Waterfalls | Washington State Hiking Pursuing Balance Thru Adventure

MOUNT SI NATURAL RESOURCES CONSERVATION AREA

NORTH BEND

Activity: Day Hike, Chasing Waterfalls, and Peak Bagging

11.7 miles, 4748’ elevation, 4308’ elevation gain, 7 hour duration, rated HARD

Date: 6-18-22

Pursuing Balance Through Adventure YouTube Channel
Teneriffe Falls and Teneriffe Mountain Loop
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Teneriffe Falls, words can’t describe it, at least I can’t find the words that would do it justice. The falls were just super amazing, so beautiful, so powerful, so glorious. There are also plenty of little falls and lots of stream crossings, none of which were hard to maneuver. The forest, green, lush and silent- aside from the occasional bird call, babbling brook, or far off falls. A dank, fresh, earthy smell filled the air, yet every once in a while I would go by some flowering plants and the aroma… such a sweet and wonderful experience.

Trail to Teneriffe Falls is fraught with difficulty.

I decided to add on Teneriffe Mountain to my adventure. Being a Peak Bagger I was eyeing it as an additional feat. I spoke to a young hiker along the way. He asked if I was going to the peak? I said I had thought about it. He had been to the falls many times and was on his way to the top afterwards. He said it was “hard”. I asked, “Harder than what we had just done? His reply was, “A lot harder”.

Trail I took to the summit of Teneriffe Mountain can hardly be called a trail at all.
I suppose this is why it is called Kamikaze Trial.

That turned out to be an understatement. From the very beginning the going was so tough that it appeared as if there wasn’t a trail at all. I had to really pay attention and check my GPS as the path intersected animal trails that could confuse the direction. On a trail named ‘Kamikase’ I was always glad to meet other people which led me to believe I was on the right track. But basically It was just straight up the mountain. A hiker above dislodged a rock about the size cantaloupe and it came tumbling down narrowly missing me. He apologized and exclaimed that he tried to yell, but was drowned out by the sound of the falls. The trek was a lot of scrambling up a muddy, rocky, and slippery steep incline. It encompassed category 2 and 3 scrambling.

I met some good people along the way, and joined them to the top. It was near the summit that we clambered into snow and post holed our way up the rest of the journey. The snow was patchy during the last portion of the assent. However on the way back down there was a good amount of the trail covered in snow. The weather at the peak unfortunately was a Pacific Northwest cloudy misty drizzly kind of day. So the spectacular view that we should have been enjoying was instead just the inside of a cloud. It was still special to be on top. The forecast had called for a brisk 39 degrees at the summit. I was still super heated from the difficult climb, so I was fine in just my short sleeve shirt.

Then came the fretting about trying to make it down that treacherous and very steep mountain. I opted for the longer way down which made it a loop and added some different sights to experience. It turned out that it was a good choice although it was still a pretty good decline so certainly not an easy journey. My legs can attest to that.

**“If happiness is the goal, and it should be,**
**then adventure should be top priority.”**
**– Richard Branson**

**What happened to the beautiful view I was expecting atop Teneriffe Mountain?**

Thanks for joining me on this epic adventure as I found myself ‘Pursuing Balance Through Adventure’ at a gorgeous water fall, and on to top making it a magnificent day. There are more of these spectacular days ahead so I invite you to stay with me by doing a few easy tasks: COMMENT, LIKE, FOLLOW and SHARE. You just might find some ideas for your own adventure at the above menu. PBTA ventures all over this wonderful West of ours, enjoying Nature and seeking the Balance it can bestow. The menu is categorized mostly by location, but sometimes by activity, each is a separate website and thus needs to be FOLLOWED independently. If you are looking for great quality Adventure Wear than look no further than my line of PBTA logo items at SHOP APPAREL.

Happy Trials-

Roger Jenkins

Pursuing Balance Through Adventure

LAKE CHELAN NATIONAL RECREATION AREA

THINGS TO DO IN STEHEKIN, WASHINGTON

Activity: Sightseeing, Biking

After a most challenging, but fulfilling backpacking adventure along the incredible Lake Shore Trail, my sister Peggy and her husband Dale surprised me with a hotel stay in a pleasant little place in Stehekin. It was a most delightful surprise after couple days of hard backpacking. I was already to start pitching my tent in the campground on the edge of town when they invited me up for wine and hors d’oeuvres on the patio of our modest, but clean and welcoming room over looking the lake. What I really enjoyed was the nice hot shower to wash off the dust, sweat and trail.

Most things were closed up because of the Cov-19 Pandemic, but we could order to go at the restaurant next to our hotel at the Stehekin Landing. We had a delicious meal, sat out on our deck looking at the lake, recanting our wondrous backpacking trip. The next morning we had to catch the Ferry back to civilization. It was leaving just after lunch time which allowed us the morning for exploring the quaint little town and the area.

There are lots of things to do in Stehekin if you are staying for some amount of time, but our adventure was the backpacking to the end of beautiful Lake Chelan and now we had only the morning to see Stehekin. So, if you only have a short amount of time- here is the hot ticket. I first took a little self guided tour of a historic cabin, and then we rented bikes and set out for Rainbow Falls, which is about a 4 mile round trip.

Biking through Stehekin up towards the falls is filled with glorious greenery during early Summer. It was so green and so lush I had to keep taking off my sunglasses to believe how green it really was. Our first stop was at the historic one room school house. Pretty cool to step back in time and see what it was like for country kids back in yesteryear. I am pretty sure it was like this for my parents growing up in Oregon, as I remember they told me how they had to trudge miles through deep snow, uphill both ways.

Then the falls… wow oh wow. Now this is a proper waterfall! Very powerful falls with soaking mist and spray tumbles 312 feet. It was overcast and cool on this morning, so no rainbow effect, but it was astounding nonetheless- framed with evergreens with torrents of water tumbling through the air reaching for the ground below. There is a steep switch back walk way that goes up to a perch for a different view of the falls. But be warned this view should be enjoyed on a hot day in your trunks. I should also say it is not much of a view, not because it isn’t magnificent, but it is hard to keep your eyes open when the wind created by the thundering falls is blasting mist and spray right in your face. I had a rain jacket on, but my shorts were throughly soaked in seconds. So it is more of an adventure than a view. But you know I love adventure!

On the way back from the falls the thing to do is stop by the Stehekin Pastry Co which has been serving up the most delicious, made from scratch, pastries and shouldn’t be missed. Plus they have nice grounds to enjoy with your meal.

There are nice cabins in this area as one might imagine, but one in particular was so outstanding that we had to stop and do a “Cabin on the Lake” photo shoot.

Be sure to checkout the video to see the power and the glory of the falls.

Stehekin Landing, where the Ferry docks. The buildings you see house a gift shop, restaurant, shops, and the hotel in which we stayed.

Historic One Room School House

Dale, Peggy and I at Rainbow Falls

The grounds at the bakery were lovely and our pastries were so good.

There were lots of cool cabins in Stehekin at Lake Chelan, but our favorite was “Cabin on the Lake.”

A bike ride to Rainbow Falls with a stop at the pastry shop is a must do when in Stehekin, you won’t regret it.

WATERFALL

I was looking for the eternal beauty,
which God and Nature may have created on earth?
I think I found it, up high in the mountains,
in the form of gracious thundering water fall.
Originating from the melting snow,
or the water parting from the frozen glacier,
raging plunge of unlimited water down the cliff,
makes the waterfall show off its beauty and grace.

I stand in awe and behold the water fall,
an exalted sensation seems to fill my heart,
I see the boundless stream of water,
splashing on the rocks at the foot of the cliff,
and making the shadowy mist around it.
The Sun rays cast their reflection,
and make the mist appear in cheerful rainbows colors.

The cool breeze mixed with water drops,
soothes my mind and cleans up my body and soul.

I can stare at the waterfall for hours and hours,
take its pictures or portray its image in my heart and mind.
Is it a picture of a mighty reaching for some weakling down below,
or some earthly mind trying to achieve the limitless sky of wisdom?

I wonder where the water goes,
the foamy and silky waterfront,
moves down the creek,
in a melodious tune in its eternal path,
like a lover searching for the beloved in the unknown paths.

The music of flowing water fills the mountain ambiance with sweet musical harmony,
The lovers hear the sweet serenade of their intimate feelings,
The separated lovers find their missing emotions,
The meditating hearts find the sounds of their soul,
The nature lover’s ears ring with melodious sounds of the flowing water,
I am positive that one can hear songs of their heart and mind,
in the flowing stream of the water fall.

By Jay P Narain

Thanks for joining Dale, Peggy and I at the superb Rainbow Falls “Pursuing Balance Through Adventure“. It was a special few days sharing the wilds of Lake Chelan, it’s natural beauty and stunning mountains, and of course it’s breathtaking Rainbow Falls. Please leave a COMMENT, LIKE, FOLLOW and SHARE. You can have a head band like Peggy’s (which also doubles as a face gaiter to be COVID-19 appropriate), or beanie and performance shirt like mine by going to SHOP APPAREL, which also helps support this blog. Go to the menu above and click on Oregon Hiking to see my next outing filled with adventure seeking balance away from the everyday and mundane. Each location is itself an independent website and needs to be FOLLOWED as a stand alone.

Happy Trails-

Roger Jenkins

Pursuing Balance Through Adventure