Multi-Day trip with friends

Trip recommendations, current conditions, and other trail related Q&A
HavarghanNara
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Joined: June 9th, 2023, 12:43 pm

Multi-Day trip with friends

Post by HavarghanNara » June 9th, 2023, 12:57 pm

Hey guys, my first post here just been lurking here :D
Me and my friends (5-6 18yo males) want to go on a 3-5 night chill backpacking/camping trip late july or august. We all have gone camping before multiple times and backpacking multiple times successfully, but not this long before. We would be fine with either backpacking for multiple nights and camping the night, or just even a pretty place with an access road decently nearby to put our car. I would really appreciate some advice on cool places, a couple of the hiking ones I've seen are 8 lake basin and larch mountain, would be happy to get some more.
Cheers!

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retired jerry
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Re: Multi-Day trip with friends

Post by retired jerry » June 9th, 2023, 1:34 pm

Late July, early August there'll still be a lot of snow in the Cascades. Eight Lakes Basin may still have a lot of snow. Look for trip reports here.

I think of Larch Mountain as a day trip from Portland

East side of Cascades would probably have little snow. In Jefferson or Three Sisters. They have those annoying permits that are in limited supply.

Strawberry Mountain should be snow free. Or Elkhorn Ridge.

leiavoia
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Re: Multi-Day trip with friends

Post by leiavoia » June 10th, 2023, 4:57 pm

I recommend getting One Night Wilderness Portland and Backpacking Oregon and Backpacking Washington, all by Douglas Loraine. That will give you lots of ideas.

For 3-5 days, don’t waste your able bodied youth sitting around doing nothing. Backpack the whole thing and get out and see some places!

A few places that might fit that time and that group:

Three Fingered Jack - loop hike with variety of scenery and swimmable lakes.
Mt saint Helen’s loowit trail - if you want something more adventurous.
Wallowas / Eagle Cap - nonstop amazing every time I go.
Strawberry Mountain - often overlooked but very beautiful. Time your visit with the meteor shower in august and watch them from the 9000 foot summit
Alpine Lakes Washington - works well for larger groups. It’s on the pct. Longer drive.
Bull of the Woods - more local and lower elevation but multiple recent wildfires may have burned over many good places.
Packwood Lake / Goat Rocks - the ridges higher up are exploding with wildflowers in July.

So so many more …

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teachpdx
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Location: Hillsboro, OR

Re: Multi-Day trip with friends

Post by teachpdx » June 10th, 2023, 10:32 pm

You’ll have enough people to do a shuttle, it sounds like.

I’d recommend a thru-hike of the Elkhorn Crest trail. It’s only three days at an easy pace but can be extended by staying two nights at Summit Lake or Twin Lakes.
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HavarghanNara
Posts: 9
Joined: June 9th, 2023, 12:43 pm

Re: Multi-Day trip with friends

Post by HavarghanNara » June 12th, 2023, 7:56 am

leiavoia wrote:
June 10th, 2023, 4:57 pm
I recommend getting One Night Wilderness Portland and Backpacking Oregon and Backpacking Washington, all by Douglas Loraine. That will give you lots of ideas.

For 3-5 days, don’t waste your able bodied youth sitting around doing nothing. Backpack the whole thing and get out and see some places!

A few places that might fit that time and that group:

Three Fingered Jack - loop hike with variety of scenery and swimmable lakes.
Mt saint Helen’s loowit trail - if you want something more adventurous.
Wallowas / Eagle Cap - nonstop amazing every time I go.
Strawberry Mountain - often overlooked but very beautiful. Time your visit with the meteor shower in august and watch them from the 9000 foot summit
Alpine Lakes Washington - works well for larger groups. It’s on the pct. Longer drive.
Bull of the Woods - more local and lower elevation but multiple recent wildfires may have burned over many good places.
Packwood Lake / Goat Rocks - the ridges higher up are exploding with wildflowers in July.

So so many more …
Hey, a couple people have suggested the Strawberry wilderness, looked at it and it looks great, but there seems to be a couple different loops/trails/starting points. Could you possibly suggest maybe one you've done before or a mileage (we can probably hike at a maximum of 7-10 miles a day if we tried)?

Additionally, what would be the best time to do a trip like this? I've heard that the snowfall makes a lot of mosquitos come out, so the later in August is better? Could you confirm?

leiavoia
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Joined: April 24th, 2015, 9:53 pm

Re: Multi-Day trip with friends

Post by leiavoia » June 12th, 2023, 8:31 am

One possible itinerary would be

High lake rim trailhead start
High lake
Slide lake or little slide lake
Strawberry lake and or little strawberry lake
Onion meadow / summit side trip
Return to high lake rim trailhead

I have been there only in mid august. It was beautiful. Mosquitoes were so so. Weather was perfect.

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retired jerry
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Re: Multi-Day trip with friends

Post by retired jerry » June 12th, 2023, 9:06 am

https://www.oregonhikers.org/field_guid ... _Loop_Hike

Strawberry campground, Strawberry Mt., Slide Lake, back to Strawberry Campground

Now would be a good time. Little snow according to https://adamschneider.net/hiking/snow_depth.html

It gets hotter later. And there are better, closer places later.

HavarghanNara
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Joined: June 9th, 2023, 12:43 pm

Re: Multi-Day trip with friends

Post by HavarghanNara » June 12th, 2023, 9:17 am

leiavoia wrote:
June 12th, 2023, 8:31 am
One possible itinerary would be

High lake rim trailhead start
High lake
Slide lake or little slide lake
Strawberry lake and or little strawberry lake
Onion meadow / summit side trip
Return to high lake rim trailhead

I have been there only in mid august. It was beautiful. Mosquitoes were so so. Weather was perfect.
Yeah that sound pretty good judging from the maps I've seen! It is like 6 hours from me (pdx area) so should we plan to leave in the early am to get there so we can get a full day of hiking? The hike from the trailhead to High Lake doesn't look too far but I can't judge terrain properly. Would we have enough time if we got there from 12-1 pm?

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retired jerry
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Re: Multi-Day trip with friends

Post by retired jerry » June 12th, 2023, 12:20 pm

It's about 1 mile from High Lake Rim trailhead to High Lake

When I was there late June 2013, it was quite hot, so I shifted my schedule. Get up before dawn. Do most hiking in the morning. Rest in the shade for a few hours mid day. Hike some more late afternoon.

Early June 2018 - didn't get above 72 F or so.

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teachpdx
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Location: Hillsboro, OR

Re: Multi-Day trip with friends

Post by teachpdx » June 12th, 2023, 4:50 pm

HavarghanNara wrote:
June 12th, 2023, 9:17 am
leiavoia wrote:
June 12th, 2023, 8:31 am
One possible itinerary would be

High lake rim trailhead start
High lake
Slide lake or little slide lake
Strawberry lake and or little strawberry lake
Onion meadow / summit side trip
Return to high lake rim trailhead

I have been there only in mid august. It was beautiful. Mosquitoes were so so. Weather was perfect.
Yeah that sound pretty good judging from the maps I've seen! It is like 6 hours from me (pdx area) so should we plan to leave in the early am to get there so we can get a full day of hiking? The hike from the trailhead to High Lake doesn't look too far but I can't judge terrain properly. Would we have enough time if we got there from 12-1 pm?
Coming from the PDX metro area and trying to drive and hike on the same day, you'd likely be better served starting out on the other side of the loop and only hiking the short (relatively shaded) distance into Strawberry Lake from Strawberry Basin TH before calling it a day. Even hiking in the middle of the afternoon you'll find some shade, and Strawberry Lake is large enough that you can find a decent camp spot with a large group. Plus, not sure what kind of vehicle(s) you have but the road to Strawberry Basin TH mostly paved with only the last few miles decent gravel. High Rim TH is a lot more gravel and at least 45 mins more driving from Portland.
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