I joined a Thursday work crew full of dedicated volunteers to work on the Hamilton Mountain Trail. We met at the trailhead and everyone was 15 minutes early, which gave us plenty of time to drive to the work trailhead.

Since we are volunteers, Lee, our crew leader, had the key to the gate. During the winter season the gate at Highway 14 is locked during the week. Later I called to find the gate schedule and for March the gate is open Friday through Sunday. This schedule may hold through April or the lower gate may be open all week, the ranger wasn’t sure of the exact schedule for April.

The bathrooms at the trailhead are locked this time of year but I did see a portable toilet. There are bathrooms down at Beacon Rock.

We drove up the road and parked at the Hadley Trail, a mostly ADA accessible trail. It has one place that I think is too steep for a wheelchair.

Once we had our safety talk and divvied out the tools. The wind really picked up after we reached the eastern facing slope. My hardhat blew off twice, and then I just carried it with me.

We worked on grading the trail and had to pause several times for hikers. The section of the trail we worked on is now nicely graded with drain dips and we narrowed the trail a bit so the downhill edge is stable.

We found a couple clay pocket on the trail and tried to clean that up as best we could but this will continue to be a mushy section anytime it rains much.

Overall this trail is in great shape with a few muddy sections. The part just past Hardy Falls tends to be a pretty muddy section.

I talked with a few hikers who went on to Hamilton Mountain and there is still snow on the upper part of the trail. This week’s weather forecast will prevent melting and there will be some new snow during the next week.

Of course, at the end of the day we had soda and snacks back at the cars.

I’ve now been on two work crews in State Parks. Two more and I can get an annual pass.
If you haven’t volunteered, give it a try! You’ll find wonderful people to work with.

Steve Jones

We arrived at Beacon rock at noon. It had rained earlier in the day and clouds were still drifting over the top of the Columbia River Gorge. The trail up was well maintained and relatively easy with a few steep steps at the summit. The views along the trail are amazing, providing a great panorama of the gorge, but at the top the view disappoints as trees block most of the view. A short trail, but absolutely worth the visit.

After hiking down from Beacon Rock we crossed the highway and hiked a quarter mile up to the clearly marked Hamilton Mountain Trailhead (the road was closed to vehicles at the time, and a friendly Park Ranger provided us with directions while checking the parked cars for the Washington State Discovery Pass which is required to park in Beacon Rock State Park). We had planned to hike to the top of Hamilton Mountain (a relatively easy 4 miles) but stopped half way at Hardy and Rodney falls and Pool of the Winds due to time constraints, both falls are gorgeous and definitely worth the trek in to see.

The hike to the falls is fairly easy. Steady uphill that levels out about halfway. The trail is in great condition, only a couple of wet spots and some mud near the waterfalls themselves.

The water is flowing fast, making the waterfalls a beautiful sight. And the spray from Rodney falls feels great after the hike up to it.

The trail gets very crowded when the weather is nice. The parking lot was full when we got there. Had to park in the Beacon Rock parking area off of HWY 14.

Lots of wildflowers blooming right now. Even spotted some wild strawberries along the trail that are beginning to turn red. Mosquitoes and flies are out though, so don't forget the bug spray.

finally some sun breaks and a holiday got me and about a hundred other folks on the trail today. Parking lot sign said "full" when I arrived at 1:30 pm but several spaces had opened up. The lower lot at Beacon Rock was also very full.

I headed up a wide well-graded trail a long mile to the falls. Spectacular! With all the snow we've had this year it was in full force. Trail is moderately muddy often and very muddy occasionally.

From there I took the counterclockwise loop to the peak, which I recommend. This route is steeper and rockier but has much more wide open vistas of the Gorge, meaning your rest stops are full of views.

The summit of Hamilton Mountain comes on you abruptly. On a totally clear day I'm sure Hood is staring you in the face but not today. I wonder if you might see Adams to the Northeast on a clear day. Today, with the sun and clouds, just great views of the gorge, Bonneville Dam absolutely gushing water, and you could see the high water levels of the Columbia on all sides.

Heading back down Hamilton the other route, you soon come to a wide open saddle with more views. From there it's down a wide, former road to a turnoff, then down some muddy switchbacks to the trail junction above.

Great hike I never knew about! No snow or bugs today.

Left early from Vancouver, only about a 45 minute drive. Drizzled off and on all day. Very easy hike for kids as it is not very long to the falls. My two girls, 8 and 7, did very well and if it was a better weather day, we probably would have gone all the way up to Hamilton Mountain. Another day perhaps. Trail was beautiful, wide, and well traveled. Novice welcome as there is no way you can get lost on this trail. All kinds of berries to sample as well as tons of flowers all over the place.