Klamath County Hiking and
Backpacking Excursions
Mountain Lakes Wilderness: This is a moderate to strenuous 19 mile lollipop loop with a short spur up to the top of Aspen Butte. This is the only perfectly square wilderness area in the United States and was on of the original 3 primitive areas set aside by the Forest Service. The Mountain Lakes Wilderness is an ancient caldera that may have looked a lot like Crater Lake before being eroded by glacial activity. There are a few different trailheads to get into the wilderness, but I have only been in from the Clover Creek Trailhead. The trail starts at about 5,750 feet and steadily climbs for 2 miles as it parallels Clover Creek. At the 2 mile mark there is the small Clover Lake on the left. The trail is slightly less steep following the lake and after another mile and a half you come to the Mountain Lakes Loop Trail. I've always taken this trail counter clockwise. As the trail heads east, you eventually get to the edge of the old caldera and get some great views of Lake Harriette, especially if you go about a quarter mile off trail. Where the trail finally drops down into the caldera, there is also a spur trail that continues to climb that leads to Aspen Butte. The trail is pretty faint, but as long as you keep going up you're on the right track. After about a mile on this spur trail you will find yourself at the top of Aspen Butte (8,208 feet). The views from the summit are amazing. It is a lot easier to visualize this wilderness as a caldera now, and you can see many of the lakes in the wilderness. There are also great views of Mt. McLoughlin, and Klamath Lake. When you get back down to the loop trail continue in the counter clockwise direction. After descending for about a half mile you come across South Pass Lake trail, one of the other routes into the wilderness. Another mile down the loop trail will put you on the shores of Lake Harriette. This is by far the largest lake in the wilderness and is 63 feet deep. It is definitely one of the prettiest lakes in Southern Oregon. As you continue on the loop trail you will pass como lake, Varney Creek Trail (another popular entrance to the wilderness) and Eb and Zeb Lakes. After Eb and Zeb Lakes there is a steep climb up White Face Pass before descending slowly past the Mountain Lakes Trail junction and back to Clover Creek Trail. Although, I have never seen too much wildlife in this area, there are plenty of sign of Wildlife. Last time I was in there I even heard a wolf howl, possibly the infamous OR-7.
Rating: 9/10
Rating: 9/10
Seven Lakes Basin: This is a moderate to strenuous hike that leads into the heart of the Sky Lakes Wilderness. The trail starts at about 5,200 feet and climbs to 6,900 feet, before dropping into the basin at about 6,100 feet. One of the great things about this hike is you can really make it as long as you want. It is approximately a 9 mile round trip hike if you stop at the first lake. If you visit all the lakes you're looking at about a 15 mile roundtrip hike. The trail also meets up with the PCT and another side trail can take you to the top of Devil's Peak at 7,582 feet. Cliff Lake and Alta Lake are my favorites, but they are all nice lakes. The view of the basin from the top of Devil's Peak is spectacular. Don't be turned back by the pond you come two about two miles in. This is Frog Lake but isn't actually part of the much prettier Seven Lakes Basin. I don't recommend going in before mid to late July most years because of the mosquitos. I went in mid July once and was there for 22 hours (half of which were spent sheltered up in my tent) and came out with over 300 mosquito bites on my body. By the time August comes around they usually are not a factor.
Rating: 9/10
Rating: 9/10
Union Peak: This is a moderate 11 mile hike in the South West corner of Crater Lake National Park. This is one of my favorite mountain hikes to do because not too many people are even aware this mountain exists. I usually have the summit all to myself. Even though this mountain is in Crater Lake N.P., the trailhead is before you get to the toll booth, so no fee is required. The trailhead is actually the PCT crossing on HWY 62. From there you will head south following the PCT for about 3 miles. This section of PCT is surprisingly level, which makes for easy hiking on this section. After about 3 miles, the Union Peak Trail will take off to the right. The trail starts climbing gradually and after about 1.5 miles you'll start getting some glimpses of the peak. Finally, with about half mile left the trail gets really steep. Over the last half mile you will climb 900 feet. Even though this section is strenuous, this is also the section that is the most fun. The views are amazing. This section of trail was also done very well by the trail crews. The mountain is very steep here, but you don't really have to worry about bad footing, or slipping on loose scree. From the summit you got great views of Crater Lake Rim (though you can't see the lake), Mt. Thielsen to the North, and Mt. McLoughlin to the South. In the distance you can even see Lost Creek Lake.
Rating: 9/10
Rating: 9/10
Blue Canyon Basin to Island Lake: The trailhead for this hike is in Jackson County, but the majority of the hike, including all but one of the lakes, are in Klamath County. This is an easy to moderate 15 mile hike. From the trailhead the trail actually starts off descending. After less than a mile you are already at Round Lake. This is just a small lake, and the lakes get better as you go. At the two mile mark you reach Blue Lake at the base of a rocky headwall. At the south end of Blue Lake the South Fork Trail comes in. Meadow Lake is also right there, however, Meadow Lake is more of a marsh. The trail starts to climb gradually at this point. It's only about another .75 miles to Horseshoe Lake, and 1 mile to Pear Lake. These are both beautiful lakes. At 33 feet deep, Pear Lake is the second deepest lake in the Sky Lakes Wilderness. From Pear Lake the trail gets a little steeper for the next mile until you reach a little pass at 6,100 feet. The trail will then descend briefly before leveling out and coming to Island Lake (About 2 miles past Pear Lake). Island Lake is the largest Lake in the Sky Lakes Wilderness and is more isolated than the other lakes you already went past. However, if you still want more isolation you can go off-trail to Dee Lake. Just go back west on the trail to wear you start to climb up the pass and head off trail to the North. It is just a short distance to Dee Lake.
Rating: 7/10
Rating: 7/10
Lower and Upper Sky Lakes Basin, Mt. Luther, and Devils Peak: This is another beautiful hike in the Sky Lakes Wilderness. It is a moderate 28 mile trek(round trip) that will have you seeing several of the prettiest lakes in the Sky Lakes Wilderness, as well as several peaks. The trail starts at Cold Springs trailhead at 5,900 feet and climbs ever slow slightly, before dropping ever so slightly. Over the first five miles the trail doesn't go above 6,100 feet and doesn't drop below 5,900 feet. After about .75 miles the trail forks. Both forks go to the lakes but Cold Springs Trail (on the left) is a little more scenic. At about 2.5 miles there is another junction. Go right, which is the most obvious trail anyway. Another half mile will put you at the Isherwood Trail junction. This section will actually make a loop, but I usually continue to the right (Sky Lakes Trail), and then come back down Isherwood Trail. The trail will go in between Little Heavenly Twin Lake and Big Heavenly Twin Lake. Not long after Big Heavenly Twin Lake, the other end of Isherwood Trail comes in. Continue straight to get to the Upper Sky Lakes Basin. The trail will continue for another mile and a half before coming to Trapper Lake, one of the prettiest lakes in the wilderness. Along the way there are a few other lakes that you can off-trail hike to, but they are a little more difficult to find. One of these lakes is Lake Sonya, which is the deepest lake in the Sky Lakes Wilderness, and is also a very pretty lake. At the north end of Trapper Lake, the trail makes a 90 degree turn left and heads to Lake Margurette. Again, another very beautiful lake. At this point you are about 5 miles from the trail head. From here, the trail starts climbing. It will go past a couple smaller lakes and then loop back as it continues to climb, and comes out on top of a rock bluff overlooking Lake Margurette and Trapper Lake. This view is amazing! Not long after the rock bluff you'll skirt by the south side of Mt. Luther and meet up with the PCT. Along this PCT section is another chance to go off-trail to visit some more lakes. I went about a mile off-trail to Hemlock Lake. It's a good place for isolation, but not as pretty as some of the other lakes. Getting back on the PCT, it is a straight shot to Devils Peak. The PCT just misses the summit, but there is a spur trail that quickly gets you to the top. Heading back down the PCT, make a right turn on Snow Lakes Trail. The trail will start to descend and you will pass two very small, but pretty lakes (Snow Lakes). Toward the bottom of the descent will be another trail that comes in (Nannie Creek). Continue on Snow Lakes Trail. Shortly you will come to 2 more lakes. First, Martin Lake, and the second one is another Snow Lake. In between these two lakes is another lake that is back off the trail (Wind Lake). Just beyond Snow Lake, Donna Creek Trail will come in from the left. Continue down the Snow Lakes Trail until you come back out at Lake Margurette. From here, start heading out the same way you came in. When you get to the upper end of the Isherwood Trail, make a right and go by Isherwood Lake. Directly across the trail from Isherwood Lake is Lake Liza. It is tucked back in the brush but it's not far and there is a faint trail that takes you there. Just a short distance down the main trail will put you at Lake Elizabeth. About 100 yards beyond that, and on the opposite side of the trail, is Lake Notasha. This is another one of the prettiest lakes. It's hard to see from the trail even though the trail goes right by it. Just after Lake Notasha you come back out to the Sky Lakes Trail. Make a right and it will lead you back to the trailhead.
Rating: 9/10
Rating: 9/10
Stuart Falls: This is a moderate 10 mile in and out hike that resides in the Sky Lakes Wilderness. This is actually one of my favorite hikes to do in the late spring/early summer. Over five miles, the trail climbs 1,600 feet, but you don't really notice it. Part of the trail follows very closely to the southern boundary of Crater Lake National Park. In fact, about a quarter mile in, the southwest corner of the park is marked by a large concrete pillar. the trail follows pretty close to Red Blanket Creek and crosses other small creeks along the way, some of which have washed out the trail and made miniature canyons that you have to cross. A lot of the area was burned in the past, but it appears the fire went through quick enough that it only really burnt the underbrush and left the towering trees alive and standing. Because of this, there is pretty good visibility along the trail which can be ideal for spotting wildlife. There are a couple of falls along the hike that don't appear on most maps, however, one of them usually dries up during the summer. After about 3.25 miles, your come to Red Blanket Falls. This waterfall has two drops, but it is very difficult to view the second one, which is actually the bigger drop. The upper part of the fall is very beautiful though. At about 5 miles you come to Stuart falls which lies at about 5,400 feet. This is another very beautiful waterfall. Every time I've gone, there is still snow on the ground at the waterfall, which ads to the beauty in my opinion. Near the waterfall is an area for hiking and camping. The trail will keep on going past Stuart Falls and will eventually meet up with the PCT. I've only gone about a mile past Stuart Falls before getting into too much snow and having to turn back.
Rating: 9/10
Rating: 9/10
Douglas County Hiking and
Backpacking Excursions
Mt. Thielsen: This is a strenuous 10 mile round trip hike, but it is one of my favorite hikes in Southern Oregon. I only recommend this excursion if you do a fair amount of hiking because the trail is pretty gnarly in spots and many people have been injured while attempting the trail to the top. The trail starts out at about 5,400 feet. The bottom section of trail is extremely easy to follow, and climbs at a gradual rate. A little over a mile into the hike, the trail comes to a junction with Spruce Ridge Trail. Spruce Ridge Trail will then meet up with another trail and head into the Mt. Thielsen Wilderness. Keep going straight to get to Mt. Thielsen. Just beyond the trail junction you come to a massive area of downed trees. I believe the trees were blown over in a massive windstorm, but it is possible that it was from an avalanche. However, some of the trees fell uphill, so I don't think it was avalanche caused. Last time I did this hike they were re-routing the trail around this section. I believe the new trail is completed and now just skirts the edge of the blow down instead of going right through the middle of it. Eventually, the Mt. Thielsen trail meets up with the PCT at the top of a ridge. From this point on, the trail becomes much more difficult. The Mt. Thielsen trail will cross the PCT and continues up the ridge towards the summit. At this point, every step you take will be steeper than the one before. It's only about another mile to the summit, but it climbs about 1,900 feet over that mile. About half way between the PCT and summit, you have to cut across the slope toward the south west side of the mountain. This area is very steep and loose, so be careful. You cross just beneath a rock wall and once on the other side you can start climbing again. There is still a lot of scree to navigate, but eventually you come to Chicken Point. This is where most people stop at. There are still excellent views of Diamond Lake, and the basin below, but you're not quite at the summit. The only thing left is the spire. They recommend not doing the spire if you are alone, OOPS! Although climbing gear isn't needed to get to the summit, some people still use it. There isn't much room once you get to the top, but the views are amazing. You can look straight down over 2,000 feet on the North East side and see Lathrop Glacier. Going back down is often more difficult, so be careful.
Rating: 10/10
Rating: 10/10
Rogue-Umpqua Divide Wilderness, Hershberger Lookout and Rabbit Ears: This was a 20.5 mile hike that included a loop through the Rogue-Umpqua Divide Wilderness and then a couple short side trips up to Hershberger Lookout and by Rabbit Ears. Most of the hike was moderate with a few strenuous sections. The loop I made was kind of on accident because I didn't realize that there were two trail heads about a mile apart from each other. I started in on one trail head and soon realized it was going a different direction than what the map showed. When I looked more closely I saw that I had entered at a different trail head. I didn't want to back track so I kept going, but wasn't sure if I would have enough daylight to get over to Fish Lake and then back to my truck. The trail head I entered is not used heavily and with the snow on the ground it made it very difficult to follow. My GPS was needed so I could stay in close proximity with the actual trail. As I got further into the wilderness I met up with more frequently used trails and it became easier to navigate. From the Lakes Trail I went past Cliff Lake and Buckeye Lake. With it being mid-November I had the Lakes all to myself. Although too cold to swim, Buckeye Lake looks like it would be a good spot to take a dip in the summer. At the Indian Trail Junction I headed north to Fish Lake. Fish Lake is one of the deepest wilderness lakes in the state at 140 feet deep, and was formed 6,000 years ago when a giant landslide dammed off a creek. This looks like another good swimming lake in the summer, and I'm eager to test out the fishing in the lakes. From Fish Lake, I continued on the Fish Lake trail which starts becoming more strenuous. The trail continues and comes out at the second trail head. From there it is only about another half mile along the road to Hershberger Lookout. Most people enter the wilderness from the Umpqua side because it is a shorter hike to the lakes, but the drive to the Rogue side is much shorter from where I live. A couple miles down the road from the trail is Rabbit Ears. There is a short trail here with opportunities to scramble and rock climb. Unfortunately, by the time I got there it was getting dark, but I will definitely go back.
Rating: 8/10
Rating: 8/10
North Umpqua Trail - Hot Springs to 2610 rd.: This hike can be done as a shuttle or as an out and back hike. This section is 13 miles each way and has about 1,600 feet of elevation change. It is easy going most of the way with a few moderate sections. I have actually done this hike in two pieces. I have come from the top down to Lemolo Falls a few times (1.5 miles each way). Most recently, I went from the Umpqua Hot Springs up to Lemolo Falls (11.5 miles each way). Most of the hike follows the river very closely, and in my opinion, it is one of the most beautiful rivers in the state. There are a couple sections where the trail climbs a ways above the river, but there are still some incredible views looking down on the river as it goes through the narrow canyon below. Along the hike there are several cool features including Big Spring and several waterfalls. Big Spring is just that. The trail passes just above it as the water pours from the 45 degree hillside and pretty much becomes a waterfall. The amount of water in this spring is equivalent to a small river. A couple of the main waterfalls along this section of trail are Side Falls and Lemolo Falls. The section of Side falls that can be seen well falls about 50-60 feet. However, part of it can only slightly be seen through the trees. There is in upper section that crashes down on a little bench in the hillside. The creek then spits into two separate waterfalls, but only one of which can be seen clearly. Lemolo Falls is one of the best waterfalls, in an area that is know for it's waterfalls. It is over 100 feet tall and the amount of water that spills off of it is pretty impressive. Adding to the beauty is the moss covered rocks that surround it, and the blue green pool at the bottom. This is a very beautiful hike that stays green year round. In early June you can catch the wild Rhododendrons blooming along the banks of the river.
Rating: 9/10
Rating: 9/10
Kentucky Falls and North Fork Smith Falls. This is an easy to Moderate trail that is in the northern part of Douglas County, just east of Florence, Oregon. It's 5 miles round trip to Lower Kentucky Falls and North Fork Smith falls and back to the trailhead. The good thing about this hike is it's low elevation makes it accessible year round. However, it's proximity to the coast does mean that your are likely to get wet between the months of October and May. The Lush forests were nice, and something a little different from the hikes I usually do. It isn't long before the trail appears at the top of Kentucky falls. The view from right on top of the falls is somewhat blocked, but as you continue on the trail you get some better views. After a couple switch backs you end up at the bottom of the falls and have some excellent views. The trail continues for almost another 2 miles before coming to Lower Kentucky Falls and North Fork Smith Falls. This is a very unique view. Both the North Fork Smith River and Kentucky Creek flow over the same cliff and then merge at the bottom of the waterfall. Both falls separately are amazing, but when you can get them both in one panoramic shot, it is really spectacular. The trail continues and meets up with North Fork Smith Trail, but I'm told it has been blocked for a while with downed trees and debris. I recently read that they are planning on repairing that section of trail soon so people can do a shuttle from the Kentucky Falls Trailhead to the North Fork Smith trailhead.
Rating: 10/10
Rating: 10/10