Oregon Hikers

Hey,

I organize a backpacking trip every year for a group of 4-6 guys. Last year, we trekked into Jefferson Park. It was an incredible trip highlighted by great weather and catching fish. Our ideal trip. The year before we did part of the Timberline trail. We have also done Mink Lake and Waldo Lake.

I am hoping for some help on this year’s trip in late August. We are carpooling from Sandy, OR and wanting a 1-3 hour trip to trailhead. Looking for 15-25 mile round trip/loop. We enjoy fishing at our destinations so lakes are ideal. Also like to have a fire which we missed last year in Jefferson Park. We can all handle moderate hikes and are seasoned backpackers.

Any suggestions near Bend? Sisters? Or Mt. Adams? Or the wild card option is always appreciated. We like to avoid the most trafficked routes too.

Thank you.

Has anyone been up through Indian Heaven Wilderness? My search has put that on my radar. Looking for a lake loop.

Indian heaven is really beautiful.

Went last summer and plan to return late summer with whole family. Plenty of trails and lakes.
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Planetpdx wrote: ↑

July 25th, 2020, 11:15 am

Has anyone been up through Indian Heaven Wilderness? My search has put that on my radar. Looking for a lake loop.

Not a lot of loop options but certainly lots of lakes, and fires are allowed. Don't know about fish. The place is famous for mosquitoes, but late August is past the peak.

Planetpdx wrote: ↑

July 24th, 2020, 9:41 pm

Also like to have a fire which we missed last year in Jefferson Park.

By late August there might be a lot of fire restrictions in effect. The Deschutes National Forest has already banned all fires outside of developed campgrounds. I expect more forests will follow suit.

Planetpdx wrote: ↑

July 25th, 2020, 11:15 am

Has anyone been up through Indian Heaven Wilderness? My search has put that on my radar. Looking for a lake loop.

Indian Heaven is great to do some lollipop loops, for sure, but there are no true loops. It's easy to set up a car shuttle and essentially follow the PCT from one end to the other, though.

Maybe look into the south end of the Jefferson Wilderness, doing a loop around Three Fingered Jack from Santiam Pass. There's a good clockwise loop from there using the PCT, Santiam Lake, Blue Lake, Bowerman Lake, Minto Pass, and Old Summit trails with many lakes along the way... a good 3 night itinerary would be overnights at Jorn, Wasco, and Square Lakes, around 25 miles all in.
The only caveat to this is there is about a 2-mile section of the Bowerman Lake Trail that has about 200+ trees down on it and hasn't been maintained. But as long as you plan to take it slow and know beforehand what to expect, it isn't that bad.

Three fingered jack in August is an excellent hike. I took the route that goes from the trailhead to Booth Lake, cross country over the 3FJ saddle and down through the meadow on the other side, Wasco Lake, then finally the long downhill across the west side of the mountain back to the car.

This is only a 3 day hike but you could extend it by going up or down the PCT, starting in the lakes region to the west, or taking any of the side trails. If you time it right you can camp in a burn zone around Booth lake and have wide open skies for watching the Persiad Meteor Shower. Booth and Wasco make for easy swimming.

Also, the Teanaway region in SE Washington out of Cle Elum has lots of large lakes and loops. I've only been to Waptus Lake - views are fantastic there. It's a popular area, but those large lakes - miles long - probably have a bunch of campsites to choose from at each one.

In fact, I just got back from Packwood Lake near there. 25 miles round trip and 4000ft of elevation gain and loss going down the lakeside, up to and along Coyote Ridge, and back down to the lake. Easy swimming and fishing from the lake, but also very popular location so be sure to go on a weekend. Ridge is packed with big views and wild flowers. The climb up and down is exhausting however.