Shady Trail

This summit is a horrible bushwhack, and like many of the summits in this part of the Gifford Pinchot, it's barely worth the points considering the effort it takes to climb it. It's steep and brushy and about the only nice thing I can say about it is there's no devil's club to contend with. You would think, upon finally obtaining the activation zone, that the return trip would be easier, but it is not. It's worse because you can't see where you're putting your feet. 

Sawtooth is a glorious peak; nice hik

Here is a shortcut to Big Huckleberry relative to that described here: http://www.pnwsota.org/node/371

Here is one of eight Lookout Mountains in Oregon (10 if you count Big Lookout Mountain and Little Lookout Mountain). This is a short hike of one mile RT with 600 feet of elevation gain. The trail is mostly good, but a bit overgrown in places. The drive is easy and can be accomplished with moderate clearance. You can get to within a mile of the summit with most other vehicles. Here are the directions:

Find the North Umpqua Highway (AKA OR-138) and travel to Panther Creek Road (AKA NF-4741) near Apple Creek Campground, 43.3060, -122.6772 .

Summary - This is another one of my traverse hikes, linking 4180 (LC-071) and Big Huckleberry (LC-069) over the Pacific Crest Trail in the GPNF.  After a ninety minute drive (with a toll bridge) from Portland to the trailhead, you'll find both an easy forest road hike and bushwhack to the summit of 4180 and a PCT hike over to Big Huckleberry. You will cover about eleven miles with 1700 feet of gain, do an easy if steep bushwhack on 4180 bushwhack, and collect big views on Big Huck.

NOTE: This area may have burned in July 2025. If anyone has intel, please post. I believe it may have just been the western approach side of the mountain.

Aubrey Mountain is 2 point summit near Oakridge, OR in the Willamette National Forest. The summit can be accessed either from a neighborhood at the edge of town or from a higher trailhead on the northeast side. I took the high road as described below:

This summit was easy to reach and only 1.3 miles or so OW.  There is an antenna farm at the top but it didn't interfere significantly.

Start at the Stevens Creek Trailhead which has a nice parking lot and no permit required.  It is part of a county park a few miles south of Spokane.  The trail is pretty steep and is supposed to be closed when too muddy.

There are many large rocks near the summit which can make setting up an antenna with a clear view a little more challenging.

See KJ7LSM's nice writeup of this summit. I'll only add that, in March 2025, the gate to the last leg of the road is closed (see the southernmost point of the hike,below, resulting in an 800 foot, 1.7 mile walk up the remaining gravel road. There's room for one or two vehicles at the Y in the road while still providing passage if someone with access wants to pass through the gate.

For my first activation in the Pacific Northwest, I chose South Tiger Mountain. It was a "suggested first summit," a short drive from home, and a relatively easy hike. It was also a 2-pointer, another first for me.