Pass Required at Trailhead

This was part of a two-summit dayhike to FR-002 and FR-005.

On the way over to Bend, I stopped to activate Black Butte.  I came on Hwy 20 and turned at NF-11 which is also the turn for Indian Ford Campground.  From there I followed north to the turn for NF-1110 (also known as Black Butte Rd) and on around the north of the mountain.  After a hairpin turn, there is one more sharp turn to the right which takes you to the upper trailhead.  The road up to the last turn was in good shape as of this writing.  The upper portion after the last turn was not as good but still very drivable.

Bill K7WXW is an early riser, and I was stoked to find someone keen to get up South Sister for a sunrise activation. We set out from the trailhead in the dark at 2:12am PST. Bill had an issue with his headlamp battery. Luckily, I had a spare headlamp to loan him. With that sorted, we hit the trail.

Broken Top has been on my list for a few years. Trip reports vary in difficulty, so I finally had the chance to check it out solo. 

From Green Lakes TH I hike / jogged (hogged?) to Green Lakes in about an hour. From there the trail cuts between the lakes and then steepens. The trail up the Northwest Ridge saddle is sandy and steep. I took a break in the saddle to refuel for the steep ridge climb. 

We headed up to Tropo after getting some excellent pointers from Etienne K7ATN.  He and Darryl WW7D were also up here a few days ago.

The route we took started from Morton, WA on Hwy 7 northbound.  Unfortunately, Google Maps wants to route through private gated property.  So we continued on north until NF-74 and turned off there.  We followed NF-74 to the crossing with NF-295.  Beyond that point, you will need to disregard your vehicle's paint job.  The scrub brush is very ingrown on the next section of NF-74.

This was my second time to visit Huffraker.  Last year, the property owner had closed the area due to fire danger.  This year, it was reopened.  However, last year I was able to drive all the way to the edge of Gifford-Pinchot NF and park.  This year, there was an incredible amount of blowdown that had not been cleared which added another 4 miles to this hike bringing it to overall 6.3 miles RT.  It may be that, due to the late season snow, once the mushroom pickers get busy some of the blowdown will get cleared.

Needle Point is the lowest 10 point summit in Oregon. It is not the easiest. It is located in the Eagle Cap Wilderness in north eastern Oregon. Access to the trail head is via Union, Oregon.

It is a nineteen mile round trip hike with 5000 feet of total elevation gain.

Mt Adams in summer is a popular climb and has variable conditions. Anyone attempting Adams should be familiar hiking with crampons and ice axe. Glissading skills will help and if you're new, you'll be an expert by the time you are down the mountain. 

Please follow K7ATN's previous report for directions to this summit. 

In 2022 the tower lookout is Michelle who has been there for 8 seasons.  Very friendly and ham-radio accomodating.  Like other fire tower operators, announce yourself so Michelle knows you are there.  There is a public port-a-potty and a picnic table that can be used.  With permission, i hung one end of my EFHW from the tower structure, actually my rope supporting the EFHW.

This summit is located on Stimson land and appears to be only accessible by permit.

One approach is via Flisram Rd which is gated with the following sign.

(Actually there are 2 signs: one is the standard non-motorized entry allowed during non-business hours but just behind that one is the one which says no entry except by permit.