Plan a clear day for this trip since the mountain views (St Helens, Mt. Adams, Mt Hood, Mt Rainier) are spectacular from the summit area. The views of the Mt St Helens north crater and blast zone are iconic. This hike should be on the "must do" list in order to gain insight into the blast and destruction caused by the 1980 eruption.
You can get to Mt. McLoughlin by taking OR 140 west from Klamath Falls for about
36 miles. Turn right onto FS 3650, which is also the turn for the SnoPark. The
trailhead is up this road 2.4 miles and is well marked and has a toilet. FS 3650
is also about 0.5 miles west of MP 33 on OR 140.
The round-trip distance to the summit and back is 11 miles. The first few miles
are through very pretty forest. The gentle trail gradually then more abruptly
becomes quite rocky and rugged. It took me 4 hours, 40 minutes, all stops included,
Cruising through Chemult Oregon at 6:40am, the dashboard said the outside temperature
was 29 degrees. This was far cooler than we anticipated for our attempt on Mt. Thielsen.
A few years ago, my son Andrew and I tried this summit but were driven off by mosquitoes
and our lack of DEET. I actually inhaled two of the beasts and slapped my glasses off my
face several times before we literally ran back to the safety of our car. The Diamond Lake
area is legendary for mosquitoes.
This morning was different. It was a brisk 36 degrees at the Mt. Thielsen trailhead. Seeing
Access Info: Take SR25 south from Randle or north from Cougar. Head west on SR99 for 4.5 mi to the Bear Meadow Viewpoint. Restrooms at the viewpoint parking area. Read the interpretive signage at this viewpoint since this is where many of the iconic photographs were made of the St. Helens eruption in process by photographer Reynolds, who barely escaped with his family.
Access: Since SR26 is closed from the north due to a washout, you must come in on SR26 from the south. Take SR25 south out of Randle then SR99 west towards Windy Ridge. At approx 11 mi in, take SR26 north for about 1 mi to the Norway Pass TH parking area. Restrooms are available.
Note: The Independance Ridge trail is closed due to a washout.
Just north of Detroit, Oregon are a nice bunch of summits - Dome Rock is especially good. The Tumble Ridge Trail takes you to Dome Rock on a pleasant forest hike of only about 1.5 miles and 500 feet total gain.
There are several ways to get to Green Point Mountain - I choose the shortest hike, which of course required the most uncomfortable drive (i.e., high clearance and paint you don't care about).
Access: Since SR26 is closed from the north due to a washout, you must come in on SR26 from the south. Take SR25 south out of Randle then SR99 west towards Windy Ridge. At approx 7 mi in, take SR25 north to 1/4 mi past the Ryan Lake Interpretive Site road. Take the TH road west for about 1/2 mi.
Tanner Butte is perhaps the most remote SOTA summit in Oregon's Northern Cascades. Despite many resources that point out the trail length at 17 miles, measured from the GPS track it shows up as right at 20 miles round trip, with 4500 feet of elevation gain. You won't see many other hikers on these remote trails.
Chelan Crest SOTA Outing July 23-25, 2016 – Part 2. See separate report on PNWSOTA website with background on outing and day 1 description. The total trip was approximately 25 miles RT, with approximately 7,000 feet elevation gain, including ups and downs in between the various peaks. This is report 2 of 4, Graham Mountain.