adventure sunday- wa state ghost towns...Newcastle Redtown

it is meant to be beautiful today, more so then yesterday here in the pacific northwest.
i sit here making tentative plans for exploration in the 7 am, my trusty dog basks in front of the fire- i finish the run diaries which i began last night - making it only into the movie slightly before passing out.
i miss hunter s thompson.
theres no better to play him then johnnie depp in my mind (bill murray really didnt work for me.)
sipping my first coffee of the day realising the ghost town i had my heart set on (Lester)  is too far for a day trip.
Lester is about two hrs - past denny creek area...too far.
instead i think it may be newcastle redtown - acquired from a site about ghost towns :
http://www.ghosttowns.com/

the coal creek trail leds to redtown seems a great trail to take i think 3 miles each way?
coal creek .
Red Town Trailhead



From I-90: Take Exit 13 and drive south on Lakemont Blvd SE for 3.1 miles. Look for the entrance to the Red Town Trailhead on the left side of the road.


From I-405: Take Exit 10 and follow Coal Creek Pkwy SE for 2.4 miles to the shopping center. Turn left at the light onto SE 72nd Pl and then left again at Newcastle Gold Club Road. Follow that for 1.9 miles. The entrance to Red Town Trailhead is on the right side of the road just after the big bend.




my computer is nearly dead- like from princess bride mostly dead.....
i am presently on my antithesis a pc laptop we get on ok for very rudementary tasks but beyond that we arent that friendly.
it turns on partially and goes wrong - it does go on once a day for me to process a few HDR images then it dies again.
it is sad but it served me well for eight years - trying to find things to sell to make bank for a 27" imac not much of any value not equivilant to $1870 worth computer-i have photos stacking up in folders of mere computer existence to be worked on with no machine to open those folders or attempt to work on those images.




i acquired the following information from brown paper tickets who was holding a history hike at this location:

In the 1860s, coal was discovered in the Newcastle area. Millions of tons of coal and rock were extracted from Newcastle Hills during the ensuing century. Join Lace Thornberg of the Washington Trails Association on a trail that descends from the ruins of the hotel, splits off toward an abandoned mine shaft, and crosses several rustic bridges. In addition to learning about the artifacts scattered along the route, well also enjoy natural attractions, including tall red cedars and the North Fork Falls. This hike is 6 miles round trip and includes 450 feet elevation loss, 450 feet elevation gain. Allow 20 minutes drive from MOHAI. Please bring your own picnic lunch and wear appropriate hiking shoes.

Note: Meet at: Please meet at the Cougar Mountain Regional Park Red Town Trailhead parking lot. This parking lot is located on the east side of Lakemont Boulevard/Newcastle Coal Creek Road, approximately 3 miles south of I-90 and 2.2 miles east of Coal Creek Parkway. From Interstate 405, drive Coal Creek Parkway south into the city of Newcastle, turn left on Southeast 72nd Street and then another left onto Newcastle-Coal Creek Road. The trailhead is 1.8 miles from the parkway. You can also take Exit 13 off Interstate 90. Lakemont Boulevard becomes Newcastle-Coal Creek Road. Parking is frequently busy at the Red Town trailhead. We encourage you to share a ride with fellow hikers. If you'd like to carpool with others, check MOHAIs upper parking lot between 9 am and 9:15 am to see if there are other hikers who would also like to carpool. If you arrive at the trailhead and there is no parking, check in with the tour guide or hike volunteer and we will arrange to follow you to a nearby parking lot and bring you back to Red Town trailhead.