Linda and I camped four nights at the Parish Cabin Campground over the Labor Day Weekend in September 2010. The pleasant campground lies along Bear Creek south of the Strawberry Mountains. Over the next three days I climbed five peaks located in the Strawberry Mountain Wilderness to the north. During these climbs I experienced unexpected but quite pleasant Strawberry Mountains Solitude.

The peaks I visited were Graham Mountain, [Riner Basin-Slide], Indian Creek Butte, Pine Creek Mountain (East Peak), and [Berry-Norton]. These peaks are among Jeff Howbert’s Oregon 100 Highest Peaks, a list which had caught my interest and ambition.

My routes included trails much less frequently used than the Strawberry Basin Trail, the most popular hiking route up Strawberry Mountain. The trails I used were at times rocky. Some joining trails had been obscured by recent wildfires and subsequent brush regrowth.

In addition to it being the Labor Day Weekend, there was a muzzleloader hunt in progress in the area. Some hunters shared the campground with us.

I expected to see several hikers or hunters on or near the trails. On Saturday I saw two other vehicles parked at the Meadow Fork Trailhead. But I only saw one man and his two sons on the trail that day.

On Sunday I saw two or three other vehicles parked at the Roads End Trailhead. Surprisingly, I saw no one on the Indian Creek Access, Pine Creek, or Canyon Mountain Trails that day.

On Monday I saw no other vehicles parked at the Joaquin Miller Trailhead. But I did hear one person just off the Joaquin Miller Trail apparently prospecting along a cliff.

Of course, hunters may have observed me, but I felt a significant sense of solitude those three days. I am sure my solitude would have been magnified even more had I camped overnight along any of those trails.

The Strawberry Range appears to offer a genuine wilderness experience for those avoiding the heavily used Strawberry Basin trails.