To be sure, the 6th Annual Kettle Range Rendezvous will be sparking “Do you remember?” conversations for some time to come. We began to gather in cool shade of the Jungle Hill campground on the eastern slope of the Kettle Crest Friday night, and our numbers swelled to well over 50 by Saturday morning.  It was heartening to see so many people eager to enjoy the Kettle Crest and to support us in our efforts to further protect this unique landscape.

Tim Coleman, director of our Columbia Highlands Initiative, told people about our collaborative work with the Northeast Washington Forestry Coalition and put out the call for the hikers to step up to help protect the Kettle Crest. (You can too!)

Staff members and volunteers led hikes all over the Kettles on one of the hottest days so far this summer.  I led the Sherman Peak Loop hike, and at an average elevation of 6500 feet, the hike was pleasantly warm and breezy, with stunning panoramic views and delicate wildflowers at every step.  The lunch break found everyone seeking shade beneath sturdy little subalpine firs and gulping the water down!  

We all gathered back at the campsite in the early evening, hungry for a delicious BBQ.  Well, most of us gathered. Unfortunately, one hiker succumbed to the heat, and a few hikers, staff, and volunteers stayed behind with him until he could be taken safely back to the trailhead. Hiking is always an adventure! 

The twilight found us feasting, chatting, and enjoying the talents of local musicians. I saw lots of tired, happy, satisfied faces, but their eyes were bright and refreshed from a day in the mountains and hopefully flush with a new-found resolve to help us succeed in preserving wilderness and community in the Columbia Highlands!

Thousands of tired, nerve-shaken, over-civilized people are beginning to find out that going to the mountains is going home; that wildness is a necessity. 

John Muir