Oregon's explosive past seen along the PCT south of McKenzie Pass

From left: Belknap Crater, Mt. Washington, Three Finger Jack and Mt. Jefferson

If a person wants to see evidence of recent volcanic activity, and by “recent” I mean within the past few thousand years, there is no place better than the Central Oregon Cascades. In this area, perhaps the best place to view this activity is along the McKenzie Pass. Here, a string of craters that once spewed immense flows of lava and spit cinder high into the air stretches for miles.

A walk into Eight Lakes Basin, Mt. Jefferson Wilderness

Jorn Lake, Mt. Jefferson Wilderness

Many moons ago and after hiking and backpacking for some time, I finally convinced my bride to join me on a weekend backpack trip to Duffy Lake, located in the Mt. Jefferson Wilderness. The plan was to hike 3.5 miles into the lake and set up a base camp. From there, we could set out and explore nearby lakes such as Mowich and Santiam.

Mt. Washington Wilderness hike: A dose of reality on the trail

Mt. Washington through the trees

At the time, Paranoia was teaching, or I should say troubleshooting, at Parrot Creek Boy's Ranch. Conservative both in nature and politically, Paranoia was always adamant about how bleeding heart liberals were pampering the Ranch's delinquents. His job was dragging him behind a manure truck, and the line needed severed. 

Shifty was a produce manager for a grocery store. He was good at what he did, but felt vastly underappreciated. His bottom line was always exemplary, but his employer's gratitude was nil.

I had just started two jobs, one in lumber sales and the other as a husband. The combination of my bride's cooking and sitting on my butt behind a desk 10 hours a day led to a weight gain of 20 pounds in 60 days. Like a balloon stuck on a spouting helium tank, I felt like I was ready to burst.

Needless to say, each of us needed to get away from it all, and what better way was there to accomplish this than to hike into a wilderness and slam the door behind us? Some folks might call it "withdrawing from reality." I call it "finding reality."