After a couple days at the Oregon Country Fair, I took off to the Three Sisters Wilderness for some alone time. The Pacific Crest Trail crosses Oregon Highway 242 on McKenzie Pass about 1/2 mile west of the Dee Wright Observatory, a cool stone hut looking out over the Three Sisters to the south and Mt. Washington, Three-Fingered Jack, Mt. Jefferson, Mt. Hood and Mt. Adams to the north.
I took off south through the lava fields. The first exceptional landmark was South Matthieu Lake, a beautiful alpine pool beneath the gaze of North Sister.
The trail climbs along the western face of the sisters, providing a clear view of all the major Oregon Cascade mountains to the north.
After Scott Pass, the trail started to become interspersed with large snowdrifts.
I managed to lose the trail on one of these snow drifts. While descending a hillside of loose pumice and lava rock, I mistakenly stepped on a rock that wasn't planted in the ground. Down the hill I fell, tweaking my right ankle and cutting open a couple fingers and parts of my hand on the jagged rocks.
Eventually, you reach a quaint meadow, also beneath North Sister.
I stopped at Opie Dilldock Pass, with some pretty good views of the North and Middle sisters, before heading back.
All in all, I think I got 15 to 16 miles in before getting back to Dee Wright Observatory in time to catch the sunset over Three Sisters.
PCT from Dee Wright to Opie Dilldock Pass
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- retired jerry
- Posts: 14425
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Re: PCT from Dee Wright to Opie Dilldock Pass
too bad about your fingers
if you went that far, then the rest of the PCT would be doable, although the snow does get a little worse after that
if you went that far, then the rest of the PCT would be doable, although the snow does get a little worse after that
- WiredHiker
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Re: PCT from Dee Wright to Opie Dilldock Pass
Curious about the bugs.
- gratefultrails
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- Location: Eugene
Re: PCT from Dee Wright to Opie Dilldock Pass
Thanks for the snow report! Country Fair was a hoot this year!!
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Re: PCT from Dee Wright to Opie Dilldock Pass
I got eaten alive anywhere there had been standing water.WiredHiker wrote:Curious about the bugs.