Pacific Northwest: Coast to Cascades Itinerary
Day 1-2: Community Service
Arrive and hit the ground running! Start to get to know your new friends as we partner with a local non-profit to help restore native plants in the region 🌱 and learn about the ecology of the Pacific Northwest’s high mountain desert. Take the afternoon to explore the beauty of the surrounding area 🌄. See White River Falls and splash around its pools, play games, and enjoy time around the campfire 🔥 to close out the night!
Accommodation: Camping 🏕️
Day 3-5: Overnight Raft Trip on the Deschutes River
Next, we begin a 3-day rafting trip on the wild and scenic Deschutes River! 🌊 Our trip will start with comfortable beginner rapids as we work our way up to splashing around in class III and IV rapids. We will get to sleep on river beaches and spend our nights stargazing in the high mountain desert ✨. In the evenings we will have time to hike around our campsite, enjoy the campfire 🔥, and explore the wonder of a backcountry river expedition with expert rafting guides.
Accommodation: Camping 🏕️
Day 6-9: Rock Climb, Hike in the Cascades, and Explore the Lava River Cave
We will continue adventuring to Bend, Oregon for epic rock climbing 🧗♀️, and hiking! After traveling to the Pacific Northwest’s high mountain desert, we will make our way to Smith Rock State Park and climb near the famous Monkey Face rock 🐒 that attracts climbers from all over the world. We will wrap up our time in Bend hiking at the base of the Cascade Mountain Range 🏞️ and taking in the breathtaking views of the Three Sisters and Mt. Bachelor. The next morning we’ll travel to one of the only Lava River Caves in the United States! We’ll learn about the unique formation of this desert cave and the bats 🦇 that live there before exploring within its walls. Armed with headlamps and extra layers, we’ll walk into ever cooler conditions with temperatures dropping as low as 42°F even in the heat of summer ❄️.
Accommodation: Camping 🏕️
Day 10-11: Surf the Oregon Coast
We will travel over to the Oregon Coast 🌊 where we will be learning how to surf 🏄♀️ and hiking at the iconic Cannon Beach. We will have two days of private surf lessons and learn essential skills like water safety, proper pop-up and balancing techniques, and surf etiquette. We’ll catch some waves at one of the most beautiful beaches in Oregon and have a chance to see the famous Haystack Rock 🪨. When we take a break from the water, we’ll find our zen with beach yoga 🧘♂️ and a hike in the lush temperate rainforest 🌲.
Accommodation: Camping 🏕️
Day 12-13: Raft the White Salmon River
We’ll make our way from Central Oregon’s high desert to the Columbia River Gorge wilderness area for an epic day of rafting 🚣♂️ on the White Salmon River! The river flows directly from the glacial slopes of Mt. Adams 🏔️. This trip will include a journey through basalt canyons formed by a historical dam in the area and will show us the lush beauty of Pacific Northwest forests 🌲. We will run world-class rapids with the help of our professional rafting guides 🧭.
Accommodation: Camping 🏕️
Day 14-18: Hike in Mt. Rainier National Park
We’ll wrap up our Pacific Northwest adventure with 3 days of hiking 🥾 on one of the most iconic mountains in the country, Mt. Rainier! We will spend our final days celebrating this amazing experience among the snow-capped mountain views 🏔️ and meadows full of wildflowers 🌸! We will hike near waterfalls 💦, and lakes, and take in the beauty of ancient Douglas firs, western red cedars, and western hemlocks 🌲.
Accommodation: Camping 🏕️
*Listed above is Bold Earth’s intended itinerary for this trip. All itineraries are subject to change in order to provide the best possible program quality.
Activities
✅ Community service: 6 hours
✅ Whitewater rafting
✅ Rock climbing
✅ Surfing
✅ Hiking
