Returning to backpacking

General discussions on hiking in Oregon and the Pacific Northwest
WanderingWingnut
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Returning to backpacking

Post by WanderingWingnut » April 26th, 2022, 10:11 am

It's been over a decade since my last backpacking trip and I've decided this year I want to get back into it. (Dayhiking isn't enough anymore and overnights will be easier to accomplish now.)

Given all the recent wildfires and new permits seeming to pop up in various locations, is there a list of what's open and what permits are required or do you have to check each individual management agency?

For someone seeking a quieter back country experience, are there places to avoid? I'm open to suggestions on where to go, but dont want anyone to give up their secret spots. I just get disappointed when I end up in a more crowded or rowdy spot.

Thanks in advance for any info.

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retired jerry
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Re: Returning to backpacking

Post by retired jerry » April 26th, 2022, 11:13 am

Three Sisters and Jefferson are less crowded now because of those permits. If you can get one. I think they release a batch at exactly 8AM each day so if you jump on it immediately you may be able to get one.

But, last August I encountered a huge pulse of thru hikers and it was actually quite crowded

Mid week is better if you can do that.

Summer - I'll usually do a trip to Burnt Lake (crowded) but then beyond not so bad. Zigzag trail to Paradise Park (uh oh, crowded again). PCT down to Sandy River not so crowded. More people again on Ramona Falls trail. I'll try to walk through the more crowded places and camp at less crowded.

Generally speaking, if you're several miles away from a trailhead it's not so crowded. And if you go off trail then you'll only see Chip.

A secret spot is the unmarked trail between South and Middle Sisters, from PCT to Camp Lake. And then the route between Camp Lake and the pass above Green Lakes. I never see hardly anyone.

Look at the field guide. Trail around Mount Hood and Trail around Three Sisters and also look at adjacent trails to those.

Aimless
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Re: Returning to backpacking

Post by Aimless » April 26th, 2022, 11:23 am

WanderingWingnut wrote:
April 26th, 2022, 10:11 am
Given all the recent wildfires and new permits seeming to pop up in various locations, is there a list of what's open and what permits are required or do you have to check each individual management agency?

For someone seeking a quieter back country experience, are there places to avoid?
The US Forest Service does try to post info about what's open and what permits are required. The websites are divided up according to individual National Forests. It can be frustrating, because those websites are not always updated in a timely way and covid restrictions have made a system that was already slow and inefficient even more so. There are a variety of sites that can give you information about possible snow depths or weather conditions.

This site is an excellent source of timely information about trail conditions, but only for those trails that someone hiked and then posted a report about. This early in the season the trip reports are still very spotty, but they improve in quantity and variety as the season progresses. So, I guess the truest answer is, you just have to cast about for the information you want until you find it or quit looking. :(

As for quieter places, the popularity of backpacking was at a low ebb in the 1990s, but has really taken off in the past decade or so. As a good rule of thumb, lakes are very popular destinations, while river or creek campsites are less popular. Smaller wilderness areas or areas further from big population centers are less crowded, for example Mill Creek wilderness is not crowded. Mt Hood wilderness is much more crowded. The new limited-permit system that just started in the Mt. Jefferson, Mt. Washington, and Three Sisters Wildernesses in 2021 has made those places harder to visit, but much less crowded than they were a few years back.

Things change fast these days, what with so many wildfires. The more you go out, the more you'll get a feel for when and where works best for you. If you want information about a specific place you have in mind, it doesn't hurt to ask here. Someone may reply with just the info you wanted. Or not. :)

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walrus
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Re: Returning to backpacking

Post by walrus » April 26th, 2022, 6:09 pm

Midweek is almost always chill if you can swing it. Permitted areas busy but contained if you can swing a permit.

I've had consistently good luck in the Badger Creek Wilderness and Ochocos (see Mill Creek plug above) in early season (June). Heading down to the Kalmiopsis is another good early season trip.

Midsummer anymore is a calculus of snow/bugs/smoke/fire, so you're best off having several options and checking the weather the night before you leave, IMHO. Check out the Diamond Peak Wilderness and that general area if you don't mind the drive (but after the first week of August if you'll be up high to miss the bugs). Or the Elkhorns.

After Labor Day, people go back to work, everything breathes a little (smoke permitting) and the huckleberries are still going strong.

A good calculus for how crowded a place might be is to search for it on Instagram - if you're seeing a bunch of posts and tags, etc, maybe put it in the fall file. (Goat Rocks, Sisters, Jefferson Park, Wallowas etc)

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Charley
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Re: Returning to backpacking

Post by Charley » April 26th, 2022, 10:38 pm

walrus wrote:
April 26th, 2022, 6:09 pm
Midsummer anymore is a calculus of snow/bugs/smoke/fire, so you're best off having several options and checking the weather the night before you leave, IMHO.
...

After Labor Day, people go back to work, everything breathes a little (smoke permitting) and the huckleberries are still going strong.
...
A good calculus for how crowded a place might be is to search for it on Instagram - if you're seeing a bunch of posts and tags, etc, maybe put it in the fall file. (Goat Rocks, Sisters, Jefferson Park, Wallowas etc)
Excellent advice. Summer has become a balancing game of which kind of conditions are most important/least important to you.

Crowding is like that, as well. You'll have lots less crowding at great destinations if you go up in the Fall. It's amazing how uncrowded the National Parks can be on a autumn Wednesday. Fewer flowers, could be cold/wet, shorter days. On the other hand, you'll be in better shape after the summer, it'll be less crowded, and more trails will be snow-free and fewer logs down over the trails.
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drm
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Re: Returning to backpacking

Post by drm » April 30th, 2022, 6:28 am

The only thing I would add is that early season - now through about June - is the hardest time to find uncrowded areas because everybody wants to get out after the winter but with the high country still under snow, there is little space to spread out. And as has been mentioned in other threads, this year appears to be particularly bad for trees down across the trails, and those get cleared gradually through the spring and summer. Some jurisdictions have good trail maintenance efforts and others seem to leave trails untended for years.

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wildcat
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Re: Returning to backpacking

Post by wildcat » April 30th, 2022, 9:02 am

As a good rule of thumb, lakes are very popular destinations, while river or creek campsites are less popular.
Yeah, why is that? For example I can hike up to June Lake in summertime and there'll be a good-sized community there but then go to my favorite creekside spots elsewhere and there's not another soul around (unless, of course, somebody's come along with me). Is there some psychological effect, perhaps, of the "flowing" nature of a stream or river that turns people off from them compared to lakes?

I can't imagine that it would be for lack of access to water.
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Aimless
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Re: Returning to backpacking

Post by Aimless » April 30th, 2022, 10:11 am

I can only guess why lakes get so much more attention, but I think a variety of factors play into it. First, a lake is a single identifiable destination, easy to find on a map, easy to figure out exactly how far you must hike, and almost certain to have an established campsite once you get there. So, they are very convenient for trip planning. Next, people can easily think of things they might want to do at a lake to pass the time, with swimming strongly at the top of that list, but it is also easier to fish in a lake than on a river, especially for kids and more casual anglers.

I can think of a couple more things that are less obvious, but might also play some small part in this. One is that compared to creeks or rivers, lakes always have a patch of open sky and a view, even if it's only the other side of the lake. The other is that a lot of people are gregarious, so the fact that you're more likely to have other campers at the lake is an attraction for them, as opposed to those of us who seek solitude.

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drm
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Re: Returning to backpacking

Post by drm » May 1st, 2022, 8:43 am

Some people actually like to swim in the frigid waters. Not me.

Aimless
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Re: Returning to backpacking

Post by Aimless » May 1st, 2022, 11:12 am

I think plenty of hikers like to imagine they will swim in the lake. Not so many actually do. :)

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