I’ve been wanting to hike up Jump Off Joe for a long time and finally took the opportunity with two of my sons to head up the hill.
Click Here for Directions, a Map and More Details on this Hike
I wasn’t sure how to get up there so I did some looking on Google Earth. We parked at an old, blocked off farm road and headed up the hill. My son found a large black beetle.
We went cross country and ended up walking up the road that goes by several of the Nine Canyon Wind Farm wind turbines, it was an awesome sight.
We followed the gravel road to the top. It was a beautiful, warm, sunny morning but not too hot.
We got to the top and it was what I was hoping for. A great, panoramic view of the Tri-Cities. We could see the Blue Mountains to the east, the Snake River winding to the north, snow capped Mount Adams to the west and into Oregon to the south.
Me and Two of My Sons at Jump Off Joe
It was interesting how crowded the top of the hill is with many communications towers and buildings. You can see a few when you look from town but some are hidden from view.
We headed back down the hill, the boys found an old, weather worn International Harvester Farmall tractor.
On our way back down, we were walking past one of the wind turbines and found a truck parked there with the door open. We waited as a maintenance person appeared. He let us know that we were on private property (oops!). Make sure you follow the instructions on the “hikes” page if you’re planning on going up Jump Off Joe to avoid any trespassing issues!
Colorful Thistle Along the Road