Summer in Salem

    

Hello, hello!

Welcome to the first post of A Travel Blog (Of Sorts). 

Exactly one week from right now I'll be moving into my apartment in Washington, D.C. so I figured I should get a post or two about Oregon in before I head back east. 

People say write about what you know, so here we go:

Hiking Oregon

 

             

Croisan Scenic Trail - Salem, OR

Croisan Meadow Loop Trail - Salem, OR

The three shots above are all from two trails that I am lucky enough to live directly in front of. Despite a few steep stretches, neither are particularly challenging (especially during the summer months),

so they're great for kids!

However, if you're going in the rainy season, be sure to waterproof your boots. I definitely learned that one the hard way. 

         

Above: view from the summit

Conner's Camp Trail, Mary's Peak - Benton County, OR

The slew of photos above are from the hike I did last week with my good friends Alan (red backpack) and Miro (yellow shirt). Mary's Peak is known for being a really nice, pretty easy day hike. Depending on where you park. 

It had been a long time since any of us had been up there, so we ended up driving the winding roads for a while and stopped at the first parking lot we saw. The maps were pretty confusing so we just started walking and ended up on a steep zigzagging trail that ended up (after nearly three hours) connecting us to the summit loop that leads to the amazing views Mary's Peak is known for. 

I told some people about our adventures once we got home only to be laughed at and told that most people drive up to the main parking lot, which connects directly to the summit trail, skipping the huge climb that my friends and I found. 

Even though it might have been a little extra in terms of effort, I'm really glad we did the trails that we did. I always say that nothing beats a post-hike meal, especially after a trail that really makes you work for it.

The college grads coloring their papers plates at Corvallis, Oregon's American Dream Pizza.

No matter how hard this post might make this hike sound - I guess it couldn't have been bad enough that it couldn't be done without shoes.

Shout out to Miro, who did the entire thing barefoot!

Next post:

Photos from a few more hikes, plus a look at some of the indoor joys of Oregon. 

Cheers!