The Graduation Tour by Andy Dappen It was the college graduation season of mid-May when we arrived at Washington Pass to try this tour. I was thinking about my youngest daughter — I’d be attending her college graduation ceremony the...Read More...
Buck Mountain Ride By Matt Tangeman Ask a Methow Valley local for his/her go-to mountain bike ride, and there is a fair chance you’ll hear about, Buck Mountain. A balanced mixture of Forest Service Roads, jeep roads, and fantastic singletrack,...Read More...
Attractions: Topping out at 5,748 feet Omak Mountain is a giant hill that rises nearly 5,000 vertical feet above the town of Omak (840 feet). It’s also a hill whose sprawling slopes constitute nearly 100 square miles of the surrounding...Read More...
by Andy Dappen The German was headed into the Pasayten Wilderness for several days of hiking; I was coming out after a blitzkrieg weekend of peak bagging. We stood alongside the trail comparing notes. “You’ll have lots of peaks to...Read More...
Perfect Day in the Pasayten by Andy Dappen The thinnest of frost coats the yellow September grass at the trailhead. The morning sun is spotlighting the highest summits but it will be hours before its warmth kisses the valley. In...Read More...
If you’re the kind of hiker who thrives on pain and suffering, then the walk into Scatter Lake is your kind of misery. Most trails rising out of the Twisp Valley are hot, steep, and dry; but the Scatter...Read More...
Attractions. This trail leaves right from the outskirts of Oroville and gains elevation fast, giving walkers, mountain bikers, and trail runners good views out over the Okanogan Valley. After a few miles, the trail enters the woods and the outing’s...Read More...
Washington Pass Climbing by Andy Dappen With its massive rock domes (Liberty Bell, Lexington Tower, Early Winter Spires, Kangaroo Temple) and its sharp granite needles (The Wine Spires, Kangaroo Ridge, Vasiliki Ridge), Washington Pass is the closest thing our state...Read More...
Attractions: Fun Rock and the other crags accessed from the same parking area (Rhinozone, Canine Crag, Squirrelhouse Rock, Sun Rock and Unibolter) are super convenient, super varied, solidly bolted, and, well, just fun. There are over 50 routes in this...Read More...
Loomis NRCA – All Trails by Andy Dappen The Loomis Natural Resources Conservation Area (NRCA) is a chunk of state forest managed by the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) that sits just east of the Pasayten Wilderness and just south...Read More...
