Hiking the hills in Lakeview

Lakeview, Oregon is a small town (~2,500 residents) in the south, central part of the state. It sits at a mile in elevation and is high desert. From the hills in Lakeview, you can see Goose Lake straddling the border of Oregon and California.

Every decade, high school students repaint the letter 'L' in the hill-side near town. The hike to the 'L' is steep and fairly rocky but short (~ 0.5-1 mile each way). It is a great opportunity to spot deer and wildflowers (in the spring).

This year, our hikes in the hills were unique in the view of the shockingly low water level of Goose Lake (in March). Everywhere we went, people in the area had something to say about the drought. It will be a tough year for cattle as well as the native animals and migrating birds.

Crack In the Ground

Crack in the Ground is a geological site in Christmas Valley, Oregon.  It is a two-mile long rock-lined crack in the ground (up to 70 feet deep and 10 feet wide).  It is possible to hike in the bottom of a short section of the crack with limited bouldering.

We walked in the bottom of the crack and returned by walking on the top. The canyon itself s interesting – the walls on one side of the crack are smooth and weathered with rounded surfaces. The other side has sharp edges and rock planes. The Wikipedia site on this location indicates that Crack in the Ground is a volcanic fissure. It is believed to be fairly new – only ~1,000 years old.

The most interesting part about the location was the top-side return hike. First, it would be possible to be on horse-back in this area and fall right into either the main crack or one of the tributaries.  There is no real indication that at crack exists as you make a perpendicular approach.

We also observed a large nest sitting on the top of one of the larger rock surfaces in the crack with three tan eggs. It might have been an owl’s nest that had been abandoned. Cliff swallows were also present.

This is an easy hike and the overall visit could last from 1 – 2 hours. We were pretty hungry and headed into Paisley for a late lunch.

Derrick Cave – Fort Rock, Oregon

Derrick Cave is a large lava tube, located in south-central Oregon. The cave is best accessed from the north. Original access was described as part of the BLM’s Back Country Byway. However, this route requires crossing private land. The current landowners appear to have had enough bad experiences with people not understanding how to drive on rocky, gravel roads. Signs posted at the start of their property warn that there is no longer access to Derrick Cave from the south. A good forest service map of the Newberry National Monument will lead you to the cave.

Derrick Cave is unique in both its size (30-foot diameter) and use as a nuclear fall-out shelter during the Cold War. At one time, the cave was outfitted to provide food and water for approximately 1,200 people.

Our visit to Derrick Cave was the first ‘caving’ experience for me and my son. It was a great way to start our caving adventures. The cave is big enough that we were able to stand throughout. The hiking involved a bit of scrabbling across boulders. The biggest adjustment was hiking in the dark. We had some fun with periodically turning all of our lights off.

We brought a few head lamps, flashlights and our usual first aid kit and water. We spent about an hour hiking into and out of the cave. Because it was spring, the outside temperature was not much different from the interior of the cave. However, in the summer, the temperature difference would be large. There are ice formations in the cave. There was also quite a bit of dust. The surfaces of the rocks are abrasive – so long sleeves, gloves and good shoes (i.e. not flip-flops) are a good idea. I walked out with torn gloves, but my running shoes were fine.

Hart Mountain National Antelope Refuge

South of Steens Mountain is Hart Mountain National Antelope Refuge. Hart Mountain is a fault block ridge contained within a 422 square mile refuge. The refuge is predominantly high desert but also contains a large wetland area at the base of the mountain.

We camped one night, hiked a bit near the campground (Hot Springs Campground) and took advantage of a natural hot spring surrounded by low man-made walls. The campground was soggy and probably a better fit for a camp trailer. While camping, we managed to spot several small groups of pronghorn antelope and a herd of bighorn sheep.

On our way out of the refuge, we hiked around Petroglyph Lake. The west side of the lake is rimmed by basalt boulders. The basalt was carved over 10,000 years ago by some of the people living in the area. We were able to spot at least 10 petroglyphs, many of animals. We hiked back to the car on the top of the rim. A variety of desert wildflowers were in bloom. We also spotted what seemed to be intentional circular arrangements of rocks.

If we were to visit Hart Mountain again, we would like to explore more of the refuge and hike to the top of the mountain (~8,000 feet). The refuge is fairly isolated. It is important to have water and emergency supplies. The road to Petroglyph Lake was a bit of a challenge for the car and this appears to be true of the majority of roads in the refuge.

Steens Mountain

We took a day trip to Steens Mountain, driving up to the Fish Lake campground. Fish Lake is 7,400 feet above sea level. The road to Fish Lake had opened a week or so before our trip and the area still had several inches of snow. On May 29, the road was open as far as Jackman Park.

At Fish Lake, the guys spent some time fishing and I did some birdwatching. In spite of the cold temperatures and snow, the tree swallows were picking up insects hatching from the lake. The dog enjoyed trying to track down the frequent and briefly appearing squeaky rodents.

If we were able to travel to the Steens later in the year (August), our goal would be to drive the Steens Mountain Loop road, hike down to Mann Lake, visit the Riddle Brother Ranch and check out Kiger Gorge.

Visting the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge

We recently traveled to south central Oregon to explore the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, Steens Mountain, Hart Mountain National Antelope Refuge and the Sunstone Public Collection Area. The trip required quite a bit of planning for a variety of weather conditions.

The Malheur National Wildlife Refuge encompasses approximately 187,000 acres of land, including the largest lake in the state, Malheur Lake, and a large amount of wetland and meadow. The refuge is part of the Pacific Flyway and is a great place to see birds nesting or pausing during their migrations.

The refuge begins about 30 miles south of Burns, about a 6-hour drive from Portland. A good place to begin a visit to the refuge is the Refuge Headquarters, on Sodhouse Lane on the south side of Malheur Lake. The Refuge Headquarters has a lot of information about the refuge (a driving tour, a list of birds and mammals and a list of hikes). In addition, if you are not an experienced bird-watcher, the museum has a lot of birds on display.

There are places to stop and view birds throughout the refuge. There are also a few hikes, some good places to fish and one of the nicest campgrounds I have ever been too (Page Springs) at the south end of the refuge in Frenchglen.

If you can make a trip, you probably need at least 2 or 3 days at the refuge. In addition to an abudance of bird watching opportunities. There are some good hikes, promising fishing locations and historical sites. The historical sites are predominantly part of Peter French's ranching operation. If you have even more time, you could visit and hike around the Diamond Craters Outstanding Natural Area.

We spent 2.5 days at the refuge. This was about right for our 8-year old son. In May, be prepared for rain and cold. The rain was torrential and we were lucky to have a sturdy tent to hold up to the wind. We went ahead and explored the refuge, the historical sites and completed a strenuous 6.5 mile hike along the Blitzen River - the only time we came across a rattlesnake. To give ourselves a chance to dry out, we also ate out a few times.

There are a few restaurants: The Narrows at the north end of the refuge, the Frenchglen Hotel and the all-in-one grocery, gas and restaurant in Fields (with excellent milkshakes).