Category: Old Cascades

Bull of the Woods Lookout & Pansy Lake – 8/16/2019

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date August 20, 2019
6 Comments on Bull of the Woods Lookout & Pansy Lake – 8/16/2019

**Note a portion of this hike burned in the 2021 Bull Complex.**

For the 5th hike of our vacation we finally got around to one of Sullivan’s featured hikes that we hadn’t done yet, Pansy Lake. Pansy Lake is located in the Bull of the Woods Wilderness in a basin below the Bull of the Woods Lookout. In his guidebook Sullivan has you start the hike from the Pansy Lake Trailhead which is just over a mile from the lake. He gives two options, a 2.4 mile out-and-back to Pansy Lake or a 7.1 mile loop past the lake up to the lookout and then back down passing Dickey Lake along the way. Either of these options would have caused us to break our self-imposed rule against driving for more time than we spend hiking due to the driving time to the Pansy Lake Trailhead being roughly 2:45 for us. Fortunately Sullivan also mentions the option of starting at the Bull of the Woods Trailhead for an easier hike to the lookout. The Bull of the Woods Trailhead was about a 15 minute closer drive and it added almost 3 miles to the round trip which provided an acceptable drive/hike ratio.

With our plan in place we set off on the drive which proved to be a bit of an anomaly. The trailhead is located at the end of Forest Road 6340. Where the road was good it was an excellent gravel road but there were a couple of ugly obstacles along the way. The first was a slide that covered the road, half of which was impassable while the spot that could be driven over required a very slow, bumpy crossing (high clearance is probably necessary until it gets cleaned up). This was prior to a fork where the right hand fork (FR 6341) continued to the Pansy Lake Trailhead. After this fork sections of FR 6340 were deeply rutted by channels created by runoff again requiring careful placement of tires. We arrived at the trailhead no worse for wear though and set off on the signed trail.

The first few hundred yards were a little brushy but soon the vegetation gave way to a huckleberry filled forest.

There were ripe berries everywhere and they were big juicy berries too. In fact for most of the day there were ripe berries available and we ate quite a few. We weren’t the only ones feasting on berries though as we counted no less than 13 piles of berry filled bear scat along the trails.

Although we kept our eyes open for a bear all we ran into on the trail was a rough skinned newt.

The Bull of the Woods Trail climbed gradually as it passed below North and South Dickey Peaks.

A little over 2.25 miles from the trailhead we arrived at a junction with the Dickey Lake Trail. We would be coming back up that trail later after visiting Pansy and Dickey Lakes.

As the trail continued to climb we were treated to a couple of different views. First was to the west across the Pansy Lake Basin.

A little further along, when the trail crested the ridge, we got a look a Mt. Hood which was rising above some clouds.

The trail left the ridge for a bit and then regained it where the view also included Mt. Jefferson to the SE.
Mt. Hood

Mt. Jefferson

The trail then followed a narrow rocky ridge passing below the lookout and coming up to it from the other side, 3.5 miles from the trailhead.

A lizard scurried into the rocks beneath the lookout as we approached. Aside from a bit of morning haze the view was great. The clouds to the north hid the Washington volcanoes from sight but Mt. Hood stood out just fine.

To the south Mt. Jefferson was cloud free and so was Three Fingered Jack for a bit. Mt. Washington and the Three Sisters played peek-a-boo through the clouds though.

Three Fingered Jack

Mt. Washington and the Three Sisters

In the basin to the NE Big Slide Lake (post) was visible.

To the SW the flat topped Battle Ax Mountain (post) rose up above the surrounding peaks.

We sat below the lookout for awhile enjoying the cool morning air as we watched the procession of clouds around us. After our break we headed steeply downhill via switchbacks for just over half a mile to the Mother Lode Trail.

Bull of the Woods Trail ending at the Mother Lode Trail.

We turned right onto the Mother Lode Trail.

We continued to descend as we followed this trail for approximately 1.25 miles, passing a viewpoint of Mt. Jefferson shortly before arriving at another junction.

We turned right again, this time onto the Pansy Lake Trail.

More downhill hiking ensued as we dropped into the basin. The trail was a bit rockier than the others and passed over a couple of talus fields.

We’re always on the lookout for pikas and have had quite a bit of luck in spotting them this year, enough so that we have started calling it “the year of the pika”. As we came to the second section of talus Heather spotted one of the little “rock rabbits” scurrying along the hillside.

After talking to the pika (I don’t know why but we tend to have a lot of one sided conversations with the wildlife) we continued on. Shortly before reaching the lake we found a couple of ripe thimbleberries, they were delicious.

First look at Pansy Lake.

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We passed by the lake and reached a junction .8 miles from the Mother Lode Trail. We turned left and quickly arrived at the lake where we were a bit surprised that we were the only people there.

We wandered around the lake passing through numerous empty campsites before finding a little log to sit on by the lake where we could watch the dragonflies and ducks.

After a short break we returned to the trail junction and turned left continuing on the Pansy Lake Trail for another .2 miles to the Dickey Lake Trail junction.

It was time to climb now and we headed up the Dickey Lake Trail which climbed relatively steeply at times. After .6 miles we came to a spur trail on the right which led down to Dickey Lake.

The lake was quite a bit smaller than Pansy Lake and a lot brushier. After getting a look we returned to the Dickey Lake Trail and continued the climb back up to the Bull of the Woods Trail. A bit beyond the lake the trail passed through a little meadow with some remaining wildflowers and a few more thimbleberries.

We gained approximately 800′ over the next .8 miles before reaching the junction. There was a few more downed trees along this trail than we had encountered on any of the others but none of them were too troublesome.

We turned left onto the Bull of the Woods Trail and followed back to the car getting one last look at Mt. Hood along the way.

With the extra exploring around the lakes we wound up doing 10.6 miles (for the third time in the week). We both thought that the elevation gain doing the loop from the Pansy Lake Trailhead would have been quite a bit worse so the extra miles were worth it in our minds, plus it gave us that much more time to eat berries. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Pansy Lake and Bull of the Woods Lookout

Tags Bull of the Woods Lookout, Bull of the Woods Trail, Bull of the Woods Trailhead, Bull of the Woods Wilderness, Dickey Lake, Dickey Lake Trail, hiking, Huckleberry, Mother Lode Trail, Mt. Hood, Oregon, Pansy Lake Trail, Pansy Lake Trailhead, Pika

Clackamas Hiking Old Cascades Oregon Trip report

Old Baldy and Tumala Mountain – 8/15/2019

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date August 20, 2019
2 Comments on Old Baldy and Tumala Mountain – 8/15/2019

Hike number four of our vacation week was chosen in an attempt to avoid the sound of gunfire which seems to be extremely prevalent along the Forest Service roads near Estacada. We figured our best chance to minimize that unpleasant noise would be a mid-week early morning hike so when the forecast for the area called for sunny skies Thursday we jumped on the chance and headed to the Old Baldy West Trailhead. Our plan for the day was to start by hiking up to the summit of Old Baldy then returning past the Trailhead and heading SE to the summit of Tumala Mountain, a rare double out-and-back.

A bonus for this hike are the paved roads to the trailhead which is a small pullout near some boulders.

Reminders of the penchant for shooting guns in the area were everywhere.

Just beyond the trailhead we met the Old Baldy Trail where we went left toward Old Baldy. The trail briefly follows the Forest Road before they veer away from one another.

The Old Baldy Trail runs right along the border of the Salmon-Hucklberry Wilderness through a nice quiet (on this day) old growth forest. It was too late for the Rhododendron bloom which happens in early summer but there was a great variety of mushrooms to look at as we climbed up and down for nearly 3 miles to a cliff top viewpoint.

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Wildcat Mountain (post) and Mt. Hood

The sunny forecast appeared to be being threatened by some encroaching clouds as we continued on from the viewpoint.

More varieties of mushrooms followed as we made our way toward Old Baldy.

The final pitch up Old Baldy was a steep one as the trail launched straight uphill to the site of a former lookout tower.
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A thin layer of fog had moved in over the mountain, but that didn’t matter here because there are no longer any views except for back down through the trees.

After catching our breath at the summit we headed back the 3.8 miles to the trailhead, stopping again at the viewpoint to note the creeping clouds as they moved east over the Eagle Creek Valley (post).

We walked past the spur to the trailhead and ignored the unmarked Eagle Creek Cutoff Trail that descended to the left.

The Old Blady Trail quickly launched uphill briefly entering the Salmon-Huckleberry Wilderness.

After a short but extremely steep climb the trail leveled out for a bit. That was both good and bad news because it was only 1.7 miles from the trailhead to the top of Tumala Mountain but we needed to gain nearly 800′ so every step that wasn’t going uphill meant that the ones that did would need to be that much steeper. Just for kicks the trail dropped about 80′ to a saddle before starting abit of a more gradual climb to a junction with the Fanton Trail.
Huge mushroom along the downhill.

Fanton Trail coming up from the right.

The trail did give back a little as we began finding ripe huckleberries to snack on.

Approximately 1.3 miles from the trailhead we ignored a semi-signed trail to the left that went to Twin Springs Campground.

We stayed right climbing briefly along a narrow rocky ridge then beneath a rock outcrop to a rocky road bed where we turned uphill.

There were a few flowers clinging to the cliffs along the road.

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A short road walk brought us to a tower just below the summit.

From the summit we had a pretty good view of Mt. Hood although the clouds had begun to get in the way.

To the south though we had a clear view of the more distant Mt. Jefferson.

Three Fingered Jack and the Three Sisters even further south.

Looking west into the cloud covered Willamette Valley.

We joined a chipmunk and took a snack break before exploring the old lookout site.

Stairs to the former lookout.

Mt. Hood from the former lookout site.

By the time we began our descent Mt. Hood had vanished behind the clouds. Our timing had been pretty good, not only for the views but we made it back to our car without seeing another person or hearing a single gunshot.

The hike was 10.6 miles and approximately 2200′ of cumulative elevation gain. Skipping the viewless summit of Old Baldy would shed 1.8 miles and a couple hundred feet of elevation and only going to one viewpoint instead of both would lower the numbers even further. It was a really nice hike so hopefully the reputation of the area doesn’t scare hikers off. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Old Baldy & Tumala Mountain

Tags Fanton Trail, hiking, Old Baldy Mountain, Old Baldy Trail, Old Baldy West Trailhead, Oregon, Salmon-Huckleberry Wilderness, Tumala Mountain, Wildcat mountain

Clackamas Hiking Old Cascades Oregon Trip report

Baty Butte, Skookum Lake, and Thunder Mountain – 7/26/2019

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date July 31, 2019
2 Comments on Baty Butte, Skookum Lake, and Thunder Mountain – 7/26/2019

**Note the 2024 Sandstone Fire burned a portion of this hike.**

Sticking with our Matt Reeder inspired vacation, on Thursday we selected a hike featured in both his “101 Hikes in the Majestic Mount Jefferson Region” and “Off the Beaten Trail” second edition. In the latter he doesn’t describe the extended hike to Baty Butte. We started our hike at the Thunder Mountain Trailhead where, just as at the Pine Ridge Trailhead, we were greeted by mosquitoes.
Spur road leading to the trail from the pullout.

Signage at the end of the closed spur.

The trail began climbing almost immediately via a switchback that passed us through a thimbleberry and devil’s club covered hillside.
Thimbleberry crowding the trail.

Devil’s club along the trail. We each had our hands brush against some and it doesn’t feel pleasant.

Lupine and paintbrush in the thimbleberries as the trail enters the forest.

After the initial battle with the brush the trail entered the forest where some old growth was present and the trail much clearer.

It looked like these two trees fell out of the same hole but in different directions.

Anemone and queen’s cup

Beargrass and huckleberry bushes.

After climbing for a mile we reached a viewpoint at a switchback with a view of Mt. Jefferson.

Schreiner Peak in front of Mt. Jefferson.

Another .2 miles of climbing along a wildflower dotted ridge brought us to a junction just below the summit of Thunder Mountain.

Small sign on the tree marking the trail to Thunder Mountain’s summit.

We decided to save Thunder Mountain for the return trip due to the position of the Sun and the presence of quite a bit of haze. We followed the pointers on a temporary sign for Skookum Lake and Baty Butte.

The Skookum Lake Trail began to descend along a steep hillside that looked to have had an excellent wildflower display just a week or two earlier. As it was there were still a decent number of flowers in bloom.
Columbine

Washington lilies

Penstemon

Assorted flowers

20190726_075502 Washington lilies

Oregon sunshine

20190726_075546 Scouler’s bluebells

Columbine and a couple different types of penstemon.

Cat’s ear lily

Lupine

20190726_080627 Pyrola

The trail left the wildflowers as it made a horseshoe shaped turn into thicker trees.
Skookum Lake Trail below coming out of the horseshoe turn.

Approximately a mile from the Thunder Mountain junction we passed a rocky viewpoint where large basalt boulders were jumbled along the hillside.

We didn’t stop to check out the view until our way back by, but there was a decent view of Mt. Hood and through the trees we could make out Mt. Rainier.

Mt. Hood

Mt. Rainier

The trail descended another half mile beyond the rocks before leveling out along a meadow.
The trail skirts a talus slope above the meadow.

Finally leveling out by the meadow after losing approximately 700′.

The meadow is also the site of the junction with the abandoned Baty Butte Trail which was marked by a sad little rock cairn and tattered flagging along with an easy to miss temporary sign.

I missed the sign until we had come back and started down the Skookum Lake Trail.

There were a few mosquitoes patrolling the meadow so we didn’t linger long but we did stick around long enough to notice several types of flowers still blooming.
Tall bluebells

The yellow might be a groundsel.

Aster

The tread of the trail was difficult to make out but there was some flagging on the far side and a faint path to it.

Beyond the meadow the trail became a bit more obvious as it passed through the trees. Occasional flagging assisted in keeping us on track.

The trail climbed a bit before arriving at an old roadbed .4 miles from the meadow.

The road was a casualty of the 1996 storms that caused flooding in Oregon and washed out much of the Fish Creek road network. The roadbed is now more of a wildflower garden. We turned right onto the road following a faint path through the flowers.

Shortly after setting off on the road there was a nice view of Mt. Hood to the north.

This was by far the most enjoyable stretch of old roadbed we’ve been on. The wildflowers were profuse and there were dozens of butterflies flying about. It was the tail end of the flowers but they were still very impressive.
Paintbrush, penstemon and lupine

Mostly past lupine

Several butterflies on Oregon sunshine.

Scarlet gilia

Fireweed

At about the .4 mile mark another old road joined from the right which wasn’t a problem on the way to Baty Butte but it is worth noting because coming from the other direction it looked like it might be easy to continue straight on the wrong roadbed.
Left is the wrong way on the return, the correct route is to the right through the brush.

Flagging marking the correct path.

Near the three quarter mile mark on the road we passed some rock out crops and a talus slope where we spotted a pika and some golden-mantled ground squirrels.

Shortly after passing along a narrow ridge the road arrived at the base of Baty Butte.

The road continued around the butte to the left but the Baty Butte Trail headed uphill amid some small trees.
Baty Butte Trail to the right.

The trail climbed around the side of the butte and showed some signs of recent trail maintenance.

After .4 miles on the trail, as it began to curve around a ridge, we turned uphill on a scramble trail.
Baty Butte Trail starting to curve around the ridge.

Scramble route up the ridge.

It was a steep quarter mile climb up the ridge which devolved into a narrow rocky spine toward the top.
Looking down from the start of the spine.

It required the use of our hands to navigate this and we stopped at a wide (for the ridge) spot. From here it appeared that the number of trees increased to a point that would make continuing even more difficult.

From this viewpoint we had a view of Mt. Jefferson and the Three Sisters.

Mt. Jefferson

Three Fingered Jack, Mt. Washington, and the Three Sisters.

There was also an excellent view of Table Rock and Rooster Rock in the Table Rock Wilderness (post).

Rooster Rock is the formation to the far left.

Looking down from Baty Butte.

After a brief rest we headed back eager to see more of the butterflies and flowers along the road.
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20190726_105330 Orange agoseris

Pearly everlasting

Penstemon

We also got to sample a few ripe strawberries.
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The trail heading off of the road was easier to spot than it had been at the meadow.

Back through the meadow we went to the Skookum Lake Trail.
Monkeyflower along the trail.

Crab spider on aster.

We turned left following the pointer for Skookum Lake.

The Skookum Lake Trail descended for three tenths of a mile to Skookum Lake.

Rhododendron along the Skookum Lake Trail.

The little lake was full of activity with butterflies flying along the shore and rough skinned newts floating lazily in the water. Trout were also visible swimming in the shallows.

We followed the trail along the lake shore to the Skookum Lake Campground.

A forest road used to provide access to the primitive campground. It still sees some use though as the litter left in a bucket near the picnic table showed.

As we headed back along the lake Heather spotted a crawdad on a log.

After watching the crawdad for a bit we climbed back up to the junction with the Baty Butte Trail and then made the steep climb back up to the Thunder Mountain spur trail where we turend left.
Small sign on a tree marking the trail to the summit of Thunder Mountain.

It was just a tenth of a mile climb to the site of the former lookout tower at the summit.

From the summit we could again see Mt. Jefferson but now we also had a view north to Mt. Hood, Mt. St. Helens, Mt. Rainier, and Mt. Adams.
The view north.

Mt. St. Helens

Mt. Rainier and Mt. Adams beyond Fish Creek Mountain (post).

Mt. Hood

Mt. Jefferson

From the summit we headed back down to the car stopping at the lower viewpoint which had a better view of Mt. Jefferson.

Shortly before reaching the brushy section we passed a group of backpackers headed up the trail, the only people we saw all day. This was a really nice hike with a variety of scenery. Even if the scramble up Baty Butte is a little too much for some with the exposure the road walk to the butte was well worth a visit during wildflower season. The hike came in at just over 10 miles with a little over 3000′ of elevation gain making it a bit of a challenge but nothing too crazy. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Baty Butte, Skookum Lake, and Thunder Mountain

Tags Baty Butte, Baty Butte Trail, butterflies, hiking, Oregon, Skookum Lake, Skookum Lake Campground, Skookum Lake Trail, table rock, Thunder Mountain, thunder Mountain Trail, Thunder Mountain Trailhead, wildflowers

Bull of the Woods/Opal Creek Hiking Old Cascades Oregon Trip report

Opal Pool – 7/24/19

**Note the 2020 Beachie Creek Fire burned the area covered by this hike.**

As luck would have it one of our weeks of vacation coincided with a visit from my brother and his family from Missouri. We offered to take them on a hike and they accepted so we tried to come up with a worthy “Oregon” hike. We decided on the hike to Jawbone Flats and the Opal Pool. We had been to Jawbone Flats three other times, twice on the Whetstone Mountain Loop (post) and in 2012 (prior to starting this blog) using the route we planned on taking this time.

We picked them up at my parents house and headed for the Opal Creek Trailhead. My parents were also going to do at least part of the hike at their own pace so they drove separately.

We hiked the gated road to Jawbone Flats for a little over two miles to the site of the former Merten Mill. Equipment from the 1943 lumber mill can still be seen including the old boiler but the mill itself is now gone. Along the way we passed over Gold Creek at the .4 mile mark, crossed over wooden half-bridges along cliffs, and entered the areas famous Douglas fir forest.
Gold Creek

Fireweed along one of the half-bridges.

20190724_090256 Beetle on a half-bridge.

Creek in the forest.

Boiler at the Merten Mill site.

Old building along the trail Merten Mill in 2012

A day-use trail leads down to Sawmill Falls from the old mill site.

Being a weekday and still relatively early (we left at 7am instead of our usual 5am because I’m a nice big brother ;)) there was no one else at the falls. We spent some time watching fish swim in the pools and admiring the clear water of the Little North Santiam River. At one point an ouzel stopped by to take a dip.
Fish in the pool below the falls.

Little North Santiam River

Sawmill Falls

Ouzel

After carefully exploring the rocks around the falls we returned to the trail and continued nearly a quarter mile to a signed fork. Here we turned right on the Opal Creek/Kopetski Trail and crossed the river on a footbridge.

Having left the road we were now on an actual trail which made a series of ups and downs along the hillside. When the trail was close to the river we took the opportunity to visit the water where after a little searching we found a couple of rough skinned newts.

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Ridiculously clear water.

Newt floating in a small pool.

Cascade along the river.

When the trail was away from the water there was a lot of berry picking going on. We had managed to find a few ripe thimble and salmon berries along with a variety of huckleberries while hiking the road but it was all huckleberries along the Opal Creek Trail.
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Red huckleberries

After 1.3 miles on the Opal Creek Trail we arrived at Opal Pool. There were a few other people here including to our surprise my parents who had apparently passed us at some point while we were down along the river.

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Bridge over the river above Opal Pool

Little North Santiam River below Opal Pool

Opal Pool Falls

My parents had missed Sawmill Falls so we let them know where to turn off on their way back. We stayed at the pool for awhile watching some cliff jumpers before crossing the footbridge and heading for Jawbone Flats.
Cliff jumpers sitting down by the pool.

Opal Pool Falls from the bridge.

Approximately a quarter mile from the Opal Pool we arrived at Jawbone Flats, a 1930s mining town that is now a non-profit educational center.

Pelton Shed provides power to Jawbone Flats.

Battle Ax Creek flows through town.

From Jawbone Flats it was a 1.2 mile road walk back to the junction with the Opal Creek/Kopetski Trail and then the 2.1 miles back to the trailhead. Many more berries were consumed along the way. Our niece, Rebekkah, spotted two garter snakes on the hike out.
One of the garter snakes.

A millipede

We were fortunate to have had a lot of trail and river time to ourselves as a steady stream of people were headed in as we exited. My brother said he could see why we go as early as we do.

With the combination of old growth forest, crystal clear water, a couple of waterfalls, and lots of ripe berries it had been a good choice for a hike. Without any wandering around it would be a 7.1 mile hike, but with several explorations along the river my GPS had me at 9.1 miles. Everyone survived though and seemed to have a good time and my parents did make it to Sawmill Falls before heading home themselves. It was a lot of fun to be able share this hike with Jason and his family and we are already preparing for a “next time”. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Opal Creek

Tags battle ax creek, hiking, jawbone flats, Little North Santiam River, Merten Mill, opal creek, opal pool, Oregon, Pelton Shed, sawmill falls

Hiking Oakridge Area Old Cascades Oregon Trip report

Bunchgrass Ridge – 7/04/2019

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date July 9, 2019
5 Comments on Bunchgrass Ridge – 7/04/2019

**Note a portion of this hike burned in the 2022 Cedar Creek Fire.**

For the 4th of July this year we headed to the Oakridge area to check out a portion of the Eugene to Crest Trail. The concept of the trail is for a continuous trail from Eugene, OR to the Pacific Crest Trail east of Waldo Lake. Despite beginning in the 1970’s the trail has not been completed but a 108 mile route has been established using trails and roads with multiple access points.

We chose to begin our hike at the Eugene to Crest Trailhead #4 It was an interesting drive to the trailhead as winter storms brought extensive damage along Highway 58 causing its closure for a time due to slides and downed trees. Those same conditions affected many of the Forest Service roads and trails. As we headed up FR 2408 toward the trailhead it was apparent that the Forest Service had been busy clearing downed trees along the lower portion of the road. It was interesting to see that higher elevations hadn’t suffered near as much damage though as the number of recently cut trees decreased significantly. Then as we neared the trailhead a young black bear darted across the road in front of the car.

After the excitement of seeing the bear we pulled into the parking area where we discovered a fair number of mosquitoes waiting for us. We applied a bit of bug spray and set off on the signed trail.

In a tenth of a mile we arrived at a junction with the Eugene to Crest Trail where we turned left.

A short distance later we entered Little Bunchgrass Meadow.

The meadow had quite a bit of lupine and some white pussytoes and cat’s ear lilies blooming with tiger lilies and orange agoseris just getting started.

The only tiger lily that seemed to be open yet.

20190704_072419 orange agoseris beginning to open.

20190704_072403 Cat’s ear lily

Pussytoes

At the end of the meadow the trail entered the forest where a few vanilla leaf and a single trillium were still blooming.

It wasn’t long before we popped out into a second meadow. This one was filled with bunchgrass aka beargrass. Unfortunately it appeared that we had missed the beargrass bloom by a year as only a couple of plants had flowers while many others had dead stalks.

We repeated the meadow-forest-meadow pattern a couple of times as the trail followed the ridge SE. Occasionally there were views of the Three Sisters, Broken Top, and the top of Mt. Bachelor to the NE.
The Three Sisters and Broken Top

Larkspur along the trail.

Bunchberry

Anemone

Another meadow

The Three Sisters and Broken Top

Queen’s cup

The Three Sisters, Broken Top, and a bit of Mt. Bachelor

Rhododendron

Another meadow full of not-in-bloom beargrass.

The first mile and a half of the trail had been fairly level as it passed along the ridge but after passing through the last beargrass meadow for a while the trail began to gradually gain elevation. The trail left the ridge top in favor of the SW facing slope.
View from the SW facing hillside.

Looking SE

The trail then regained the ridge where we once again had views of the Three Sisters and Broken Top along with Mt. Jefferson and the very tip of Three Fingered Jack.

Mt. Jefferson behind the ridge extending from Mule Mountain (post). The tip of Three Fingered Jack is visible just to the left of the high point along the ridge to the far right.

After passing a knoll on our right we got our fist glimpse of Diamond Peak ahead to the SE.

Diamond Peak through the trees.

After a brief drop to a saddle we climbed past a wildflower rock garden to a nice viewpoint just over two and a quarter miles from the trailhead.
Valerian in the saddle.

Mt. Yoran, Diamond Peak, and Mt. Bailey

Mt. Yoran and Diamond Peak

Mt. Bailey

View to the NE (from the afternoon on the way back)

The Husband, Three Sisters, Broken Top, and Ball Butte(from the afternoon on the way back)

Mt. Jefferson and the tips of Three Fingered Jack and Mt. Washington

From the viewpoint the trail descended fairly steeply past what appeared to be a small spring but it is not shown on any map that I could find.

Sections of our route passed through and by the fire scar from the 1991 Warner Creek burn but as we descended from the viewpoint we were passed through a newer scar from the 2017 Kelsey Creek Fire.

In this newer scar we found one of the best clumps of western wallfower we’d ever seen.

20190704_084603

There was also a large wild ginger blossom which we don’t get to see very often so clearly.

After losing almost 500′ of elevation the trail looked to regain it as it climbed from a saddle up a ridge and around a knoll before dropping down again.

From the high point we had a nice view of the ridge behind us that our route had followed.

Ahead we could see another ridge line on the far side of Kelsey Creek which was in the valley below.

From this view we couldn’t really make out the ridge between us and the one across the valley. We began to wonder about the rest of our route. We did have two paper maps and our GPS with us but instead of looking at those we wondered if we would be curving around this valley or following an unseen ridge to our right. Whatever our route would be, it began by heading downhill. There was fairly thick vegetation along the trail but it had also recently been cut back.

We could see a green meadow ahead of and below us.

Just over three and a half miles in the trail leveled off at a saddle above the meadow. The wildflower display on the saddle was really impressive with large groups of blue-head gilia and giant blue-eyed Mary creating carpets of blue and numerous other flowers scattered about.

Giant blue-eyed Mary

20190704_091315 Giant blue-eyed Mary

Giant blue-eyed Mary and blue-head gilia

Cat’s ear lily and blue-head gilia

Coneflower

Cow parsnip

Tall mountain bluebell

More of the blue flowers

Larkspur

20190704_092323 Jacob’s ladder

20190704_092346 An aster or fleabane

Columbine and valerian

Lupine

Not sure what type of flower this one is.

Valerian filled meadow below the trail.

White yarrow, giant blue-eyed Mary, and tall mountain bluebells

Beyond the saddle the trail did not follow a ridge in any direction. It lost a little more elevation passing under a hillside dotted with pink rhododendron.

The low elevation was approximately 5250′ which the trail dipped to briefly as it started to wind around the headwaters of Kelsey Creek. As we came around we started to climb and quickly realized that the trail was going to take us up and over the ridge we had been looking at from the viewpoint across the valley. From the low point the trail gained 150′ over the first three tenths of a mile before launching uphill to gain another 450′ in the next .4 miles.
Looking back at our route so far.

The trail coming around Kelsey Creek is visible on the hillside behind us.

The trail crested in yet another bunchgrass filled meadow.

The open hillside here provided views ahead to Fuji Mountain in the Waldo Lake Wilderness (post) as well as Diamond Peak and a good look at Mt. Bailey (post).
Fuji Mountain (left), flat topped Mt. David Douglass, Mt. Yoran (shorter thumb to the left of Diamond Peak), and Diamond Peak.

Mt. Yoran and Diamond Peak

Mt. Bailey

We were particularly excited to see Mt. Bailey. It’s one we don’t often get a good view of due to its relatively low profile (8368′) and its alignment which often puts it behind Diamond Peak in the line of sight.

This meadow lasted off and on for a little over half a mile. There again wasn’t much beargrass in bloom but we did come upon a nice display of scarlet gilia, also known as skyrocket which seemed fitting on the 4th of July.

20190704_101615 A few orange agoseris were scattered about.

Scarlet gilia

More scarlet gilia

20190704_112526 Skyrocket

At the edge of the meadow we arrived at a rock outcrop.

The trail switchbacked down below the outcrop which was home to a few flowers of it’s own.

A thistle that was getting ready to bloom.

Wallflower

Below the outcrop the trail passed through more beargrass with Big Bunchgrass Meadow covering the hillside ahead with a bright green color.

We had one complaint as we headed toward our goal, the trail was losing elevation. Interestingly though we found ourselves in an entirely different type of forest than we had encountered during the hike so far. It had a drier feel with pines and a grassy forest floor.

Soon though we popped out into Big Bunchgrass Meadow which didn’t appear to have much if any bunchgrass. False hellebore, grasses, and flowers filled this meadow.

The flowers weren’t profuse but there was a nice variety and the butterflies seemed to be enjoying them.
Owl’s head clover

Larkspur, an owl’s head clover, and scarlet gilia

Aster or fleabane and an orange agoseris

Coneflower

Hyssop

Butterflies on a cat’s ear lily

20190704_105633 Wait that’s not a butterfly.

As the trail continued to lose elevation we decided to make our turnaround point a trail junction with a tie trail coming up to the meadow from the Bunchgrass Lower Trailhead. There was a post in the meadow with a pointer for the trail but it wasn’t exactly near the post and we missed it on our first pass. We turned around after rounding a small corner that gave us a nice view of Fuji Mountain.

Fuji Mountain

Looking back we realized just how far we had come down to reach the meadow.

As we came back around the small corner we spotted the faint trail veering off to the left.
The post, with an orange top, is up and to the right in front of a tree.

We headed back uphill and stopped for a break at the rock outcrop.
Heather at the rock outcrop.

I wandered up along the outcrop to see if there might be a good viewpoint atop the ridge. I was hoping for the Three Sisters and Broken Top but they were nowhere to be seen.

Big Bunchgrass Meadow and Fuji Mountain

Diamond Peak

I did find a little clump of Oregon sunshine though.

After our break we continued on looking for anything we might have missed on our first pass as well as for any wildlife.

Crab spider (probably waiting for that Washington lily to open)

Turkey vulture

Back in the valerian meadows

Not sure what this is going to be either.

We never did see that bear again, although there were several piles of scat along the trail. As for people we passed a group of three hikers at the viewpoint about 2 miles from the trailhead and a pair of mountain bikers at the junction near the trailhead. It was a little surprising to us that we didn’t see more, the trail was in great shape with good views and wildflowers. The first few miles were relatively easy too with the real climbing occuring in the latter half of the hike. We logged 11.8 miles on the GPS which seems to be right around where all our hikes have been lately. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Bunchgrass Ridge

Tags Bear, Beargrass, Bunchgrass RIdge, Butterfly, Diamond Peak, Eugene to Crest Trail, Eugene to Crest Trailhead #4, hiking, Kelsey Creek, Mt. Bailey, Mule Mountain, oakridge, Oregon, wildflowers

Hiking McKenzie River Old Cascades Oregon Trip report

Tidbits Mountain – 6/29/2019

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date July 1, 2019
4 Comments on Tidbits Mountain – 6/29/2019

**Note the 2024 Ore Fire burned over the access road for the trailhead but spared the trails.**

As we continued to let the weather dictate our vacation plans we couldn’t pass up a “sunny” morning forecast for Tidbits Mountain near Blue River, OR. Another of Sullivan’s featured hikes, the trip to the site of a former lookout tower atop Tidbits Mountain is just 4.4 miles round trip from the Tidbits South Trailhead. This was actually a bit of a problem as the drive from Salem was a little over two and a half hours which meant our hiking time would most likely not be greater than our driving time which would break our rule of not driving longer than hiking. Our original plan to solve this was going to be making a second stop at the Lower McKenzie River Trailhead where we could hike as far as we liked on the McKenzie River Trail, but while researching the Tidbits Mountain hike another option presented itself.

The Gold Hill Trail travels 3.2 miles along a ridge to a junction with the Tidbits Mountain Trail three quarters of a mile from the summit of Tidbits Mountain. Instead of driving to a different trailhead we could spend some time on the Gold Hill Trail which the Forest Service warned sees only periodic maintenance.

We started our hike not at the Tidbits South Trailhead but rather along Forest Road 1509 where FR 877 headed uphill .2 miles to the trailhead on the left.
FR 877 at FR 1509

Both the Forest Service and Sullivan pointed out that FR 877 was steep and Sullivan added that turning around at the trailhead was “awkward”, thus our decision to walk up the road.

As we hiked up the road there were a couple of views of the rocky pinnacles of Tidbits Mountain on the left.

A sign marked the start of the Tidbits Mountain Trail.

The trail climbed gradually for 1.3 miles to a junction on a ridge crest. This section of trail passed through some old growth trees and was full of rhododendron blooms. It was by far the best display of rhododendron that we had seen.

There were a few other flowers along the way as well but none in anywhere near the numbers as the rhodies.
Penstemon

Showy phlox

Anemone

Iris

Arnica

At the junction we turned left following a pointer for the Tidbits Mountain Lookout.

This section of trail traversed a rocky hillside on the north side of Tidbits Mountain. Being on the north facing slope trillium were still in bloom and a few remnants of glacial lilies remained.

20190629_080903

The talus slopes below Tidbits Mountain allowed for some previews of the views to come at the summit.

Looking west toward the Green Mountain Lookout.

Green Mountain Lookout

Mt. Jefferson

Three Fingered Jack

The talus is also home to one of our favorite wild animals, the pika! They are not particularly easy to see but once you know what you are looking for with a little luck you’ll spot one of these rabbit relatives. It was a lucky day for us as we spotted two.
There is at least one pika in this picture.

There is another one in this picture.

When we weren’t scanning the rocks for pikas we did a lot of looking up at the formations above us.

Columbine and solomonseal in the talus slope.

Last of the snow along the talus.

At a saddle a half mile from the junction with the Gold Hill Trail we came to a second junction. This one was unsigned. To the right a trail headed downhill to the Tidbits West Trailhead. The Gold Hill Trail used to continue straight here but it was so faint and overgrown that we didn’t even see it on the first pass. We turned uphill to the left and began the steep .2 mile climb to the summit.

Catchfly on the way up.

Lookout remains below the summit.

Foundation remains

Wildflowers at the summit.

The 360 degree view from the summit was very good although our timing meant the sun was overhead between us and the Cascades impacting the ability to get clear photos of those mountains.
NE we could see Mt. Hood, Mt. Jefferson, and Three Fingered Jack.

Mt. Hood

Mt. Jefferson behind Iron Mountain and Cone Peak

Three Fingered Jack

The eastern view added Mt. Washington, The Three Sisters, and Mt. Bachelor.

Mt. Washington

Three Sisters

Mt. Bachelor

We could also just make out the lookout tower atop nearby Carpenter Mountain (post).

To the SE we could make out Maiden Peak, Mt. Thielsen, and Diamond Peak.

Maiden Peak (post)

Mt. Thielsen (post)

Diamond Peak

We spent a good amount of time on the summit taking in the view before descending to a lower viewpoint with a number of flowers.

Cat’s ear lilies

Oregon sunshine amid buckwheat

Penstemon and paintbrush

A fleabane or aster

Looking down from the lower viewpoint.

We then headed back down to the trail junction where we found the faint tread of Historical Gold Hill Trail. We followed it just far enough to get a close up view of a flower garden.

Western wallflower

Larkspur

20190629_092727 Paintbrush

20190629_093003 Cinquefoil

We returned to the Tidbits Mountain Trail and recrossed the talus slopes, this time we didn’t spot any pikas. We did stop to admire some of the flowers though.
20190629_093755 Baneberry

20190629_093642 Current

Bleeding heart, trillium and wood violets

20190629_093952 Wood violet

With the Sun starting to pass overhead Mt. Jefferson was a little more photogenic.

When we arrived back at the junction with the Gold Hill Trail we briefly searched for any sign of a former shelter that was indicated on the map.

After failing to uncover any sign of it we headed out on the Gold Hill Trail. Given the Forest Service mentioned that this trail only receives periodic maintenance we weren’t sure how far we might go but we were curious to check it out.

The trail was pretty overgrown, not crowded with brush, but it had a lot of vegetation growing in the middle of it indicating a lack of use.

We soon passed a rock outcrop where a patch of small monkeyflowers were blooming.

20190629_100226

We followed the trail a total of 2.7 miles losing a total of 800′ through a series of ups and downs as it followed a ridge to the north and east. We passed through some lovely forest filled with more blooming rhododendron and by several rock outcrops. There were occasional views of the Three Sisters and Mt. Bachelor through the trees and also spotted some deer, at least one doe and fawn, as they dashed away through the trees. Despite the lack of use and periodic maintenance the trail was in pretty good shape with just a few trees to step over.

North and Middle Sister

Mt. Bachelor

20190629_104300 Showy phlox

Washington lilies getting ready to bloom

At the 2.7 mile mark the trail began a final 400′ descent in the remaining half mile to FR 1509. We weren’t overly keen on having to climb back up that just to say we reached the road plus we had set an 11:30 turn around time and it was just after 11:20. We noticed an open knoll just off trail to the right so we decided to check it out and make this be our turn around spot.

The knoll turned out to be very interesting. In addition to some nice views there were a number of flowers.

The Two Girls

Mt. Washington and the Three Sisters

Wolf Rock an Mt. Washington

North Sister

Middle Sister

South Sister

Mt. Jefferson had been overtaken by clouds but Iron Mountain and Cone Peak were still visible.

Buckwheat and paintbrush

Wallflower and cat’s ear lilies

Penstemon and paintbrush

After exploring the knoll we headed back looking for anything we missed on our first pass. We did notice a couple of interesting old tree trunks and a grouse crossed the trail in front of us.

Young tree growing out of an old trunk.

Grouse

We made our way back to the Tidbits Mountain Trail and returned to the trailhead without seeing another person until we ran into a gentleman at the trailhead who seemed to just be out for a drive and looking around. We ended up with a 10.5 mile hike which was perfect. It was a nice way to end our vacation. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Tidbits Mountain

Tags Gold Hill Trail, hiking, lookout tower, Oregon, Pika, Tidbits Mountain, Tidbits Mountain Trail, Tidbits South Trailhead, Two Girls, wildflowers, Wolf rock

Clackamas Old Cascades Oregon Trip report

Fish Creek Mountain and High Lake – 6/28/2019

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date July 1, 2019
5 Comments on Fish Creek Mountain and High Lake – 6/28/2019

**Note the 2020 Riverside Fire burned most of this hike.**

After taking Wednesday and Thursday off from hiking due to less than favorable weather forecasts we headed out on Friday planning on hiking the Riverside Trail along the Clackamas River. The forecast was for a 40% chance of showers and partly sunny so we thought a river hike was a safe bet and the Riverside Trail was one of Sullivan’s featured hikes that we had yet to do.

As we turned onto Highway 242 at Estacada though we began to rethink our plan. The sky had been relatively clear so far and we hated wasting a good river hike on a day where there might be views to have. Prior to knowing what the weather was going to be like we had originally had Fish Creek Mountain as one of our hikes for the week and as luck would have it the trailhead for that hike was also off of Highway 242. When we reached the sign for Indian Henry Campground (just before the 4th green bridge coming from the west) we veered right onto FR 4620. We followed this one lane paved road for 5.1 miles to gravel where we forked uphill for an additional 2.6 miles to the trailhead on the left. The trailhead is an old roadbed that is only marked by a wooden sign on a tree next to the start of the Fish Creek Mountain Trail. (Note: The sign is unreadable unless up close.)

The trailhead was moved to this location following the road to the original trailhead being washed out in 1996. The trail here was constructed by volunteers who connected it to the washed out road .4 miles from the original trailhead.

The trail gains 500′ over seven tenths of a mile as it climbs through a mixed forest to the decommissioned road.

We started to question our decision as we found ourselves in a bit of fog as we arrived at the old road.

Columbine along the decommissioned road.

The trail along this stretch was a bit overgrown in places and the moisture from the plants soaked us pretty good.

After a relatively level .4 miles along the road we arrived at the original trailhead where the trail headed up a ridge past a trail marker.

The trail climbed along the ridge and as it did we began to emerge from the fog.

The ridge was mostly forested with a few views to the west through the trees, but as we climbed occasional small meadows popped up filled with wildflowers.

20190628_075839

20190628_080307

Just over a mile and a quarter from the old road we came to a rocky outcrop where the flowers were amazing. As a bonus there was a nice view of Mt. Jefferson to the SE.

It wasn’t the largest wildflower area by any means, but there was an impressive variety of flowers in bloom, so much so that we stopped again on our way down.
Buckwheat

20190628_081050 A penstemon

False sunflower

A penstemon

20190628_081334 Oregon sunshine

>Lupine among others

20190628_081532 Cliff beardstounge

20190628_081630 Catchfly

Groundsel

blue head gilia

Bleeding heart

20190628_110821 Paintbrush

20190628_110922 Woodland stars

Larkspur and ballhead waterleaf

20190628_110713 Yarrow

20190628_111116 Valerian

20190628_110406 Cat’s ear lily

20190628_110329 Wild rose

20190628_110300 Buckwheat in blue head gilia

20190628_082032 Thimbleberry

Larkspur, leafy pea, and candy flower

Rhododendron (just around the corner from the outcrop)

Beyond the viewpoint the trail gained an additional 600′ over the next .7 miles to a fork. There were a few more flowers along this stretch, mostly white forest varieties.
20190628_082236 Star-flowered solomonseal

20190628_082244 Plumed solomonseal

20190628_082253 Vanilla leaf

20190628_082630 Pussytoes

Beargrass

Trail fork

From the fork the Fish Creek Mountain Trail continues uphill a little under a half mile to the site of the former lookout tower at the summit. The fork to the right heads downhill for .7 miles to High Lake. With blue sky overhead we decided to visit the summit first and stayed left at the junction.

Some of the foundation remains from the old lookout at the overgrown summit.

Despite the blue sky overhead clouds had moved in around us effectively eliminating any mountain views (Mt. Jefferson should have been visible from the summit). We rested a bit checking out the beargrass and a green beetle that was scurrying through the grass.

20190628_091138

We started back down and noticed a side trail to the left about 110 yards from the old lookout site. We headed up this path which lead to a rocky outcrop with a survey marker.

It looked like it would have been a pretty good viewpoint but for us it was just a view of the clouds passing by.

After watching for a view of Mt. Hood that never developed in a break in the clouds as they passed by we returned to the trail fork and turned left toward High Lake.

This trail lost nearly 500′ as it wound down to the small glacial lake. Nestled in a basin below Fish Creek Mountain the vegetation along the trail was quite a bit behind that along the Fish Creek Mountain Trail. Here huckleberry bushes were still sprouting leaves and trillium were still in bloom.

We even ran into a small patch of snow hiding under some downed branches along the trail.

The small lake was quite pretty and it was also full of rough skinned newts.

We followed a rough use trail around the lake past a handful of campsites.

Curious newt

It was a little too chilly to hang out by the lake so after completing the loop we started back up to the Fish Creek Mountain Trail. Along the way we finally got a glimpse of part of Mt. Hood, albeit not much of one.

Mt. Jefferson had all but disappeared too when we stopped back at the flower filled viewpoint.

We had at least had a good view earlier and the wildflowers had made this a great hike even if we hadn’t had any views. We headed back down looking for any other flowers to take pictures of and found a few.
20190628_113006_001 Inside out flower

20190628_113615 Spotted coralroot

20190628_113701 Stripped coralroot

20190628_114624 Starflower

Candy sticks

Wild strawberries

We were happy with our decision to forgo the Riverside Trail in favor of this hike. We had not expected to see such a variety of flowers in bloom which was a pleasant surprise. The combination of the flowers, a view of Mt. Jefferson and a nice lake made for a great 8.1 mile hike. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Fish Creek Mountain

Tags Fish Creek Mountain, Fish Creek Mountain Trail, High Lake, hiking, Mt. Jefferson, Oregon, wildflowers

Hiking Old Cascades Oregon Trip report

Sardine Mountain

**Note the 2020 Beachie Creek Fire burned a portion of this hike.**

Having done quite a bit of driving over our Memorial Day Weekend trip to NE Oregon we stuck close to Salem for our next hike. The hike up to the summit of Sardine Mountain from Matt Reeder’s “101 Hikes in the Majestic Mt. Jefferson Region“. Reeder recommends the hike in Winter when you can snowshoe the route, but as we have yet to get into snowshoeing (we’ve talked about it) an early June visit seemed appropriate. Located toward the western edge of the Old Cascades Sardine Mountain has an elevation of 4948′. This combination allows it to melt out sooner than some of the other peaks in the Old Cascades.

The peak is named after nearby Sardine Creek which purportedly gained that name when Thomas Henness found a sardine can in the creek in 1867. There are no official trails to the mountain but there is a scramble trail from Knutson Saddle which can be reached via Forest Road 2223 or by the route we took following Sardine Road (which becomes a 4wd track) up from Highway 22. Sardine Road is an unsigned gravel road located .4 miles east of Big Cliff Dam (2.3 miles west of Detroit Dam). In his description Reeder had parked just beyond a bridge over Sardine Creek just .2 miles up this road which is where we had planned to park but a van was already occupying it so we proceeded up the road another 150 yards to the next pullout.

There had been a “road closed ahead” sign just after we had turned onto the road and Matt had mentioned that high clearance vehicles could make it as far as 3-4 miles up the road and other cars probably shouldn’t go further than a mile up. In addition to avoiding the bumpy drive the first mile of the road follows close to Sardine Creek so by parking sooner we were able to get some good looks at the creek.

There were a lot of rough skinned newts out on the road which made us wonder how many have been on roads we’ve been driving on. 😦

A half mile from where we parked we passed an scenic unnamed side creek.

Despite being a road walk there was a lot to see between the creek, flowers, and the forest.
Paintbrush above Sardine Creek

Iris

Rhododendron

Candy flower

Approximately a mile and a half from where we had started the road veered away from Sardine Creek at a sharp switchback. In another quarter mile we arrived at a fork.

The right hand fork was the continuation of the route up to Knutson Saddle and Sardine Mountain but we detoured left on Reeder’s recommendation to visit a huge logjam. We followed this road for four tenths of a mile to one of Sardine Creeks forks where there was indeed an impressive logjam.

On the way to the logjam we came across a tennis ball and a slug and wondered if this was the worlds slowest game of fetch.

Also there were more newts.

There were even more logs jammed upstream on the creek.

We returned to the fork and continued climbing up toward the saddle. We still had about 2000′ to gain just to reach the saddle. We tried to keep our minds off the climb by focusing on the sights along the way. There was one quarter mile section (1.4 miles from the fork) where the road lost 200′ of elevation before steeply climbing again.
Beargrass

Iris

Mushroom in the middle of the road

Valerian

A hillside spring

The road deteriorated as we climbed although there were some noticeable tire tracks and there had been some recent clearing of brush.

Shortly after passing the 4000′ elevation we passed a lingering patch of snow (with tire tracks).

A total of 5.5 miles from where we’d parked (6.3 if you add in the side trip to the logjam) we arrived at Knutson Saddle where the trilliums where still white. We took a seat near some snow and rested.

Before continuing up I walked NE along the level Forest Service road 100 yards to a view of Dome Rock and Mt. Jefferson. Unfortunately it was a very hazy morning so the mountain was blending with the haze.

After our rest we located the use trail heading uphill where the 4wd track arrived at Knutson Saddle.

After a brief stint in some trees we emerged in a meadow of huckleberry bushes and beargrass.

At times the route was overgrown or became faint but pink flagging helped mark the way.

The bushes gave way to an open rocky hillside where yellow wallfowers and red paintbrush colored the slopes.

Red flowering currant

It was a fairly steep but non-technical class 2 scramble.

The combination of the haze and time (the Sun we still to the east of us) really impacted what would have been spectacular views.

Along the way up we spotted a northern alligator lizard.

We reached the summit of Sardine Mountain where a long ridge extended north toward Rocky Top.

The view west was marred by clearcuts.

To the NE Mt. Hood stood out with Mt. Adams being barely visible through the haze.

Mt. Hood with North Dicky Peak in front.

Mt. Jefferson rose to the east behind Dome Rock (post).

Beyond Tumble Lake to the SE was Three Fingered Jack behind Coffin Mountain (post), Mt. Washington, and the barely visible Three Sisters.

Three Fingered Jack

Mt. Washington and the Three Sisters

Tumble Lake

After another nice rest we started back down stopping to get pictures of some of the flowers we hadn’t noticed on the way up.

A saxifrage

Blue-eyed mary

Cats ears

Butterfly on red flowering currant

After picking our way down the exposed slope we made our way back to Knutson Saddle and headed back downhill on the 4wd road. We didn’t see anymore newts along the road on our descent but we did see a few other critters.
Rabbit

Snake

Another northern alligator lizard

20190601_121157 These two long legged spiders got into a brawl when they met crossing the road.

With the Sun now overhead the candy flower had opened up and many of the other flowers were showing up better so we stopped to get some pictures of them as well.

20190601_123148 Candy flower

20190601_121738 Iris

20190601_121916 Beargrass

Cinquefoil and candy flower

Fringecup

Monkeyflower

20190601_124017 Thimbleberry

20190601_124131 Stonecrop

20190601_125119 Youth-on-age with an interesting insect

The sunlight also helped bring out the colors of Sardine Creek.

Aside from the unfortunately hazy conditions the only real drawback to the hike was that we each managed to pick up a couple of ticks, likely taking pictures of the flowers and creek at the end of the day where the grass was tall along the road. A good reminder to always check thoroughly, best a couple of times as even though we did a check and knocked three off us at the car one managed to make it all the way home with Heather where a second check found it before it had started to dig in.

We did not see another person the whole day although we did hear a car drive past Knutson Saddle as we approached it. There was plenty of evidence that people do spend time along the road though based on the used shotgun shells, pieces of clay targets, and trash filled fire pits at several of the pullouts. 😦

From where we parked, with the logjam side trip, our GPS recorded a 12.8 mile hike which was a bit shorter than we’d expected based on Reeder’s book where he put it at 14.4 miles without the side trip. The stat that did agree was the 4600′ cumulative elevation gain making this a pretty good early season training hike for climbers. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Sardine Mountain

Tags Beargrass, Dome Rock, hiking, Knutson Saddle, Northern Alligator Lizard, Old Cascades, Oregon, Sardine Creek, Sardine Mountain, Tumble Lake, wildflowers

Hiking Oakridge Area Oregon Trip report

South Willamette Trail

A dry forecast and a day off for Presidents Day seemed like a perfect excuse to get our February hike in. For this outing we’d picked the South Willamette Trail. This was yet another trail we had yet to hike and this seemed like a good time of the year to do so because the trail lacks any highlights or views that would be impacted by inclement weather.

The South Willamette Trail is basically a five mile long connector trail between the Hardesty Trailhead and the Eula Ridge Trailhead. We began our hike at the Hardesty Trailhead which had also been the starting point for our Goodman Creek hike (post).

A single trail leaves the trailhead to the left of a large signboard.
Hardesty Trailhead

The trail is actually the Hardesty Trail which gains over 3000′ in five miles to the old lookout site atop Hardesty Mountain. Unless you’re looking for a training hike the old lookout site is now view less. For a slightly shorter and more scenic hike to that location start at the Mount June Trailhead instead as we did in 2013 (post).

Back to our current hike now. We followed the Hardesty Trail for .2 miles to the Goodman Creek Trail junction.

Junction with the Goodman Creek Trail

We stayed left continuing on the Hardesty Trail for another four tenths of a mile to the start of the South Willamette Trail.

Hardesty Trail junction with the South Willamette Trail

We stayed left again leaving the wider tread of the Hardesty Trail behind for the narrower but not overgrown South Willamette Trail.

This trail runs parallel to Highway 58 but due to the presence of some private land holdings it bends back away from the highway which kept the noise down for much of the hike. There are not any views to speak of along the trail and although it crossed several creeks there are no waterfalls either. The trail simply passes through some different types of forest on its way from one end to the other. A half mile from the Hardesty Trail a nice footbridge brought us over an unnamed seasonal creek.
South Willamette Trail

A half mile later we were crossing another unnamed creek.
South Willamette Trail

This was followed by a footbridge over Crale Creek just a tenth of a mile later and a log crossing of another stream just beyond that.
South Willamette Trail

Crossing Crale Creek

The trail then made a slight climb to cross Crale Creek Road.
South Willamette Trail crossing Crale Creek Road

The trail climbed steadily for the next 1.75 miles gaining approximately 400′ to reach its high point at an elevation just over 1400′. There was just a little left over snow scattered about along the way.
A bit of snow along the South Willamette Trail

The Sun was shining overhead as we began to descend to a footbridge over Harper Creek.
Sun behind trees in the Willamette National Forest

Footbridge over Harper Creek

From there we climbed up and around a ridge gaining 280′ in half a mile before dropping again, this time to a bridge less crossing of North Creek.

There was just enough water to prevent a dry rock hop across the creek and a pair of logs downstream were too slick and angled to be worth risking so we decided to make North Creek our impromptu turn around. We were only about a tenth of a mile from the Eula Ridge Trailhead so we had covered most of the trail and I had especially been struggling all morning.

We returned the way we’d come listening to the birds and watching for the small purple blossoms of snow queen.
Wren Wren signing along the trail

Snow queen

I had had a sore throat when I’d woken up and by the time we made it back to the car I was chilled. I spent the rest of the day and the next in bed ill which actually made me feel a little better about having struggled so much on a 10.8 mile 1600′ elevation gain hike.

The South Willamette Trail is definitely not a big reward hike, there are no views to speak of and aside from the few small creeks no real attractions along the way other than a nice green forest. That being said it was a good moderate winter hike and it’s open all year save for the worst storms. Happy Trails!

Flickr: South Willamette Trail

Tags Crale Creek, Eula Ridge, Goodman Creek, hardesty mountain, Hardesty Trailhead, hiking, Oregon, Snow queen, South Willamette Trail

Hiking Oakridge Area Old Cascades Oregon

Salmon Creek Falls

On Columbus Day morning we left Klamath Falls and headed home to Salem. We were planning on hiking on the way home, but we weren’t sure what hike we would be doing. If the weather was decent we were hoping to hike up The Twins near Waldo Lake and if it wasn’t we’d try the Salmon Creek Trail to Salmon Creek Falls near Oakridge.

It was dark at 5am as we headed north on Highway 97 but the stars where visible in the sky above. The stars were still out as we turned onto Highway 58 and began to head NW toward the Cascade Crest. The possibility of The Twins was still on the table, but by the time we had reached Crescent Junction the stars had been replaced by rain clouds. Salmon Creek Falls it was.

Just prior to reaching Oakridge we turned right onto Fish Hatchery Road and drove it’s length to Forest Road 24 where we turned right for .8 miles to the Flat Creek Road. Here we turned right and parked in a large gravel parking lot next to a small gazebo.

The Salmon Creek Trail began a short distance down the road from the gazebo.

After just a tenth of a mile we came to an unsigned junction where we turned left.

A steady light rain was falling from the low clouds overhead as we followed this trail east past the Flat Creek Work Center and along Salmon Creek.

It was an interesting trail in that it split in several areas only to rejoin a short distance later. A sort of pick your own adventure trail if you will. It also spent some time along the shoulder of FR 24 in areas where Salmon Creek had eroded the bank substantially.

At other times the trail followed roadbeds.

This led to a little confusion about the correct route, but it really didn’t matter as long as we kept heading east because the creek and FR 24 acted as rails on either side.

After a little over two and a half miles we arrived at a wide junction.

A right turn here brought us to the site of a washed out bridge that used to connect to another trail on the south side of Salmon Creek.

Just under a mile beyond the washed out bridge we arrived at the Salmon Creek Campground.

We headed through an empty camp site and followed a path down to the creek and 10′ Salmon Creek Falls.
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It was a good day to visit the falls, the autumn colors were nice and there were no crowds around. After spending some time by the water we headed back keeping our eyes open for the small things that are easy to miss in the forest.

It was a fairly easy 7.8 mile round trip hike and even though it rained almost the entire time we didn’t feel soaked. It was about as nice a hike as one could hope for on that kind of day. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Salmon Creek Falls

Tags hiking, oakridge, Oregon, Salmon Creek, Salmon Creek Campground, Salmon Creek Falls, salmon creek trail