Grass widows are blooming along here through mid-March. Past the last communications tower, a grassy track leads down to a saddle. Clumps of buckwheat bloom late in spring, but earlier there are various desert parsleys and the rare Douglas' draba. No Trespassing signs warn you not to poke around the facilities themselves. Three more communications complexes exist farther down the ridge. This section will be less populated, but the Patagonia-like winds may be a deterrent on some days. Otherwise, if it's a sunny day, continue hiking the road west along the ridge crest. If you're doing the shortest option, this is your turnaround point. To the south, Mount Hood, Mount Jefferson, the Three Sisters, The Dalles and the Columbia River Gorge can be admired. Far to the west, the jagged crown of Mount Saint Helens pokes above forested hills. Looking northeast, you'll see Grayback Mountain above the Klickitat River Canyon at the west end of the Simcoe Hills. There are stupendous views north to Mount Adams, Mount Rainier, Goat Rocks, the spread of High Prairie below and Swale Canyon. Pass through a gate below the FAA complex and head up to the ridge crest. A sign warns interlopers not to approach it within 150 feet. You'll come to the FAA air traffic control array, with its lingam-like beacon. Lots of obscure buttercups (Ranunculus triternatus) bloom just above here in early March - they are a major reason this area was declared a botanical preserve as the world population exists only in four counties in four different states! The road switchbacks up, offering a view east to the agricultural fields of the Centerville Valley and the windmills along the crest of the Columbia Hills as far as Haystack Butte. You will also probably hear the tinkling calls of meadowlarks.Īt 1.7 miles walk past the first communication towers on your right and note a pond down to the left. Higher up, pairs of horned larks warble and flit about the low bushes - the entire slope seems to a carefully delineated grid of horned lark territories. (This is the Stacker Butte-Oak Spring Trail Junction, an optional visit on your way back down.) Note the clumps of balsamroot and heart-leaf buckwheat. There are great views of Mount Hood, Mount Jefferson, The Dalles, and the Columbia River.Īt 1.1 miles switchback again at an access road to the powerlines. The road turns away from the draw and switchbacks. This fescue grassland is usually cold and windy in the spring, but offers a much more bountiful supply of sunshine than points west. Switchback at a power pylon and then head up along a draw. Grass widows bloom in profusion along the lower sections of the road in early spring, while balsamroot, lupine, and paintbrush take over in April. Up to the left are small oak copses under rimrock - the latter sheltering a rather large population of rattlesnakes. Walk up the gravel road past the preserve sign. 9.8 miles and 1,745 feet in elevation gain for everything!.Add 1.6 miles return (200' elevation gain) for the Oak Spring spur and viewpoint.Add 3.1 miles return (420' elevation gain) to hike along the summit ridge past the last comm.5.1 miles return (1145' elevation gain) to the FAA beacon at the top of Stacker Butte.Again, because this is a botanical preserve, you need to keep to the road tracks, leave your dog at home, and not wander off to trample rare and endemic flora. An often neglected detour leads down to Oak Spring, in the past a water source for Native Americans and Euro-American homesteaders alike, nestled in an expansive grove of Oregon white oak. To extend the hike, you can also continue along the ridge past the last towers and descend to Stacker Saddle. The trailhead is on a road that leads to the summit of Stacker Butte, and you must keep to the road as you ascend to the often windy (Patagonia-style) ridge that brims with communication towers. The northern section of the ranch, comprising the treeless hillsides at the crest of the Columbia Hills, became the Columbia Hills Natural Area Preserve and is managed by the Washington Department of Natural Resources. The ranch was split in two, with the southern section joining the newly named Columbia Hills State Park, now merged with the already existent Horsethief Butte State Park (see the Horsethief Butte Hike). In 1993, Pat and Darlene Bleakney, owners of The Dalles Mountain Ranch, worked up an agreement with Washington State Parks and turned over their property to the state.
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