ScenicBoys

Little Wenatchee River

By this time last year, we had already been on a few backpacking trips and several camping adventures. The weather was well into the 80s and summer was definately in the air. But thanks to El Nino, 2010 is a different story. So far summer in the Pacific Northwest has been more like early spring. It has been very wet and unusually chilly, we didn't even break 75 degrees until late last week.

ScenicBoys: Little Wenatchee River from scenicboys on Vimeo.

The Scenic Boys couldn't take it any longer! We were longing for some deep, back-country air and an escape from the city life. So come rain or shine, we decided a backpacking trip was necessary! We chose an area that looked like it wasn't going to get too much rain and found a 16 mile loop hike that seemed very promising. 

When we arrived in the mountains of central Washington, the evening was clear, the moon was out and the air was warm; warm enough to enjoy the campfire mostly bare. ;) Surprisingly we still had cell reception and were able to update the Scenic Boys Facebook wall with a picture. The rest of our night was spent listening to the frogs and night hawks across the  pleasant still evening air.

The Little Wenatchee River trailhead started at 3,000ft, and our plans were to hike up a ridge line, down to a meadow at 5,000ft to camp, then hike out through the valley. There was no sign of anyone else on this trail and we were very excited to get packin'!

The hike up the ridge line was steep and the views were great. We could see the clouds rolling in from the west and knew that rain was immanent. About 3 miles up Caty Ridge, the snowbanks became so abundant they completely covered the trail. A little disappointed that our loop hike was out of the question, we started back down to the trailhead.

After a quick pit stop back at the car, we set out again, this time heading into the Little Wenatchee River valley. The clouds were low and hid the peaks that surrounded us, but the air was still warm. We hiked through a series of old growth evergreen clusters, separated by open meadows covered with Glacier Lilies spreading to the next cluster of old growth trees. This repeated several times but the farther we hiked in, the bigger the snow patches got.

By this time the rain was coming down and we were losing hope of finding a dry, flat spot to set up our tent. As we rested on a wet log completely surrounded by snow, we weighed out our options and decided it was best that we turn around (yet again) and start looking for anything that would work.  A dry flat spot is a valuable thing when there are so few at hand. :)

It takes a lot for the Scenic Boys to give-up and just head back. The snow pack and rain storm were not going to keep us from having a fun time! With a little bush-whacking off the trail, we found a great spot above a confluence of three creeks. There was just enough room for our tent on one side of the creeks and barly enough room for us to make dinner on the other side. Thankful that we found a nice spot, we didn't mind foregoing a campfire for the evening. We just crawled into our XL sleeping bag (a fluffy duvet, really) and cuddled all night.

The next morning was very wet. It had rained ALL night and we mentally preparing to be soaked by the time we got back to the car. By the time we got dressed and packed up the temperature had risen and it ended up being a pleasant morning, despite our wet clothes.

The ScenicBoys Lesson from this trip: A rained out backpacking trip is very romantic indeed.

GEMINI CELEBRATION!

A few weeks ago, Garet and I went on a scouting trip to find the perfect location for this years Gemini Celebration. As with all of our car camping adventures, we were looking for 3 important details: seclusion, scenery, and some sort of natural water source. This year we found the most amazing spot; it had everything we were looking for and so much more!

ScenicBoys: Gemini Celebration from scenicboys on Vimeo.

The zodiac 'Gemini' is rumored to be the craziest of the astrological entities. That might be true if you are referring to the contagious CRAZY FUN that Gemini's have! Four Geminis came on this adventure, Dusty, Casey, Brandon and our token lesbian, Kate. :)  Together we made a pretty fantastic reason to celebrate the Twins!

The cars were all packed by 4pm on Friday the 11th (Dusty's birthday), and by 10:30pm we arrived at our camp in the Entiat Valley of central Washington. After that long drive, everyone was excited to get out, open some Rainier and setup camp. Despite the darkness, the tents were up in no time and Garet had a fire going by the time we were finished.

We knew it was going to be a beautiful weekend, but by noon on Saturday we could not believe just how beautiful it was! We took full advantage of the smooth boulders in the Entiat River and sun bathed while the roaring river cooled us.

When the blazing sun got too warm, Garet and I rallied the troops and we drove a few miles deeper into the forest - to a trail we found on our scout trip. We started under the canopy of evergreens following Silver Creek. The Forest Service had built quaint foot-bridges and stairs that meandered along this swelling stream of winter runoff, it made this trail super easy and very enjoyable for everyone. As we approached the ridge of the valley, we began to hear the sound of cascading water, hitting rocks. This beautiful trail led us to a little cove behind a 140ft waterfall where ScenicBoys John & Brandon stripped down for a shower.

After completing this spectacular 2 mile day-hike, we returned to camp where and enjoyed the last few hours of daylight. As gay Seattle-ites we tend to soak up sun as often as we can, so to avoid tan lines we got naked and laid out on the bluffs above the river. That evening Ranger Mike prepared us a fantastic fajita dinner, devoured around the campfire.

We are very lucky to have so many outdoorsy gay boys (and Kate) as friends. It's always so much fun having great buds to share these places and experiences with. If you missed last years Gemini Celebration, here is a link for your viewing pleasure. :D

Vantage 2010 - Gay Spring Break

Welcome back adventure people!  Our summer has already kicked into high gear with all new adventures to share.  We've been very busy boys this past month planning our next season's trips and thinking about the future of "ScenicBoys."  Rest assured you'll be seeing bigger hikes, better videos, and the best ScenicBoys photos yet!  :D  Every year we try to out do ourselves by breaking the previous season's records. Last season was pretty epic, so we definitely have our work cut out for us.  Looking forward to the challenge!

Scenic Boys: Vantage, Gay Spring Break 2010 from scenicboys on Vimeo.

Every year for the past several summers we've done our part to help plan the Memorial Weekend Big Gay, Gay Camping Trip.  This year we setup garbage and recycling stations around camp.  In year's past the Rangers have been kind enough to provide garbage bags and a collection service, but they haven't fully embraced recycling.  Our hope was to setup trash/recycle stations so we could sort the waste and then transport the recyclable material to a recycle station in Ellensburg.  Much to our surprise the Rangers told us they would start collect recycling this year.  Big props to them for their efforts!

Approximately 200 gay boys from around the Seattle area gathered this year on the shores of the Columbia River near the small town of Vantage, WA.  We return to this same location year-after-year because it's an easy drive from Seattle, it's typically beautiful, warm and sunny, and there's plenty of room for everyone who wants to come.  Our buddies George and Kyle Prime delivered on their promise to provide a generator and awesome sound system.  Our camp was pumping out dance music well into the night.  Combined with our Pride flags and a fantastic Drag Show, this year's Vantage was a weekend nobody wanted to miss.

Dusty and I arrived mid-afternoon on Thursday.  It was hot and sunny as we hauled in our first load.  It's about 3/4 of a mile through sand, briars and sagebrush from the cars to our campsite.  By the time we had our tent setup we were hot and sweaty.  We stripped off our shirts and explored the immediate area.  Looming thunderheads on the horizon foretold of the tumultuous weather headed our way.  By the time we'd completed our second trip back from the cars a light rain had begun to fall.  What started as a welcome relief from the heat of the afternoon soon turned into a biblical downpour.  We hustled to setup one of the large shade domes as the stormed worsened.  We huddled together laughing at our predicament and cracked open some well-earned beers.  Ah... this is what Vantage is all about!!

That evening it was colder than expected and it continued to rain off-and-on.  We managed to get a fire started despite all our wood getting soaked in the storm.  We relaxed and laughed around our fire reminiscing about the Vantages from year's past and anticipating the rest of the group's arrival in the days ahead.  Good times with great friends - this has become a cherished first-night tradition for those who come early to help setup the site.

As the weekend pressed on, more gays rolled in.  We filled a large portion of the camp with dozens of tents and smaller fire pits.  From atop the hillside our camp looked like a small tent city with marked pathways and central gathering areas.  It's always fun to watch the camp grow and change as new people arrive.  

This event is open to everyone. So come next Memorial Weekend, if you're in the area, come join us! We  guarantee an awesome weekend full of Gay Spring Break crazy fun in the sun!