and began a gentle but ever upward traverse into a madrone forest,
then on up into a forest heavy with Ponderosa pines (possibly my favorite pine),
across open meadows,
where the first tiny flowers of Spring are already out,
then back into the forest,
before finally glimpsing the old LO (arrow), our goal for the day.
The entire trail - except for the short road section up to the LO - is S facing, so my decision to wear shorts in February worked out just fine! The LO itself is out of commission - what matters now is the automated met station next to it. During our last series of storms, that station clocked winds in excess of 110 mph over the peak - it was amazing that there weren't more trees down on the trail.
There are, of course, views - of Grayback Mountain (G), Baldy Peak (arrow), which is accessible via the Mule Mountain trail (Mule Mtn TR), and the LO's sanitary facility,
of Wagner Butte (arrow),
and of Mt. McLoughlin.
After lunch, we went back the way we'd come - passing a raucous group of Medford Happy Hikers along the way - and marveling how quickly the leaves of Fall were giving way to the new grasses of Spring.
An easy (11 mi RT, 1800' EG) and highly recommended hike and, according to the locals, a wildflower bonanza in the Spring.
That said, I definitely use "madrona", not sure where I picked that up... apparently, somewhere north of the Siskiyous..! 
