Devils Peak Loop Hike
From Oregon Hikers Field Guide
- Start point: Seven Lakes Trailhead
- End point: Seven Lakes Trailhead
- Trail Log:
- Hike Type: Loop
- Distance: 13.7 miles
- Elevation gain: 3,100 feet
- High Point: 7,582 feet
- Difficulty: Moderate
- Seasons: Summer, Fall
- Family Friendly: No
- Backpackable: Yes
- Crowded: No
Contents |
Hike Description
The Mountain Lakes Wilderness is located in the Fremont–Winema National Forest in the southern Cascade Range of Oregon. It is unique among US wilderness areas in that it is the only one whose borders form a square, occupying the 36-square-mile area of a single survey township. It surrounds a cluster of four overlapping shield volcanoes, the highest of which is 8,208-foot Aspen Butte. Over 20 small lakes lie along the bottoms of several large cirques carved by Ice Age glaciers near the summits of the volcanoes. Mountain Lakes was one of the three original "primitive areas" designated in Oregon and Washington National Forests in 1930, and it has been managed as a primitive recreation area since that time. When the 1964 Wilderness Act passed, the 23,071 acre Mountain Lakes became one of the nation's original Wilderness Areas.
On a clear day, the views from Aspen Butte are expansive - with Mt. McLoughlin to the north and Mt. Shasta to the south. The shortest approach is via the Clover Creek Trailhead. The Clover Creek trail is mostly through a forest canopy without any extensive views. Follow the trail up Clover Creek about 3.3 miles until you reach a signed trail junction just NW of Clover Lake. Turn right (E) here and contour over and up for 2 miles to a saddle where the main trail starts descending into the Lake Harriette basin. Do not go down into the basin. Aspen Butte is up the use trail to your right (SE). This trail is less defined but generally evident (there are a few cairns) and follows the ridgeline up to the summit of the butte. It's about 1 mile on this use trail to the summit. There are good views from the summit to the north and east.
Note that just before you reach Clover Lake, an abandoned - but still quite evident - trail heads directly N toward the rim of the caldera where it intersects the main trail. It is shown in both the Sullivan and Bond guides and was officially in use until at least 1985. Its tread is still visible in most places and there is also the occassional cairn. Using this old trail cuts a total of two miles off of the hike.
Maps
- Maps: Hike Finder
Trip Reports
- Search Trip Reports for Devils Peak Loop Hike
- Aspen Butte 06-Jun-2015
- Lake Harriette 23-Jun-2015
- Varney Ck TH and Loop 30-Jul-2015
- Mountain Lakes TH 16-Aug-2015
Related Discussions / Q&A
- Search Trail Q&A for Devils Peak Loop Hike
Guidebooks that cover this destination
- Hiking Southern Oregon by Art Bernstein and Zach Urness (2014 Edition, Hike #52)
- 100 Hikes in Southern Oregon by William L. Sullivan (Third Edition, Hikes #53 and #141)
- 75 Scrambles in Oregon by Barbara I. Bond (First Edition, Scramble #27)
More Links
Page Contributors
- VanMarmot (creator)