Backpack - Duckabush River

Participants will caravan, meeting at 8:45 am at Haggen's Supermarket parking lot, 313 Cooper Pt. Rd., West Olympia,across the parking lot from the main entrance, near the white ballot drop box.  Driving distance is about 54 miles from Haggens to Duckabush River Road, and another 6 miles from there to the trailhead.  The road was in good condition in July  2024, and suitable for all vehicles.  Details will be emailed to registered participants a few days before hike.   Northwest Forest pass or  day  use fee is required at this trailhead.  

This is an Olympia Youth and Families activity.  It is intended as a training backpack for families with children.  This could be a good first backpack trip for a family.  It is a backpack up 2 1/2 miles of trail to a campsite, and requires a commitment to stay with the group overnight once we leave the trailhead. We will provide a list of essential items and some recommended items, and tips and suggestions for family backpacking.  If you are new to backpacking, and follow the lists and suggestions, you should have a good experience.

This trail was designed to be passable by horses and pack mules, so the grades are not terribly steep.    We'll explore the area before leaving on Sunday. 

The trail is not suitable for strollers or other wheeled conveyances.  Since this is a backpack requiring overnight gear, participants will have to carry packs of gear rather than carry small children in backpack carriers.  Children will have to carry at least some of their gear (equaling up to 20% of their body weight) in an appropriately sized  backpack with a waist belt.   Please do not register unless you are confident your child can walk at least 2 1/2 miles on a trail, with some rest, snack and hydration stops, with a pack.

The Olympia Mountaineers have some backpacks and tents available for loan, and possibly other gear.  We will have a gear check session about a week prior to the hike to make sure that all participants are adequately equipped.   We will give some guidance on food, stoves and cooking gear.  This is an area where advice and planning pay off.  Food and cooking gear appropriate to car camping may be too heavy and bulky to carry a distance, and prone to spoilage in July heat.  We may also consider a group meal.  Please click on the blue tab marked "Required Equipment" on this trip's listing page, and read the list of Ten Essentials.  It is most important that you limit yourselves to packing and carrying only lightweight essential items.  Registered participants will receive more information on this closer to the event.  We suggest that you hold off on buying gear for the trip until then.   It is in retailers' interests that you buy as much as possible; it is in you greatest interest to bring as little as possible. 

This will be a mentored hike. Mike Forsyth and Zua Stivers are the mentored co-leaders, with Dixie Havlak as the mentoring leader as part of the process for qualifying for a Mountaineers Youth and Family Backpack Leader badge.   Mike and Zua each are Mountaineers Qualified Youth and Family Hike Leaders, and have extensive experience backpacking and leading backpacks in the Northeastern US and Montana (Mike) and in the Pacific Northwest (Zua).  Dixie is the Chair of the Olympia Youth and Family  Activities Committee, and a Qualified Youth and Family Hike and Backpack Leader. 

Please feel free to contact any of the trip leaders with any questions  you might have about gear, clothing, food, and whether this trip is right for you and your family members.