Shellrock Trail--Rock Lakes Loop
Hike #28 in 100 Hikes in Oregon, 2nd Edition
Saturday, August 9, 2008

This was a hike that my friend Tasha and I went on the weekend before a trip we did to Yosemite to attempt Half Dome. Neither of us had really done any training over the summer, and I in particular was pretty nervous about whether or not my body--especially my knees--could handle the very long, very steep climb. So, we decided to do a little test hike, something pretty long for us--around 14 miles--but not ridiculously strenuous, just to see how we fared.

It turned out to be quite a nice trip with some great views, and it's very close to Portland, so it's one that would be easy and fun to do again some day. I even enjoyed the semi-rainy weather we encountered. It was enough drizzle so that it was nice and cool, but not enough that we were soaked or couldn't enjoy the scenery. And even though I was very tired at the end, I came away feeling much more optimistic about Half Dome, but that's another slideshow. Click next to see the photos from this trip.