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Last year we were looking for a good backpacking trip to do with some friends of ours, with all our kids ranging in age from 3-7. In my experience, three miles is generally a good rule of thumb for backpacking in a day with young children. This can certainly vary depending on the trail, how old they are and how accustomed they are to backpacking. In very good keeping with this rule, our friends suggested the loop hike to Threemile Lake in the coastal sand dunes of the Siuslaw National Forest. It was an excellent choice. We loved it so much that we went again this year for our first backpacking trip of the season.
The Threemile Lake Trail is a moderate 3.3 mile trail through coastal forest, ending at the edge of the sand dunes with a stunning view of the ocean and a beautiful sand lake tucked in amongst the dunes out of the wind, with a nice beach and a shallow shoreline perfect for splashing and swimming on a hot day. This trail also makes a loop by hiking one mile along the beach to the 2 mile Tahkenitch Dunes Trail. All in all, it makes for about a 6.5 mile trip spread out over two days. After doing the hike both ways, we discovered that it is by far the best idea to take the Tahkenitch Dunes Trail in, going downhill over the steep, soft sand dunes to the beach, hiking along the beach with the strong coastal winds blowing southward against your backs, and then hiking up the much less steep dunes to the lake. From there, the hike out on the Threemile Lake Trail through the woods consists of much more gentle ups and downs. Both trails start and end at the same trailhead, so it makes transportation very simple.
One of my favorite parts of this hike is the diversity of areas you pass through. It holds the children's interest, and they move forward with the excitement of constantly seeing new things. Coming out of the woods onto the Tahkenitch Sand Dunes at the beginning of the hike is pretty amazing. All of a sudden, through the trees, this expanse of sand stretches out below you and the ocean sparkles off in the distance. Sand dune hiking is an altogether different experience from the trails I'm used to up in the mountains, so it holds an air of novelty. Hiking in sand is slower, as it is a soft surface, and climbing uphill is challenging, which is why you want to go downhill on these big dunes rather than an epic uphill climb with hot, tired kids at the end of a hike (we tried this last year and we know!)
One of the many unique aspects of the dunes is the vegetation. As we hiked through the hills of sand, the girls discovered a patch of wild coastal strawberries, all red and juicy and shining like jewels. It was a wonderful June backpacking treat!
The next section of the trail along the beach was a welcome change after hiking through the hot dunes in the sun. We all took off our shoes and hiked barefoot at the edge of the waves. I can't even describe how refreshing that was in the middle of our hike. There were tiny fish and shrimp-like creatures in the surf rolling in and out. We saw a dried sea star and a large dead sea lion. This gave the kids a lot to talk about for the final treck up through the dunes to the lake.
Fortunately, the dunes in this area are lower without any major climbs, so in what seemed like very little time, we were looking down at Threemile lake. We set up our tents on the small, sandy beach and jumped in for a swim. With the winds blowing all around and above the lake, there were no mosquitoes down by the water, which was a welcome discovery. It was a lovely place to spend the rest of the day, and enjoy a campfire at night.
The next day we hiked out on the Threemile Lake Trail through the woods, and aside from some mosquitoes, it was a mellow hike. By the time we climbed up to the tops of the ridges, some cool, misty weather blew in off the ocean, and we stayed invigorated and bug-free the rest of the way out.
For more information, aside from the USFS links above, here is a link to the Threemile Lake Hike at Travel Oregon.
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