I found cute, dog friendly cabins in Stevenson, Washington right on the Columbia River called Wilder and Pine and decided to book one for a weekend getaway from Portland. We’d stopped in Stevenson many times on the way back from hikes in Gifford Pinchot for lunch and/or beers so I thought it would be fun to spend the weekend and get to know the town a little.
I had Friday off work so Summit and I met a few friends at the Hamilton Mountain trailhead for a Friday hike on the way. It was a typical spring day in Portland, chilly with a drizzle. We started hiking around 10 AM. The Hamilton Mountain trail climbs a bit and then levels out to go by a gorgeous waterfall about a mile or so in (there is a spur to another waterfall but it was really muddy, so we skipped it). Then the trail climbs steeply up to the peak of Hamilton Mountain over 3.2 miles with terrific views of the Gorge along the way. We continued past the summit to a lovely plateau for a snack and then continued down the other side of the mountain to the trailhead. With about 2300 feet of elevation gain over 7.2 miles, it is a good little workout.
After the hike we drove across the Bridge of the Gods to Cascade Locks and headed to Gorges Brewing for beers and snacks. We sat on the rooftop patio and enjoyed views of the river and surrounding hills. Gorges Angels Rest IPA is decent, but the winner was the halibut spread. My friends headed back to Portland after Gorges and Summit and I drove back into Washington to check into our cabin.
The cabin we rented was on the ground floor. It had a shared back deck with the cabin next to ours and a hot tub that we also shared built into the deck. The views of the river were terrific and there is a walking trail right behind the lodge which was great for taking Summit out throughout our stay.
We had dinner Friday night at Red Bluff Tap House. Friday night is Thai night so I had chicken with peanut sauce that was tasty. Rich enjoyed his burger. The Red Bluff has a good selection of beers and I had a hazy from Everybody’s Brewing up the road in White Salmon.
Saturday morning we grabbed a quick breakfast and coffee/tea at the little coffee cabin at the end of town and then headed to the Bonneville trailhead for our hike. We hiked to Gillette Lake which is a little over 5 miles roundtrip and not very steep. Most of the hike is on the PCT. The lake is lovely and there was very little traffic on the trail.
For lunch post-hike we went to Clark and Lewies next to our cabin. Their covered back deck overlooks the river and they have elk and bison burgers on the menu so I had the bison and Rich tried the elk. We were both happy with our meals and I really enjoyed the Better Yet IPA from Fortside Brewing in Vancouver while Rich had a fruity cocktail. Rich went to relax after lunch and I walked over to Walking Man Brewing to have a Walking Man IPA on their patio. For dinner we went to the Big River Grill which is our typical stop in Stevenson. They have a more extensive lunch menu than dinner and I had lasagna and Rich had the meatloaf. The lasagna was just OK. I’ll stick to their tasty burgers in the future.
Sunday morning we drove over to Skamania Lodge on the outskirts of town. We took Summit for a walk on one of the trails and managed to get lost on and ended up wandering around the golf course a bit before finding our way back. We had breakfast at the Cascade Dining Room. They have started up the buffet again (paused during COVID) but we opted to order off the menu. Rich had a sourdough waffle that was gone in an instant. I had a chorizo hash that was also quite tasty.
After breakfast it was just a 45-minute drive back to Portland to end our weekend away. We agreed we’d definitely stay in Stevenson again.
