South Sister: One of Oregon's greatest hikes!

South Sister in the Oregon Cascades. A fantastic hike and scramble with breathtaking majestic mountain views.

The South Sister, also known as Charity, is Oregon's third highest mountain. The hike to the top is very difficult, but there is a trail that goes all the way to the top and can be done without any technical mountain climbing gear. Although on this Sunday in late June 2016, everyone I saw (39 people total) needed some kind of traction device in the steep snowfields, to keep them from sliding to their death! I had shoe chains, crampons would have been better. One group turned back due to improper footwear. They had tennis shoes. This climb deserves more respect than it gets. There have been many incidents over the years on this mountain including fatalities from falls.

The hike can be done in a day, and usually takes between 7 and 10 hours round trip. The hike to the top is about 6 and a quarter miles long (12 round trip) with a 4900 feet elevation gain. I started my hike on a recent Sunday at 7:00 AM and returned at 5:00 PM, 10 hours total. This was my 4th time on the Summit. My goal is to summit again in late September to see the changes in the hiking and scenery. My wife Shannon and our niece Savannah summited in 2014. It was an epic hike for both of them. Savannah got her finger smashed by a rock and had the skin peeled back. It was pretty bad, luckily some fellow hikers had first aid and helped her hike out as well.

The mountain itself is a volcano that is around 50,000 years old and last erupted 2000 years ago.

As you hike you will pass Moraine Lake, and the Lewis and Clark glaciers. At the top of the South Sisters, you will find Oregon's highest lake Teardrop Pool. 
The Three Sisters are often grouped together and seen as one unit, the three mountains evolved under differing geologic situations, and the petrologic composition of each mountain can vary significantly. Whereas North Sister is extinct and Middle Sister is dormant, South Sister last erupted about 2,000 years ago and still could erupt, threatening life within the region. After satellite imagery detected tectonic uplifting near South Sister in 2000, the United States Geological Survey made plans to improve monitoring in the immediate area.  


Known as Faith, Hope, and Charity. Faith is North Sister, Hope is Middle Sister, and Charity is South Sister. Shannon on top in 2014, myself in late June 2016.

Although I consider myself to be in the best physical shape I've been in in over 30 years, I still found this to be a challenging semi-strenuous hike. My goal is to attempt this summit every year for the rest of my life. There is so much here in Central Oregon to see and do that my personal bucket list is overflowing. I hope yours is too.


Joey Michael Hodgson is a Fire Lookout, firefighter, kayaker, chainsaw carver, writer, and musician. Check out his blog @onthelookout@blogger.com and current music @ https://www.reverbnation.com/thelookoutsband
Facebook group page @ https://www.facebook.com/groups/Onthelookout/

Fire Lookout Towers of Western Australia

Well, dang if it ain't finally Fire Season here in Oregon, USA! We've had a few good lightning busts here in Central Oregon, just enough to keep things interesting. I could go on about fire, but today I will talk a little bit about Fire Detection in the Land Down Under. A number of years ago, Shannon and I spent 3 months in Western Australia visiting friends and working with the Conservancy and Land Management. It was a lot of fun, and we learned a lot about wild and prescribed fire in Australia. 

Shannon working with crews on Prescribed burn

First thing you learn about fire here, is that everybody that lives here knows fire well. They've grown up with it as part of their lives, it is just part of every day to them. Most 12 year old's can tell you where to anchor a fire and how to put line around it, and when to step back. When we were there, everybody who worked for the agency had to spend two weeks of their year working with fire in some respect. Everybody got a piece of the action and learned some valuable knowledge about fire, land management, working on a team.

                                                                                                  There are a lot of different fire detection stations here. The scariest and most interesting are the tree towers. Basically, foresters use rebar and drill it into the tree in a spiral pattern to the top, where they build a "crows nest" in the crotch at the top of the tree. A lot of the trees have no safety, so you are free climbing, no slipping here! We spent many days hiking into old abandoned Lookouts and Lookout sites, it was always an adventure! 

Eight karri trees were adapted as lookout trees in Western Australia in the 1930s and 1940s. The 72-metre (236 ft) Gloucester Tree features a cabin in its top and may be climbed by visitors, as can the even taller 75-metre (246 ft) Dave Evans Bicentennial Tree.^[4] The Diamond Tree continues in occasional use as a fire lookout. I climbed the Diamond tree and it was a rush! Also the tallest 

metal tower in Australia is Styles Lookout at 226 ft tall! You climb a metal ladder straight up the

 middle to the cab. The gentleman above was the Lookout at the time. 

Landmarks here are hard to come by, and giving an accurate location seemed nearly 

impossible to us Americans! Smoke reports are frequently like this, "Head down to Cheryl's 

place take left fork, about 2 clicks NW, turn nears Lester's farm, and hike due North about a half

 click"!

Seeing Kangaroos hopping through the black right after a fire, was pretty cool for us. The engines and fire equipment used here is different from what we use in the US. In fact, everything about our stay was foreign to us. Camping out in the forest, which we did most nights, we never saw other campers. That's because only an idiot would camp out in snake country! Waking up to the bird sounds was so interesting because none of the birds sound like ours back home. Emu pies and cold beer, now that's my idea living large down under!

Thanks for reading. I will be doing a follow up to this article after I dig out my photos and information about our trip. G'day Mate'.


Joey Michael Hodgson is a Fire Lookout, firefighter, kayaker, chainsaw carver, writer, and musician. Check out his blog @onthelookout@blogger.com and current music @ https://www.reverbnation.com/thelookoutsband
Facebook group page @ https://www.facebook.com/groups/Onthelookout/

Utopia of Recreation: Chewaucan River Canyon

In the south central part of our great state of Oregon lies a magical river that is seldom visited. Most motorists driving thru the town of Paisley (it takes 20 seconds) never see the magical river canyon 5 minutes upstream of town. I have been kayaking this river now for several years when it flows during snow melt season. It has continuous class 2+3 whitewater in a scenic eastern Oregon canyon setting. The campsites along the river are spectacular and second to none.                                                                                                                                                                                                                


There is numerous trails up to the canyon rim. Some of which connect to the Fremont National Recreation Trail, a
mountain bikers paradise!

Trail Details

Season: summer, fall

Distance: 175 miles +/-

Hazards: remoteness, little water, few people, lots of mosquitoes, primitive trail conditions

Central Oregon Trails Association recently adopted this trail to assist the Fremont National Forest in keeping this trail open. This unexplored gem of a trail is not for the faint of heart or those who are easily lost. It requires significant route-finding skills, self-sufficiency and willingness to spend 8 or more hours on the trail. Shuttle options are available but also require good ability with FS maps and persistence. These skills are rewarded in spades with outstanding views, long climbs and descents and some of the most incredible scenery in the state. The trail itself would be more established if only more people would go ride it. Some small segments are also used by equestrians and hikers but to truly appreciate this trail a mountain bike is definitely the preferred mode of travel.

We have spent many spring days and nights here, kayaking, mountain biking, hiking, and even exploring by motorcycle. Summer Lake, Fremont Cabin, Hagar Mountain, and Morgan Butte are all nearby and accessible in late spring.

The Chewaucan River is part of the Great Basin drainage. It flows 53 miles (85 km) through the Fremont–Winema National Forests, Bureau of Land Management land, and private property in southern Oregon. The Chewaucan flows through Paisley and into what was once the Upper Chewaucan Marsh east of the town. The marsh is now pasture land, and the river’s flow through this area is controlled by a system of weirs and irrigation canals. The river is consolidated for a short distance as it leaves the upper marsh at The Narrows, where two fingers of high desert uplands force the river into a single narrow channel. The river then opens into the Lower Chewaucan Marsh approximately 7 miles (11 km) northwest of Valley Falls. Finally, Crooked Creek joins the Chewaucan just one mile (1.6 km) before it empties into Abert Lake, which has no outlet. Abert Lake and Abert Rim are spectacular formations that deserve their own blog post, suffice to say that they are definitely worth seeing. So put on your bucket list. If you are a paddler, this is a great place to multi-sport and have a base camp. The historic bar in Paisley is a great breakfast spot after a week of camp food! Look for more fun topics from me in the future @ https://www.facebook.com/groups/Onthelookout/. Until then, enjoy the summer and thanks for reading. 

Joey Michael Hodgson is a Fire Lookout, firefighter, kayaker, chainsaw carver, writer, and musician. Check out his blog @onthelookout@blogger.com and current music projects @https://www.reverbnation.com/thelookoutsband?profile_view_source=header_icon_nav

  

Forest Fire Lookout Association 2016 Conference