As the trail just reopened yesterday, I embarked on a hike adventure to Lava Canyon today. The weather was perfect- sunny and warm.

Of the hundreds of hiking trails I’ve been on, this is my favorite. It has unusual geological features from the volcanic mudflow, diverse scenery, 5 or so waterfalls, and has technical parts of the trail, including narrow paths near cliffs, 2 ladders and a suspension bridge. You might feel a bit like Indiana Jones while you’re there.

A nice view of St. Helens from the Lahar Viewpoint on the way to Lava Canyon.

The Muddy River canyon

The suspension bridge

A hiker walls along the cliff (the trail). The waterfall is impressive and you can see the suspension bridge in the background.

More waterfalls, as seen from ‘The Ship’, a big rock island.

Remains of a washed out bridge

The trail is quite sketchy and treacherous in places as you can see. Several parts are narrow, rocky, and beside cliffs. One slip could be your last.

This is a 12 second video showing me do a couple basic (and comparatively small) jumps at the ‘Basic Training’ part of the freestyle mountain biking area at Black Rock (near Falls City, Oregon).

This jump along the ‘Granny’s Kitchen’ run is a little more substantial. I didn’t try it- no way.

I hope to buy a helmet cam to show what the ‘Bonzai’ run looks like- a very fast and fun downhill ride.

I flew to Colorado for a family reunion on July 26th, spending time in Estes Park and Denver before returning August 1st. Here are the images…

Estes Park / Rocky Mountain National Park

Denver

Denver Museum of Nature & Science

Miscellaneous around Denver

Firefighters Museum

Denver Art Museum

US Mint in Denver

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