I decided it was time to visit this spectacular place again. And this time I would camp in the bivy camping area, a walk-in campground about 150 yards from its dedicated parking lot. I went for a Monday night, so it was not so packed. There is no sleeping in your car or RV or trailer. As long as you are willing to carry your gear that short distance, it's a pretty good deal.

In previous trips I had only hiked the Misery Ridge Trail, and little else, so this time I decided to hike just about everything else. I arrived mid-morning and had most of the day so did a leisurely hike on the Summit Loop, which from the bivy campground, is about 8.5 miles, accessed via the Rope de Dope Trail. The next morning I used the nice Rim Rock Trail to access the northern segments: Homestead and North Point trails. Weather was about perfect, low 70s with a consistent breeze, not the howling gales we have been getting in The Dalles.