Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

Angel's Rest has long been one of the best hikes in the Columbia River Gorge, but for more than a year the trail was closed to the public as it recovered from the Eagle Creek fire. At the end of November it finally reopened, and last week I joined a crowd of fellow hikers returning to the trail for the first time.



What we found was a place of haunting beauty, a hike still known for its panoramic views, but one where the effects of fire are clearly seen and keenly felt.



The first signs are subtle, but you can see the fire's imprints from the start: charred trunks and bare patches in the moss, fallen branches burned a bleak charcoal black, resting in patches of fresh green growth. From the trailhead, you pass small waterfalls and cross over creeks, then hike up the muddy switchbacks until you see an eerie patch of clear sky ahead.



It isn't until that moment, when the forest seems to fall away, that the full impact of the fire becomes real.

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Here, at the edge of the cliff overlooking the gorge, blackened snags stick up unnervingly straight. It's as if they were placed there by hand – or rather, as if the flames should have set them at odd angles, not left their remains so rooted in place. Small deciduous trees, now bare after fall, fill gaps alongside patches of woody brush.



As you follow the switchbacks to the top, look down and you can spy fellow hikers as they climb, exposed through branches that barely offer cover. The terrain toward the top is rock and mud, and can be hard on your feet as you walk. The hike up to Angel's Rest feels something like a pilgrimage to the ruins of a temple, the land still sacred but indelibly scarred.



Some light clambering is required to reach the very top, but it's worth the extra effort. Here, hikers disperse along the wide bluff, rocky and covered in scrubby brush, where a jaunt to any edge offers an incredible view of the Columbia River rolling serenely underfoot through the gorge.



This view, at least, is the same as it was before the fire. It remains a place where you can soak in the majesty of the natural setting, where you can sit and rest in awe. Standing in communion with the nature that surrounds, swallows, holds you in place, you can truly feel the power of the land.



But glancing down to the forest below, the heart can't help but sink just a little at the site of burned trunks and barren land. Where you expect to see a comforting blanket of green, you'll find nothing but a patchwork of black and brown – the gray of naked deciduous trees offering the lone sense of natural order.

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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For many of us in the Pacific Northwest, the Columbia River Gorge is indeed a temple, a place we go to worship and connect with something bigger than us. Watching it explode into flames last year was devastating, and since then many of us have been itching to get back, to see what became of our holy land.



Angel's Rest is a disheartening reminder of the destructive power of fire, but also a reminder of the resilience of nature.



As you head back down the trail through the forest of snags, past newly revealed views of the gorge, you quickly return to a familiar green landscape. At the bottom of the trail, soft and squishy with mud, moss still clings to rocky hills and ferns still spring forth from the depths of the earth.



Nature doesn't mourn what was lost – it's our memories of that loss that linger. Our hearts might still ache in the wake of the fire, but the forest has long since moved on. Already new plants are thriving and old trees are rotting, while insects, animals and fungi are all playing their parts in the cycle of life.



SEE MORE PHOTOS BELOW

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To get to Angel’s Rest from Portland, take Interstate 84 east and take exit 28 toward Bridal Veil. Turn right onto the Historic Columbia River Highway and park in the trailhead lot immediately on your right. Stay left at the trailhead and follow the Angel’s Rest Trail to the top.

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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--Jamie Hale | jhale@oregonian.com | @HaleJamesB