Oregon Hikers

All true. I prefer Jordan Basin or the campsite with all the rock chairs down past the waterfall.

yeah, I like the rock chairs

I'm sure some people are bothered because humans moved those rocks around

We just returned from Goat Rocks about 10 days ago. We started at the Snowgrass trailhead (it's about 18 miles down a US Forest Service road which is in very good condition) and hiked to Alpine Camp (no water, but there's some down the trail to Lilly Basin), McCall Basin (reliable water there and a fair number of camp sites) and then to Shoe Lake.

Due to the relative proximity of Alpine to the trailhead, there was "competition" for campsites with easy access to the (small) stream. If you're not familiar with the section of the PCT known as "The Knife", it's challenging and very windy: something to consider as it's ~9 miles from Lilly to McCall.

McCall Basin is a relatively popular horse camp. While there was nobody there when we arrived, there was abundant evidence of recent equine traffic in the area. It's ~0.6 mile from the PCT to the Basin campsites.

The hike to Shoe Lake is really nice (and easy). No camping allowed there and it's in relatively close proximity to another "drive-in" access point.

In addition, consider that there was a major fire in the area recently. Parts of the PCT were closed, but I don't know the current status.

So, Goat Rocks is a fantastic area and it's highly recommended (by me). It's not too ambitious or challenging but it's accessible and it's one of my favorite destinations.

Caveat: Last year, we entered via Lilly Basin. There was one section that was best navigated with a 4WD with a short wheelbase.

Have fun!

Keith

I would recommend going counter-clockwise. If you start at Walupt Lake campground, it's about 4.3 miles to Sheep Lake. There are some decent campsites at Sheep Lake. It shouldn't be very crowded. Everyone wants to camp at Goat Lake. The downside is you have to climb up Cispus Pass. That section of the PCT is very scenic. Just be prepared for variable weather. The area is in its own microclimate and can change quickly.

Thanks all. We had an absolutely great hike: https://facebook.com/story.php?story_fb ... 1270325605

Wow, Goat Lake is crowded now? I've never seen anybody there. It's probably been 20+ years though. And I visited very early/late season.

Thanks for the TR, photos and video! Nicely done.

dn

Chip Down wrote: ↑

October 2nd, 2022, 7:54 pm

Wow, Goat Lake is crowded now? I've never seen anybody there. It's probably been 20+ years though. And I visited very early/late season.

It's been a couple of years since I was up there, and I was surprised by how many people I saw. Maybe a quarter of those I saw were through hikers and the rest were day hikers or campers. I went in from the Snowgrass TH and there must have been 50 cars there!

US population has increased by about half again since I started most of my hiking (1978) but it appears there are many times more people out on the trails than in the past.

yeah, Snowgrass Flat trailhead to Snowgrass Flat and Cispus Basin is pretty crowded in my experience

Last year, Goat Lake was very crowded and there was zero privacy. This year (September) Alpine Camp was very crowded this year and any campsite(s) with immediate water access were occupied by about 4:00PM. Nobody was camped at McCall Basin. It's a spectacular area, despite the crowds.