Lakes, mineshaft and cougar highlight excursions to Pansy Lake and BOTW wilderness

 Pansy Lake

Having some unfinished business around the Pansy Lake area of Bull of the Woods Wilderness, I got up early Saturday morning and drove to the trailhead. I wanted to get home before noon so I could watch the Ducks manhandle Tennessee Tech.

It had been around 20 years or so since I last hiked to the lake. Back then, I backpacked through the area, into Pansy Lake and south to Battle Creek shelter. From there, I made my way down Elk Lake Creek and around to Welcome Lakes and up to the Bull of the Woods lookout. I remember beginning the hike in the evening, and when I arrived at the lake, every square foot of Pansy Lake’s water surface was rippled by feeding trout.

Finding solitude on a day hike within driving distance of Portland

Big Slide Mt. and Big Slide Lake from Bull of the Woods near lookout



One of my favorite wilderness areas within driving range of the Portland area for a day hike is Bull of the Woods Wilderness. One of the reasons is because every now and then, you can hike a trail and meet, see, or hear absolutely no one. Unfortunately in Oregon's mountains, there are no guarantees you will find the complete serenity found when only you and the mountains interact, without any interference from the outside world. However, there are areas where one has a much better chance to find solitude. I have found this on a few hikes on the Dickey Creek Trail.