Strawberry Mt loop

[retired jerry]

I did a loop in Strawberry Mt Wilderness

http://www.oregonhikers.org/field_guide ... _Loop_Hike

Except on the south side I made the loop a little longer - down Mud Lake trail, up Meadow Creek trail, Skyline trail back to the loop - 27 miles, 6000 feet elevation gain

Going up to the Strawberry Mt ridge, about 0.5 mile south of Strawberry Mt., there is a large cornice and about 20 vertical feet that is vertical. We chose to go about 0.3 miles north, closer to Strawberry Mt., just a scree slope, then follow the trail back above the cornice

Continuing on the loop, looking down East Fork Indian Creek, the entire valley is burned:

The trail goes through the burned area but no big deal.

Several years ago I hiked over towards Indian Creek Butte and that trail was difficult to follow, lots of fallen trees to climb over.

Hiking down to High Lake. Through another burned area but it was easy:

Then hiked over to above Mud Lake.

Looking down towards Slide Lake there was a bunch of snow, but it was only for about 100 vertical feet.

The first 1.5 miles down to Mud Lake was totally burned over, lots of down trees to climb over, trail very faint. The next 1.5 miles on Mud Lake trail (below Mud Lake) was logged out and easy.

Then we went up the Meadow Creek trail which was through burned areas but the trail was easy.

Looking down Big Creek trail, it was through burned area with lots of down trees, looked very difficult.

We went from the Meadow Creek trail to the Skyline trail. The first 0.5 miles was covered by snow. Lots of down trees. Impossible to follow trail, but we did pretty good following GPS. At the end of that there was cliff but then we found the trail which was easy from then on.

Considering Strawberry Mt Wilderness over-all - There are burned areas all over. Many of those trails are not maintained very good in the best of times. There are only a few areas with snow now, but there are a few areas like the Strawberry Mt ridge, close to 8000 feet, that can still be challenging. Should be better in a couple weeks.

When I did this several years ago it was 80 degree F and warmer, very hot to me. This time it was maybe 70 F max, still pretty sweaty in the afternoon.

[jessbee]

I just missed you! I did a couple of day hikes to Slide Mountain and Indian Creek Butte last weekend.

The trails in that area definitely need some maintenance and more boots on them. Glad to see you were out there.

My friend is doing the loop in a few days. Where did you end up camping?

[retired jerry]

I hiked past Indian Butte several years ago. That trail was difficult to follow. Then went down east fork Canyon Creek and camped.

We camped at Little Strawberry Lake (actually, there was someone there so we walked back a ways)

Then Mud Lake, then back to Strawberry Lake for a early start back to Portland

[leiavoia]

I went up, down, and around the mountain last year to see the eclipse. Little Slide Lake is the cutest little place if you can make it down there. Mud Lake was burned, windy, and lonely when i was there in August. A lot of the trails radiating out to the south/east looked burned out and hard to follow. The trails from Slide Lake going around the ridge to the east and then into the valley below the mountain peak are all very pretty with good trails. Watching the sunrise from the peak was a treat. Onion Creek Meadow just under the peak is a pretty spot with tons of flowers, water, and camping spots.

I would go back to explore the lesser traveled areas if it were not so far away. You can easily spend a week here. Probably much nicer when it doesn't have 1200 people in it, too

[retired jerry]

that must have been a zoo, I bet it was hot too

maybe 1200 people is good for watching an eclipse

[ghsmith76]

Jerry. Thanks for your feedback. I am planning to backpack the Strawberry Mtn Loop in 3 weeks. It is a rather small loop so it looks like I will get to enjoy low milage days since I would like to spend 4 or 5 days there. Is there a specific adjacent trail that you would recommend to lengthen the loop experience?

[retired jerry]

Wildcat Basin is nice. East Fork Canyon Creek. There are some nice ridges around there.

[ghsmith76]

Looking forward to 5 days in the Strawberry Mountain Wilderness next week. Rather then worry about the relative short distances I have decided to focus on relaxing and fishing.
I'm going with a spin reel and my buddy will go with a fly reel so we can trade.

[retired jerry]

Strawberry Lake probably has fish, maybe High Lake and Slide Lake.

Strawberry Lake crowded, but it's so big you can probably find a peaceful place. On opposite side from entrance.

I have caught a fish and eaten it before. That would be good to do, especially if I got tired of hiking so much.

If you hiked up to Strawberry Mt. it's possible you'd run into a patch of snow

That should be a good trip for you

[leiavoia]

Try Little Slide Lake if you want to skip the crowds and do some fishing. Great spot tucked away in the back. The fish there are partial to cheesy pasta.