Paradise Valley Road is a
misnomer. It inhabits no valley whatsoever (in fact, quite the
opposite)and, as far as being a "road," expect 3.5+ miles of
angular-graveled, single-lane logging road (no current logging
activity, but that could change, so keep your eyes open) that's
closely flanked by vegetation and quite steep at times--use of a
4WD or high-clearance vehicle is highly recommended. At each fork,
follow the most heavily-traveled path (meaning, generally choose
left until at and after N48º 55.894 W122º 12.771*). Save the
machismo, park where obvious, and hike the last 100 or so
feet.
*If you want to stay left
at the first major fork, you can, with a cycle or ATV, wend through
the maze of logging roads to traverse the center valley of Sumas
Mountain all the way to Deming. If you do so at the second major
fork, the steep climb will take you up and over to incredible
Easterly views of Mt. Baker.
The view is to die for, so
save this one for a clear day (and post a pic or two). In addition,
the trailhead for Whatcom County's most northerly Lost
Lake--there's also one [with a cache!] below Bellingham--is only an
Ichiro stone's throw from the cache (see Wilcox:Hiking Whatcom
County, No. 53) and would be an interesting diversion.
The cache is a 30 cal.
ammo tin; it was moved 03/31/2007 about 100 feet from its original
placement to a less muggliscious location.
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I (Teese) am a member of the Washington State
Geocaching Association. If you are a geocacher in this state,
please consider joining the WSGA . . . it's a great way to meet
other cachers, access caching resources, and improve the
sport.
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