Ramona Falls

So we had a lot of fun at Mount Hood. We ate huckleberry milkshakes and huckleberry pie at the Huckleberry Inn, we read books on the bank of Trillium Lake, we went zipping down an alpine sled, and we all relaxed. But the end of camping came much too soon. To finish off our trip, we hesitantly decided to take the boys on a 7.1 mile hike to Ramona Falls. The boys did fine on a steep 2.8 mile hike two days prior, so we figured it was worth a shot, especially if the falls were 'exceptionally beautiful' like our hiking book said.

There was a huge flood three years ago that wiped out part of the Ramona Falls trail, Pacific Coast Trail (the one that runs from Mexico to Canada), and the Timberline trail (40 miler that runs around Mount Hood). The above pic shows a very small portion of the devastation. Even three years later and with a guidebook, it's quite difficult to figure out how to navigate the trail. Given the difficulty of finding the path and getting to the out-of-the-way trailhead, this may be the only time you see pics of Ramona Falls. You're welcome.

One side of the trail loop runs by a pretty stream hugging a cliff. Very nice photo ops. I just wish that I had a tripod. I took the above shot with Carter on my shoulders - holding a camera steady is difficult like that. I did have to carry both boys quite a bit during the hike as seven miles proved to be a tad much. I carried Jordan about 3/4 mile and Carter about 2.5 miles.

But as difficult as it was, we made it! Here's the photographic proof. Carter is sporting his Junior Ranger hat with badges from Zion, Grand Canyon, and Pipe Springs.

We got there late in the afternoon, which was a perfect time to see the falls. The lighting was beautiful. However, it was a horrible time to take photos. The contrast of light and shadow was just too great. So here's the best shot I could get of the 150 ft. by 150 ft. waterfall...

Not good enough for you, eh? Well, I also took a video. So there.