Hiking the Great Northwest: 100 miles.... COMPLETE!

I thought it would take me the whole year to get to 100 miles of hiking, however, it only took about 3 1/2 months!

I have been doing my clinical hours for my Masters in Counseling internship in Corvallis on Thursdays and Fridays. I finished up this Friday early and decided to go hike Bald Hill on the west side of Corvallis. I have hiked this twice before, but this time I started in a different place.

I parked on the north side of the park off of NW Oak Creek Dr. I took an immediate right turn and hiked along some farmland leading to another path that took me to the base of the hill. I winded around the hill a bit and then took a trail that lead me straight up to the top. From the top I went back down on a different path and was a little unsure of where it would take me. It ended up being a loop back to the top, so I had to turn around and find a path that would take me to the bottom. I eventually got to the bottom and was near the other entrance to the park off of SW Reservoir Ave. Following the paved path, I took a right where I thought it would take me back to the beginning where I started. However, after getting all the way to the end of this path, I realized I was not where I started, I was at the Benton County Fairgrounds! There was no path that would take me directly to where I started, so I had to go all the way back the way I came. After taking the correct way at the fork in the trail, I came across the trademark run down barn that is a part of this park. Of course I had to stop and check it out. There was a field of incredibly giant dandelion wishes surrounding the barn. It was whimsical. Back on the trail, I followed it to the end and successfully made it back to my car!

I had planned it to only be a couple miles, however, I took a couple wrong turns and it ended up being about a 5 mile hike...bringing me to my 100 mile mark!

I also have had a lot of extra energy lately and had weird urges to run/jog. And if anyone knows me, I am certainly not a person who enjoys running. The only way I am running is if someone or something is chasing me. So this hike I actually ran a good amount on the trails.

Date of hike: June 13th, 2014
Distance: 5 miles