Oregon Archives – Page 4 of 12 – GlassMountains Trip Reports

Jefferson Park, Oregon, October 2022

October 5, 2022 by Paul McClellan Leave a Comment

On October 2, Bob F. and I drove to the Woodpecker Trailhead in the Willamette National Forest. From there we hiked the Woodpecker Ridge and Pacific Crest Trails to Jefferson Park, below the north face of Mount Jefferson. This was my first visit to Jefferson Park in 18 years. I wanted to visit it again and to see how the Lionshead Fire of 2020 had impacted the trails and the park, itself.

Mount Jefferson from the Woodpecker Trail and PCT junction

The Woodpecker Trailhead was still officially closed. But it was a quirk of the regulations that one could park a few hundred feet below the trailhead and hike around it to reach the trails. So we did that. Bob had a Central Cascades Wilderness Permit for the Pamelia Lake Trailhead. So we were legal and prepared for any forest rangers we might encounter.

[Read more…]

Krag Peak, Oregon, September 2022

September 12, 2022 by Paul McClellan Leave a Comment

Saturday morning, September 3, Larry Luehring and I were camped just above Crater Lake in the Wallowa Mountains of Northeast Oregon. We had packed in from the Summit Point Trailhead two days earlier. Our plan this day was to climb Krag Peak after climbing nearby Red Mountain the day before.

Krag Peak from the summit of Red Mountain

Early that morning after a warmer night than previous ones, I listened to the wind blowing through the trees around us from within my tent. I peeked out and saw heavy overcast with darker clouds approaching from the southwest. This was unexpected – I had checked the weather forecast from the summit of Red Mountain the previous day and it was forecast to be sunny this day.

[Read more…]

Red Mountain (Wallowa), Oregon, September 2022

September 9, 2022 by Paul McClellan Leave a Comment

On Wednesday, August 31, I joined Larry Luehring at the McBride Campground in the Wallowa Whitman National Forest near Halfway, Oregon. Our plan was to pack in to Crater Lake on the south side of the Wallowa Mountains and to subsequently climb both Red Mountain and Krag Peak from our camp.

Paul on the Summit Point Trail (Larry Luehring photo)

Larry and I were high school friends. I had first started hiking, backpacking, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, and mountain climbing in Oregon with Larry during our college years. Larry now lives near Portland, Texas, and I had not seen him for 13 years. We reconnected in the context of a July high school reunion which, in the end, neither of us could attend.

[Read more…]

Monkey Face, Oregon, June 1995

June 11, 2021 by Paul McClellan Leave a Comment

Monkey Face is an often photographed and climbed rock tower at Smith Rock State Park in Central Oregon. Linda Topping and I climbed Monkey Face on June 11, 1995, 26 years ago. The climb was an exciting and memorable experience. We fondly remember the climb when we see Monkey Face on our hikes or bike rides in the area. But we have never repeated the climb.

Monkey Face from the southeast in June 1995.

In the view of Monkey Face above, “Bohn Street” is the ledge just above the notch on the left at the base of Monkey Face’s neck. The “bolt ladder” leads up the overhanging neck to the right side of Monkey Face’s mouth. From there we climb out of the left side of the mouth up to the nose, a large rock block with anchors, then scramble up through an eye socket to the top. The overhanging rappel begins at the right side of the nose block.

[Read more…]

« Previous Page