It’s a good thing that I had Siouxon Creek on my itinerary this year. I’m not so sure that it will remain reachable by passenger car much longer. That is without a doubt the worst (mostly) paved road I’ve ever driven.

Even with the days being sunny, there are places where the direct sunlight doesn’t reach for most of the day due to the lower angle of the sun at this time of year and the surrounding terrain. Since I planned this trip for this normally overcast time of year that has been a real godsend. Imagine a fall trip without rain and without much fall color. And speaking of color, I would love to share a picture of the beautiful color of the water in places in Siouxon Creek with you. The problem is that while I was able to see it through the trees, when I went down the bank to the creek level the light was different and I wasn’t able to capture what I could see from above. Speaking of above, the trail is mostly above creek level. That’s not exactly unusual. I am very pleased to report that the trail stays very close to the creek for the most part. It’s kind of disappointing when I hike a trail named for a creek or river and have very few views of those features.

The trail continues past the cutoff for the Chinook Creek Trail. I would have loved to continue, but instead, as per plan, I took the short spur to Chinook Falls. Chinook Falls is very nice, although I did not even take a picture. It was almost all in the shade, while the cliff on the left side was in full sun. I stood and watched it for a while. I wanted to stay longer, but it had already taken me five hours to get to my turn around point. It only took me two hours to hike back to the trail head. I figured out why it takes me so long to hike. (That is besides my various ailments.) I keep stopping to take pictures! Five hours in and two hours out. I’m sure you can do the math. Imagine what I could do if I just left my camera behind.