The Obsidians

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2023-12-27

Amazon Hdwtrs/Spencer Butte
2023-12-27, 2024-01-03
NOTE: Flexible departure time from 8:15 to 8:30
Every Wednesday since 2013 we do this hike from the Martin Street Trailhead to the summit of Spencer Butte. Compared to starting at the paved Spencer Butte parking lot, this hike has double the climbing and three times the distance. It is a conditioning hike where everyone is challenging themselves to go at a moderate or fast pace—not like the other hikes on our schedule. If this is your first time on this Obsidian conditioning hike, or hiking to Spencer Butte, you may want to call the leader to discuss the pace. If you should fall too far behind, the leaders reserve the right to have you not summit but wait and return with the group. The regulars on this hike have attained their fitness by showing up consistently and slowly improving. If you have questions, email summertrips@obsidians.org. Come a few minutes early because we leave promptly at the listed time. To get to the trailhead: Take West Amazon to Martin Street. Turn left. Drive past Kinney Park and park Martin Street near the Kiosk sign board across from Canyon Drive Street sign with hiker symbol. Please contact the leader if you have any questions.

Midnight Lake
2023-12-27
This is a good first-of-the-season trip for intermediate skiers (it’s really not appropriate for beginners). Conditions permitting, we’ll head up to Midnight Lake via the PCT, then following the trail through the woods over to Abernethy Road past Bechtel Shelter, for a nice glide back to Pengra Pass and then the parking lot. Lunch will be at either Midnight Lake or at Bechtel Shelter. Depending on conditions, it could turn into an out-and-back instead of a loop (for instance, if it’s icy under the trees). Trip will be cancelled or re-scheduled if snow/road conditions are unsuitable. Please note: the trip can only go if we have drivers to take skiers up to the Sno-Park, so please offer to drive if you possibly can!

Whale Watching Overnight
2023-12-27 00:00 - 2023-12-28 23:59 (America/Los_Angeles)
This is an overnight trip to the Newport/Agate Beach area with an excursion to Depoe Bay. Participants will need to A) arrange their own transportation to/from Newport, and B) arrange their own accommodation in Newport/Agate Beach area for 1 night (December 27th). The trip leader suggests staying at a place with a generous cancellation policy in the off chance the trip needs to be cancelled. Dress for rain and cold. Bring needed snacks. Plan on eating together as a group for 1 dinner, and 1 lunch. The trip leader will be staying at the Best Western Agate Beach Inn.
Day 1: Dec. 27th
Arrive at the Yaquina Head Interpretive Center by 11:30am and meet inside the center. We will plan our afternoon from there depending on the weather and wind. The headland is a good location for whale watching so bring binoculars! There we will also be looking for winter birds in the area. Plan on walking up to 3 miles today. At 3:30-4pm we will wrap-up the afternoon as it will be getting dark and we it will be good to warm up inside.
In the evening, join others in the group at 6:15pm to have dinner at Local Ocean Seafood along Newport’s waterfront. We have a table reservation for 6, everyone pays for their own meal.
Day 2: Dec 28th
In the morning at 9am, we will meet up in Agate Beach (location provided during the trip). If need be, we can carpool the 12 miles to Depoe Bay. Depoe Bay is a perfect spot to see Gray Whales during their annual migration! Weather will determine our schedule, but we will be visiting the Whale Watching Center (the center opens at 10am, so there will be time to get some coffee in town), then viewing from along the seawall, and also walking north to NW Sunset Street where we will be viewing from along the peninsula that stretches from Pirate Cove to Depot Bay. We will eat lunch in town at one of the restaurants. Afterward, we can look for more whales or head back home. The plan is for everyone to be home by dark. Plan on walking up to 7 miles today.

Goodman Creek
2023-12-28
With the holidays near, a short hike close to town will give a quick escape to the forest. We will park at the Hardesty Mountain Trailhead along highway 58 near milepost 20. The Goodman Creek Trail meanders through a beautiful forest and across a couple side streams. At 2 miles, the gentle Goodman Creek Falls bubbles over the rock formations. After the falls, we will turn around at the old Goodman Creek Bridge, which is no longer suitable to cross. It’s a lovely spot. A lunch or snack break will happen at the bridge site before we turn around and return to the trailhead.

North Bank Habit Area
2023-12-31
The North Bank Habitat Area is near Roseburg, exit 135, Wilbur, then on North Bank Rd to the West Entrance – around 1 hour and 15 minutes. The scenic up and down loop has rolling—some steep & challenging hills— up to and along the ridgeline with oak savannas, meadows, and views of the North Fork of the Umpqua River.
One will need to watch for poison oak in a few places. Expect a few sections of the trail to be muddy depending on rainfall in recent days. It will be a steady moderate pace with a late lunch so bring some snacks. The elevation gain is like doing Pisgah twice. If the weather forecast is not so good, I will the change the hike to Pisgah.

Beach Clean-Up with SOLVE
2023-12-31
End of Year Celebration and Beach Clean Up at the Florence South Jetty.
We will join volunteers from all around the Oregon. Please meet 8:30AM at Target, West 11th in Eugene. We will carpool to Florence’s South Jetty for 10:00 AM – 12:30 PM work party.

New Years Day-Butte-Medium
2024-01-01
This is our 14th annual New Year’s Hike that continues a long Club tradition. There will be two other departure times and locations so we will plan on gathering on the South end so as to lower our impact on others. Start the year with fitness, friends, and the great outdoors. 2024 here we come!
* A good parking option is across the street on 52 street, that way we lesson our footprint and it may be a bit safer for your car.
**Reminder that this is a Leave No Trace hike and no feeding the squirrels or throwing apple cores. Thank you.

New Years Day-Butte-Short
2024-01-01
Meet at the Spencer Butte Trailhead -the paved lot – by the steps before the departure time. Take note of 100 plus shrubs and ferns that Obsidian Trail Maintenance volunteers planted on November 25. This hike is not a race –but a gathering for us to ring in the New Year. You can set your own pace with others on the main trail to the summit. This is 14th annual New Years Hike that continues a long Club tradition. We usually gather on top near the south end where we keep a low profile so as not to impact others.
Note: The meeting place is not at 52nd Street. Keep driving another ¼ mile. Meetup/Departure Location: Spencer Butte paved lot on Willamette

New Years Day-Butte-Long
2024-01-01
This is a ‘longest’ variation of Janet’s New Years hike for those that want to start the New Year off strongly. We will have the earliest start and aim to see all the Obsidians at the top. Choose the version that works best for you.
Reminder that this is a Leave No Trace hike and no feeding the squirrels or throwing apple cores. Thank you.

Blanton Ridge to Spencer Butte
2024-01-02
We will start on time at 7:00 am6:45am. This hike to the top of Spencer Butte takes the less traveled route from Blanton Road. We’ll cross Blanton Ridge before continuing on from the 52nd and Willamette trailhead. This option provides a good in town workout.. If the weather doesn’t co-operate we can forgo the exposed rocky steps near the top.
There are 2 ways to get to the trailhead:
1. To get to the trailhead from 29th & Willamette continue south on Willamette. At Willamette/Donald St Intersection bear right on Willamette. Immediately bear right again on to Crest Drive. Follow signs staying on Crest for approximately 1.2 miles to the Junction with Blanton Road. Turn left on Blanton. The trail head is on your left in about ½ mile. Do not turn left on Southpointe Dr.
2. Another way to get to the Blanton trailhead is to go south on Chambers until it ends at Crest Drive. Turn left on to Crest. In about ½ mile turn right on Blanton Road.

Pisgah East Side Loop
2024-01-05
East Trailhead – from Eugene, drive east on Highway 58 towards
Pleasant Hill. Turn left on Ridgeway Road at the 76 Station and drive 1.7
miles to the parking area on the left. The parking lot is small, but vehicles
can also park on the main road if necessary. Lane County Parking Pass is
required to park in the lot. Remove any valuables from your vehicle. There
is a porta potty at the trailhead.
We will hike to the summit on trails #2, 4, 3 and then #1 and returning on
trail #6. Good conditioning hike. Optional brunch/lunch following hike

Alsea and Green Peak Falls
2024-01-06
Meet at Jerrys on hwy 99.
Easy and short drive. We will hike along South Fork Alsea River to Alsea Falls and Green Peak Falls, and then South Fork Mile trail up to Big Fear trail.
Depending on what’s open some of us will stop on the way home in Monroe or Junction City for refreshment.
Parking: BLM or Senior Pass

Blanton Ridge to Spencer Butte
2024-01-09, 2024-01-16
We will start on time at 7:00 am. This hike to the top of Spencer Butte takes the less traveled route from Blanton Road. We’ll cross Blanton Ridge before continuing on from the 52nd and Willamette trailhead. This option provides a good in town workout.. If the weather doesn’t co-operate we can forgo the exposed rocky steps near the top.
There are 2 ways to get to the trailhead:
1. To get to the trailhead from 29th & Willamette continue south on Willamette. At Willamette/Donald St Intersection bear right on Willamette. Immediately bear right again on to Crest Drive. Follow signs staying on Crest for approximately 1.2 miles to the Junction with Blanton Road. Turn left on Blanton. The trail head is on your left in about ½ mile. Do not turn left on Southpointe Dr.
2. Another way to get to the Blanton trailhead is to go south on Chambers until it ends at Crest Drive. Turn left on to Crest. In about ½ mile turn right on Blanton Road.

GameNight!
2024-01-09
Come join us for an evening of games at the Lodge from 4:30 – 7:30 pm. By signing up, you’ll help us have an idea of about how many to expect, but you’re very welcome to show up any time throughout the evening, even if you don’t sign up. (No trip credit earned for this event)

Amazon Hdwtrs/Spencer Butte
2024-01-10
NOTE;
SIGNIFICANT LIKELIHOOD OF SNOW ON THE TRAIL FROM FOX HOLLOW ON UP, WITH A LESSER CHANCE BELOW FOX HOLLOW. THAT MEANS I MAY DECIDE TO STOP THE FORMAL HIKE AT THE MEADOW OR EVEN LOWER. PLEASE COME PREPARED FOR WINTER CONDITIONS AND FEEL FREE TO TURN AROUND AT ANY POINT YOU DEEM APPROPRIATE.

Newport King Tides & Yurts
2024-01-11 00:00 - 2024-01-13 23:59
King Tides and Yurts—Meeting place: Nye Beach Turnaround, Newport, OR, January 11, 2024, at 11:00AM
Location Base: Three yurts, nine people, at South Beach State Park, which is 1.5 miles south of Newport.
Payment: Within 5 days of signing up, please send a check for $43 payable to the Obsidians to Evelyn Nagy, P.O. Box 10412, Eugene, OR 97440.
Cancellation policy: No refunds unless someone takes your place.
This trip is for members only.
Restrooms and free, hot-water showers available close by the yurts.
No cooking facilities: lunch/dinner in town, optional breakfast; bring cash/credit card. Information at www. oregonstateparks.org
Please carpool if possible.
Registration on Thursday, December 14, 2023, 7:00AM.
Activities:
Thursday: meet at the turnaround at 11:00am to view the highest high tide (king tide); have lunch while high tide recedes to allow safe walk on the beach; check in at campground; dinner at Rogue Brewery in time to listen to OSU “Science on Tap” speaker (more info on this to come).
Friday: take early walk on the beach; optional breakfast; private tour of OSU’s state-of-the-art, tsunami/earthquake Gladys Valley Marine Studies Building (google Gladys Valley Marine Studies Building); lunch on bayfront with leisurely walk along fishing boat docks while tide recedes; beach walk; dinner at Local Ocean Restaurant.
Saturday: return to Eugene before dark and arrive no later than 5:00pm.

U of O Artwalk
2024-01-12
Meet at the Hendricks Park shelter near Summit and Floral Hill at 8:30. It is about a 1 mile walk to campus. Anyone who prefers can join the group at the LED Douglas Fir on the lower level of the EMU at 9. Just let me know.
We will somewhat follow the “artwork tour” found on UOregon (the free U of O app) under “tours”. I also have a lengthy (16 page) unedited cut and paste supplement to the U of O’s information. If anyone wants it, I can email you a copy.
There are several overlapping self-guided campus tours on the app. Trees, Buildings, Indigenous, Women’s and more. We will skip around through them and only cover a small portion of the whole.
We will spend a few hours wandering around and maybe stop for coffee, lunch or whatever. If it is rainy we can spend more time indoors.
It will be OK to leave early or stay late and the trip will officially end at the EMU sometime around noon.

Mt Pisgah
2024-01-12
Look for us by my car a row or two down from the fee box. This is an out and back hike using trails #17, 7, 3, 1 to the top and trail #1 back down to the parking lot. If you do not have a Lane County Pass, allow time to purchase one with debit/credit card (no cash) at the pay station by the trailhead.

Get Acquainted/Ribbon Trail
2024-01-13
HIKE CANCELLED DUE TO INCLEMENT WEATHER PREDICTED FOR SATURDAY MORNING. Please sign up for the next Get Acquainted hike on February 10th.

Tahkenitch Dune/3 Mile Lake
2024-01-13
We’ll head out to the coast to this beautiful trail that offers variations in terrain from forest to dunes (a portion of the trail is on loose sand) and hiking along the beach on hard pack.
We’ll stop in Florence on the return for a cup of coffee or ice cream and quick walk through downtown. If you prefer to return straight to Eugene, please discuss and coordinate with your carpool.
Drivers will need to pay a $5 parking fee unless you have a NW Forest pass.

Mt. Pisgah 6 Miler
2024-01-14
CANCELED due to weather
On this out and back trip we will hike north and clockwise around swing hill following trails 17, 7, and 3. We will continue north-east through the forest on trail 4 crossing to trail 1 via the 14 connector to the summit spending time to enjoy the view, snacks and hydrate. The route is roughly 6.3 miles out and back and should take 2-2.5 hours. Elevation gain is about 1500 feet.

Ray Benson Snowpark.
2024-01-15, 2024-01-19
Finally a chance to go snowshoeing! We’ll park at the Ray Benson Snow Park and trek to the North Blowout shelter. Our total distance depends on our route but shouldn’t exceed 7 miles. Due to all the recent snowfall we could encounter deep challenging conditions. If the conditions are too windy or cold at Ray Benson we may try the Maxwell Snow Park instead. Also note that this trip could be cancelled due to harsh conditions. A stop at Takoda’s restaurant after the trip is a possibility.

Amazon Hdwtrs/Spencer Butte
2024-01-17
THE RIDGELINE TRAILS ARE CLOSED–WE DO NOT HIKE ON IN CLOSED AREAS.
The priorities for the City are streets, the neighborhood parks, the open spaces like the Ridgeline.
NOTE: Flexible departure time from 8:15 to 8:30
Every Wednesday since 2013 we do this hike from the Martin Street Trailhead to the summit of Spencer Butte. Compared to starting at the paved Spencer Butte parking lot, this hike has double the climbing and three times the distance. It is a conditioning hike where everyone is challenging themselves to go at a moderate or fast pace—not like the other hikes on our schedule. If this is your first time on this Obsidian conditioning hike, or hiking to Spencer Butte, you may want to call the leader to discuss the pace. If you should fall too far behind, the leaders reserve the right to have you not summit but wait and return with the group. The regulars on this hike have attained their fitness by showing up consistently and slowly improving. If you have questions, email summertrips@obsidians.org. Come a few minutes early because we leave promptly at the listed time. To get to the trailhead: Take West Amazon to Martin Street. Turn left. Drive past Kinney Park and park Martin Street near the Kiosk sign board across from Canyon Drive Street sign with hiker symbol. Please contact the leader if you have any questions.

Mt. Pisgah 6 Miler
2024-01-19
Meeting place; Mt Pisgah, west (main) trailhead by the restrooms. If you don’t have a Lane County pass, be sure to allow time to purchase one with debit/credit card (no cash) at the fee box near the main (trail #1) trailhead.
On this out and back trip we will hike north and clockwise around swing hill following trails 17, 7, and 3. We will continue north-east through the forest on trail 4 crossing to trail 1 via the 14 connector to the summit spending time to enjoy the view, snacks and hydrate. The route is roughly 6.3 miles out and back and should take 2-2.5 hours. Elevation gain is about 1500 feet.

Bohemia Pk to StandByMeBridge
2024-01-20
Brisk hike from Bohemia Park in Cottage Grove to historic Stand By Me Bridge at Mosby Creek, and back.
Softer shoe sole recomanded for this 8 ft wide asphalt path.
After hike optional stop for refreshment in fun Cottage Grove pub.
>>>>!! >> Obsidians friend scouted trail and found that is littered with hundreds of trees. It is way to much to climb over. Trip is cancelled.

Blue Horizon @ Cape Mtn.
2024-01-21
Blue Horizon, the name on the map. The trail head is at Horse Creek campground just north of Florence. I hiked the first half of this trail while camping at the campground this last fall. The part I did not hike is exploratory. This trail wanders through a Sitka forest where you catch glimpses of the ocean and can hear the waves crash. The bit of trail I did not do leads around a butte and comes back to original trail. The group will have options, on the way back we can stop at Dry Lake trailhead and make the climb to the top of Cape Mt, about 700 ft elevation gain or go back into Florence and get a late lunch or early dinner. The road just past the horse corrals is where we turn off from 101 and about 7 miles on gravel road to campground. The worst of this road is some potholes that can be avoided.
