Recently, I had the honor and pleasure to spending some time with David Anderson and Amy Singmaster on the Smith Creek Trail near Mount Saint Helens.  Brian Bogan and I traveled out from Fort Collins CO early for our Portland Tour de Fat (this Saturday, August 14, in Waterfront Park) to soak up the scenery and enjoy the company of our friends from the Northwest Trail Alliance.  The NWTA will be benefiting from the Parade and will be benefiting from the Merchandise and Do-It-Yourself Booths.
 
I had been tentative to commit to such an adventure.  I am much more of a utilitarian bicyclist, I commute almost daily and on the other days I walk.  But getting on a mountain bike and riding singletrack with locals is a little daunting when you are not much of a mountain bike rider.  Don’t get me wrong, I love to ride-but I have been working for a brewery for over 8 years, let’s just say I’m really good at 12oz curls.  Bogan, on the other hand, can shred with the best of them-so he was psyched.

On Saturday, August 14th, if you are not volunteering at the Tour de Fat, I will be leading a commando-style work party on the Smith Creek loop.  We will ride from the Ape Canyon Trailhead for the traditional loop, but on the way down the pumice slope into Smith Creek we will stop to trim the overgrown brush.  Further down in the canyon there is some much needed benching treadwork and I hope to access some previously stashed tools and get after it.  

 This will be a HUGE day.  The Smith Creek loop is an advanced ride in of itself.  Spending more time doing trailwork will demand a hearty toll of water, food, energy and effort.  We will be packing small hand tools to tackle the brush on the upper sections, bring your big pack.  And maybe a water filter.

What better way to celebrate Labor Day weekend than volunteering some time to do some needed trail work?  The Forest Service would like us to concentrate our work efforts on the Smith Creek Trail, Mount St Helens.  This work party is being spearheaded by Bike Gallery employees, James Ceccorulli and David Anderson. 

What better way to celebrate Labor Day weekend than volunteering some time to do some needed trail work?  The Forest Service would like us to concentrate our work efforts on the Smith Creek Trail, Mount St Helens.  This work party is being spearheaded by two Bike Gallery employees, Darrin Joos and David Anderson. 

This Sunday, August 1st, will be the first of several work parties on the Smith Creek Trail, Mount St Helens National Volcanic Monument, during August and September.  Dates for the other work parties will be announced at a later date.

On sunday's work party we will be doing some as needed work hopefully as far 'north' as, or above, Ape Canyon Creek.  Future work parties will focus on sections of the trail above that point.

There will be ample opportunity to ride your bike before, during and after, the work party.  Tools needed include: shovels, loppers, garden rakes, brush saws, and if you have access to one, a bob trailer - although I have two we could use another.

We need to leave Portland by 07:00.  We can meet up in Battleground (at Fred Myers on the north-west side of Hwy 503 and Main Street - if needed) before proceeding up to the Ape Canyon Trailhead.  We'll descend in to Smith Creek on the old 83 Road.

If interested please e-mail me at ujelang at gmail dot com for a meeting time/place in Portland.  Please advise if any questions.

The west side of Mount St Helens is about as different from the east side as could be expected.  It's scenic.  It's tough.  It has variety.  It's probably not for everybody.  Doing the entire 15 mile loop will involve about 3400 feet of climbing, with the toughest section along the Loowit Trail, which in my opinion is the most scenic portion of the loop, but also the toughest because of four large gullys that are subject to washouts and are hikeabike situations.