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Tongariro Alpine Crossing Trip Report

Emerald Pools and Red Crater on the Tongariro Alpine Crossing
July 17, 2018 by Elsbeth No Comments

I woke up groggy. I had been on the road later than I anticipated the previous night. There were periods during the drive where the rain was pouring, which made for an exhausting drive. Despite my fatigue, I was anxious to get started with the Tongariro Alpine Crossing. It is the most popular day-hike in New Zealand, but it is also particularly dependant on good weather. Just my luck, the weather was supposed to be perfect.

We spent the night at Tongariro Adventures, an amazing bed and breakfast I found on Airbnb run by Barb and her husband. Besides being an awesome place to spend the night, they also provided an incredibly hearty breakfast and a car spotting service for the Tongariro Alpine Crossing. We were quite lucky since we found out that the previous guests were unfortunate and were unable to start the hike due to bad weather. The host’s hospitality continued all the way to the trailhead where she offered to take our picture.

Tongariro is probably best known for being the setting of Mount Doom in Lord of the Rings. The crossing is a day hike, but it is also part of the Tongariro Northern Circuit; one of New Zealand’s Great Walks. Unlike Routeburn or Kepler, however, it is the most prominent feature in a relatively flat part of the country.

The Crossing is a long day hike, so we said our farewells to Barb and hit the trail!

The sun hanging low over the start of the Tongariro Alpine Crossing

Kilometers 0-6 of the Tongariro Alpine Crossing

The first few kilometers are a very steady, slow incline. The scenery is very desolate since the trail winds through young volcanic deposits.  The early part of the trail is right next to a small river. It offers a little bit of variety next to the dark volcanic soil.

It was immediately obvious how busy the trail would be. There were so many people walking on the path, it was rather frustrating getting stuck behind people wearing skirts. But we were in no rush; just hoping to enjoy our last major outdoor activity in New Zealand.

The sky had been clear, but there was a bit of cloud hanging just on top of the Crossing. As we started walking, however, the clouds began to clear. All of a sudden we had a perfect view right on Mount Doom (also known as Ngauruhoe ). Standing in the midst of this iconic landmark made me feel like I was on some epic quest – with a thousand of my closest friends!

Early in the morning on the Tongariro Alpine Crossing

Kilometers 6-8 of the Tongariro Alpine Crossing

After winding through a valley for sometime, it was time to start climbing. It is said that the Tongariro Alpine Crossing is the toughest hike in New Zealand. I am not sure if that is true, but the initial climb is relentless.

In about 2 kilometers, you climb 500 meters. On top of being a lot of vertical gain over a short amount of time, there are also a ton of people on the trail, all travelling at their own pace. Eventually, we got to the top of the first part of the climb. There was still a hill to overcome, but suddenly there were sweeping views that stretched fat to the West.

Unlike the trails in the Southern Alps, which traverse through mountainous country, Tongariro is a stand-alone mountain. Looking over the edge of the trail, there were no mountains obstructing the view – it was clear to the coast.

Looking out into the distance from the Tongariro Alpine Crossing

The trail at this point continued through a flat section in between two volcanic cones. The earth was steaming. Watching the line of people pass through the mist, it felt like I was watching a pilgrimage of sorts.

As we were walking through the mist, we saw someone take out a drone and start flying it. Tongariro is a no drone zone. Maybe this makes us buzz kills, but we told them there were no drones allowed on the trail, and they put it away.

After passing through the steaming strip of earth, the trail makes one final climb. The earth was looser there than in previous parts of the trail, so it took a bit more attention to footing. After about 10 minutes we were at the top.

Passing through the steaming earth

Lunch Break

The views from the top were unreal. You could see Tongariro, Ruapeho, and Ngauruhoe. Beyond that, just rolling hills as far as the eye can see. We picked a seat on the edge of the trail overlooking a volcanic pit that was bright red.

We had packed sandwiches for the trip, so it was enjoyable just sitting up there taking in the view. I noticed a buzzing sound behind me. Another person was flying a drone. This time I went up to him and told him this was a no drone zone. He was a bit more combative than the first people, but he also put the drone away.

View of Ngauruhoe from the Tongariro Alpine Crossing

We finished up eating, and decided to continue our trek.

Kilometers 8-11 of the Tongariro Alpine Crossing

Upon leaving our lunch spot, the trail gets even looser very quickly. It felt like walking on sand. But, only a few meters from where we ate our lunch, we were treated to the greatest view of the entire walk.

This is really what people come to Tongariro to see, and I don’t blame them. The beauty is other-worldly and the colors are hues not frequently found in nature. Despite the beauty, it was very difficult to take a good photo here because of all the people.

Red crater on the Tongariro Alpine Crossing

We travelled down the side of the hill and decided to just sit by one of the pools for a bit. It was relaxing to just sit in such an amazing place and take in the bustle all around. The smell of sulfur was strong and huge patches of smoke were rising from beneath the ground. After fifteen minutes, we decided to continue our trip.

After passing by all of the pools, the trail makes one last climb up to a larger lake. It was quite a large lake. I was surprised to see some birds swimming in it. The path winds around the lake and then down the other side of the mountain. From the top, before making the pass to the other side, we took one last look at the beauty behind us, and began our descent.

The emerald pools on the Tongariro Alpine Crossing

Kilometers 11-14 of the Tongariro Alpine Crossing

The rest of the trail is all downhill. At the top, it starts out through a grassy section of the side of the mountain. The views are nice, but the trail gets very narrow in some sections and it is difficult to pass people.

This part of the trek was surprisingly pleasant. The weather was really nice, the scenery was really pretty and Dennis and I were in good spirits as we were chatting. At a certain point, we passed another group of people with a drone. I felt a little fatigued playing the bad-guy for a third time, so we didn’t say anything as we passed by.

Blue pool on the Tongariro Alpine Crossing

About a third of the way down the mountain, the trail passes by a hut that is no longer in commission. That’s because in 2012, the volcano erupted, spewing rocks down the side. One of those rocks plummeted right through the roof of the Ketatahi hut, into a bunk. Fortunately, no one was in the bunk at the time, but the DOC wouldn’t take the risk again and closed the hut permanently. It is really a shame since the hut is in a beautiful location. I hoped for a chance to see the hole the rock left in the bed as we passed by, but apparently the hut is completely closed off to the public.

There is still evidence of volcanic activity on the sides of the mountain, where large clouds of smoke were billowing.

Down the other side of the Tongariro Alpine Crossing

Kilometers 14-19.4 of the Tongariro Alpine Crossing

The rest of the hike is just a continuation down the side of the mountain. Eventually, after descending enough, the trail enters tree-cover. As you continue down, the forest gets thicker and the trail gets muddier. We passed signs that warned about lahar dangers, which could prove deadly if the circumstances appeared.

The trail down the Tongariro Alpine Crossing

About 7 hours after we started, we arrived in the parking lot. The trip was not over for us yet, though. Due to our relatively late start, we had to leave our car about a kilometer from the trailhead. We walked down the dusty road and eventually to the main road. Finally, we arrived back at our car.

We changed shoes, and began our drive to Rotorua.

 

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The Kepler Track Trip Report

June 24, 2018 by Elsbeth 1 Comment

I woke up to the soft morning light coming through the walls of our yurt. It had been less than a day since I finished the Routeburn, but I was well-rested after a night in one of the best Airbnb’s I have ever stayed in. As with our previous Great Walk, we missed the cutoff to pick up our hut tickets for the Kepler Track the night before. We quickly packed up and left the yurt to head into the town of Te Anau.

The yurt I stayed in the night before starting the Kepler Track. This photo was taken at sunset.

We arrived at the DOC office before it opened. There were a few other people also waiting when we arrived. Talking to one of them, we learned that it was possibly to skip the first 10 kilometers of the trek by taking a boat across Lake Te Anau. They were planning on skipping the first hut since it was booked full and skipping the first section made their first day distance more reasonable.

After we had our tickets in hand, we decided to head into town for a last minute breakfast before hitting the trail. We stopped at Bailiez Cafe for breakfast. It was the perfect pre-hike breakfast, and it really hit the spot. My plate of sausage and eggs gave me plenty of energy for the day.

We drove to the trailhead, which was only around 10 minutes from central Te Anau. Since the Kepler Track is a loop, the whole walk is extremely accessible. I did not know this until about 10 minutes before I started, but apparently there is a second trailhead about 10 kilometers from the first, making it possible to cut the loop about two hours short. Since I had figured we would be walking the entire 60 kilometers, this did not phase me too much, but it would certainly come back to haunt me.

Day 1

Kepler Track Kilometers 0-5.6

The first ten kilometers of the Kepler Track travel through a forest of ferns.

The first ten kilometers follow the shore of Lake Te Anau. It is a fast section of the trail since it is mostly flat. This was the section that the folks we met in the DOC office were skipping. There was nothing super notable about this section, other than the forest was super lush, and we were constantly surrounded by huge ferns.

This section of the trail was also full of day hikers. Especially after our previous few days on the Routeburn, this trail felt way more commercialized. If you are headed to New Zealand for solitude, you will not find it on the Kepler Track.

At the 10 Kilometer mark, the trail arrives at the first campsite. This is where the water taxi stops for those who opt to skip out the first section. It is also the last place to find a restroom before the ascent up the mountains begins, and it smells like it too. We stopped here only briefly to use the facilities before beginning the climb.

Te Anau Lake. You can take a boat shuttle from Te Anau to this location if you want to bypass the first 10 kilometers of the Kepler Track.

Kepler Track Kilometers 5.7-13.8

The next section of the trail is absolutely punishing. It is a series of unending switchbacks through the forest, up the mountain. Switchbacks are psychologically tough even in the best of  conditions, but on the Kepler track, you are surrounded by dense foliage, with the top always seemingly right above you. This section felt really long. I powered through, however, thanks to my hearty breakfast.

I stopped once, briefly, to take off my mid-layer and then stopped for a bit to let Dennis catch up. Once we were walking together again, we decided to stop for a quick snack. Only five minutes past our resting spot, we reached the top of the treeline and came upon a large field of tussocks.

The final walk to the hut passes over some very fragile alpine meadows, so the DOC has built an elevated walkway. It is good for the ecology and also very aesthetic. After about twenty minutes, we had arrived at the hut. We were among the first to arrive for the day, so we had our pick of the bunks. After picking two good spots in one of the cabins, we went back to the mess room to make some lunch.

At the top of the switchbacks, you have beautiful views of Lake Te Anau

Side Trip To Mount Luxmore

We arrived at the hut sufficiently early, so we decided it would be worthwhile to make a few of the side trips from the hut. The first is the trip to Mount Luxmore. From the Luxmore hut, it is a steady climb up to the top of the mountain. The entire way up, you have a pretty clear view of Lake Te Anau far below.

About 30 minutes past the hut, the trail rounds the mountain and suddenly you have views on the rest of the Kepler range. The clouds were low enough in the sky that I could see them resting on the mountains as they stretched out before me, but still high enough to offer impeccable views.

Finally, we reached the top of the mountain. We were the only ones at the top and there was this sense of being on top of the world. We could see the hut below us, the lake below us, and even the town of Te Anau far below us. For the first time all day, it felt peaceful and serene.

The view down to Lake Te Anau from the trail up to Mount Luxmore.

After a few moments, the wind began picking up and the clouds appeared to be encroaching, so we made our way back down.

Upon reaching the hut, we were pleased to find a pair of cheeky Kea sitting atop the structure. We spent a few moments enjoying the sight of these alpine parrots and attempting to take photos of them. All we had were iPhones and a Fujifilm with a super wide angle lens, so none of the photos turned out as well as we hoped.

Me standing on top of Mount Luxmore.

Side Trip to the Luxmore Caves

The other side trip from the Luxmore hut is the Luxmore Caves. Apparently these caves are created by glacial runoff carving through the sides of the mountains. We grabbed our headlamps and head back out for one last trip of the day.

This side trip was much closer to the hut than Mount Luxmore had been, so it only took about 10 minutes to reach the entry to the cave.  At the mouth, there were some instructions about sustainable caving. I had never gone into a cave before, so the information was quite new to me.

Inside the cave, the floor was much more slippery than I had expected.  Between that, the slope on the ground, and the instructions not to touch anything, I found the experience more overwhelming than I anticipated. When my headlamp began flickering out, I decided that I had had my fill of the cave and that maybe this activity is not for me.

We made our way back to the hut to begin preparations for dinner.

Views back on the Luxmore Hut from higher up on the Kepler Track.

Evening at Luxmore Hut

When we arrived to make dinner, we found the mess hall was full of people. It was actually difficult to find a place to eat! But, we enjoyed our rehydrated food nonetheless. One of the more interesting things about the Luxmore hut is that you can see Te Anau very clearly from inside. It is surreal to be surrounded by the Alpine meadows in every direction, and then still see the lights far below. From the hut you could see the pink glow of the sunset touching the clouds as far as the eyes could see.

After dinner, the hut ranger made his evening announcements. The most important announcement was that a cyclone was due to hit the South Island the next day. This would cause the wind to be stronger than usual which could make the alpine crossing potentially dangerous. He finished with advice to get an early start, as the wind wouldn’t pick up until later in the day. With that, we cleaned up our cookset and head to bed.

The view from inside the Luxmore Hut at sunset.

Day 2

We woke to significantly worse weather than the day before. The fog was so dense, I could barely see 10 feet ahead of me. We hoped that the clouds would lift a bit during our crossing, but we were not holding our breath.

Kepler Track Kilometers 13.9 – 23.3

We head out and up the same path that we had taken the day before to get to Mount Luxmore. In stark contrast to our previous trip, the summit never once came into sight during our trek around the mountain. We took a brief pause at the fork that took trekkers up the mountain and counted ourselves lucky for making the trip up a day earlier.

We pressed onwards. This was the highest point on the entire trek, and the slight drizzle was closer in consistency to sleet. We were essentially walking through a light, wet snow.

The Kepler Track in the fog.

After about 45 minutes of hiking, we came to the first emergency shelter. It was one of those places that you could tell would be absolutely stunning in good weather. Instead, we were just shrouded in a white blanket.

Not too far after this emergency shelter was a second shelter. This one came just before the last ascent of the trip. It was at about this point in time that we started running into people headed the opposite way. There weren’t many, certainly fewer than we had shared our hut with the previous night, but there were some.

Views of Lake Manapouri from the Kepler Track.

We reached the last high point on the Kepler Track and all of a sudden we were faced with a stairway down into the abyss of clouds. Despite everything, there was something really stunning and dramatic about this staircase that essentially dropped into the fog. Unfortunately, the weather never quite cleared as we had hoped, and at this point we were now headed back below the timberline.

Kepler Track Kilometers 23.4 – 28.4

Once we were back in the tree cover, we began a long conversation about what the next moves should be. We had very unfortunate weather for what was suppoed to be highlight of the track. We were going to get to the next hut earlier than we are used to stopping. Some of the options that we juggled were to continue on to the next hut and hoping there would be a spot for us, or just pushing through and finishing the whole thing.

Dennis standing in the fog on the Kepler Track.

As we discussed our options, we continued down the switchbacks. Every tenth of a kilometer, a numbered sign would count up, simultaneously informing us of how much we had left to go while also filling us with anxiety over how slowly the numbers were iterating.

Eventually, we hit the bottom and found ourselves at the Iris Burn Hut. It was another beautiful hut. We decided that before making any other decisions, we should go inside, eat some food and warm up.

Because of how wet we got while hiking, we decided to cook some hot lunch. It really hit the spot, but also made us sleepy. Before we knew it we had drifted off into slumber, leaving our plans of continuing on behind.

Side trip to Iris Burn Falls

We woke up feeling groggy, so we decided to make the side trip to the Iris Burn Falls to get some blood flowing. It was only a 20 minute walk, but absolutely worth the effort. The falls are quite spectacular, and because of the wet weather we were having, they were quite full.

There are a couple Kiwis who live in this section of the track and we were hoping to catch a sight or sound of one, but we were not so lucky. They are nocturnal animals so it’s quite rare in seeing them in the daytime.

We made our way back to the hut and started making dinner. While we were eating, the hut ranger arrived and gave her informational chat. She was significantly less verbose than previous hut rangers we had met, but she told us that the next day would be more of the same weather, so it wouldn’t be worth making a trip back up to try for the views.

The Iris Burn waterfall - one of the side trips on the Kepler Track.

After dinner, despite our earlier nap, we found ourselves ready to hit the hay. We hit the bunks and were out quickly.

Day 3

We weren’t in any rush, so we got a late start. After lazily rolling out of bed, we took our time enjoying our oatmeal before we hit the trail. We had decided earlier that we didn’t want to walk the last 10 kilometers between the two parking lots, so we had booked spots on the shuttle. Our only goal for the day was to get back to the first parking lot in time to catch our bus. It rained a lot overnight and we were not looking forward to walking through the wet and muddy trail.

Kepler Track Kilometers 28.5 – 37.4

Leaving the Iris Burn Hut, we immediately began ascending. It was not like the first day though, only a couple of switchbacks. The rain was not super heavy but it still dampened our moods. After several minutes, we were descending again. The first part of the day was through rainforest, as the first day had been. We got to enjoy walking amongst the fern again.

After just shy of an hour, we reached “the Big Slip”. A couple decades earlier, during heavy rain, a giant landslide occured down the side of the mountain. This left a huge mark on the earth at least the size of a football field. Even 20 years later, no trees have grown in this section of the trail, so it just appears as a meadow in the middle of the forest on the side of a mountain.

Walking through this section of the trail was very peaceful. It was a misty morning, and the meadow felt very calm. The silence was a bit eerie. Walking through the Big Slip, it was easy to let your mind wander to the “what ifs”; especially since it had been very rainy the previous few days.

The Kepler Track winding through the mountains in the fog.

Kepler Track Kilometers 37.5 – 44.6

We left the Big Slip and re-entered the rainforest. As beautiful as the rainforest was, it grew tiresome quickly, and the kilometers blur together in my memory. At the hut the previous night, I had read about the efforts to trap Stoats and other predators. Apparently the effort to lay traps every fifth of a kilometer had been very successful in preserving the native birds.

This trapping effort had one negative consequence, however. The traps were all numbered, so I began counting down until we reached the end. Even though they provides a means to measure our distance traveled, counting down the kilometers until the end of hike really made the whole section a drag.

We got to one of the numbered traps, and I realized that we should be getting close to the next hut on the trail. It had to be just around the corner. The next trap came and we still had not arrived. Before I knew it, a whole kilometer had passed and we were still walking. We reached the lakeshore, so I knew the hut had to be close. Yet, the trail continued weaving through the forest.

Dennis looking out over the Kepler Mountains

Finally, after what seemed like ages, the hut appeared almost out of nowhere. We had plenty of time to catch our bus, so we decided we would stop in this hut for lunch.

At the Moturau hut

When we got inside the hut, there was a fire blazing. It felt good. The weather had continued to be quite wet this day, so it was nice to warm up in the hut with some sandwiches. Luckily the rain completely died out by the time we got to the last hut.

There were a few other people in the hut when we got there. A couple of these people were familiar; some had been on the trail with us from day one, others we recognized at least from the night before, and a few faces were new.

Despite my best efforts not to eavesdrop, I couldn’t help but overhear two ladies a few tables over telling another hiker that they had left their car at the closest parking lot and were planning to hitchhike from the parking lot we started at back to their car. They were doing the Kepler Track in the opposite direction as us and this piqued my interest.

After building up a little bit of courage, I approached one of the ladies and made a proposal that could be mutually beneficial. If they would be willing to give me their car keys, I could go to the parking lot, pick up their car, drive it to the other parking lot and leave it there for them to find when they finished. This would give me an option to finish the track at my leisure, and their car would be waiting for them when they finished on a later day. We originally booked a car shuttle at 4PM to take us back to our parking lot but we were quite ahead of schedule so we decided that this would allow us to get back to Queenstown much earlier.

After some back and forth, we all came to an agreement. They handed me their car keys, we agreed on what the appropriate protocol for dropping the car would be, and then we went our separate ways.

Kepler Track Kilometers 44.7 – 50.6

The last few kilometers sped by. I was newly reinvigorated from the prospect of driving their car to bypass the last ten kilometers instead of waiting for the shuttle or walking all the way back. This part of the trail was also much more crowded since we were back in the realm of day-hikers.

Eventually, we passed a nice suspension bridge and arrived at the parking lot. A girl who had been in the hut with us the previous night was keeping about the same pace as us. She asked if we could give her a ride. We told her that we had never seen the car before. If there was room, she was more than welcome to join.

Finding the car was easy, it was a very particular shade of blue. Once we saw what we were dealing with, we told the girl she was welcome to join us. On the road, it was immediately clear that the car was in bad shape but at least in working order. Luckily it was only about a 15 minute drive to get back to our starting trailhead.

We arrived at our car, said our goodbyes and shoved the keys into the gas tank. Due to the weather, the Kepler Track had been a little bit of a disappointment for me, but it ended on a high note.

From my experiences with this hike, the Kepler Track is definitely doable in two days. My recommendation for those strapped for time would be to skip the first hut and continue all the way to the Iris Burn hut. It will be a long day but you will be rewarded with great views, provided that the weather is on your side! If you are not in a hurry the first hut has a magnificent location. It was definitely the nicest hut we stayed at in our time in New Zealand.

New Zealand Great Walks - the Kepler Track

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Trip Report: San Ramon Waterfall

January 8, 2018 by Elsbeth 1 Comment

Distance: 6 Kilometers

Time: 2.5 hours

Before getting to Ometepe, I had wanted to climb Concepcion, the active volcano on the island. Unfortunately, the weather was less than cooperative.  December and January is generally considered dry season in Nicaragua, but the weather was rainy and overcast while I was on the island. Thick clouds are not great weather for climbing volcanoes. The clouds shroud the entire cone of the volcano with a dense blanket of fog.

I did not want to leave Ometepe without having done any hiking. The island is, after all, a nature-lovers paradise. So I opted instead for a hike that was less dependent on the weather: San Ramon Waterfall. The hike to the San Ramon Waterfall is a must-do on Ometepe. An added benefit, the trailhead is on the Maderas side of the island which was the side I was staying on. I hopped on a bike, rode the ~9 kilometers to the trailhead, paid the $3 entry fee (per person), and began my trek to the waterfall.

Kilometers 1 and 2

The road to the start of the San Ramon Waterfall trailhead on a sunny day with views of Lake Cocibolca

The first three kilometers are pretty much just a walk up a semi-paved hill. I did not know this before arriving at the trailhead, but for an additional fee, you can drive your motorcycle/scooter/quad up the first three kilometers of the trip.  It is not the nicest road in the world, but driving certainly makes it an easier trip. Even if we had ridden scooters instead of bicycles, I would not recommend biking up. The trail was a sustained climb, but did not justify motorized transport.

The weather was absolutely beautiful. After almost a full day of sporadic showers the day before, I was happy to see that it was going to be a sunny day. I started early enough in the day that the air was still cool despite being sunny. The green fields leading up the side of Maderas were absolutely stunning. Quickly, the fields turned into cloud-forest as I continued up the volcano. I welcomed the accompanying sun-showers.

Elsbeth staring at Volcan Maderas on the trail to the San Ramon Waterfall

Kilometer 3

It is obvious that there is an immediate change in the trail at the two-kilometer mark. This is where the fun part of the hike begins.  All vehicles are parked at kilometer two. Beyond that, the trail devolves into a rocky, mud path through the jungle.  There is a brief descent through a canyon with a welcome cool breeze. This part of the hike was beautiful, but not in a way that looks good in photos.

After some climbing through the jungle, I arrived at the first river crossing. I, mistakenly,  figured I must be close to the waterfall if I was crossing the river.  After a bit more climbing, I found myself in a canyon that felt straight out of Jurassic Park.  If a raptor had burst out around the corner, I would have felt just a normal amount of surprise.

The canyon on the trail

The next section of the hike was some minor scrambling up tiny waterfalls.  It was around this point in the hike that I realized the third kilometer was a “longer-than-average” kilometer.  Despite the official claim that the full trek to the waterfall is three kilometers, reports all over the internet state that it is closer to four. I am not sure I would say that, but I think the last kilometer was more like a mile.

At the San Ramon Waterfall

Vertical image of the San Ramon Waterfall

I did not find the hike particularly challenging. It was nonetheless a relief to finally arrive at the waterfall.  My skin was feeling sticky from climbing up in the humidity.  The thought of cooling off in the pool below the falls sounded quite refreshing.  Thanks to some foresight, I was able to strip down to the bikini under my clothes. The water was cold, even considering the sweat I had worked up.  I spent a few minutes cooling off in the water before retreating to a place nearby to dry-out in the sun.

Horizontal image of the San Ramon Waterfall showing people swimming in the pool below

Kilometers 4 Through 6

The return trip consists of going back down the same trail as the way up.  That is not to say that it is uneventful. There are beautiful views of Lake Cocibolca all the way down.  The sun was higher in the sky and the weather was much hotter. I did not have any sunscreen with me, so I can describe the trip down as light jogs between patches of shade. At the bottom, horses hanging out next to the lake welcomed me back.

I had not stopped for food on the way to the trailhead, so by the time I reached the bottom, I was pretty hungry.  There is a restaurant on the grounds of the trail, but I decided to eat at an inviting-looking place I had passed called Comedor Gloriana. Overall, I would say do not forgo the hike to the San Ramon Waterfall, even if you are staying on the Concepcion side of the island. Remember to bring a bathing suit, plenty of water, and if I were to do it again I would wear some type of water shoes.

Wild horse eating in front of Lake Cocibolca

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Trip Report: Trail of Ten Falls

November 19, 2017 by Elsbeth 3 Comments

Trip Stats

Distance: 8 miles
Time: 3 hours (and change)

Background

The trail of ten falls is located in Oregon’s Silver Falls State Park, about 90 minutes south of Portland. When I first started planning my weekend in Portland, I knew there was going to be some hiking on the itinerary. The obvious choice is usually to head to Portland’s backyard: the Columbia River Gorge. Unfortunately, there was the devastating fire that hit the area in late summer.  A lot of the hikes I was interested in were closed indefinitely. I guess I had to find a plan B.

The name of the trail was very intriguing. Trail of Ten Falls: that’s a lot of falls. The distance seemed a little off putting.  Eight miles is possibly a little long for a half day hike.  Fortunately, most of the beta I was reading about the walk said people typically spent 3 hours on the hike, so it sounded like a go! We woke up at 8AM, grabbed some coffee and hit the road 🙂

Canyon Trail

The trail of ten falls loop is actually made by linking two trails: canyon trail and rim trail. For a fantastic start, head out on canyon trail. You will immediately find yourself at South Falls, arguably the best waterfall on the trail. I would argue against you if you said that, but it was Dennis’s favorite. Before you reach the south falls amphitheatre, you will have the option to take a short side trip to Frenchie falls. This is the one side trip I would suggest you skip. By the end of the loop you will have waterfall fatigue, and it just wasn’t all that great.

Continue down the canyon trail and you will have the opportunity to walk behind South Falls. It is a very cool experience and you will get wet. This is a beautiful waterfall, but don’t spend too much time here, you still have 9 more!

There was a trail race in the park the day I did the trail, and the runners were travelling in the opposite direction as me. About a mile later when I hit Lower South Falls, there was a photographer setup to take action shots of the runners as they passed behind that waterfall. I wish I had known about this race ahead of time to sign up for this shot alone. It really would have been an epic. Passing under this fall was also one of the first times in my life I wish I brought a tripod hiking with me. Lower south falls is a crowd pleaser and bottle-neck along the trail.

The next mile-ish after lower south falls was uneventful. It was very lush, and beautiful, but there were a lot of people. Finally we arrived at lower north falls. Under normal circumstances, it would be a very lovely waterfall, but compared to the previous two, it was just ok.

Just past lower north falls, there is a side trip to double falls. Definitely go check it out! Standing right beneath double falls is a very cool experience. It is a very intimate view point.  There is this cool rush of air that comes over you in the tiny canyon at the base of the falls. This one was probably one of my favorites.

Back on the trail, you pass drake falls. Like lower north, it is not a particularly captivating waterfall. Keep going and you get to another short side trip where you go and walk behind middle north falls. This was my favorite waterfall by a mile. As you wrap behind the fall you come to this amazing view point which was definitely the highlight of the hike from me.

At this point, I thought the trail kept going, but actually you have to backtrack to the trail to avoid bushwhacking. The next waterfall you pass is twin falls. Not an exciting waterfall for me, and also at this point I was beginning to feel waterfall-fatigue :/ We passed a few runners at this point who asked me to take a picture of them. I did, but I have no idea how to get the photos to them, plus, I’m sure they weren’t as good as the action shots on the course.

After some uneventful walking, we finally arrived at North Falls: The crown jewel of the canyon trail. This waterfall has a giant cavern behind it with some amazing vantage points. After stopping for some photo ops, we finished the canyon trail which ends at a parking lot. There is one more quick side trip beyond the parking lot to see upper north falls.

Rim Trail

At this point, we had seen 9 of the 10 waterfalls, the race was wrapping up, and the weather was deteriorating. Reports online say that the Rim Trail is a letdown after the Canyon Trail. It certainly wasn’t as dramatic as walking through the canyon, but I saw some of my favorite views of the day on the Rim Trail. I guess one reason why people might not like it as much is that you are walking right next to the road.

We still had one more waterfall to see, but we were also starting to get really cold. When we finally came to the junction with Winter Falls (aptly named for our trip), we had a moment of deliberation as to whether we were going to go check it out. In the end, we had come to see ten waterfalls and would not settle for any less. We head down to see it. I certainly do not regret making the side trip to go see the tenth waterfall, but it also was just not as spectacular as some of the other falls we had seen during the day. Plus, there was a couple standing there ruining our photo-ops :p

The last mile or so parallels a bike path, and it was just a casual stroll through cold drizzle back to the car. Overall all the Trail of Ten Falls did not disappoint. It is the perfect length and distance from Portland to be a good half day trip if you want to get out of the city and into the woods.  We made it back to Portland just in time to share a cheese plate at Cheese and Crack.  A solid day in my book 🙂

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