Misery Ridge

Crooked River at Smith Rock

4 miles loop, 900 feet elevation gain
Difficulty: Moderate
Access: Paved road to trailhead, Oregon State Park fee required

For non-climbers, the astounding spires of Smith Rock can perhaps be best appreciated along the four-mile loop hike over Misery Ridge that travels through the heart of this rocky wonder in central Oregon's high desert. Smith Rock is a climbing mecca, one of the birthplaces of American sport climbing; it also an incredible natural feature with soaring rock pinnacles rising above the placid Crooked River. It is an absolute highlight of Central Oregon; don't let the fact that Smith Rock is just a state park deceive you into thinking that the area is somehow a second-rate natural area. While most reasonably fit hikers will enjoy the Misery Ridge Trail, it's not for everyone: portions of the trail are quite steep and narrow and are best done with boots with good traction and hiking poles. Many visitors to the park attempt the climb up and over Misery Ridge with minimal water and wearing inappropriate footwear, making the trail somewhat more dangerous than it should be.

I visited Smith Rock State Park on a Memorial Day weekend trip to Bend, Oregon. To reach Smith Rock from Bend, follow US 97 north from town past Redmond to Terrebonne and take Smith Rock Way east. Follow signs the rest of the way, turning left onto NE 17th St, left onto Wilcox Ave, and left again onto Crooked River Drive. Follow Crooked River Drive into the park and try to find parking near the visitor center. There are automated pay stations scattered throughout the park's many parking areas. As Smith Rock's fame has grown in recent years, expect crowds at the park.

From the visitor center, I followed the Rim Rock Trail north to a shelter on the rim of the canyon where the main trail descended into the canyon. This spot already delivered a stunning view of Shiprock, a prominent nearby formation, and of the many other buttresses and pinnacles of Smith Rock. The Crooked River flowed lazily around the foot of the tuff spires. Smith Rock's geology differs from the surrounding area: while this part of Oregon is dominated by flood basalts, Smith Rock itself is composed of much older tuff formed by the collapse of an ancient caldera. Erosion by the Crooked River has exposed the Smith Rock tuff and carved it into its current dramatic form.

Crooked River and Smith Rock

I descended to the Crooked River Bridge via the Canyon Trail, which was a broad emergency road and had a much gentler grade than the steeper Chute Trail. The Canyon Trail was also substantially quieter than the Chute Trail, which most visitors were using to access the bridge. I was glad to check out the Canyon Trail, as it provided some unique and beautiful perspectives on Shiprock.

Smith Rock

At the base of the canyon, the Canyon Trail joined back up with the Chute Trail and passed a round, manicured grassy lawn that apparently serves as a helipad. I crossed the bridge over the Crooked River and found myself at the foot of the towering 600-foot cliffs of Smith Rock.

There are two options for completing the Misery Ridge loop: heading clockwise and saving the Misery Ridge climb for later, or hiking counterclockwise and tackling Misery Ridge first. I chose to get the uphill over with early and took the Misery Ridge Trail at the fork after crossing the bridge.

The Misery Ridge Trail wasted no time, immediately jumping into a steep switchback ascent up the slopes of the rock. The rock faces above the trail were dotted with climbers challenging the many routes on Smith Rock's tuff. I found many small caves in the tuff itself, which reminded me of the similar rock found at New Mexico's Bandelier National Monument, where Puebloan peoples carved cavetes into the tuff of the Jemez Caldera. As I followed the switchbacks uphill, the views improved and I soon had a great overview of Shiprock, the Crooked River, and the trails leading down into the canyon from the parking lot across the river.

Crooked River Canyon, Shiprock

After completing the first set of switchbacks, the trail began to traverse to the north, wrapping around the side of the rock. This soon brought me to the northeast side of Misery Ridge, where the trail overlooked a sharp bend in the Crooked River as it flowed past a particularly notable rock tower called the Monument.

Monument at Smith Rock

The trail continued climbing steeply, embarking on a second set of switchbacks as it began to head up a break in the cliffs towards the top of Misery Ridge. As I climbed up, views improved with a line of peaks emerging behind Misery Ridge and with more and more of the Terrebonne countryside coming into view.

Crooked River flows below Monument

After a sustained climb from the bridge, the trail finally leveled out upon reaching the crest of Misery Ridge. A large rock here overlooked the terrain to the east and was a popular lunch spot: from here, I could look down to see the bend in the Crooked River, Monument, Newberry Volcano in the distance to the south, and Mount Hood to the distance in the north.

Mount Hood in the distance

The true summit was off of the main trail; multiple spur trails led towards the high point of Misery Ridge. While I came slightly short of reaching the true high point, I scrambled my way up a use path to one of the many rocks with almost 360-views just below the highest rock. The panorama here was excellent: in addition the bird's eye view of all of Smith Rock and of the Crooked River's circuitous path, this spot also provided views of the Cascade volcanoes on the western horizon. Mount Bachelor, Broken Top, the Three Sisters, Mount Washington, Black Butte, and Mount Jefferson formed the western skyline. Just beyond the volcanoes was the cloud layer blanketing the western Cascades, which had missed out on the glorious sun east of the mountains. Between Smith Rock and the Cascades were green fields in the desert watered by the plentiful melting snows of the mountains.

Broken Top and the Three Sisters and the irrigated Oregon high desert

Broken Top, Mount Bachelor, and Smith Rock

Mount Jefferson

The trail delivered consistently good views as it crossed the crest of Misery Ridge. On the northwest side of the ridge, the trail began to descend down the ridge. Here, views were still spectacular: I could see the Crooked River flowing to the north below the cliffs of Smith Rock with Black Butte, Mount Jefferson, and Mount Hood rising on the horizon. Right in front of me stood a massive free-standing rock formation, the Monkey Face. A look at the top of this particular rock tower made the name self-explanatory: the upper portion of the rock bore a striking resemblance to a monkey's head.

Monkey Face with Black Butte, Mount Jefferson, and the Crooked River

The descent from Misery Ridge featured constant views of Monkey Face and the Crooked River as the trail made a series of switchbacks. One of the more unique views of this scene was from a small rock cave directly off the trail: a cavity had been eroded into the heart of a boulder, creating a crawl space that easily accommodates two people.

Monkey Face from a small rock cave

 Monkey Face is one of the most popular climbing objectives in the park and was packed with climbers ascending the east face and rappelling down from the nose/mouth area when I visited.

Rappelling down and climbing up Monkey Face

The Misery Ridge Trail intersected with the Mesa Verde Trail at the base of Monkey Face. Here, the right fork led towards the First Kiss wall; I took the left fork, which followed the base of the Mesa Verde Wall as the trail gradually descended towards the Crooked River. The higher stretch of the Mesa Verde Trail featured beautiful views of Smith Rock's spires rising above the Crooked River with the Three Sisters and Broken Top in the distance. One of the more disconcerting sights on the hike occurred on the Mesa Verde Trail: an emergency stretcher was installed by the trail here, a reminder of the occasional dangers of sport climbing.

Crooked River, Smith Rock, Three Sisters

The Mesa Verde Trail eventually made its way down to the level of the Crooked River, where it intersected the River Trail. I followed the River Trail south as it made its way around the southern tip of Smith Rock. The riverside views here were excellent: the late afternoon sun lit up Monkey Face and many of the other spires on the western side of Smith Rock.

Crooked River and Monkey Face

The trail followed the river upstream, rounding the southern tip of Smith Rock. As the trail wrapped around towards the north, Shiprock came back into view: I was nearing the end of the loop. The low angle of the evening sun created dramatic lighting over this landscape of outcrops.

Crooked River reflections

While there were many extraordinary rock forms at Smith Rock, I found the Smith Rock Group and the Phoenix Buttress to be among the most inspiring and dramatic forms. The spires here soared above the Crooked River and, although smaller in scale, reminded me of the cliffs of Zion and Yosemite.

Phoenix Buttress of Smith Rock

The stretch of rockwall just south of Shiprock was packed with climbers, with tens of groups attempting the variety of different routes up the sides of Smith Rock. After passing Shiprock, I arrived back at the footbridge and closed the loop. After crossing back over the bridge on the Crooked River, I took the steeper Chute Trail back uphill to the Rim Rock Trail and the parking area.

This is a remarkable hiking trail and an exceptionally beautiful destination. While hikers visiting Smith Rock won't be able to avoid the crowds, sharing the trail with hundreds of others is worth it for such a unique hike.

Black Butte (Oregon)

Black Butte cupola lookout with Three-Fingered Jack and Mount Jefferson

4 miles round trip, 1550 feet elevation gain
Difficulty: Easy-moderate
Access: Rough gravel road to trailhead (closed in winter), Northwest Forest Pass required

Black Butte is an extinct stratovolcano on the eastern side of Oregon's Cascade crest with huge views of the chain of Cascade volcanoes in central Oregon. Its nearly perfectly symmetrical cone makes it easily recognizable throughout the Bend area, its position east of the crest gives it a sunnier position and allows the trail to melt out early relative to other areas of similar elevation, and its offset location from the main chain of volcanoes gives a unique vantage point up and down the range. As the road to the trailhead takes visitors to just shy of 4900 feet, this is a relatively easy hike to reach the summit of a prominent 6436-foot tall volcano. The summit is crowned with not one but two fire lookouts for aficionados searching out those structures.

I hiked up Black Butte at the end of a three-day May trip to Bend, Oregon, making it an early stop along my drive back to Seattle. From Bend, I took US 20 north through Sisters. After passing Sisters, US 20 headed directly towards Black Butte, which rose straight in front of the road. At the sign for Indian Ford Campground, I made a right turn onto Forest Service Road 11, a paved road which I followed north for a few miles through a gorgeous ponderosa pine forest. At the junction with Forest Service Road 1110, a sign indicated that the Black Butte Lookout was to the left; I took the left turn here and began driving up a good gravel road. The road ascended the butte by wrapping partially around it; at the second switchback, the road went from a good gravel road to a rough gravel one with plenty of rocks and a few potholes, which continued for the last mile of the drive. Trailhead parking was somewhat limited but there was space to park alongside the road for a distance leading out from the trailhead. On Memorial Day, parking was packed.

From the trailhead, the trail made an immediate turn and began heading to the northwest through a forest of stately ponderosa pines. The grade was moderate and steady. At about two-thirds of a mile, the trail made a sharp switchback; shortly after the switchback, tree cover began to thin out as the trail entered the more open upper slopes of the butte. At about a mile, the trail fully came out into open manzanita slopes. The tower lookout atop the summit of Black Butte was visible above.

Ponderosa pine forest

Lookout from the trail

Open slopes meant views: as I ascended along the trail past blooming patches of desert parsley, I  soaked in the views of the Three Sisters (specifically North and South Sister here; Middle Sister was fully blocked by North Sister), Broken Top, Mount Washington, and Three Fingered Jack. These open south-facing slopes were quite hot: be sure to bring plenty of water if you're hiking this trail on a nice summer day, as there are no water sources on the mountain itself.

Three Fingered Jack and the trail up Black Butte

Broken Top, Three Sisters, and Mount Washington

A few steep ascents punctuated the otherwise steady uphill as the trail began to wrap around the eastern slopes of the butte, passing through a burn area and providing plenty of views of US 20 below, Newberry Volcano in the distance, and nearby landmarks such as Smith Rock. As the trail gradually wrapped around to the north side of Black Butte, an extraordinary sight unfolded: first Mount Adams in Washington State popped into view, faint in distance; then came Mount Hood and then finally Mount Jefferson with its spire summit.

Jefferson, Hood, Adams

The final stretch of trail was a little flatter as I traversed the north slopes of the mountain just downhill of the summit. The tower fire lookout, still in use today, was visible just uphill; unfortunately it's closed to the public. The trail came to the broad summit between the two lookouts; I headed west along the summit ridge towards the old cupola lookout.

New fire lookout

The older of the two fire lookouts atop Black Butte has a unique cupola architecture; it has stood atop Black Butte for almost a century now. Entry into the lookout is prohibited, but the structure's unique features are still easy to admire from the outside.

Cupola lookout

From the lookout, there is an excellent view of the line of volcanoes that make up the Cascades. Adams, Hood, Jefferson, Three Fingered Jack, Washington, North Sister, South Sister, and Broken Top formed an orderly line from north to south along the western horizon.

Mount Jefferson

Broken Top and the Sisters

Many hikers were at the summit, but luckily there was room to spread out and enjoy the views. I gained a certain satisfaction while at the summit knowing that I had climbed both Adams and South Sister, the stratovolcanoes anchoring the two ends of the view.

Icicle Ridge via Fourth of July Creek

The Stuart Range from Icicle Ridge

12 miles round trip, 4800 feet elevation gain
Difficulty: Strenuous; steep trail with significant elevation gain and snakes
Access: Paved road to trailhead, no pass required

The former lookout site on Icicle Ridge in Washington's Cascades commands an astonishing view of many of the tallest peaks in the range, including a direct view across the deep Icicle Gorge to the jagged granite peaks of the Stuart Range that make up the backbone of the Enchantments. To reach this view, one must ascend nearly a vertical mile from the depths of Icicle Gorge to the crest of the ridge, braving hot, exposed southern slopes riddled with snakes and a trail with at least 60 switchbacks. This is not a hike for everyone- while the payoffs are huge, the trail demands just as much out of those who attempt it. But hikers willing to put up with the demands of the trail can enjoy stunning vistas with sparse company from an easily accessible trailhead.

A quick summary of the hazards on the trail: first of all, the elevation gain is insane; the 4800 feet of climbing to reach the top of Icicle Ridge exceeds the 4400 feet of climbing between the Colchuck Lake Trailhead and Aasgard Pass for entering the Enchantments. Second, the entire climb is on the southern slopes of Icicle Ridge, which have sparse forest cover and are generally quite exposed. There are a few dangers here: direct sunlight (and there's lots of sun here, east of the Cascade crest) can make the trail extremely hot and extremely dry as well; on a clear day, expect to require a minimum of three liters of water for the climb. In spring, there may be a few water sources on the trail, but these dry up in the summer so be prepared to bring your own. Finally, the sunny, open southern slopes are a perfect location for snakes to soak up some sun. Rattlesnakes are commonly spotted on this hike; I saw four snakes on my trip up and down the ridge. Be sure to understand how to deal with snake encounters before you head out.

I hiked this trail on a June weekday when the weekend forecast looked grim. Wanting to avoid the overcast weather west of the Cascades and hoping to spend minimal time postholing by finding a hike that melts out early, I settled on spending my Thursday hiking up Icicle Ridge. From the Seattle area, I followed US 2 east to Leavenworth, then turned right onto Icicle Creek Road and followed it south and then west past the Snow Lakes Trailhead and Eightmile Campground to the Fourth of July Creek Trailhead. Trailhead parking was directly off the road on the north side (right if driving in from Leavenworth). A packed parking lot at the Snow Lakes Trailhead was enough to convince me that even on a weekday in the PNW, I should seek less crowded trails. There was just one other car at the Fourth of July Creek Trailhead and I saw just one other person on the hike all day.

From the trailhead, the trail dived into the ponderosa pine forest and began initially with a gentle ascent. In 300 yards, the trail came to Fourth of July Creek; after crossing the first time, the trail headed uphill a bit more and then crossed back over on a slightly precarious log.

Fourth of July Creek

After the second creek crossing, the trail embarked on the long switchback climb. The intial climb wasn't bad: plenty of ponderosa pines provided shade, the trail tread itself was gentle dirt, the incline was steady but moderate, and plenty of wildflowers dotted the trailside, including elegant cat's ears and thimbleberries.

Elegant Cat's Ear

As the trail ascended further, the forest began to thin out and sun exposure increased substantially. On the one hand, this meant views: Cashmere and the Chiwaukums were occasionally visible. On the other hand, this meant snakes: I saw four snakes on the trail in this area. Although rattlesnakes are known to frequent the terrain near this trail, I thankfully didn't see any all day.

Ponderosa pine forest

The more open slopes also brought a profusion of blooming wildflowers. Here, I spotted the last remnants of the arrowleaf balsamroot bloom along with the full blossoms of tiger lilies, lupine, wild rose, paintbrush, and penstemon.

Tiger lilies

Lupine, wild rose

Penstemon

At about 1.5 miles from the trailhead, the trail continued climbing via switchbacks but became much steeper- the stretch from here through mile 3 was the most strenuous stretch of the trail. Here, the very steep trail ascended through slopes baked by the midday sun with brushy vegetation concealing the location of snakes near the trail. On the plus side, views of Icicle Gorge, the Chiwaukums, and Cashmere Mountain became ever better. As the trail passed a trickle of a stream at the 2 mile mark, the tips of the Dragontail and Colchuck Peaks popped into view to the south.

Icicle Gorge and the Chiwaukums

The trail eased its ascent after mile 3, although the steady uphill continued to the very end of the hike. Although the trail was mostly out in the open at this point, it still passed through pockets of ponderosa pine forest at times; in the shaded stretches of trail, I found a smattering of blooming wild geraniums.

At about four miles in, the trail crested a small hump in the ridge leading up to the Icicle Ridge summit. At this point, the trail emerged into an old burn area that covered much of the ridge's upper slopes. The rocky summit and destination of the hike also came into view for the first time. The views of the Stuart Range, which had been improving steadily the entire time through the climb, were now extraordinary, with Mount Stuart emerging in its full glory. The bulk of the climb was now done, with just 1400 feet of uphill left to go before the summit.

Entering the burn on Icicle Ridge

I pushed through the final stretch of the trail, which featured a nicer tread and a steady but reasonable incline. Phlox and paintbrush bloomed near the trail and the Stuart Range dominated the southern skyline. After making a traverse towards the ridge, the trail embarked on a final set of switchbacks to reach the crest of Icicle Ridge. Glacier lilies, although not plentiful, were blooming in spots here. Whitebark pines replaced the ponderosa pines of the lower slopes.

Dragontail, Colchuck, Argonaut, Sherpa, and Stuart- a quintet of Bulgers- from the top of Icicle Ridge

The trail hit a patch of snow shortly before coming to the ridge crest but was otherwise free of snow from the trailhead up to 6800 feet on the first week of June. Arriving at the crest at about 5.5 miles, the Fourth of July Creek trail met up with the Icicle Ridge Trail, which led both east towards Leavenworth and west towards the lookout. I took the left fork, following the trail north and west towards the summit of the ridge.

Views of the Stuart Range and Cashmere atop Icicle Ridge

The trail along the ridge soon became fully snow-covered, with about 2 to 3 feet of snow cover remaining. I postholed a few times en route to a signed trail junction with the spur trail towards the lookout. Here, I took the left fork again and followed a path the final few hundred feet uphill to the pile of boulders at the summit. I scrambled up a little bit up the rocky outcrop but stopped just short of the true summit block, which would required a bit of trickier scrambling which I wasn't comfortable with doing while alone. The summit just barely reaches 7000 feet in elevation.

From Icicle Ridge, the peaks within view include Cannon, Dragontail, Colchuck, Argonaut, Sherpa, Stuart, Cashmere, Glacier, Clark, Buck, Chiwawa, Maude, and Seven-Fingered Jack- at least 13 of the 100 highest peaks in Washington State. It's likely that even more were visible (Luahna, Fortress, Dumbell, Fernow, and Cardinal among others may have been visible but were difficult for me to identify). Although the skies were initially a bit hazy, a stiff wind helped clear things up a bit during the hour and a half that I waited at the summit.

Glacier Peak, the Dakobed Range, Bonanza, and the Entiat Mountains

Some more notes about the view: the enormity of Cashmere Mountain is particularly obvious from Icicle. It's unclear whether the peak bookending the Enchantments on the west from Icicle was the Temple or McClellan Peak, though I suspect it was the Temple with Prusik Peak on the right end of the massif. Mount Daniel was visible above the shoulder of Cashmere with its remarkable coat of glaciers- it looks quite tall from this angle so it's difficult to imagine that Daniel is actually shorter than Cashmere. The Dakobed Range is clearly visible to the southeast of Glacier Peak, with both Tenpeak and Clark Mountains easily identifiable. Although Tumwater Canyon and the Wenatchee River seem like they should be visible from the lookout site, they're actually obscured by Icicle Ridge's broad shoulders to the north and east.

Stuart, Cashmere, and Daniel

I enjoyed the views and chatted briefly with the one other hiker on the trail that day, who had come up from Wenatchee with his two year old pup. After taking in my fill of Stuart Range views (and because I was getting a bit chilly from the wind), I made my down the equally grueling descent.

Tumalo Falls

Tumalo Falls from the trailhead

4 miles round trip, 550 feet elevation gain
Difficulty: Easy
Access: Good gravel road to trailhead, Northwest Forest Pass required

The hundred-foot plunge of Tumalo Falls is the prettiest waterfall near Bend, Oregon and is a popular spot; however, most visitors come to the area and leave after just seeing the main falls. Hikers up for a short jaunt can see three additional waterfalls along Tumalo Creek with just an easy four-mile round trip effort; while none of the other falls are quite impressive as Tumalo Falls itself, all the falls along the trail are beautiful and worth the easy effort necessary to reach them.

I hiked to Upper Falls on a holiday weekend morning, arriving at the trailhead just after sunrise to avoid the crowds that would show up later in the day. To reach the trailhead, I took Skyliners Road out from Bend; this paved road had some initial views of the Three Sisters and Broken Top and led out to the Skyliners neighborhood, where the road transitioned to gravel and continued west to a dead end at the Tumalo Falls Trailhead. I was the first person to arrive for the day when I pulled into the lot at 6 AM; the lot was more or less full by the time I returned from my hike around 8:30.

The most famous view of Tumalo Creek plunging down into a gorge of basalt walls was just steps from the parking area. The viewpoint was surprisingly small for such a busy spot: I can imagine having to wait or jostle for a view of the falls later in the day. The sun hadn't risen yet, so I took advantage of the low lighting to take some long exposure shots of the falls and then set out on my hike.

The trail headed uphill from the parking area and arrived at the cliffs overlooking the falls in just a quarter of a mile. Here, a small platform protruded over the edge of the gorge for a better view of the falls. There were good views down the canyon of Tumalo Creek.

Tumalo Falls

Past the falls, the trail paralleled Tumalo Creek for a while; it was absolutely delightful to hike along this rushing mountain stream. The creek has its headwaters on the slopes of Broken Top, the remnants of a former volcano that today forms one of the most dramatic summits near Bend. Snow and glacier melt on the mountain feed this stream as it tumbles down towards the desert to meet the Deschutes River.

Rushing water of Tumalo Creek

The trail then left the creek and began a steady ascent through the forest. Soon, the trail was well above the level of the creek, which now flowed at the bottom of a rocky gorge. A mile past Tumalo Falls, I came to Double Falls, where a rock outcrop jutted out into the gorge and offered a pretty view of the two-tiered waterfall. Although the falls were nearly a hundred feet below where I stood, spray from the falls was still washing over the rocks atop the edge of the gorge.

Double Falls

Just beyond Double Falls, the trail came to another waterfall; although this cascade was smaller and less impressive and not officially named, it was still a pleasant stop; I'll refer to these falls here as Upper Double Falls, as they occur less than a hundred meters upstream of Double Falls.

Upper Double Falls

Past Upper Double Falls, the trail flattened out briefly at the level of Tumalo Falls before beginning yet another ascent. This ascent continued gently for another half mile to reach Upper Falls two miles from the trailhead. There is no clear view of Upper Falls from the viewpoint along the trail, but a rough social path leads towards the base of the falls; as the path was very steep and I was alone, I chose to stop at a clear view of the falls about halfway down this path. Upper Falls were quite impressive, a thundering 45-foot drop on Tumalo Creek.

Upper Falls

I found the vegetation transitions on this hike quite interesting: near the trailhead at Tumalo Falls, the trail was still in a drier habitat and the trail was lined with manzanita and other plants indicative of a drier climb. However, just two miles away and a couple hundred feet higher at Upper Falls, the forest was substantially greener and lusher.

South Sister

The Cascade volcanoes march north

12.5 miles round trip, 4900 feet elevation gain
Difficulty: Strenuous
Access: Paved road to trailhead (closed in winter), Northwest Forest Pass required

South Sister is a stratovolcano, the tallest of the Three Sisters and the third tallest peak in the state of Oregon. It is also one of the easier major Cascade volcanoes to summit: in late summer, hikers can follow a steep, rocky, and strenuous trail to the 10,358-foot peak. The views from this volcanic peak are some of the most astounding in the Pacific Northwest, including a jaw-dropping view to both the north and the south of the chain of volcanoes composing the Cascade Mountains from California's Mount Shasta to Washington's Mount Rainier. I chose to climb South Sister in late spring, taking advantage of early season snow cover to avoid the late season scree and crowds.

It's important to understand that an easy volcano doesn't mean an easy hike. This is a hike that should only be attempted by experienced hikers; the climb is only easy in the sense that it is not a technical glacial climb, even though it ascends a glaciated peak. Hikers who come before the snowfields along the trail melt out should carry an ice axe and know how to self arrest; crampons or microspikes are also necessary. Let me be clear about what this means: if you don't know which end of an ice axe you'd use to self arrest, you shouldn't be climbing South Sister before the snow melts.

I climbed South Sister over a Memorial Day weekend trip to Bend. Waking a little after 3, I drove from Bend out to the trailhead at Devils Lake on the Cascades Lakes Highway in the dark, with the silhouettes of Mount Bachelor, Broken Top, and South Sister occasionally visible in the light of the almost-full moon. The parking lot at Devils Lake was almost full by the time I arrived and plenty of skiers and other hikers were preparing to set out when I left the trailhead a little before 5 AM. Although not a true alpine start, I chose to start early for optimal snow conditions and to complete as much of the climb as possible before the sun softened the snow.

Leaving the parking area, the trail crossed a stream via a log bridge and quickly came to the Cascades Lakes Highway again. The trail crossed the road and came to what was effectively a second trailhead, where I filled out a self-issue permit for hiking in the Three Sisters Wilderness. Past the road, the trail entered the forest and began a steady uphill climb through the forest. About a mile in, the trail turned into a small gulch; here, patchy snow turned into solid cover and the trail disappeared beneath a few feet of consolidated snow. I followed the tracks of the hundreds of hikers and skiers who had ascended up the valley previously. The ascent in the gulch was initially gentle, but at the north end of the gulch, the path ascended steeply to exit the gulch and reach a junction with the trail to Moraine Lake about two miles from the trailhead. The trail sign was just barely poking above the snow, signaling that I was still on track towards the summit.

Here, the forest opened up, yielding great views for the rest of the hike. I trudged uphill through an open, snowy clearing dotted with trees that gave the first clear views of South Sister and the climb ahead. Looking back, I could see clouds filling the valley of the Cascades Lakes and the just-risen sun casting its light on Mount Bachelor and Diamond Peak farther to the south.

Mount Bachelor from the Golf Course

After a three-quarter mile trudge across snow, I ascended a small hill and then came out onto the Golf Course, an even larger open area that was at the moment still covered in snow. South Sister rose directly ahead: I studied the route ahead before crossing the Golf Course to reach the foot of mountain and the start of the true climb. Broken Top was visible to the east.

Looking to the climb ahead from the Golf Course

Leaving the Golf Course, I began the long slog up South Sister. Although the trail was not visible under the many feet of snow, tracks of previous hikers marked the route, which followed the west side (left on the climb up) of the ridge leading up from the Golf Course. The shadow of the ridge kept this stretch of the climb in the shadow, keeping the snow hard even after sunrise. Continuous climbing brought me up to a small saddle where the snow ended briefly; here, I hopped back on the trail for an ascent up a scree slope.

Halfway up

At the top of the scree slope, I emerged at a saddle between a small moraine rockpile and South Ridge, which led up and around the Lewis Glacier to the summit crater. The Lewis Glacier filled the depression between South Ridge and Hodge Crest but at this point in the year was still fully covered by the winter snowpack. A small, robin's egg blue tarn lay at the foot of the glacier. The wind was roaring here, with a sustained gale force. This particular saddle was about 1.2 mile uphill from the base of the climb at the Golf Course and was still 1500 feet in elevation below the summit.

Lewis Glacier and the final ascent to the crater

At this point, most climbers had the option of either hiking on scree or snow; a snowbank above the Lewis Glacier allowed for hiking in the snow along South Ridge, while South Ridge itself had melted out and allowed for scree hiking. I chose scree hiking to avoid some sketchy cornice stretches of the snow climb; this route made for an unpleasant experience, with loose footing and a constant blast of ash in my face from the high winds. The ever-improving views made up for the discomfort, with Broken Top now fully visible along with a line of volcanoes extending south to Mount Scott on the rim of Crater Lake.

Broken Top and the Lewis Glacier tarn

The scree hiking didn't last forever: the final slope up to the crater rim was still more or less fully snowbound. I donned my microspikes again for the final push uphill through the brutal winds.

The final push

Almost five hours after setting out, I stood atop the crater rim of South Sister. Before crossing the crater to reach the true summit on the crater's north side, I gazed south to appreciate the vista of lakes, volcanoes, and forest that stretched south all the way to Mount McLoughlin in southern Oregon and Mount Shasta in northern California.

Views south to the Cascade Lakes, Mount Scott, and Mount Thielsen

South Sister is crowned by a wide, flat summit crater. The crater is mostly filled by a glacier; when the winter snowpack melts in late summer, a small tarn- Teardrop Lake, the highest body of water in the state of Oregon- will exist for a few months each year. During my visit, the glacier was still fully covered by snow and Teardrop Pool was still months from forming. I hiked across the crater and then completed the final uphill to reach the true summit.

A string of climbers approaching and leaving the summit

Summit crater of South Sister

The summit of South Sister boasts a viewshed that is nearly unrivalled in the contiguous United States. It is the only spot which I know where it is possible to simultaneously see Mount Shasta in California and Mount Rainier in Washington State. Almost every major volcano between the two is visible from here as well: McLoughlin, the remnants of Mount Mazama (Crater Lake's rim), Mount Thielsen, Diamond Peak, Newberry Caldera, Mount Bachelor, Broken Top, Middle and North Sister, Three-Fingered Jack, Jefferson, Hood, St. Helens, and Adams. Smaller nearby landmarks like Black Butte, Smith Rock, and the city of Bend were clearly visible as well, as were the Cascade Lakes (Sparks, Elk, and Lava Lakes) to the south. Gazing west, I could see past the many ridges of the Cascades out to the Coast Ranges. Both the ridge of Hodge Crest and the crevasses of Prouty Glacier were visible on the eastern flanks of South Sister itself.

The view north: Middle and North Sister, Three-Fingered Jack, Jefferson, Hood, Adams, St. Helens, Rainier

Broken Top and Mount Bachelor

On the descent, I plunge stepped my way down the mountain, this time choosing to stick to the snow. Although I noticed a few glissade tracks on my way up, I was unfortunately only able to do a few short glissades. The snow was still much too hard for good glissading due to the wind and many of the glissade tracks appeared to have sketchy runouts into rocky areas or away from the route.

South Sister is a rare spot where the extraordinary alpine world of a high summit is accessible to those lacking technical alpine skills. Along with Mount St. Helens and Mount Adams in Washington State, it is an excellent way for experienced hikers to try out mountaineering. The peak is a well known gateway drug to mountaineering: no less an outdoors luminary than writer Jon Krakauer was introduced to mountaineering on the slopes of this mountain.