3 Sisters Wilderness Pictures

Obsidian Falls
North and Middle Sister
Washington, 3Fingered Jack, Jefferson and Hood
North Sister

Linton Meadows
Linton Creek
South Sister
The Husband
Middle Sister

Deer on Koosah Mountain
Wild Sweet Pea
Wickiup Plain
Middle Sister
South Sister

Belknap Lava Field
Sawyer Bar

Six Lakes Trail to Crescent Lake

We got on the trail south of Elk Lake on July 28th. It was an easy six mile hike west to the PCT, and we passed 3 or 4 mosquito clad lakes on the way..

Since we got such a late start, we made camp 8 miles in at Cliff Lake, an absolutely beautiful place with fish jumping everywhere. I set up camp and Scratch fished until dark. We met our first thru hiker, DragonAnt, he'd hiked over 2000 miles! And of course he was gone before we woke up in the morning.. We plan on hauling the Tahiti up the hill next summer for some serious fishing.
There were raindrops and clouds on day 2, so we got out our ponchos for the first time. After a few trail miles, we detoured to Mink Lake. It was a worthy detour...we had the entire lake to ourselves. If the weather had been warmer it would have been perfect for swimming.

After lunch we climbed back up the ridge, (Mink Lake is down in a basin) and headed south through dense fir forest with lots of Mosquitos. We also met many more thru hikers.. including one man who was hiking sans maps until Cascade Locks....I gave him Sisters and Jefferson, as I have good Topo maps for these areas. Hiking through snow with no maps..

We made it to Stormy Lake before dusk, and built a fire. We had company again, a thru hiker named Cliff... not sure if it was a trail name or real name, but he was great. We learned about the people we had met in passing that day, and took messages to relay to the people who were still further south. He had the fire built up the next morning but was on his way soon after he ate. We feel so slow and lazy compared to these guys...

We set off for a 20 mile hike to Bobby Lake, with stops at Irish and Charlton Lake. We finally had views back to the north of Bachelor and South Sister, and views to the south of Wilammette Pass. We hiked through a huge burn area, but no mosquitos! We also met 7 other thru hikers. The community these people have is amazing, we were glad to be part of it for a few days. It was especially nice to meet the 2 men trying to break the speed record, 2700 miles in 79 days! I hope they make it! We continued to hike fast and covered the last 3 miles to Bobby Lake in 50 minutes. We went for a swim, ate and went to bed!

The next day we were able to cruise the 9 miles to Odell Lake. It was mostly downhill, and along the way, you pass a cabin that can be used by backpackers, skiiers and snowshoers. It has solar cells for charging batteries, a fireplace and a stove. Nice to know it's there, we plan on skiing to it this winter. Another treat was the Rosary Lakes. 3 sparkling lakes in a row, all with fish. We met an older gentleman who brought a raft and his dog up for the weekend.

We also met Tango Charlie, just hiking Oregon, and Mother Goose and Lost and Found. They are also hiking Oregon, and are probably the most interesting, formidable hiking team on the trail. Not to mention in their 60's.. it was inspiring to meet them! We wanted pizza at Willamette Pass, but Mother Goose told us they're only open on weekends. Poo. So we walked on to Odell Lake. There were several more hikers on the porch, I went inside and bought beer and called my mom. The selection of food isn't very good, and it's very expensive. They only have kielbasa and ice cream, plus a selection of canned goods. They have laundry facilities, showers and a free campsite for PCT hikers. And a huge hiker box, in which I found 2 books and some burts bees hand salve. I put in a beer for good karma.... We met more amazing thrus, including a young guy named Charlie that we camped next to. Poor guy didn't expect the mosquitos to be so bad, and only had a sleeping bag. No tent, no net.

After a latte in the morning, (they do have an espresso bar, so i'm almost willing to forgive the $11 price tag on the mosquito repellent) we headed south again, toward Diamond Peak. We took the low road, on alternate trails, to avoid more snow.. Diamond View Lake was beautiful, and the trail underfoot turned from forest dirt to pumice.

Our trail eventually brought us to a horse corral on the west end of Crescent Lake. We hitched to the resort, and spent the evening eating and drinking with the owner and some of the staff. The food is excellent, inexpensive and generous. If you're on the alternate trail and hungry, it's well worth the detour. However, no laundry or showers... so you'd really only stop for food. And the company, the owner, Tom, and his wife made us feel like family.

The next morning, we decided to skip the hiking and go straight to Tokatee for 5 days. Then we had family to visit in Roseburg. So we'll get back to the Trail and do the rest of section D next year.. At Tokatee, we fell in with a busload of Rainbows...that was an adventure in itself. We hiked, swam, fished and soaked. The weather was perfect and hot. We'll head north on the PCT later this month.

Back to the PCT

We woke up this morning ready to go to Cascade Locks, but the PCT trail conditions page was back online.... Last week someone started south from the Columbia River, and ran into huge snowfields near Wathum Lake and Timberline Lodge. He recommended, (and we don't know his level of expertise) crampons and a GPS. Screw that! If we could only get 50 miles south, we're not going to bother. We're going to Elk Lake tomorrow, to hike south to hwy. 58. If we can get past Diamond Peak, we should be able to get to Maidu Lake, north of Mt. Thielsen. From there we can get on the North Umpqua Trail, maybe just go back to Tokatee hotsprings... We'll give the snow a few more weeks to melt off in northern Oregon. What an adventure..

The Great winter of 2008..

My parents tried to hike to the PCT where it meets the Mt. Thielsen trail. This is what they found. Last summer this was the most beautiful, silent old growth forest. In January 2008, the Cascades in Oregon and Washington recieved tens of feet of snow in a few days, then came the winds. This is the result. The trail was cleared up to a mile south of the PCT, then impassable. The Thielsen Creek Trail, which we were going to take, looks the same way. So we came back to LaPine with my parents. We've called the ranger districts for The Sisters, Mt Jefferson and Mt Hood. Sisters and Jefferson are still closed due to snow, but Mt. Hood has been cleared of blowdowns, and the snow is manageable, so on Sunday we're going to Cascade Locks to start hiking south. Hopefully we'll be able to get through past Warm Springs. If not.. What a bitch of a year to hike... half the trail is snowed under, half is on fire!

Section C, Hwy 140 to Crater Lake Ntnl. Park

We woke at Lake of the Woods kind of late, so we packed up quickly and hurried down the trail. (We were camping just off in the bushes between the Resort and Aspen Point Campground.) We got water from the Aspen point bathrooms, and walked to Hwy 140. We followed easy directions to the Rye Spur Trail, which climbs north to meet the PCT in the Sky Lakes Wilderness.

The climb to Fourmile Lake was pretty intense, it was smoky, and immediately we were swarmed by mosquitos. We doused ourselves with Backwoods OFF, (what a crappy product!) and put on out headnets. That made it a little more bearable... We climbed for a few hours, then stopped for some breakfast and photo ops on some rocks. When we left, I forgot my net! Poo!

We cruised up to the lake, drank our last 2 beers from Lake of the Woods, and ate chips. We had thought we could buy some better repellant at the store indicated on the map, but the campground hosts, Rick and Teddi, told us it burned down years ago. We only had one can of Off, half a bottle of Cutter with picardin, and a little bit of Muskol, 100% DEET.

They also told us they had fed Thomas dinner earlier in the week,
and that he's doing great and he's only 17! Go Thomas, Go! No wonder he's hiking so fast! We got our water and headed around the east side of the lake into the Sky Lakes Wilderness.

What can we say about this place? It was like no other human had ever been there. I've never seen so many lakes! We took 4 days to hike the 40 miles of wilderness, and it would have been perfect...except for the damn mosquitos. We were literally swarmed everytime we stopped to rest, as soon as we stepped out of our tent in the morning, and whenever we got close to water..








The only thing that worked.. and I hate to think I did this to myself...was 100% DEET, and walking with a lit coil. We felt so sick the first few days from breathing in that crap, but the bastards stayed AWAY!



We hiked on all the alternate trails, and were able to fish for a while in Lake Notasha. We had beautiful campsites every night, it was cooler, but we didn't hit any snow until Snow Lakes Trail. Didn't see any wildlife except frogs and birds. The trek up to Snow Lakes was amazing, the cliffs and lava flows are very unique, and overall made you feel like you'd wandered onto another planet. We hooked back up with the PCT on Shale Butte, where the trail was just a little path in a sea of gray andesite rocks.
We had good views south to McLoughlin, and west to the 7 lakes basin. The trek up past Lucifer to Devils Peak was pleasantly strenuous, we felt like we were getting a good workout, and it didn't have a whole lot of snowdrifts. We got our first views north to Crater Lake, Union Peak, and Mt. Thielsen. But then we got a good look over the side....




















We just detoured around the snow, down the rocks, and picked up the trail in the forest below. We had big patches all the way to Hwy 62 after this.


One benefit was that the runoff ditches were full, and we always had water. Cold water..mmmm. We camped at the Big Bunchgrass saddle, where we melted snow to take a warm bath, then went to bed. The next morning, we made our way to the Stuart Falls trail, more or less by accident. The fork in the trail was under the snow, we say a sign that said PCT 1/2 mile, with an arrow pointing in the other direction. Hmm, shrug and walk on.. Stuart Falls was beautiful, it was nice to fall asleep to the sound of water. The next morning we hiked into Crater Lake National Park, figuring we would have to use our compass because of snow on the ground, but it wasn't that bad. We drew arrows in the snow whenever it looked tough. Suddenly, we emerged out of the hemlocks and onto the highway, arriving at Mazama village a few minutes later. Scratch, bless him, bought us a sixer and ICE CREAM!!! We weren't about to pay 20$ a night for a tent site, but we did pay 75 cents each for 4 minute showers. (OK, I paid $1.50 for 8 minutes) Scratch almost killed two French children who ripped open his shower curtain, and I caught up on my postcards. Then we went to the Annie Creek Restaurant buffet. Words can't describe how wonderful it was... and they were nice enough to let us take our packs to our table.


After eating far too much food, we bought another sixer and contemplated where to stay for the night.. (we ended up waiting for dark and just ducking into the woods) We spent a restless, cold night, listening to what sounded like trucks.


The next morning, we awoke to condensation and hunger. we walked the 100 yards to the store, thinking donuts and coffee, and found out it had caught on fire during the night! Anyone else sensing a pattern here?? So, what could we do but go to the breakfast buffet and overindulge again.. I enjoyed lots of fresh fruit and about a gallon of coffee, Scratch had biscuits, gravy and meat! We waited outside when we were through, playing rummy and watching tourists park their cars. Soon our trail angels showed up. It sure was nice to see my parents!


We drove up to the Rim to take some pictures, then we were off to Diamond Lake for 3 days of R&R. Scratch's parents met us at Broken Arrow Campground, with his Bassett Hound, Sadie. It was so wonderful to get that strong dose of parental support, not to mention the pizza, steak, enchiladas and all the beer we could drink! Scratch and his dad even shined a 22 inch trout out of Diamond Lake. It was a perfect break.

Sky Lakes Pictures

Mt. McLoughlin from Fourmile Lake

Trail Through Sky Lakes

Luther Mountain and Trapper Lake

Luther Mountain in Deep Lake

Cliff on the Snow Lakes Trail

Upper Snow Lake

Mt. McLoughlin from Shale Butte

Lee Peak from Lucifer

North side of Devils Peak

Meadow near Honeymoon Creek

Stuart Falls

Section B, I-5 to Lake of the Woods

So, we're midway through day 6, and Scratch decided to relieve the disappointment of Callahan's by playing some pinecone golf. It was strange to walk along I-5, with the noise and the fumes.. We found the trail on the east side of the road, and were soon in the woods. We needed water pretty badly at this point, and the springs indicated in the book were stagnant and low. Scratch climbed a scrubby hillside to a spring and filtered us 6 liters of warm, slightly muddy water.. The book advised that section B is one of the least scenic, driest stretches of the PCT in Oregon or Washington, so we at least weren't disappointed in that regard.. Fortunately we came prepared with crystal light packs, and soon turned the water into lemonade and fruit punch! Those things are fantastic, we can't recommend them highly enough.

We continued hiking, knowing we would be making a dry camp. The scenery was actually nice, Pilot Rock kept getting closer, and we agreed that the terrain reminded us of the Rod and Gun Club in Roseburg. There were wild lilies everywhere, and butterflies.

As we were hiking up a grassy hillside, the cell phone rings. it was Scratch's adorable older brother, Josh. So here he is, trekking poles in one hand, cell phone in the other, climbing a hill. I was walking behind him, cracking up. I guess we forgot to turn it off after calling home.

We made camp late in the day, on the east side of Pilot Rock near two rocky outcrops, with a view south of Shasta.

The next morning, we were walking along, Scratch turned and said with panic in his voice, "Run! Go back the other way!" So I book back down the trail, thinking a cougar is going to land on me, when I hear him shout. I turned and he motioned me back to him, saying, "It's OK, it was a skunk." We had a laugh over it, but I asked him if next time he could shout out the nature of the emergency, so I can adjust my panic accordingly.. He said he saw it running down the trail straight for us, and panicked. Glad we didn't get sprayed!!

We walked on to a fenced compound with a spring, filtered more water and had something to eat, then went on towards Little Hyatt Reservoir. When we got there, we met 3 guys that worked at the resort, who informed us that Hyatt Lake had a pizza place. We heard that and practically ran the last 3 miles. Hyatt Lake no longer formally caters to hikers, but the BLM campground across the dam has a beautiful, free hiker camp, right behind the showers. We were given 4 cans of beer by a man who was impressed we were hiking, and drank it while taking long, lavish showers.. Then we put on our cleanest clothes, and went for pizza. It was so good, as was the pitcher of beer. Being pub fans, we immediately felt at home, and they offered to save our leftovers for us in the restaurant fridge.

They have no laundry facilities, so we used our collapsible basin and did our laundry in the shower. Whatever works...and that thing is great. A piece of gear that weighs 2oz, costs $5, and we use it everyday. Bathing, laundry, dishes, and I even heated water to make a warm footbath with lavender oil.... That's luxury... Anyway, we spent our slack day playing rummy and hanging out at our camp.

The next morning, we climbed over the fence and into the woods. We soon crossed Keno Access Road, marking our first 100 miles! We celebrated by making some hummus and eating the chips we bought at Hyatt Lake. The excitement never ends! We made good time and hiked until dusk, then made a dry camp by a logging road.

The next morning, we rose early and hiked to Dead Indian Road, where we tried to look pitiful and hitch a ride to Lake of the Woods. No dice, :(

We walked ten miles to Lake of the Woods, then picked up our resupply box. Mmmm, lots of food, and a bunch of other crap we didn't need or want. We'd had perfect weather, so we didn't need the extra ponchos, didn't need batteries, didn't need that many MRE's.... So we made a hiker box at Lake of the Woods.. check it out.

What a cute little resort! The lounge staff was fantastic! Thank you guys, for making us feel so welcome! We had good food and very generously poured drinks! We were able to do laundry, shower and send mail. I also recieved, via UPS, a new ThermaRest from my mom. My high tech, 4season, $90 one developed a leak on the third night, so i'd had a week of discomfort. The 15 year old one, however, works beautifully!! We spent another great slack day playing rummy and watching drunk guys try to put their boats in the water...

We also had special guests, the Jordanian King and his son, touring Oregon on their Harleys. They'd just been at Crater Lake, and they stopped at Lake of the Woods for a cold drink, complete with their cadre of secret service, all on Harleys. And our secret service, driving SUVs and carrying automatic weapons..

Scratch and I later wondered if the Secret Service was aware that every Billy Bob Joe Ray in that campground probably had a gun in his truck?

Day 12 brought the smoke back too, so we were anxious to get going, up in elevation to the beautiful Sky Lakes Wilderness. Section B wasn't terrible, but it wasn't exciting either. The trail was mostly low, scrubby manzanita. We went through some viewless fir forest, not too many blowdows, and no snow. The book was correct about the lack of water, and it will only get worse throughout the summer, so carry extra bottles. The resorts and the people we met were what made it special.