“Old” Vista Ridge trail provides good views of northern Cascades, thanks to its restoration

Mt. Hood from Owl Point

I didn’t know an “old” Vista Ridge trail along the north side of Mt. Hood even existed until only a few weeks ago. Having hiked the popular Vista Ridge trail years ago, I decided to take the lower, lesser-known trail to its end, where the remnants of an old fire lookout linger. Once on the trail, I discovered I left my camera at home, so had to fall back on my cell phone for pics. My apologies. Not that these are much worse than those I take with my camera.

Burned trees from the Dollar Lake Fire near the trails' junction

A short access trail, about 0.3 of a mile long, leads to a three-way junction where the path to the left is the “old” Vista Ridge trail, which connects with the trail leading to Cairn Basin and Barrett Spur to the right. Here, remnants of the 2011 Dollar Lake Fire exist. It appears this is about as far north as the fire spread, leaving the old trail free of ravaged forest.

Heather in the meadow leading to the Rockpile

The old trail is easily hiked because of a group of “pathologists” who helped restore the health of the old path. They need to be commended, because without them removing debris from the path, which apparently included over 200 fallen trees, the trail might have died.

Owl Point View - Brownish grey on lower slopes is from the Dollar Lake Fire

As it is, the trail is padded with forest debris, such as evergreen needles, beneath the thicker, second-growth forest canopy. Where the trail opens up along the ridgeline, it becomes boulder strewn and rugged. The most rugged portion of the trail begins as it makes its way from Owl Point down to where a fire lookout once stood and nearby Perry Lake.

View East from Owl Point. Laurence Lake to the right appearing behind ridge

Owl Point provides a nice view of nearby Mt. Hood. There, I discovered a small ammunition box with an entry journal inside. The story of the trail’s restoration resides within this book’s cover.



One of two foundations at the old lookout site

From Owl Point’s view, the immensity of the Dollar Lake fire and its impact on the area is apparent along the slopes of Mt. Hood. To the east, a portion of Laurance Lake is within view.

Road leading from lookout site to Perry Lake

 

From here, the trail drops toward Perry Lake. Just prior to the lake, the trail ends at a road that once provided transportation to the fire lookout. I found two cement foundations at the site - which one was the lookout is a good question. Perry Lake (actually a small pond) is a short distance downhill from the foundations along the rocky road.

Perry Lake

 

Just beyond Owl Point, on the return trip, I stopped at another viewpoint, this time looking north toward Mt. St. Helens, Mt. Rainier and Mt. Adams. In front of them stands Mt. Defiance on the Oregon side.

Left to right: Mt. St. Helens, Mt. Rainier and Mt. Adams



 

I did not meet another person on the trail that day until I got back to the junction with the more popular part of the Vista Ridge Trail. To my surprise, the parking lot that had one other car in it when I pulled in that morning was now packed. That meant all those people were hiking the more popular trail. So, if you want more solitude, hike the old trail.

From Round Lake to Square Lake – Views between the silver poles

Three Fingered Jack standing above Round Lake

From the Northwest corner of the Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, where I had hiked into Crown Lake, I headed toward its Southeast section, where forest fires have dramatically changed the landscape. Clearly, new vegetation has established itself among the silver poles, which were once thriving conifers, standing above the fresh greenery.

Round lake through the silver poles

I expected a full campground at Round Lake when I arrived there in the evening. However, no one else was there, except for some fishermen parked near the lake. This was surprising, considering it was the beginning of July, the weather was spectacular and there is only about three (I didn’t count) campsites at Round Lake.

Sun setting over Round Lake

Having planned to hike into Square Lake the next morning, I set up camp and watched the sun drop behind the West side of the high Cascades. The lake has a great view of Three Fingered Jack, which I’m not sure would be as brilliant if the forest was fully foliated, as it was prior to the fires.

Trailhead sign to Square Lake

Knowing it would be hot and shade would be scarce, I hit the trail early the next day. The trail climbs from the West end of Round Lake up over a ridge before flattening out. Here is where, with a little imagination, one can see that views are much more expansive without the foliage from pine trees blocking one’s sight. Although the silver poles left standing are somewhat unsightly, they allow views of the area that one might never have seen had it not been for the devastation. “Unsightly” might even be too strong. “Unusual,” perhaps, is more appropriate.

Square Lake

Although it was only about 8:00 am when I arrived at Square Lake - about 2 miles from the trailhead - the bare forest had warmed quickly. Continuing to the West end of the lake, I chose to go left at a trail junction, which took me South toward the Santiam Pass. After a short and gradual uphill hike, I stopped at a small saddle, where views of Mt. Washington and the Three Sisters appeared. From there, a short scramble to the top of a rock outcropping provided a grand view of Square Lake below and Three Fingered Jack to the North.

 

Mt. Washington and Three Sisters through the silver poles

My map showed a “Long Lake” near the trail between Round Lake and Square Lake, but I didn’t see it on the hike into Square Lake. So, on my way back, I made it a point to look closely for Long Lake or any side trails that might lead to it. None were found and no lake was seen.

Three Fingered Jack from rock outcropping above Square Lake

One thing I did notice, though, was the number of trees growing to replace those that had burned. The numbers of these small pines in some areas are prolific, roughly four feet tall and seemingly growing like weeds. In other areas, there are none.

Black Butte from road 1210

On my way back down out of the mountains from Round Lake, I continued along road 1210 along its southern-most stretch. This section of road provides outstanding views of the Cascades stretching from Three Finger Jack to the Three Sisters.

Three Fingered Jack from road 1210

A short yet scenic hike into Firecamp Lakes

All but the top of Mt. Jefferson along the trail to Crown Lake

It was time to go back to the Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, having not entered the area since either the B&B fire of 2003 or the Puzzle fire in 2006. Both fires combined to burn 47,000 of the 105,000 acres that make up the wilderness area.

Blooming Beargrass along the trail

Entering the wilderness from the Northwest, where the Firecamp Lakes lie, there is no indication of the fires that devastated much of the wilderness. Instead, healthy conifers and blooming bear grass greeted me in late June on my way into the lakes.

Crown Lake

Firecamp Lakes are made up of Crown and Claggett Lakes and an unknown, much smaller pond.

Mt. Jefferson rises above Crown Lake

The hike to Crown Lake begins in an old clearcut, where thick Beargrass was in full bloom. The trail climbs steeply from the outset through much of the clearcut and then settles into a much easier grade as it enters the more established forest.

Crown Lake

Crown Lake lies only about a mile from the trailhead. The trail, prior to dropping into the lake’s basin, provides nice views of Mt. Jefferson above the ridge standing over the lake’s basin. Plenty of mosquitoes were there to greet me at the lake, expected but always unwelcome.