u/SherwoodHikes

Portland fun trip with one of the quests being fresh hop beers. Had some good ones at the first few places I visited. Nothing wow'd me. I joked with my friend that I was still waiting for my Oprah moment. You know, as the socials say these days, all the feels. Then it happened....back to back. Had one of my favorite beers in the world, Ripe, at Great Notion. Ordered Super Ripe with no expectations. BOOM. Oh my.

Across the street to Baerlic. A flight of fresh hop beers. Hello Oprah moment. Unbelievable. Sofa king good.

God Bless Fresh Hop Beers

A number of "firsts" for my '26 Frontier on this holiday weekend.

First road trip. First camping trip. First dirt road. First firewood haul. First rain.

Crossed over 500 miles on the odometer (delivery was 7/16/26).

Nice to get out of the unrelenting heat in SD. Great weather. Relaxing time.

Tropical version of their Party Tricks IPA. I've had both on draft at the brewery. Both are excellent, but I don't remember loving the tropical version as much as I'm digging it right now. I was a HUGE fan of pineapple Sculpin back in the day. While this isn't the same, it's in the same genre, and it's really tasty. Looking forward to stopping by Alesmith soon for one of their Oktoberfest events.

Stopped in on Friday afternoon for 2 flights and a pint at Great Notion. All the beers I tried were on point and delicious. But one in particular, "Ripe", a Citra hazy IPA, was easily the Best in Show. Love the chill vibe of this Alberta Arts District neighborhood. Food at Matt's Tacos (inside GN) was sofa king good too.

Started at Berry Patch Trailhead.

Day 1 - Berry Patch to Jordan Basin. Didn't get started until 1:30pm. Short day but all uphill. Camp at Jordan Basin was great. The sunset view of Saint Helens was awesome.

Day 2 - Jordan Basin to campsite on Snowgrass Creek. First leg was up to Hawkeye Point. Strenuous but worth it. Incredible views of Adams and Rainier. Next it was down to Goat Lake for lunch. Then around the Goat Creek Basin to the bypass trail (Trail 97). We were originally going to go to Snowgrass Flat but heard water was scarce and it was packed with people. We made the right choice to go lower. Nice camping at Snowgrass Creek and only say 2 other hikers pass through. Had the place to ourselves. Saw a marten while eating dinner.

Day 3 - Original plan was up Old Snowy and Knife's Edge, but we heard great things from other hikers about Cispus Basin. Seeing as how we already got amazing views on day 2, we headed to Cispus. It did not disappoint. Upon entering the basin, I spotted a bear down at the creek. Then, another on the other side of the creek. They were foraging and running between trees. Not fully grown yet but not cubs. So amazing to see bears at a safe distance. The highlight of the trip.

Long lunch at Cispus River. We returned to Snowgrass Creek where we left our base camp, which was nice to slack pack over to Cispus. Slowly packed up and headed down to Goat Creek. Huge campsite there uphill from the crossing, hidden in the woods. As we set up camp, we realized we were only 2.2 miles from the car (with cold beer), so we packed back up and headed down to Berry Patch. We drove around the corner to Chambers Lake Campground for the night.

Chambers Lake Campground is a trippy place. It was devastated by wind this winter. Downed trees everywhere. A crew did a great job cleaning up, but there are 3-4 campsites that were obliterated. Every site was impacted in some way. Free camping, no trash, no running water, and the cleanest pit toilet I've ever seen with the most luxurious TP ever found in the backcountry. Chambers Lake was a serene setting. Only two other campsites being used. Quiet night.

Tried to stop in Packwood the next day for a meal and a beer, but the brewery doesn't open until 1pm.

I absolutely fell in love with the Goat Rocks Wilderness. This was a plan B after 86ing our Timberline Trail hike. I will be back.

Wildlife scorecard:

2 bears, 1 marten, 4 pikas, 2 ptarmigans, 100s of marmots

Started at Berry Patch Trailhead.

Day 1 - Berry Patch to Jordan Basin. Didn't get started until 1:30pm. Short day but all uphill. Camp at Jordan Basin was great. The sunset view of Saint Helens was awesome.

Day 2 - Jordan Basin to campsite on Snowgrass Creek. First leg was up to Hawkeye Point. Strenuous but worth it. Incredible views of Adams and Rainier. Next it was down to Goat Lake for lunch. Then around the Goat Creek Basin to the bypass trail (Trail 97). We were originally going to go to Snowgrass Flat but heard water was scarce and it was packed with people. We made the right choice to go lower. Nice camping at Snowgrass Creek and only say 2 other hikers pass through. Had the place to ourselves. Saw a marten while eating dinner.

Day 3 - Original plan was up Old Snowy and Knife's Edge, but we heard great things from other hikers about Cispus Basin. Seeing as how we already got amazing views on day 2, we headed to Cispus. It did not disappoint. Upon entering the basin, I spotted a bear down at the creek. Then, another on the other side of the creek. They were foraging and running between trees. Not fully grown yet but not cubs. So amazing to see bears at a safe distance. The highlight of the trip.

Long lunch at Cispus River. We returned to Snowgrass Creek where we left our base camp, which was nice to slack pack over to Cispus. Slowly packed up and headed down to Goat Creek. Huge campsite there uphill from the crossing, hidden in the woods. As we set up camp, we realized we were only 2.2 miles from the car (with cold beer), so we packed back up and headed down to Berry Patch. We drove around the corner to Chambers Lake Campground for the night.

Chambers Lake Campground is a trippy place. It was devastated by wind this winter. Downed trees everywhere. A crew did a great job cleaning up, but there are 3-4 campsites that were obliterated. Every site was impacted in some way. Free camping, no trash, no running water, and the cleanest pit toilet I've ever seen with the most luxurious TP ever found in the backcountry. Chambers Lake was a serene setting. Only two other campsites being used. Quiet night.

Tried to stop in Packwood the next day for a meal and a beer, but the brewery doesn't open until 1pm.

I absolutely fell in love with the Goat Rocks Wilderness. This was a plan B after 86ing our Timberline Trail hike. I will be back.

Wildlife scorecard:

2 bears, 1 marten, 4 pikas, 2 ptarmigans, 100s of marmots

Had my truck for two weeks. A 2026 SV 2x4 with just under 200 miles now (got it with 12). My previous vehicle was a 2017 Honda CRV that I also bought new and drove for 10 years. Traded it in with 85k.

Definitely a big difference in overall drive, of course, from the CRV to the Frontier. An adjustment period for sure, but I'm enjoying not having to baby it on any rougher roads. Looking forward to purchasing a small camping trailer this fall to tow after the break-in period

Looking for some owner feedback from all of you awesome Frontier people.

1. the parking break doesn't seem to hold very well. In fact, if I shift to neutral in my driveway, the parking break doesn't hold. Perhaps I'm not pushing it far enough? My CRV had an electronic parking break. Anyone experience this? I haven't owned a vehicle with a pedal parking break in over 30 years...

2. the truck shifts rough from 1st to 2nd gear, even if I turnoff the automatic shutoff. Nothing crazy, but most definitely NOT smooth. Is this a common issue?

Thanks in advance!

Citra-By-The-Sea hazy IPA. All Citra. Tasted like candy. At their Escondido location. Had a lot of good IPAs on tap, as always. Also had their way too limited time American Gold lager. Maybe the best plain lager I've ever had. Seriously.

In 1996, at a Spring Training baseball game in Arizona, the line for a Bud Lite was 30+ deep. There was a little tent way off in the corner of the left field side that said "Full Sail Brewing Co". My buddy pointed and led the way.

Full Sail Amber Ale.

I had never tasted anything like it. Tame by today's standards, but at the time it was thick, rich, and tasted like heaven. I drank 4 pints that day, felt good, spilled a bit on my white shirt and it stained. Always a reminder of that magical day.

My first "craft" beer.

I tried to stop at the brewery in Hood River, Oregon back in 2020, but it was closed. Finally got there last week after a hiking trip at Mount Hood. Took the long way back to PDX. Had a couple of pints and a burger. Grabbed a sixer for my hotel in Portland. Just as tasty as I remember it, althoug my craft beer experience and palate have widened greatly.

Snag one if you find it.

Started at Humber Park, up Devils Slide to the PCT, PCT on the west side, then up Deer Springs Trail to Little Round Valley campground. Had the place to myself. Beautiful night. Little stream running through camp. Next morning got up early and was the first person on the summit of San Jacinto Peak. Headed back on the peak trail to PCT to Devlis Slide. Hard trip but absolutely amazing scenery.

The truck found me. I was in the market for a 2023 Honda Passport. Found one at a Nissan dealership. Saw the incentives on trucks. Pulled me in like a tractor beam.

Still delicious.

Funny, when I go to their brewery tasting room, I never have this. Just too many other great options. But it's hitting the spot today.