Oregon Advice

Try asking at PortlandHikers:

http://www.portlandhikers.org/forum/forumhome.php

yeah – portlandhikers.org

6/14 snow level will be maybe 5000 feet, so most of the PCT is snowy – traction devices/superior trail finding skills

17 miles x 6 days = 100 miles – hard to find hikes of that distance

Maybe something in the Columbia Gorge, like there's a route called "the Hatfield Trail"

Not sure if this is close enough for you, but the Three Sisters Wilderness is a great hike.
Tom

http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/forums/thread_display.html?forum_thread_id=10125

http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/xdpy/forum_thread/36509/index.html

A lot of snow in The Three Sisters. Wait until August. Great hike.

I agree with the fellows above regarding the Three Sisters Wilderness, but yes, you may ought to wait till summer to head that way unless you're up for a snowy adventure.

In northeastern Oregon is the North Fork John Day Wilderness.
There are some longer hikes in there, but I am not sure anything continuous.

Also, the Columbia River Gorge may have some options for you. Sooo beautiful there!

Thanks all. Well, Oregon looks bad for June. I have a hiking partner who has a week off in mid-June, so we are kind of stuck with those dates. I agree, August is better, but it is what it is. I was cautiously optimistic that the 3 Sisters might work, but that looks like a no-go. If anyone else has a good 5 to 6 day Oregon hike, at about 17 miles a day, without major snow or route finding difficulties in mid-June, let me know.

Hatfield trail in the Columbia Gorge

See http://www.portlandhikers.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=25&t=12211

It's not so much an established trail as a bunch of trails stitched together

If you download switchback.com it has a pretty good collection of the trails in the area and you can put together a trip that would meet your requirements

Maybe decide your exact route as you go

Still a little snow at some places but not too much

I agree that you can easily piece together a one week trip in the gorge. I was up to 4400' last weekend with only snow patches. Will be considerably less in mid June but would plan on staying below 5000' Shouldn't be a problem as except for tops of peaks/buttes most trails in the gorge are below 5000'. You can mix the more popular trails (that I would try to do mid week) with some remote areas. Some pretty great areas

I agree that June is too early for Three Sisters or Mt Jefferson hikes

If you have to take your trip in June, I would check out the Blue Mountains in northeastern Oregon / southeastern Washington.

Specifically I'd look into the Wenaha-Tucannon Wilderness. I took a 10 day backpacking/flyfishing trip in there in early July many years ago with a friend and it was simply an enchanting place. Virtually nobody goes there, so you'll have it to yourself. We saw 5 people in 10 days.

The Blue Mountains don't get nearly as much precipitation as other areas west of the Cascades, so it should be fairly snow free in June, especially down in the river basins where you will be spending most of your time. There are tons of trails in there and so much area to explore. You could do all sorts of interesting hikes in there within a 7 day timeframe.

The trout fishing is also fantastic if you're into that sort of thing. It's one of the only areas in the US that actually has a healthy population of the endangered bull trout.

You mean going up the Wenaha River from Troy? I've heard that's a good trip. One of these years I'm doing this but it's a bit of a trip from Portland and you have to go over snowy mountains in the winter.

+1 on the Blue Mountains. I hope to hike the Wenaha-Tucannon Loop early this summer. Tons of wildlife and beautiful views.

I have looked at the Blue Mountains in South Eastern WA. I was having trouble putting together anything over about 40 miles. If anyone knows of a good loop or a good combination of trails that goes over 70 miles, let me know. Might be able to do a short car shuttle if necessary.

This gent is claiming that the Wenaha Tucannon Loop is 55 miles. Seems a bit high but I haven't measured it out yet to say for sure.

http://www.nwhikers.net/forums/viewtopic.php?t=7983775&view=nex

There are plenty of trails in that area that tie in to that loop. I'll check my maps later to see if a 70ish mile hike is feasible but suspect it should be.

Per Doug Lorain's "Backpacking Washington," his version of the Wenaha-Tucannon Loop is 46 miles, or 64 with his recommended side trips. There are more side trips you could take.

Some of the trails are faint/brushy/require navigation skills, which might slow your daily mileage a bit.

Another option is Hell's Canyon, although it will be HOT down by the riverside. You could combine the High Trail (midway up the Oregon side) with either some Rim Trail sections or river trail sections. Quite strenuous, with the same caveats on trails as stated above, plus lots of elevation gain (over a mile from bottom to rim).

And do check out portlandhikers.org, especially the Field Guide. The Hatfield Trail would be a good one.

Hells Canyon has been considered and is still in play. I have never been, so I imagine "hot" can be pretty darn hot?! I would need to research it more. I see a couple of higher milage (70-80 mile) river hikes in that part of Northeastern OR besides the Snake that look interesting as well. I am open to hiking in the Blue Mountains, and my hiking partner and I will be at REI on Thursday to consult some maps. The BPL community has some great suggestions! Thanks!