Rock of Ages (8/29/09)

Poor weather canceled Brad's North Sister climb last month, so we decided to try the Rock of Ages scramble in the Gorge (read the hike description from Portlandhikersfieldguide.org). Scrambling is more than hiking but less than rock climbing and often involves off-trail route finding.

This adventure started at Horsetail Falls off the Old Columbia River Highway. After about .3 miles, just before Ponytail Falls, we took off up a very steep path with a sign stating: Trail Not Maintained. From there, we scrambled up, up, up, seeing only two other people in the next 2.5 miles.

On top of the Devil's Backbone ridge, looking west:
But that ridge was far from the summit. The "trail" kept climbing until we finally reached the Horsetail Creek Trail.
We headed west on the connector trail and discovered that it was far less maintained than the "not maintained" trail we just left. We also saw no other person until we returned to our car. But I did get stung by a bee on the back of my knee and then fell in a hole and scraped up the same leg. It was one of those days.

We eventually crossed Oneonta Creek and then went downhill on the Oneonta Trail. A short time later, we discovered why the trail was so overgrown and we'd encountered no other people: a bridge was out and the trail was closed! Oops. Luckily, we were able to cross without getting wet. It could have been bad, but the water level was low.

Then came Ponytail Falls (the trail goes behind the falls - you can barely see me making my way past) and we were back where we started, having made a big loop.
It was getting dark, and ours was the last car at the trailhead. We posed at Horsetail Falls before hitting the road:
Our book, 75 Scrambles in Oregon, put the hike at 9.1 miles and 4,179 feet of elevation gain. It was a tough one! But worth it, especially having hiked 7+ miles without seeing another human.

:)