This hike is actually in California (barely) but the road access is from Oregon, so we're calling it an Oregon hike. Or, more accurately, a State of Jeferson hike - but enough with the names already!
From the easy to find TH,
we climbed up through a forest of very, very large cedars and firs,
made intimate contact with a Brewer's spruce growing next to the trail,
walked through the paltry results of our latest "snow storm,"
before arriving at the large meadow holding the Frog Pond.
At the side of the meadow are the remains of a prospector's cabin that was built within the trunks of seven large incense cedars. The walls were split cedar planks - it must have smelled great and been free of moths! According to Ruediger, it was built in the 1920s by a John Knox McCloy who lived and prospected in this area for over 50 years. He was described by locals as "having gone completely native."
Although it was brilliantly sunny, it wasn't particularly warm and there was still a crust of ice on the pond.
We continued along the trail around the S end of the Frog Pond, past a very rare grove of Alaskan yellow cedar,
and up to a divide between Frog Pond Gulch and French Gulch, where we caught a glimpse (this hike isn't big on views) of Pyramid Peak (p) and Swan Mountain (s) to the W.
We had lunch at the divide, then went through Cameron Meadows,
\\past yet another huge cedar,
and a small pond not shown in the map,
before plunging down the ridge above French Gulch to the TH - doing this hike counter-clockwise as we did is recommended. A short hike (7.9 mi, 1900' EG) but one that is of botanical and historical interest and offers a quick introduction to this wilderness area.
