Tag: Mt. Jefferson

Hunts Cove – 11/08/2026

Due to the warm and dry 2026 some hikes that would normally be snow covered in November remain accessible. We did get some lower elevation snow at the end of October, but warm and dry conditions returned during the first week of November. A partly sunny forecast for Saturday called me to the mountains for what I hope is the last mountain hike until early Summer 2027. It’s not that I don’t love hiking in the mountains, but we badly need a good snow year.

Heather opted to be responsible and stay home to prep the house for some work being done later in the week. I decided to head to the Pamelia Lake Trailhead and head toward Hunts Cove. We had visited Hunts Cove in 2013 on an epic 18.2-mile loop (post). I know I am not physically up to a hike like that and wasn’t sure if I would be able to make the 6-plus mile hike to Hunts Cove but there were several good turnaround points along the way.

There were just a couple of cars at the trailhead when I arrived.

A NW Forest Pass is required to park at the trailhead, and a Central Cascades Wilderness Permit is required to hike from June 15 – October 15.

The Pamelia Lake Trail leaves the trailhead following Pamelia Creek through a beautiful forest and into the Mount Jefferson Wilderness.

This is one of a few remaining areas in this wilderness that hasn’t burned in the 2000’s.

After 2.2-miles of gradual climbing the trail arrives at a junction just before Pamelia Lake with the Grizzly Peak Trail (post).

At the junction I detoured down to Pamelia Lake where the water level was evidence of how dry 2026 has been.

I walked to the right around the lake to get a view of Mt. Jefferson and some of the recent snow.

Morning sunlight hitting the mountain and ridge below.

I returned to the junction and took a right back onto the Pamelia Lake Trail and followed it another 0.2-miles uphill to the Hunts Creek Trail.

A left at the junction would have taken me to the Pacific Crest Trail (post) while a right turn heads to Hunts Cove. You can also reach the PCT from Hunts Cove as we did in 2013. I turned right and followed the trail around the lake passing numerous use trails down to campsites.

Grizzly Peak

The trail crossed several unnamed streams and creeks, one of which was flooding the trail.

The wetlands behind Pamelia Lake that the creeks from both sides of the valley flow into.

Hunts Creek flowing toward Pamelia Lake.

The prettiest of the side creeks.

The trail briefly used this downed log.

Makeshift bridge across one of the streams.

Approximately 1.2-miles from the Pamelia Lake Trail junction the Hunts Creek Trail arrives at the bridgeless crossing of Hunts Creek.

I used the two logs to the right to cross dry footed.

After crossing Hunts Creek the trail climbs over 1000′ in 1.8-miles to a junction with the Hunts Cove Trail. The climb is gradual with just a couple of sets of switchbacks.

The tread got a little narrow crossing this slide, but it wasn’t too sketchy.

I believe this is a Lion’s mane (Hericium erinaceus).

Orange peel fungus

At one point I spotted a huge waterfall, or series of falls on the opposite hillside.

There were occasional views of Mt. Jefferson too.

There is a waterfall on Hunts Creek just off the trail from the first switchback of the second set (1.6-miles from the creek crossing).

I saved the side trip to the waterfall for the way back down and continued up to the Hunts Cove Trail junction.

Here I did take a side trip and before heading to the cove kept right on the Hunts Creek Trail for 50 yards to visit a talus field where I could hear the “meeps” of pikas.

I hung around for several minutes while meeps rang out from all directions, but I was never able to spot one. I returned to the junction and followed the pointer for the Hunts Cove Trail where I quickly encountered some patches of snow.

Mt. Jefferson came into view across the meadows below and while I was looking at the mountain, I noticed a suspicious looking white spot on the rocks across from me.

Typically, when I spot things like that it winds up being a rock or weathered stump, but this time it was a mountain goat.

(I couldn’t get a decent picture from the distance.)

It’s a fairly level 0.4-miles to Hanks Lake where I detoured right along the shore to get another view of the mountain.

I turned right just before reaching the outlet of Hanks Lake.

The Cathedral Rocks from Hanks Lake.

Common mergansers

Ouzel (American dipper)

I had planned to take a snack break here but the amount of snow along the shore convinced me to wait until Hunts Lake so I headed back to the trail and crossed the outlet creek. It was another 0.4-miles to Hunts Lake where I had more views of the mountain goat, who was not watching me from atop a rock outcrop.

Another makeshift bridge kept my feet out of the creek.

I stayed left at the junction with the Old Hunts Cove Trail, the route we’d taken out of the cove in 2013.

Based on the size and shape this may have been bear tracks, but the snow had melted and refroze enough times that the details for me to make that determination had been lost.

Hunts Lake

The goat watching me watch it as I was having my snack near Hunts Creek and the lake.

Hunts Lake from my break spot.

After my break I said goodbye to my new friend and headed back the way I’d come.

Pamelia Lake from just below the Hunts Cove Trail junction.

The switchback with the spur trail to the waterfall.

Heading for the waterfall.

I can’t remember noticing this colorful outcrop before.

Candyflower

A semi-ok photo of a varied thrush.

Coral fungus

When I got back to Pamelia Lake, I took the first left and veered toward the lake past a sign reminding people not to camp within 100′ of the lake.

I’d only seen one other person all day, another hiker as I was leaving Pamelia Lake in the morning. I didn’t see anyone during this pass either with all of the campsites appearing empty.

I made my way around the lake shore one more time to get a last look at Mt. Jefferson before returning to the trailhead.

Geese hanging out at the lake.

Bunchberry leaves

Arriving back at the trailhead.

With the several detours this wound up being a 13.1-mile hike with approximately 2100′ of elevation gain.

If this was my last hike in the mountains for the next 6 to 8 months it was a great one to end on. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Hunts Cove

Tags grizzly peak, Hanks Lake, hiking, Hunts Cove, Hunts Cove Trail, Hunts Creek Trail, Hunts Lake, mountain goat, Mt. Jefferson, Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, Oregon, Pamelia Lake, Pamelia Lake Trail, Waterfall

High Cascades Hiking Mt. Jefferson Area Oregon Trip report

Marion Lake – 07/06/2026

My brother and his family came for a weeklong visit on the 4th of July from Missouri. When we first talked about the visit Jason mentioned they were hoping to join us on a hike so I’d asked what their ideal hike would entail. The answer was something in the Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, preferably involving a lake and a waterfall with a length of 5 to 6 miles. I immediately thought of Marion Lake, a hike that includes two lakes, a pair of waterfalls, and views of both Three Fingered Jack and Mt. Jefferson. As an extra bonus our son Dominique would also be joining us.

We had done this hike back in 2014 (post) and returned in 2016 for a much longer loop to the Eight Lakes Basin deeper in the Mt. Jefferson Wilderenss (post). Those visits were prior to the implementation of the Central Cascade Wilderness permit system. Permits are now required from June 15th to October 15th. Overnight permits are required to stay anywhere in the Mt. Jefferson. Three Sisters, and Mt. Washington Wilderness areas while day use permits are currently required at 19 of the 79 trailheads accessing these wilderness areas including the Marion Lake Trailhead. Day use permits are released in two rounds. About 40% of the day use permits for a specific date are released at 7am ten days before that day with the reminder made available two days before the date. I was ready at our computer at 7am on 6/26 and secured the six $1 permits we’d need for our families.

They were good sports and were willing to be on the road at 6am to allow us to be at the trailhead around 7:30am and take advantage of the cooler morning temperatures.

We followed the trail gradually uphill for approximately three quarters of mile to the boundary of the Mt. Jefferson Wilderness.

Prince’s pine

Twinflower

Most of the rhododendron were done blooming but a few blossoms remained.

Anemone

There were a few ripe huckleberries along this stretch.

Washington lily

Our sharp-eyed niece spotted this frog along the trail.

Wilderness sign near the boundary.

Sugar sticks, also spotted by Bekkah.

The trail continued its gradual climb which included a couple of switchbacks before arriving at Lake Ann near the 1.6-mile mark.

One of several small springs along the trail.

Wintergreen

Thimbleberry

The outlet of Lake Ann flows beneath the trail here through the porous lava.

The trail passing along Lake Ann.

Lake Ann

After a short break at Lake Ann where we spotted a common merganser on the water and debated whether or not the brown hump on the far side of the lake was a grazing deer or something else (it was something else) we continued on. Just two tenths of a mile later we arrived at a junction where the trail split.

The Marion Lake Trail went left while the Marion Lake Outlet Trail was to the right. We forked right onto the Outlet Trail and in another tenth of a mile came to the unsigned trail to Marion Falls on our right.

We turned right onto this rougher path which crossed over a small ridge then descended to the top of Marion Falls.

This trail had a number of downed trees that required stepping over.

Gnome-plant

Above Marion Falls.

While there was some blowdown over the trail to the top of the falls it isn’t a particularly difficult 0.2-miles. The trail steepens significantly however if you wish to reach the bottom of the waterfall.

The trail disappearing as it drops steeply down the hillside.

Marion Falls

At the bottom of Marion Falls you are also near the top of Gatch Falls. (Some say it is actually just the lower tier of Marion Falls.)

Bachelor Mountain (post) from the top of Gatch Falls.

Monkeyflower

Looking back up the trail from below.

To get a view of Gatch Falls requires an even rougher and steeper descent.

Marion Creek continues tumbling downhill to Gooch Falls (post) a little over two miles downstream.

After admiring the waterfalls, we climbed back up to the top of Marion Falls and took a well-earned snack break before returning to the Marion Lake Outlet Trail.

We followed the trail another half mile around rocky hillsides where my brother’s family spotted a pika as it darted over the rocks and paused briefly before disappearing.

There is plenty of pika habitat such as this in the area.

After the half mile we found ourselves at a junction with the Blue Lake Trail.

At the junction we faced a choice, in order to keep the hike at 6-miles we would have needed to turn left here and hike 0.7-miles along Marion Lake to the Marion Lake Trail and turn left again for 0.4-miles to the junction with the Marion Lake Outlet Trail near Lake Ann. If, however, we wanted to get a view of the wilderness’ namesake, Mt. Jefferson, a detour or two would be needed. By turning right on the Blue Lake Trail for a quarter mile across a talus slope, the top of Mt. Jefferson would be visible across the lake which is what we did.

Better views can be had by going a little further, but because trees line the trail beyond it requires descending steeply to the lake shore which was a little more effort than we had in us today.

After getting a look at Mt. Jefferson we recrossed Marion Creek and hiked along the forested lake shore to the next detour at the day use peninsula.

The only beargrass that had any blossoms left on it.

Three Fingered Jack

Marion Peak is the forested peak to the left and Marion Mountain (post) is the rounded hump just left of center.

We detoured out the peninsula and took a break on some bedrock smoothed by ice age glaciers with a view of the top of Mt. Jefferson.

I continued steeply down the end of the peninsula to get another view of Three Fingered Jack before joining the rest of the group on the rocks.

California tortoiseshell

Creamy stonecrop and beardtongue

Paintbrush

After a nice break we returned to the main trail and continued on to the junction with the Marion Lake Trail.

Vine maple and thimbleberry along the trail.

Signpost at the junction.

We turned left and started the 2.2-mile return to the trailhead.

Lake Ann in the afternoon.

Heading out of the wilderness.

Pearly everlasting at the trailhead.

My GPS registered 6.6-miles for this hike. Total elevation gain for the hike was approximately 975′. My trip to the end of the peninsula added a little over a tenth of a mile.

Everyone survived the hike and more importantly seemed to enjoy it. It was a lot of fun spending the day with family and enjoying God’s creation. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Marion Lake

Tags Blue Lake Trail, gatch falls, hiking, lake ann, Marion Creek, marion falls, marion lake, Marion Lake Outlet Trail, Marion Lake Trail, Marion Lake Trailhead, Marion Mountain, Mt. Jefferson, Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, Oregon, Three Fingered Jack

High Cascades Hiking Mt. Jefferson Area Oregon Trip report

Woodpecker Trail to Jefferson Park – 09/13/2024

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date September 16, 2024
1 Comment on Woodpecker Trail to Jefferson Park – 09/13/2024

Our first visit to Jefferson Park was way back in 2011 and it made such an impact on us that we revisited yearly up to 2017 when the lightning sparked Whitewater Fire forced us to skip a year. We returned in 2018 (post) and then decided to take a break from our yearly visits. Then in 2020 the Lionshead Fire, driven by strong easterly winds, raced through the area before combining with the Beachie Fire on 9/7/20. There are still closures in effect due to that fire, but the Woodpecker Trailhead has since been reopened and we thought it was time to revisit an old friend.

We had used the Woodpecker Trailhead for our 2016 visit (post) prior to either of the fires impacting the area. This was also before the Central Cascade Wilderness Permits were enacted. Currently the Woodpecker Trailhead only requires a free self-issued permit for day-use which can be obtained at the trailhead. Overnight permits are required for the Mt. Jefferson Wilderness regardless of which trailhead is used from 6/15 to 10/15.

Heather and I had set different goals for the day. I had my sights set on finally visiting Sprague Lake which is located just below Park Ridge (post) and requires off-trail navigation. Heather had set a more sensible goal of stopping at Scout Lake which is the first lake that you reach when entering Jefferson Park from the SW. Given our different goals we established a meeting spot on the west side of Scout Lake and set off at our own paces.
Another reminder that overnight permits are required in the wilderness.

Due to the two recent fires having burned over the entire route of our planned hikes the vast majority of the trails up to Jefferson Park are devoid of any tree cover. Luckily for us it was in the upper 30’s when we set off and the highs were set to be in the upper 50’s in Jefferson Park and low 70’s at the trailhead. It was also forecast to be mostly clear skies as recently cooler temperatures combined with rain and even some snow at higher elevations had helped to suppress the numerous fires currently burning in other parts of the Cascades and eastern Oregon.
Low clouds in the valley.

Mt. Jefferson through some of the snags with a few surviving trees on the right.

After an initial steep climb the trail levels out then descends slightly into a patch of trees that survived the fires. At the 1.2-mile mark it enters the Mount Jefferson Wilderness.

Just under a half mile later the trail climbed to an unsigned junction with the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT).
Mt. Jefferson from the junction, note the rock cairn on the left marking the PCT.

The cairn at the junction.

We turned left on the PCT and followed it through the fire scars for 2.6-miles to a crossing of Russell Creek.
Triangulation Peak (post) getting hit with sunlight with Whitewater Lake (lower right) in Mt. Jefferson’s shadow.

Whitewater Lake

Triangulation Point and Bocca Cave (Trailheads still closed.)

Tarn 0.3-miles from the junction.

Mt. Jefferson reflecting in the tarn.

Ducks on the tarn.

The Sentinel Hills with Park Butte behind to the right. The Whitewater Trail (post) traverses the hillside below the Sentinel Hills, but that trailhead is also still closed.

The fires did open up fairly consistent views of the mountain.

A few remaining penstemon blossoms.

Heading down to the Russell Creek crossing.

This can be a tricky crossing at times, but there was a makeshift bridge which made it fairly easy this time.

Aster and pearly everlasting near the creek.

Beyond Russell Creek the PCT climbed for half a mile to a junction with the Whitewater Trail where we turned right sticking to the PCT.

We started seeing more trees that had survived the fire as we got closer to Jefferson Park.

Gentians and aster

Grass-of-parnassus

From this junction it was just under a mile to the first of several signed trails leading to Scout Lake off the PCT.
There were patches of burned forest along this stretch.

Approximately 0.4-miles from the junction the trail crosses Whitewater Creek.

From the other side of Whitewater Creek the views of Mt. Jefferson are amazing.

Based on the barred sides I believe this is a black-backed woodpecker.

Unofficial use trails are an issue in Jefferson Park which has prompted the Forest Service to install a number of “Closed for Rehabilitation” sign such as the one on the left side of the trail.

They’ve also added quite a few signs to indicated sanctioned trails. Typically in wilderness areas the Forest Service tries to keep signage to a minimum, but overuse has led them to add additional signs.

Another sign with Park Butte in background.

Since I was headed for Park Ridge I ignored the trails to Scout Lake for now and continued on the PCT for three quarters of a mile beyond the first sign for Scout Lake to a sign for Russell Lake on the right side of the trail.

The last of the pointers for Scout Lake.

PCT heading for Park Butte and Park Ridge.

Russell Lake pointer.

Tags hiking, Jefferson Park, mountain goat, Mt. Hood National Forest, Mt. Jefferson, Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, Oregon, Pacific Crest Trail, Park butte, PCT, Russell Creek, Russell Lake, scout lake, Sprague Lake, whitewater creek, whitewater trail, Willamette National Forest, Woodpecker Ridge, Woodpecker Trailhead

High Cascades Hiking Mt. Jefferson Area Oregon Trip report

Grizzly Peak – 08/20/2022

While we completed our goal of hiking portions of all 100 featured hikes in William L. Sullivan’s 4th edition of “100 Hikes/Travel Guide Central Cascades” in 2020 (post) there remain a few “loose ends” that we’d like to take care of. We have established some guidelines for considering a featured hike “done” allowing us some wiggle room. For instance we might start at a different trailhead than Sullivan’s description but still visit the main attraction(s) he describes. It might also mean starting at the trailhead described but due to closures might cut the hike short. The two most common dilemmas we faced though were featured hikes with a short and long option and featured hikes that included multiple stops/destinations. Regarding the short vs long options we’ve tended to opt for the longer option assuming the distance is reasonable, under 16 miles (maybe not reasonable to all), but when the longer options are close to or more than 20 miles we’ve settled for the shorter.

For the featured hikes where there are multiple stops/destinations we allow the hike to be checked off once we have completed either the longest option, and/or visited the hike’s namesake. A perfect example is Featured Hike 23 in the Central Cascades book (4th edition). The hike is titled “Pamelia Lake & Hunts Cove” with three options given, all beginning at the Pamelia Lake Trailhead. The shortest is a 4.4 mile out-and-back to Pamelia Lake while the longest is a 12.4 out-and-back to Hunts Cove. Sandwiched in between is a 10 mile out-and-back hike up Grizzly Peak. We had been to Hunts Cove once (post) and Pamelia Lake twice (once on the way to Hunts Cove and the other on an attempt to reach Goat Peak (post)) so going by our self-imposed rules we checked the hike off, but we had yet to visit Grizzly Peak. To put a ribbon on the featured hike we obtained a pair of Central Cascade Wilderness Permits (required at this trailhead) and once again set off for Pamelia Lake.

This was at least the third posted notice so there is no claiming you weren’t aware that a permit is needed.

The roughly two mile hike to Pamelia Lake never disappoints.

Pamelia Creek

Fireweed along the creek.

We turned right onto the Grizzly Peak Trail at its junction a short distance from the lake.

The trail crossed the dry outlet creek and then began the nearly 2000′ climb to Grizzly Peak.
Pamelia Creek only flows underground here much of the year.

Heading up.

The trail climbs for two and three quarters of a mile to a former lookout site through a nice forest with limited view for the first two miles.
A glimpse of Mt. Jefferson.

That might be Woodpecker Hill, it was hard to tell exactly which ridge we could see with nothing else visible to help orient.

This looked like it might be a nice little waterfall with enough water.

That’s not enough water.

Heather below one of several switchbacks.

Just over two miles from the junction the Grizzly Peak Trail we came to a viewpoint on a ridge. Here the trail made a sharp right and followed the ridge SE. There were multiple views along this ridge, the one issue we had though was it was still fairly early and the angle of the Sun was catching all the haze in the air.
Turning up the ridge.

The haze was probably a combination of morning cloud/fog and smoke from the Cedar Creek Fire near Waldo Lake.

Pinedrops

We were too late for most of the flowers but there were a few pearly everlasting going.

There’s that pesky Sun again.

After following the ridge for 0.4 miles the trail veered to the right leaving it and traversing up a forested hillside with views north towards the Bull of The Woods Wilderness where we got our first good look at the fire scars from the 2020 Labor Day fires.

Aster

Lousewort

Lots of burnt forest out there.

Triangulation Peak and Boca Cave (post)

A quarter mile after leaving the ridge the trail came to another ridge and made a hard right following this ridge up to the summit. This section provided views south to Three Fingered Jack, the Three Sisters, and Broken Top.

Broken Top to the far left blending into the haze and Three Fingered Jack to the right with the Three Sisters in between.

Just below the summit.

Pamelia Lake below Mt. Jefferson.

We spent a little over half an hour at the summit checking out different views and watching several butterflies and some large black flying insects.

Hunts Creek flowing into Pamelia Lake.

Had to hunt for a view of Three Fingered Jack.

A hard to make out Mt. Hood beyond the far ridge which consists of Bear Point to the left (post) and Dinah-mo Peak to the right.

Mt. Hood

Beardtongue

A fritillary butterfly.

A skipper

We returned the way we’d come opting not to visit the lake on this trip since we have permits to return next month for a second attempt at Goat Peak.
Goat Peak is to the right of Mt. Jefferson.

Mt. Jefferson and Pamelia Lake from one of the viewpoints along the ridge.

Cascade toad

One more of Pamelia Creek.

One other hiker had arrived at the summit a bit before we headed down and that was the only other person we saw until we were headed back down. We encountered one couple coming up the Grizzly Peak Trail and a number more on the Pamelia Lake Trail. It was a little surprising because the trailhead parking lot had looked nearly full when we had arrived that morning. The hike was nice and the well graded trail kept the 2700′ of elevation gain from ever feeling steep. It also allowed us to be home before 2pm which gave us time to unpack and clean up before heading of to a friends house for their annual margarita (and dinner) party. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Grizzly Peak

Tags Central cascades Wilderness Permit, grizzly peak, Grizzly Peak Trail, hiking, Mt. Jefferson, Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, Oregon, Pamelia Lake Trail, pamelia Lake Trailhead

Bend/Redmond Central Oregon High Cascades Hiking Oregon Three Sisters Area Trip report

Whychus Creek Trail and Overlook – 05/31/21

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date June 4, 2021
No Comments on Whychus Creek Trail and Overlook – 05/31/21

After back to back 14 mile days we had something more reasonable planned for our drive home on Memorial Day. We had started the weekend with two hikes along Whychus Creek east of Sisters (post). On Monday we stopped at the Whychus Creek Trailhead 4.2 miles west on Elm Street (Forest Road 16) of Highway 20 in Sisters. The trailhead doesn’t seem to be listed on the Deschutes National Forest webpage (They do show the Whychus Creek Overlook Trailhead which is an alternate starting point.)

We actually wound up having to park at a temporary trailhead 1000′ past the official trailhead which was closed for construction (not sure what was being constructed).

The Whychus Creek Trail followed Whychus Creek through a mixed forest with juniper and sagebrush from the high desert, ponderosa pine, and mixed conifers from the Cascades.

We really noticed how much more water there was in the creek here, before reaching the diversion ditches closer to Sisters.

Less than a half mile into the hike we passed a series of rock ledges where native tribes appear to have once camped.

The trail reached the bank of Whychus Creek at the overhang then climbed back above the creek gaining a view of the top of the North Sister. A few wildflowers added color to the landscape and birds added their song to the sound of the creek.

North Sister in the distance.

Penstemon

Chocolate lily

Sand lily

Paintbrush

Balsamroot

A Penstemon

Squirrel!

Just over a mile and a half from the trailhead the Whychus Creek Trail descended back down to the creek passing under some cliffs.

20210531_063851 The penstemon really liked the cliff area.

Looking up stream we could see the logjam waterfall which is the goal of Sullivan’s described hike in his 5th edition Central Oregon Cascades guidebook (hike #31).

Near the two mile mark we arrived at a series of viewpoints of the falls atop rocks.
20210531_064727_HDR

There was a second smaller cascade a little further upstream.

Sullivan suggests turning back here but just over a half mile away was the Whychus Creek Overlook. A 0.9 mile barrier free loop visits the overlook from the Whychus Creek Overlook Trailhead (see link above). We continued past the falls for approximately 0.2 miles to a signed trail junction.

We turned left onto the Whychus Draw Trail which led briefly up a draw before turning more steeply uphill traversing an open hillside to the overlook.

Mt. Hood sighting.

Mt. Jefferson and Black Butte

Chipmunk

White breasted nuthatch

Golden mantled ground squirrel

The Whychus Draw Trail connected to the south side of the Whychus Overlook Trail about a hundred feet from the actual overlook.

Broken Top and the Three Sisters (bonus points for spotting the golden mantled ground squirrel)

Lewis flax at the overlook.

Buckwheat and penstemon

Whychus Creek below with the Three Sisters on the horizon.

Tam McArthur Rim (post) and Broken Top

South Sister

Middle and North Sister

Mt. Washington

Three Fingered Jack

Mt. Jefferson

Chickadee

After admiring the view from the overlook we hiked the loop. One side (north) is one-way traffic coming from the trailhead to the overlook so we followed the south half of the loop 0.4 to the trailhead then followed the north side 0.5 miles back to the overlook. Two benches along the north side offered additional views to the NNW.

Interpretive sign along the trail.

Mt. Washington, Three Fingered Jack, Mt. Jefferson, and Black Butte

From the overlook we returned to the car the way we’d come. It was a pleasant 5.9 mile hike with some great views and scenery, a perfect way to end the holiday weekend. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Whychus Creek Trail

Tags hiking, Logjam falls, Mt. Jefferson, Oregon, Sisters, Three Sisters, Whychus Creek, Whychus Creek Trail, Whychus Draw Trail, Whychus Overlook Trail

Hiking Year-end wrap up

The Hikes of 2019 – A Look Back

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date December 30, 2019
3 Comments on The Hikes of 2019 – A Look Back

2019 turned out very differently than we’d originally planned. Not long after our first planned long trip to Joseph, OR one our cats, Buddy, had some health issues. After some time at the veterinarians he was doing better but he needed to be prescribed 3 daily medications (two twice a day). We decided that being there for our friend of 17 years was more important than our remaining plans so we cancelled nearly all of our overnight trips and spent the rest of the year doing day hikes from Salem. Buddy is still with us and seems to be doing well although he sleeps more than ever and has taken to wearing sweaters for warmth.
20191102_134933

With us only doing the one long distance trip we didn’t make it to as many new areas as we have been in recent years. On that trip we stopped at the Umatilla Wildlife Refuge near Hermiston (post), OR and hiked in the Hells Canyon (post) and Wenaha-Tucannon Wilderness areas (post).
McCormack Slough MCormack Slough in the Umatilla Wildlife Refuge.

Looking into Hells Canyon from the Summit Ridge Trail Looking towards Hells Canyon from Freezout Saddle.

Wenaha River Canyon

Thanks to my parents willingness to take care of the cats we also managed to take an overnight trip up to Seattle in September to watch a Seattle Seahawks game stopping on the way up at Mt. Rainier National Park (post).

Cancelling the majority of our overnight trips had a couple of effects. First it reduced the number of days of hiking from an original 60 to 54. These would have been shorter hikes back to the car after backpacking or on the drive home from wherever we’d been. It also compressed the area in which we were able to hike keeping it under a 3 hour drive from Salem.
2019 HIkes

One thing that wasn’t affected was our tendency not to repeat hikes. Of our 54 days hiking only two days were repeats. For the first time we were able to hike with my brother and his family from Missouri taking them to Jawbone Flats and the Little North Fork Santiam River (post).
Little North Santiam River

The second repeat was to the old lookout site atop Maxwell Butte (post) to get the view that eluded us on our first hike there (post).
Mt. Jefferson, Santiam Lake, and Three Fingered Jack from Maxwell Butte

A visit to Four-In-One Cone, also to get a view that had previously eluded us, (post) was nearly a repeat but we started from a different trailhead making the first (and final) .4 miles new to us.
View from Four-in-one Cone

Thirteen other days did include some trail that we’d previously hiked and three more outings had turn around points that we’d previously been to but from an entirely different route. That left 35 days with entirely new trails to us. To put those figures in miles we hiked a total of 627.7 miles (according to my GPS). Only 70.6 of those miles, or just over 11%, were on portions of trails that we had hiked on in previous years.

I say “trails” but in reality not all the miles we hiked were on actual trails. Some of it was spent on paved roads, decommissioned roads, and some was entirely off trail/road.
Scoggins Creek Recreation Area Road walk at Henry Haag Lake

Decommissioned road to Baty Butte.

North Sister and the headwaters of Soap Creek Cross country to Thayer Glacial Lake.

2019 was a really good year weather wise. Aside from some rain/snow showers on our Freezout Saddle hike in June and a brief stint of rain at Cascade Head and in the Mollala River Recreation Area precipitation was almost non-existent during our outings.
Marks Cabin Trail a bit below us Snow falling on our Freezout Saddle hike.

Salmon River through the fog Rain shower approaching at Cascade Head.

Huckleberry Trail Taking cover under a tree in the Mollala River Recreation Area as a rain shower passes overhead.

Even on those three hikes with measurable precipitation there were breaks allowing for some sort of views.
Rainbow framing the Wallowa Mountains from the Feezout Saddle Trail.

View from the Cascade Head Trail View from Cascade Head after the shower.

Veiw from Amanda's Trail View from the morning across the Mollala River Canyon.

Between the cooperative weather and a lack of significant wildfires in the area made 2019 a great year for viewpoints. In fact there was only one hike, our second to the summit of Huckleberry Mountain (post) where we felt skunked on views. That hike began in the Wildwood Recreation area and the interpretive trails along the Salmon River made up for the lack of views up top.
3d Model of Mt. Hood along the Cascade Streamwatch Trail Neat 3D display at Wildwood Recreation Area.

Viewpoint on Huckleberry Mountain View atop Huckleberry Mountain.

Even on that day blue sky made an appearance before the end of our hike.
Mt. Hood behind some clouds

We also never got much of a view (but we did see blue sky) on our visit to Silver Star Mountain (post) but the point of that hike was to see the flower display.
Wildflowers along the Silver Star Trail

As always our hikes included a variety of landscapes, natural features, and some man-made ones. A sample of which follows. (We will cover wildflowers and wildlife in separate posts later.)
Gales Creek – Coast Range

Dry Creek Falls – Columbia River Gorge, OR

Camassia Natural Area – West Linn

The Two Chiefs and Table Mountain Two Chiefs and Table Mountain – Columbia River Gorge, WA

Nature Trial at Oak Island Oak Island – Columbia River

B.C. Creek Falls – Wallowa Mountains

Wallowa Mountains including Hurricaine Point and Ruby Peak Wallowa Mountains

Harins Butte Harsin Butte – Zumwalt Prairie

Sardine Mountain – Willamette National Forest

Gorton Falls Gorton Creek Falls – Columbia River Gorge, OR

Mt. Hood from Lost Lake

Mt. Hood from the Vista Ridge Trail Mt. Hood from Vista Ridge

Sand Mountain Lookout – Willamette National Forest

Cape Kiwanda and Haystack Rock from Sitka Sedge Beach

High Lake – Mt. Hood National Forest

Tidbits Mountain – Willamette National Forest

Bunchgrass Meadow – Willamette National Forest

Top tier of the Breitenbush Cascades Breitenbush Cascades – Willamette National Forest

Mt. St. Helens from Cinnamon Ridge – Mt. St. Helens National Volcanic Monument

View from Bear Point Mt. Jefferson from Bear Point – Mt. Jefferson Wilderness

Sawmill Falls – Little North Fork Santiam River

Three Fingered Jack with Three Sisters and Mt. Washington beyond Red Butte Three Fingered Jack, The Three Sisters, and Mt. Washington

Scramble route up Baty Butte Scramble route to Baty Butte – Mt. Hood National Forest

Boulder Lake – Mt. Hood National Forest

Drift Creek – Drift Creek Wilderness

North Sister and Thayer Glacial Lake – Three Sisters Wilderness

View from Four-in-one Cone North Sister, Middle Sister, and The Husband from Four-In-One Cone – Three Sisters Wilderness

Mt. Hood from Tumala Mountain – Mt. Hood National Forest

Bull of the Woods Lookout – Bull of the Woods Wilderness

Mt. Hood and Barret Spur from Elk Cove Mt. Hood from Elk Cove – Mt. Hood Wilderness

Mt. Jefferson and Hunts Cove – Mt. Jefferson Wilderness

Mt. Jefferson with Monon, Olallie and Timber Lakes View from Olallie Butte – Warm Springs Indian Reservation

Lillian Falls – Waldo Lake Wilderness

Olallie Mountain Lookout – Three Sisters Wilderness

King Tut – Crabtree Valley

View from Ruddy Hill Mt. Jefferson from Ruddy Hill – Mt. Hood National Forest

Henry Haag Lake – Scoggins Valley

View from the north summit of The Twins Waldo Lake and the Cascade Mountains from The Twins – Deschutes National Forest

Bobby Lake – Deschutes National Forest

Patrol Cabin at Indian Henry's Hunting Ground Indian Henry’s Hunting Ground – Mt. Rainier National Park

Fog over the valley from Trail 17 (Theodore Trail) Fog over the valley from Mt. Pisgah – Eugene, OR

Twin Peaks and Gifford Lake – Olallie Lake Scenic Area

Mt. Adams from Lookout Mountain – Badger Creek Wilderness Area

Huckleberry Trail Mollala River Recreation Area

View from the PCT and Indian Mountain Trail junction View toward Washington from the Pacific Crest Trail near Indian Mountain – Mt. Hood National Forest

Clackamas River at Alder Flat Clackamas River – Mt. Hood National Forest

Maple Trail Forest Park – Portland, OR

Tilikum Crossing – Portland, OR

There were many more great places and sights that we visited but they can’t all be included here. It was another amazing year of discovering God’s creation and we are looking forward to seeing what next year brings. For the first time I have two sets of planned hikes going into next year, one is in the hopes that Buddy continues to do well on his medications leading us to stick to day hikes through the year and the other includes long distance trips in the unfortunate event that we have to say goodbye to our furry friend.

Either way we know that we will be blown away yet again by whatever we see on those hikes. Happy Trails and Happy New Year to all!

Flickr: Album List

Tags Freezout Saddle, Hells Canyon, hiking, Mt. Hood, Mt. Hood National Forest, Mt. Hood Wilderness, Mt. Jefferson, Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, Oregon, Pacific Crest Trail, Portland, Wenaha River, Zumwalt Prairie

High Cascades Hiking Mt. Jefferson Area Oregon Trip report

Monon Lake-Ruddy Hill Loop – 9/12/2019

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date September 15, 2019
4 Comments on Monon Lake-Ruddy Hill Loop – 9/12/2019

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

A series of wet storms passed through Oregon just in time for an extended weekend of hiking. With a sunny forecast for Thursday we headed back up to the Olallie Lake Scenic Area to check off another one of Sullivan’s featured hikes (Monon Lake) and to revisit Ruddy Hill since our first time up this peak was viewless (post). With the addition of Ruddy Hill to the Monon Lake hike we used Matt Reeder’s “101 Hikes in the Majestic Mt. Jefferson Region” for additional inspiration and came up with our own hike mashup.

In addition to Monon Lake and the view from Ruddy Hill we also wanted to see Timber and Horseshoe Lakes for the first time. Our plan was to start our hike at Monon Lake and do a clockwise loop with side trips up Ruddy Hill and to Timber Lake. This meant driving past the Olallie Lake Resort on the infamous Skyline Road to the northern Monon Lake Trailhead. The road was passable in our Outback and the recent rains helped clearly identify the numerous potholes along the way.

There was a nearly immediate view across part of the lake to Olallie Butte which we had recently climbed (post).

The trail began to curve around the northern end of the lake passing through a section of forest before reaching some boardwalks and bridges in a meadow between Monon Lake and a smaller unnamed lake to the north.

Fading gentians

A few gentians still holding their blue color.

Olallie Butte and the unnamed lake.

There were plenty of views across Monon Lake as the trail entered a fire scar. More and more of Mt. Jefferson was revealed as we continued east.
The tip of Mt. Jefferson sticking up above the high point on the ridge.

More of the mountain (Ruddy Hill is the round butte to the right.)

Dusting of new snow on Mt. Jefferson

Duck on the lake.

A little more of Mt. Jefferson showing.

The trail climbed atop a small rocky hill above the lake which happened to be where a trial junction was hidden.
View from atop the rocks.

The Monon Lake Trail continues to the right around the lake while the Mon-Olallie Trail forked left for .3 miles to the Olallie Lake Trail. We completely missed the Monon Trail and the small rock cairn marking the junction.
The small rock cairn coming from the opposite direction on the Monon Lake Trail later in the day.

Having missed the junction where we had planned to go right we wound up on the Mon-Olallie Trail which passed Mangriff Lake on the left.

Just beyond Mangriff Lake was Nep-te-pa Lake on the right.

Nep-te-pa Lake

By the time we realized that we had missed our junction we were nearing Olallie Lake so we decided that we would just do our loop in the opposite direction of what we had planned. The Mon-Olallie Trail ended at an obvious and signed junction near Olallie Lake.

We turned right and after a nice view of the lake entered a stand of green trees.

Approximately .4 miles from the Mon-Olallie Trail junction we arrived at another junction with the Long Lake Trail at the border of the Warm Springs Reservation. Unlike the trail up Olallie Butte this trail was clearly marked as closed to the public.

We continued around Olallie Lake passing numerous spectacular views of Mt. Jefferson.
IMG_8726_stitch

Mergansers

Three quarters of a mile from the Long Lake Trail junction we came Paul Dennis Campground.

A brief road walk brought us to the Olallie Lake Resort where we followed a trail between the lake and some cabins.

The views of Mt. Jefferson from the resort were great and we stopped at the dock and the picnic area for photos.

We passed through the picnic area and popped onto Skyline Road where we turned left for three tenths of a mile to the Red Lake Trail.

We had come down this trail to visit Olallie Lake during our previous Ruddy Hill hike. That had been a 17.9 mile day so we had skipped the side trail to Timber Lake. After a .7 mile gradual climb past several small ponds we arrived at the junction with the Timber Lake Trail.

We turned down this trail and followed it .6 mostly level miles (there were two short but steep climbs over ridges) to Timber Lake.

We followed a path along the northern shore of the lake until we had a decent view of the top section of Mt. Jefferson.

After getting our view of the mountain we returned to the Red Lake Trail. We turned left and continued the gradual climb to the Pacific Crest Trail. In a little over a quarter mile we arrived at Top Lake.

At the NW end of the lake the Red Lake Trail forked right but we turned left passing a nice view of Olallie Butte.

This connector trail climbed steeply via a series of switchbacks to an unsigned junction with the Pacific Crest Trail near Cigar Lake where we turned left (south).
Rock cairn along the PCT marking the connector trail.

PCT lookout.

Golden-mantled ground squirrels at Cigar Lake.

The southern end of Cigar Lake is the location of the Double Peaks Trail. We had taken this trail twice hoping for nice views to no avail. (One was the 17.9mi hike including Ruddy Hill, the other was in 2013.) It would have likely been a great view now, but the .7 mile trail is frustratingly steep and we just didn’t feel like tackling it again. On the other hand the PCT remained fairly level over the next mile as it passed Upper Lake then a meadow with a view of Mt. Jefferson.

Double Peaks from Upper Lake

At the meadow the PCT turned left and began a brief climb up a butte. A third of a mile into the climb we passed the Many Lake Viewpoint. Here we had a nice view of Mt. Hood (and many lakes).

Company at the viewpoint.

We continued south from the viewpoint and were soon descending along a forested hillside when we heard an elk bugle. We guessed that it was a bow hunter but hoped it was an actual elk. Our guess was right though and we stopped to briefly talk to the hunter before continuing on.
Approximate location when we heard the “elk” bugle.

Just over a mile from the Many Lakes Viewpoint we arrived at the Ruddy Hill Trail where we turned right leaving the PCT.

The nearly half mile trail was quite a bit steeper than we’d remembered but we soon found ourselves on the red topped summit looking at the view of Mt. Jefferson that we had missed on our previous visit.

IMG_8858_stitch

Although there was no view north, the view to the west was good with the peaks of the Bull of the Woods Wilderness.
Flat topped Battle Ax Mountain to the left to the fire scarred summit of Schreiner Peak to the right.

Battle Ax (post)

Bull of the Woods (post)

After resting at the summit we headed back down the PCT and continued south another .2 miles where we turned left on the “Rondy Trail”.

This trail descended a drainage before leveling out and arriving at Horseshoe Lake in three quarters of a mile. There was a nice variety of mushrooms along the way.

We followed the trail along the lake shore to the Horseshoe Lake Campground located right on Skyline Road.

For second time on this hike we went the wrong way and turned right on Skyline Road thinking it was an entrance road to the campground. We had only gone a tenth of a mile before realizing our mistake and turning around. We followed Skyline Road north for a mile. We were eager to get a firsthand look at what many consider one of the worst trailhead roads in NW Oregon. It was certainly a bad looking road but the section we hiked wasn’t quite as bad as some we’d seen in eastern and southeastern Oregon. It may well be worse beyond Horseshoe Lake though.

When we arrived at the southern end of Monon Lake we were just .3 miles from our car, but we turned onto the Monon Lake Trail to finish that trail. The views of Olallie Butte from this end of the lake were spectacular.

More boardwalks were present as we passed through the forest along this end of the lake.

We soon found ourselves back in the fire scar which just provided more views of the lake and Olallie Butte.

A little over a mile from the road the trail began to curve around to the west where we once again had views of Mt. Jefferson across the lake.

One and a quarter miles from the road we were back on top the rocks above the lake and heading for the junction we’d missed that morning.

We then followed our route from the morning back to our car. We had hopped that the Sun would have coaxed some of the gentians to open, but it appeared to be too late in their life cycle for that to happen.

Our loop with side trips came in at 13.6 miles with approximately 1500′ of elevation gain. It was a beautiful day and so nice to have been able to get that view from Ruddy Hill. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Monon Lake- Ruddy Hill Loop

High Cascades Hiking Mt. Jefferson Area Oregon Trip report

Olallie Butte – 8/30/2019

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date September 2, 2019
11 Comments on Olallie Butte – 8/30/2019

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

At the beginning of the year we had requested the Friday before Labor Day Weekend off in hopes of backpacking around Diamond Peak (With a side trip up to the summit) but with our backpacking plans on hold while we care for our elderly cats we switched our plans to day hikes instead. For our first hike we chose Olallie Butte.

Before getting into the trip report we wanted to point out that this hike is in part located on the Warm Springs Reservation. It wasn’t entirely clear whether or not non-tribal members are allowed on the trail. We did some research before heading out and discovered that this uncertainty has existed for some time. We decided to go ahead and start the hike but were prepared to turn around if there were any signs posted letting us know that the trail was off-limits. There were several other nearby hikes that are still on our to do list so we had plenty of alternate options if that did happen.

The hike starts at a nondescript pullout under some power lines. We were a little apprehensive upon arriving at the trailhead, not because we were worried the trail would be closed, but rather due to the clouds that were overhead. The forecast had called for sunny skies on the butte so we hoped that either the clouds would be burning off or we would be climbing above them. We had tried for a similar view two other times by climbing nearby Double Peaks (post) and Ruddy Hill (post), but had been foiled by clouds on both of the trips.

The actual trail was marked by some pink flagging off a dirt road across from the parking area.

After just a tenth of a mile we arrived at the Pacific Crest Trail where there was what appeared to be a newer sign for the Olallie Butte Trail.

Trail sign with the PCT heading north behind it.

We crossed the PCT and headed uphill through the forest which was very typical for the Olallie Lake Scenic Area.

After approximately a mile and a half of gradual climbing we came to a sign announcing the start of the Warm Springs Reservation.

There were no signs of restricted access so we continued on making sure that we remained on the trail and respected the area.

We did indeed emerge from the clouds not long after entering the reservation which allowed for occasional views of nearby Sisi Butte and Mt. Hood.
Sisi Butte

Lookout tower on Sisi Butte

Mt. Hood

It was too late in the year for most of the flowers but there was a little color left on a few of them.

Just beyond the three mile mark the trail leaves the forest and traverses a cinder slope beneath the summit.

The view south to Mt. Hood is unobstructed here.

Shortly before starting a series of swtichbacks we got our first look at Mt. Jefferson through some trees.

The view of Mt. Jefferson improved as we climbed and soon Olallie and Monon Lakes joined the scenery along with several more Cascade peaks further to the south.

Olallie Lake

IMG_7770_stitch Monon Lake just beyond Olallie Lake (Timber Lake is the smaller lake in the trees to the west.

Broken Top and The Three Sisters

There were also some familiar features from earlier this year.
Dinah-mo Peak and Bear Point (post)

Bear Point

After completing the switchbacks the trail arrived at a saddle atop the broad summit of Olallie Butte. To the north were the remains of a former lookout tower while a close up view of Mt. Jefferson awaited to the south.
Lookout tower remains

We started by visiting the southern end of the summit to get that close up view of Mt. Jefferson and the many lakes between that mountain and the butte.
IMG_7792_stitch Starting from the left – Trout Lake with Boulder Lake beyond, Island Lake, Dark Lake, Long Lake. The three smaller lakes are Lake Mary (closest), Lake Marie (middle), and Lake Alice (furthest). Lake Hazel is the small lake up and to the right of those three. All of these lakes are part of the Warm Springs Reservation and off-limits unless a permit to visit has been obtained.

Monon, Olallie, and Timber Lakes in the Mt. Hood National Forest to the west.

Mt. Jefferson

An interesting feature on this end of the butte is a natural rock arch.

We eventually pulled ourselves away from this view to head over to the former lookout.

We found a pair of Clark’s nutcrackers enjoying breakfast.

The clouds were receding to the north which revealed Mt. Adams behind the right shoulder of Mt. Hood and further to the west we could just make out Mt. St. Helens above the clouds.

Mt. St. Helens as a dark spot on the horizon.

Mt. Adams beyond Mt. Hood

Mt. Jefferson from the lookout site.

There were more rock fins on the NE side of the butte but no rock arches.

We visited the south end of the summit once more before heading back down the trail. The view was a little different on the return trip as the clouds had departed creating several additional views of Mt. Hood along the lower portions.

We had planned to pack out any litter we found on the reservation as one of the things that could easily lead to the explicit closure of the trail would be damage to the area but we didn’t see any other than the remains of the old lookout while on the reservation. On the other hand closer to the trailhead we removed a shoe sole, a couple of crushed cans, and a pile of apparently discarded clothing and a tent fly.

Other than the trash this was a spectacular hike. The views were great and we didn’t see any other hikers. For us this was roughly an 8 mile hike gaining 2700′ of elevation. Despite that number the climb was never particularly steep making it feel a little easier than might be expected. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Olallie Butte

Tags hiking, Mt. Jefferson, Olallie Butte, Olallie Butte Trail, Olallie Lake, Olallie Lake scenic area, Oregon

High Cascades Hiking Mt. Jefferson Area Oregon Trip report

Bingham Ridge (Mt. Jefferson Wilderness) – 8/24/2019

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date August 26, 2019
2 Comments on Bingham Ridge (Mt. Jefferson Wilderness) – 8/24/2019

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

After a week back at work it was time to hit the trails again. We once again turned to Matt Reeder’s “101 Hikes in the Majestic Mount Jefferson Region” for inspiration choosing the Bingham Ridge Trail as our destination.

The Bingham Ridge Trailhead is located 5 miles up Forest Road 2253 aka Minto Road. That road is just 17 miles east of Detroit, OR and was in great shape except for some water damage in the first quarter of a mile. Beyond that short stretch it was a good gravel road all the way to the parking area just before the road was gated.

The trail began opposite the little parking area where we had parked along side two other vehicles.

The trail climbed through a green forest along the dry bed of Willis Creek before briefly passing through the edge of a clear-cut.

Huckleberry bushes and beargrass in the clear-cut.

20190824_065018 Sleeping bees on some thistle.

The trail soon reentered the trees and then passed into the Mt. Jefferson Wilderness.

The bees on the thistle may have been asleep but a western toad was out and about.

After entering the wilderness the trail continued to climb very gradually as it passed through alternating sections of green trees and forest scarred by the 2006 Puzzle Creek Fire.

Mt. Jefferson through the burned trees.

Back in the green.

Three Fingered Jack through the burned trees.

Aster

Pearly everlasting

Fireweed

The longest stretch through burned forest occurred as the trail passed to the right of a rocky rise along the ridge.
Three Fingered Jack

The rock covered rise.

South Cinder Peak (post) to the left and Three Fingered Jack to the right.

Still passing the rocks.

We heard a couple of “meeps” from pikas in the rocks but we only managed to spot a golden-mantled ground squirrel.

As the trail passed around the rocky rise we reentered green forest and quickly came to the end of the Bingham Ridge Trail at a junction with the Lake of the Woods Trail 3.7 miles from the trailhead.

The Lake of the Woods Trail runs north-south between the Pamelia Limited Entry Area and Marion Lake (post). We turned left (north) onto this trail which promptly crossed over the ridge at a low saddle and began to traverse a forested hillside.
The low saddle.

The trail wound around the basin arriving at a ridge end viewpoint where we had hoped to get a view of Mt. Jefferson but soon realized that we hadn’t come far enough around yet and we were looking west not north.
Coffin and Bachelor Mountains (post).

We continued along the hillside finally coming far enough around to get a look at Mt. Jefferson.

Just a little further along we arrived at Reeder’s turn around point for the 8.8 mile hike described in his book. A cinder viewpoint of Mt. Jefferson across the Bingham Basin.

There was a strange group of clouds hanging out on the top of the mountain. We could see them moving in what appeared to be a SE direction but despite seeing the movement it never really appeared that they were going anywhere.

As we stood at this rocky viewpoint we could hear more pikas and then Heather spotted one sitting on top of some rocks, maybe enjoying the same view we were.

Even though Reeder calls this viewpoint “the most logical stopping point for dayhikers” he does provide information for those wishing to continue. Since logic sometimes goes out the window with regards to hiking we continued on. The trail dropped just a bit to a fairly level bench where it passed through a couple of meadows before arriving at an unnamed lake with a view of Mt. Jefferson on the left.

Spirea with a beetle.

Unnamed lake with Mt. Jefferson (and those pesky clouds).

From the opposite side of the lake.

A half mile later (or just under 2 miles from the Bingham Ridge Trail junction) we arrived a Papoose Lake.

The mountain was mostly hidden by trees from this lake but there were several frogs to watch and a short scramble up a rockpile on the east side of the lake did provide another look at Mt. Jefferson.
20190824_092141

It was actually a really impressive amount of boulders here and although we didn’t spot any, we could hear a number of resident pikas.
Looking south over the rock field.

Turning back here would have put the hike in the 11.5 mile range, but we had our sights set on a further goal – the Pacific Crest Trail. Beyond Papoose Lake the Lake of the Woods Trail passed several seasonal ponds which were now meadows where we had to watch out for tiny frogs.

One of the frogs.

Frog in the trail.

Just under three quarters of a mile from Papoose Lake (6.3ish from the trailhead) we arrived at the northern end of the Lake of the Woods Trail where it met the Hunts Creek Trail (post).

A left on this trail would lead us into the Pamelia Limited Entry Area for which we did not have a permit, but to the right the trail remained out of the limited area as it headed to the Pacific Crest Trail.

In his book Reeder describes this section of trail as “spectacular” which is what prompted us to abandon logic in the first place. We turned right and continued the theme of gradual climbs as the trail passed a hillside dotted with a few asters.

After little over a quarter of a mile we found ourselves beneath a large talus slope (by the sound of it filled with a pika army).

Here we embarked on possibly the most significant climb of the day as the trail switchbacked up through the rocks to a saddle.
Apparently the trail was rerouted at some point because we could see tread that we never used.

The Three Pyramids beyond Bingham Ridge.

As we neared the saddle we spotted what must have been the pika lookout.

There was more talus on the opposite side of the saddle, and more pikas too!

We spotted at least 4 pikas (it’s hard to keep track when they are running in and out of the rocks) and heard many more. The only thing that could tear us away from our favorite wildlife critters was the view of Mt. Jefferson looming over Hunts Cove.
(the clouds had finally vanished)

Continuing away from the saddle just a bit provided an excellent view of the mountain and Hanks Lake with a bit of Hunts Lake visible as well.
IMG_7648_stitch

Hanks Lake

Hunts Lake

Rock fin above Hunts Cove.

Reeder hadn’t exaggerated by using spectacular to describe this section of trail. The views of Mt. Jefferson were amazing and a variety of wildflowers (past peak) lined the trail.
Penstemon and a western pasque flower.

Western pasque flower seed heads.

20190824_101714 Hippie-on-a-stick

Paintbrush and lupine

20190824_102625 Patridge foot

Mt. Jefferson, Goat Peak (behind the tree) and the Cathedral Rocks.

As the trail crossed a cinder field glimpses to the south between trees reveled the Three Sisters (among others).

South Cinder Peak

The Three Sisters

Three Fingered Jack

The trail briefly lost sight of Mt. Jefferson as it passed around a butte, losing a little elevation as it did so.

Paintbrush in a meadow behind the butte.

Although the view of Mt. Jefferson was temporarily gone the view was still good. There was a large basin full of meadows just below the trail and occasional views of South Cinder Peak and Three Fingered Jack.
South Cinder Peak

Three Fingered Jack

The trail gained a little of the elevation back as it came around the butte regaining a view of Mt. Jefferson in the process.

After passing another sign for the Pamelia Limited Entry Area at a now abandoned (but still used) portion of the Hunts Creek Trail we arrived at the Pacific Crest Trail.

IMG_7620_stitch

We sat on some rocks here and rested. We were now at least 8 miles (that is the mileage Reeder assigns but with some extra exploring we’d done a bit more) from the Bingham Ridge Trailhead and needed a good break. Up until this point we’d only run into one other person, a bow hunter along the Bingham Ridge Trail. As we rested in the shade a pair of backpackers heading south on the PCT stopped briefly to talk. After they continued on we did little bit of exploring in the immediate area since there were a few flowers about and at least one tree frog.
Mostly past lupine

20190824_110312 Paintbrush

20190824_110411

We returned the way we’d come enjoying the views just as much on the way back as we had the first time by. We didn’t see anyone else the rest of the day and we didn’t see anymore pikas, but as always there were a few things we spotted on the way back that we hadn’t seen or noticed earlier.
Butterfly on an aster.

Never seen one of these looks so clean and smooth, it almost looked fake.

We don’t know if this was just a stunted wallflower or something we’d never seen before.

We ended the day nearly out of water (luckily for us the temperatures stayed below 70 so it wasn’t too warm) and with some sore feet. Our GPS devices both showed us having traveled nearly 17 miles which was further than we’d planned but all the little side trips and exploring can really add up. Depsite the distance this was a great hike with varied scenery, good wildlife, and a reasonable elevation gain made better by the trails having such gradual grades. Of course any trail where we see multiple pikas is going to be aces in our minds. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Bingham Ridge

Tags Bingham Basin, Bingham Ridge Trail, Bingham Ridge Trailhead, Cathedral Rocks, Frog, Hanks Lake, hiking, Hunts Cove, Hunts Creek Trail, Hunts Lake, Lake of th Woods Trail, Matt Reeder, Mt. Jefferson, Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, Oregon, Pacific Crest Trail, Papoose Lake, Pika, Western Toad

High Cascades Hiking Mt. Jefferson Area Oregon Trip report

Temple Lake and Marion Mountain – 7/25/19

Post author By derwoodynck
Post date July 29, 2019
4 Comments on Temple Lake and Marion Mountain – 7/25/19

A day after taking my brother and his family to Opal Creek (post) we were back on the trails with a visit to Temple Lake and Marion Mountain. This is another hike take from Matt Reeder’s “101 Hikes in the Majestic Mount Jefferson Region”. The hike starts from the Pine Ridge Trailhead

There were a few mosquitoes waiting for us a the trailhead so we applied a bit of deet and set off through the forest for .2 miles to a 4-way junction.

From the junction the Pine Ridge Trail continued straight while the Turpentine Trail departed on the right and to the left was a trail to the Boy Scout owned Camp Pioneer (the camp is private so do not take this trail or any others heading left between the trailhead and the junction).

We continued on the Pine Ridge Trail past a unique Mt. Jefferson Wilderness sign.

The trail dropped from the junction to cross a dry creek bed before climbing around a ridge and dropping again.

We took a brief off-trail detour to visit one of several lakes in the area.

We returned to the trail and continued on to the junction with the Temple Lake Trail which was approximately 2 miles from the trailhead.

We decided to save the lake for later in the day in hopes that the mosquitoes would be less active. Continuing on the Pine Ridge Trail we passed through some sections of forest burned in the massive 2003 B&B Complex.
Turpentine Peak

Washington lily

Unburned forest

Mt. Jefferson from the Pine Ridge Trail.

At the four mile mark we arrived at the signed Marion Mountain Trail.

We turned right here and began to climb up a ridge to Marion Mountain. A little less than three quarters of a mile up we came to a cinder viewpoint.
Mt. Jefferson and Marion Lake (post)

Three Fingered Jack

The view here was good but just a tenth of a mile further the trail led out to the former site of the Marion Mountain Lookout where the view was even better.
The cinder viewpoint from Marion Mountain.

Mt. Hood in the distance with Mt. Jefferson, and Marion Lake.

Mt. Hood and Dynah-Mo Peak

Three Fingered Jack

Tops of the Three Sisters.

Coffin Mountain (post)

We had a nice view of the crest between Mt. Jefferson and Three Fingered Jack where we could make out North and South Pyramid Peaks (post).
South Cinder Peak is the high point along the ridge.

We sat on the rocks enjoying the breeze which was keeping us cool and mosquito free. When we finally did leave we decided to follow a faint path the continued out along the ridge to the south of Marion Mountain. The open forest made cross country travel fairly easy.

We continued along the ridge entering the B&B scar again where there were more obstacles.

We wound up going a little under a mile along the narrowing ridge until it dipped to a saddle under forested Marion Peak. We didn’t see any reason to lose any elevation and have to gain it back so we declared victory. The view here was better yet with more of the Three Sisters and Mt. Washington visible.
The saddle that we didn’t want to drop down to.

Three Fingered Jack with the Three Sisters and Mt. Washington in the gap.

The Three Sisters and Mt. Washington beyond Red Butte (post)

Jenny and Melis Lake

Marion Mountain at the end of the ridge.

Bear Point (post) and Dynah-Mo Peak with Mt. Hood in the background.

Turpentine Peak along the ridge.

Black Butte (post) on the far opposite side of the crest.

In addition to the views there were a few flowers along the ridge and Heather spotted a Northern Alligator Lizard but it ran off before we could get a photo.
Stonecrop

Prince’s Pine

Penstemon

Washington lily

We headed back down the ridge to Marion Mountain and then returned to the Pine Ridge Trail where we turned left. When we got back to the Temple Lake Trail we turned right and headed downhill.

The half mile trail crossed a dry creek before reaching the lake.

It wasn’t overly buggy which allowed us to admire the view of Mt. Jefferson from the lake and check out the campsites.

Dragon fly

While Heather was looking at one of the sites a western toad popped its head out of a hole.

I’m not sure who was watching who as the toad wound up coming all the way out while we stood there.

We kept our distance (thanks 30x zoom) and headed back up to the Pine Ridge Trail. Aside from a garter snake sighting there was no excitement on the return trip, just a nice forest walk.

With our off-trail exploring the hike came in at 11.6 miles and a little under 2000′ of elevation gain. The off-trail was just the right balance of challenging but not frustratingly difficult. It was a lot easier than what we had done the day we visited Bear Point earlier in the week for sure. Happy Trails!

Flickr: Temple Lake and Marion Mountain

Tags 101 Hikes in the Majestic Mount Jefferson Region, hiking, marion lake, Marion Mountain, Matt Reeder, Mt. Jefferson, Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, Oregon, Pine Ridge Trail, Pine Ridge Trailhead, Red Butte, South Pyramid Peak, Temple Lake, Three Fingered Jack, Western Toad