Keep an eye out for them and some of the shy lizards that live on the rocky slopes. In some places the Poison Oak is more than waist high and leaning into the trail. It is having a banner year so be careful not to let your trekking poles, hands, or clothes brush against the foliage. Be especially careful with children and pets. There is a picture of Poison Oak and Poison Ivy in the pictures posted for this hike. This is a great hike for a spring day. Be prepared for rain, fog, wild winds and crowds. There is no water along the trail so carry plenty on hot days. This trail is not recommended for dogs or small children because of all the poison oak, the occasional rattlesnake along the trail, and the steep, open slopes of the trail below the summit. With those warnings in mind, this is a great spring hike. The flowers and crowds are at just passing their peak. The crowds peak right around the end of May. Here are the stats: Length and Elevation: 15.2 miles roundtrip Elevation gain 5,000 feet and loss 1,900 feet to the turn-around point. Elevation at the turn-around point is 3,400 feet. Returning back to the parking lot is a gain of 960 feet and loss of 4,100 feet. Total gain is 5,960 and total loss is 5,960 feet. Total gain and loss is 11,960 feet. (Using Augspurger Mtn Trail both ways 14 miles, Elevation gain 4,100 feet and loss 960 feet to the turn-around point. Total gain and loss is 10,320 feet. Elevation at the trailhead is 150 feet, the highest elevation is 3,654 feet. It took me 9 hours to complete this hike across Dog Mountain and Augspurger Mountain. More photos can be seen at the eyehike photo gallery. http://www.eyehike.com/modules/Gallery/Augspurger_Mtn_Photos_WA The hiking review with a map is available at eyehike.com http://www.eyehike.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=242

Thanks to trail crews, the trail is looking great! In fact it's clear, both ways!!! WTA was out this Saturday and Sunday clearing downed limbs, taking care of dangerous leaners and widow-makers waiting to pounce on the unwary hiker, maintaining drainage, brushing, and generally making a much improved trail. I was thrilled to join the crew Sunday, and we had a BLAST!!!!! Come play with us sometime and have the time of your life! Saturday I couldn’t get to the trailhead until noon, headed up the “more strenuous” path (clockwise) hoping to run into the WTA crew (and save my knees) on the way down. The trail was in great shape the whole way, but with lots of evidence that it was a mess in the very recent past. Past treeline the wind was gusting 40 mph+ and blowing me all over the trail – SO AWESOME!!! Great views up & down the Gorge, Hood peeking, Mt. Defiance, & Adams (had to go around to the left at top for this). Got to top @ 1:20, found the last of the snow to play in, then headed down. If you take the 1st “Dog Mt.” signed trail to the right (I learned by doing), you return to the trailhead via Augsburger trail, 2.7 mi. from that sign. The link has pics of that trail, which has several downed trees but all limbed by a trail crew so easy to get over/under. There is one dangerous broken leaner the Forest Service will need to take out. Got back to the parking lot at 3:15. Trillium, Oregon grape, wild strawberry & others blooming, lupine leafed out, BEWARE OF POISON OAK ALL OVER (all these trails) AND VERY OILY as it's just leafing!!! Sunday with WTA crew worked the easier side of the loop and got it cleared, safe, & beautiful (if we do say so ourselves) up to the first good viewpoint. This trail was getting lots of use (but saw only one group of 3 on Augsburger). I really appreciated how hikers were happy to stop while we were bucking trees near the trail. I think every single hiker thanked us & several asked how to sign up. This is serious volunteer fuel – so thanks right back!!!! Now nudge on over to that “volunteer” tab and sign up for a crew near you! You’ll be glad you did (we have cookies)! Pics at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/51278183@N05/sets/72157629835094223/

I ran every trail on Dog Mountain today. Here's my report. DOG MOUNTAIN REPORT Ausenberger Trail has one fallen tree (fairly large) and debree that's blocking the trail about 1.5-2 miles up from the parking lot. It's very easy and non-treacherous to get around by walking off the trail and around the mess. It is a little muddy/snowy within a mile of the Peak, but it's a very doable hike and/or run. The Counter Clockwise MOST DIFFICULT route is the most cleared route to take. There's a couple sections blocked by fallen trees (not too big) and debree not too far from the more difficult/less difficult junction, but there are clear easy paths around them off the trail. No worries. The Counter Clockwise LESS DIFFICULT route: DON'T TAKE IT! Even if you've hiked the trail before, there's so much blown-down trees, branches, and 6" of snow that completely hides the trail starting maybe less than a mile up from the less difficult/more difficult junction. I came down this way to scout it out, and it was near impossible to follow the trail. Even halfway down the mountain, I lost the trail for 20 minutes before I found it again. It's nothing but a bush-wacking and tree branches/logs war zone. I was nearly castrated a few times trying to pick my way through the mess. See the photo below for an example. Cheers! Happy Trails, and be safe with all these blow downs!