Dates: July 11, 2018
By: Beth Dayton of the Salem Area Trail Alliance
I walked this route starting from Bear Meadow interpretive site up to the false summit of Strawberry Mtn, with a short side trip to the lookout site. I backtracked to the junction of 213/220 and followed 213 to the junction with FR 26.
Bear Meadow to Lookout, trail 220
2.4 miles, about 1400 feet elevation change. Total of 45 logs down in this section, the majority being old growth 24-36 inch diameter. Also at least one large root ball resting right on the trail. Except for the short section on Boundary trail which has an excellent bench the rest has a narrow bench, or minimal tread or bench. There is some brush approaching the edge of the blast zone. Nice twisting, steep trail with very steep side hill, and a creek running on the east side for the first mile. The last spur up to the lookout site is extremely steep (>25%) on soft loose pumice. If a stage is started at the top of the lookout you might consider boot-packing a less steep climbing route on the last few hundred feet to avoid tearing up the trail. Views from the lookout are incredible: 360 panorama of Rainier, Adams, Hood and St. Helens.
Lookout spur to trailhead on FR 2516 (access via FR 25)
Less than a mile, very well travelled, good bench, two logs down. This would be moderate-mild uphill from the parking area to the base of the lookout spur.
TH on 2516 to False Summit
2.5 miles. About 15 more logs down, but smaller (up to 18”) Intermittant areas of very heavy brush; may be possible to detour onto existing double track for short distances. Last section from jxn with 213 is wide open, treeless, steep sidehill, pumice surface, amazing views. I did not go north of this point, but the trail is visible sloping upward across the pumice toward the true summit.
Trail 213, from jxn with 220 to FR 26
Unfortunately the tracking didn’t work due to low battery, but maps show about 3.6 miles. This section varies a lot – the first mile is on a steep side hill, almost no bench, just grass in the tread. A few small old logs. Then the route proceeds on and off of old skid roads, sometimes difficult to follow and buried in alder, other times cleared to a 6 foot corridor. I missed the trail several times when it left the road bed. About halfway down the route the map shows tight switchbacks, and here there is a deep washout or landslide about 40 feet wide, 15 feet deep and more than 100 feet down the slope. The trail is gone. I picked it up again by sliding down the edge of the landslide, watching Avenza for the location. This area has very loose pumice and would have to be completely re-built on a steep sidehill. Very thick alder brush in this area. The last half mile or so has a very good bench, crosses several small streams, and trends slightly uphill to the crossing of road 26. Overall not much for flow; seems to alternate between flat and very steep with no consistency. There are confusing old skid roads (salvage logging after the blast), and some areas that are NOT on the trail are marked with pink flagging that looks fairly fresh. Less than a dozen logs, all small and old.
