Oregon Cascades

Mt Hood Featured right is the southwest face of Mt. Hood and the lovely blossoms of Paradise Park.  This meadow is just past the Zigzag Canyon and makes a fine day trip from the Timberline Lodge.  This is part of the Timberline trail which makes a 40 mile loop around Mt. Hood.  You can hike the whole thing in three days or sample the highlights in a series day hikes.  From the west the approach features Ramona Falls, the kind of cascade that photographers dream about. Beyond there the trail heads up Yokum Ridge to a mountaineering route that gives climbers nightmares. Along the north face of the mountain a number of trails: Top Spur, Vista Ridge, Cathedral Ridge & Pinnacle Ridge lead to the same alpine loop featuring the flower meadows of Cairn Basin & the McNeil Point Shelter.  A notable side trail between Dollar Lake & Elk Cove climbs the Barrett Spur and features close up views of the Ladd & Coe Glaciers.  On the eastern face you have the Copper Spur, the second most popular summit route on the mountain and Gnarl Ridge, the site of a recent forest fire.  The south face is all about skiing, Mt Hood Meadows and of course Timberline.

Mt. Jefferson This photo of the East face of Mt. Jefferson was taken from the road that passes through the Warm Springs Indian Reservation.  There is no access to this side of the mountain, instead hikers are concentrated on the westside.  There are camping restrictions there and allegedly hordes of day hikers and yet by all accounts Jefferson Park is well worth it.

Three Sisters Wilderness Several volcanoes including the big three reside in close quarters amid a broad open forest with little understory. It's a special place and restrictions are in place to keep it that way.  There are two areas that require special camping permits and not surprisingly they are also the two places where there is a road close enough to entice day hikers.  In the northwest corner the Obsidian Cliffs area samples the West face of the North Sister & the North face of the Middle Sister in an 11+ mile loop.  In the Southeast corner, four easy miles brings you to the Green Lakes area between the South Sister & Broken Top.  These trails both connect to an larger network of trails which encircle the entire area.  With only a night to spare our first choice would be the Pole Creek trailhead which serves as a gateway to the myriad of lakelets between the South & Middle Sisters.  As far as climbing goes the South Sister is the least technical (no ropes required) and at 10,358ft it's also the highest.  Quickest route to the top is via the Devil's Lake Trailhead to Moraine Lake and up the ridge to the left of the Lewis Glacier - 11 miles, 4900 ft round trip. Photos: L-R South Sister from Moraine Lake, South Sister from Green Lakes & Brokentop from Green Lakes Above:  Middle & North Sisters from the summit of South Sister

Newberry Volcanic Monument. Among the highlights are the Lava Butte, (you can drive all the way to the top of this 400yr old  cinder cone) &  the Lava River Tube.  (you can rent laterns and go on your own self guided tour of this two mile long cave).  Photo Essay

Crater Lake National Park.  These photos were taken about halfway up the trail to Garfield Peak.  Part of our trip to Northern California, photo essay here.