The Hiker Mama

About

Once upon a time, before I had kids, I worked in Environmental Education for a local parks department.  This fit in well with my interests, as I had studied Forest Ecology in college, and had grown up camping and hiking all over Oregon with my family.  After I had my first child, I really missed being outside all the time, so I started hiking with him.  I continued to hike after the birth of my second child.  I learned so much about hiking with young children!  Now we homeschool, and we get out as much as we can.  I hope we can inspire others to get outside with the children in their lives!

Questions?  Fill out the form below to contact me by email, and I’ll get back to you.

Comments

4 responses to “About”

  1. Michelle Avatar
    Michelle

    Hi Jennifer! I love your site and have a quick question. We are hoping to take our two boys (ages 5 and 2) to Franklin Falls tomorrow, but I can’t get a good idea of how long the hike is to the falls. You make mention of shorter distances, maybe one-half to three-quarters of a mile. Are there ways to make it a shorter hike than the two miles mentioned on the Forest Service site? Thanks!!

    Reply
    1. Hiker Mama Avatar
      Hiker Mama

      Hi Michelle,
      The road that takes you from the freeway to the parking area just past Denny Creek Campground continues on up toward the Pass. It used to be the old highway, I believe, before they put I-90 in. It makes some twists and turns, and there are two spots where the road makes a sharp bend and there is trail access in those two spots. I believe there is at least some parking along the road at those places. (I haven’t tried parking there, I started from the spot just after the campground.) Watch the signs carefully, I believe there is another trail (maybe the Wagon Road?) paralleling the road more closely. I hope this makes sense – if you get the Green Trails map, you can see pretty clearly where the road and trail intersect. You can get this map at the North Bend Ranger Station or at outdoor retailers such as REI (Or use computer topo software). Good luck! Have fun! Let me know if you need more clarification.
      Jennifer

      Reply
  2. Lou Avatar
    Lou

    It’s not easy getting the kids outside and away from the video games. Some of my best memories I will ever have was spending time with my daughter when she was 5 hiking around Mount Baker and more recently taking my son when he was 9 for 10 days in Yellowstone, dividing the camping into three corners of the park. You have created a great blog. Currently I am blogging about nature in my “backyard” in Wilsonville, Oregon (www.treecityalmanac.com). Lou

    Reply
    1. Hiker Mama Avatar
      Hiker Mama

      Hi Lou! Thanks for visiting my blog. I grew up in Newberg, so it’s nice to see someone blogging not too far away.

      Reply

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