Vista Ridge to Wy-east Basin, Cairn Basin, and Eden Park 5 Aug 2013

I hike with a Portland hiking group called TrailMix, for the first time.  Nice ladies, very enthusiastic about hiking.  One other photographer in the mix.  It was nice and believe me, I would never have gone on that trail without them.  It was waaaay far away from my house and waaaay far away from a main road.  They knew the area well, so I was in good hands.
We headed up Vista Ridge on the north slope of Mt Hood on a brilliant, hot day.  The light was harsh and not great for photography.  Not the best lighting for sure.
We hiked to Wy-east Basin first, then over to Cairn Basin with fabulous views of Mt Hood from a field of wildflowers, then to Eden Park.  All these parks avoided the burn which we wove in and out of.  It was called the Dollar Lake fire and burned the area in 2011.  We had a pretty big creek to cross, twice:  Ladd Creek.  Not as easy as Cascade creeks.  Big boulders and milky white glacial runoff.  Flowers were blooming, flies didn't bit too much and there were huckleberries at the very start of the hike.

2011 fire

Avalanche lilies

Wy-East Basin

Looking north

Mt Hood through the burnt trees

contrasts everywhere

Lots of paths through the flowers

Ladd Creek

Cairn Basin

TrailMix group in Cairn Basin

Eden Park

At the end of the hike - went back to get a photo in different lighting