Badger Mountain and other hikes near Richland, Washington
Plan A: Backpack Weneha River Trail with Trailkat, near Enterprise, Oregon, with Washington Trails Association, and complete four trail work days.
Then, I got sick – because you cannot have cancer and freely expose yourself to others at an epic getaway with your friends without consequences.
Plan B: Camp near the river trail and day hike through the weekend.
Then, winter was forecasted to return to that region, with six inches of snow in that area.
TrailKat and I finally land on Plan C: Richland, Washington – a place I love, a place she has lived but has never explored.
For the last several years, I have been to the area in March for one of my favorite races, the Badger Mountain Challenge. Then, as all my stories go, I had to let that event go because it feels impossible to successfully compete in such shenanigans without severe consequences, thanks, cancer. Also, fuck you.
So, we climbed Badger. And I loved it. Before we began hiking, we were intercepted at the trailhead by a local news channel (we failed to make note of which station) to film us preparing for our hike. I loved showing TrailKat a place that is new to her and sharing my stories of previous adventures here. We were fortunate to find 60-degree temperatures and mostly blue skies, but that came with 20+ mph winds that felt like they were trying to kill us.
Badger Mountain is such a happy place for me. It’s an entirely exposed little mountain with incredible viewpoints of the Columbia Basin from its peak at 1,579’. There are five trails on the mountain for non-motorized recreation. Friends of Badger Mountain are the stewards over the land, and I think it’s difficult to find better-built and maintained trails than those at Badger.
After a successful trip up, down, and around the mountain despite the fierce winds, we went to set up a dispersed camp at Vernita Bridge. And we’re promptly defeated by increased winds. Our second camping attempt was at Jackson Creek Fish Camp, which, although is not dispersed camping, the site is incredible. Apparently, the Washington utility company, Grant PUD, has several recreation sites along the Columbia River to be used for very low fees. Established bathrooms, garbage receptacles, tent pads, picnic tables, trails, boat launches, and more exist. I recommend it. Despite the quality campground, the wind was determined to win. And that’s how we ended up at the Rosebud Motel, from Schitt’s Creek. Also known as Vantage Riverstone, in Vantage, Washington.
TrailKat had stayed there before, and her first story is hysterical, where Riverstone initially got its nickname of Rosebud Motel. This trip only reinforced it. The office was closed. She called the number on the door.
“Hello?”
TrailKat: I am calling to see about renting a cabin.
“Oh, what I meant was, thank you for calling Riverstone, how may I help you?”
We stayed for two nights while exploring the places I wrote about earlier here. The cabin was a glorified lean-to but provided more protection from the whipping wind than our tents could. And when we returned to the cabin the second evening, 6,500 unattended children were playing on our porch! Okay, there were 9, I think. And they were playing around our fire pit, not on our porch. The details are hardly different. This is where Schitt’s Creek fully came to life at Riverstone. The kids were just dropped off at this campground because it had a play set so their parents could go “work.” Alexis (TrailKat, always dressed in color and happy) thought we should be concerned about the children. In contrast, David (me, always dressed in all black) wanted to pretend they didn’t exist and threatened TraiKat every time she interacted with them. It was a long night.
While you are exploring the Tri-Cities area, you might also like to wander other trails I’ve enjoyed:
Candy Mountain is a neighbor to Badger, peaking at 1,383’. Like Badger, it’s a steep ascent to the peak, completely exposed, and gives beautiful views not just of the immediate region but also of Mount Hood and Mount Rainier.
Spirit of America Trail in Zintel Canyon, in Kennewick, Washington, is another nice trail to wander while in the area. It follows the Zintel Creek and is a romantic, or haunted, maze through old forest growth that you often have to duck under or climb through. It is within city limits, and despite the special vibe of the forest, there is a lot of graffiti and some evidence of homelessness in the area.
Bench Trail and Rattlesnake Slope Trail, in the Rattlesnake Slope Wildlife Area, in Benton City, Washington, is one more trail I love when visiting the region.
And lastly, if you’re seeking a different mid-winter escape, consider participating in the Richland Run Fest as a walker/runner or a volunteer. It is a very easy course of all standard distances, and it donates a part of the proceeds to my same fundraiser to fight human trafficking! I remind you that I’m dedicating my miles on the trail to that cause, and I ask you to please go here to help me. Go here to find my link, and please share it!
Stay tuned for my next adventure in that area when I visit the Hanford Reach National Monument for tours of the nuclear reservation and some sand dune hiking and sledding!