Rogue River – Siskiyou National Forest

Willow Prairie: North Loop (Southwest Oregon) 03-Nov-2021

2021-11-032021-11-04Posted in Hiking, Southern OregonTagged Day Hiking, Hiking, Rogue River - Siskiyou National Forest, Southern Oregon, Willow Prairie Horse Camp Oregon2 Comments

Last year’s (and, sadly, part of this year’s) virus-driven theme was staying local. But as last year surged to a close, we became increasingly challenged to find local hikes that were new to us. Meeting this challenge was why I found myself (The LovedOne being busy with the library) late last year exploring some of the 19 miles (30 km) of equestrian trails emanating from the Willow Prairie Horse Campground located about 25 miles (40 km) east of Medford.

Continue reading →

Observation Peak Loop (Southwest Oregon) 16-Sep-2021

2021-09-162021-09-16Posted in Hiking, Southern OregonTagged Day Hiking, Donomore Meadows California, Dutchman Peak Lookout, Forest Road 20 Oregon, Hiking, Northern California, Observation Peak Oregon, Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), PCT, Rogue River - Siskiyou National Forest, Siskiyou Crest, Southern Oregon4 Comments

Significant rain is forecast for this coming weekend. Maybe (hopefully) it will be enough to squelch some of the wildfires still burning to our south and north. Or at least enough to flush the air clean of smoke. Fingers crossed this actually happens. 🙄

Continue reading →

Grayback Mountain (Southwest Oregon) 18-Aug-2021

2021-08-182021-09-17Posted in Hiking, Southern OregonTagged Day Hiking, Grayback Mountain, Hiking, Rogue River - Siskiyou National Forest, Siskiyou-Boundary Trail, Southern Oregon2 Comments

Wildfires seem to have gotten worse around here since 2014 and this year is no exception. Our valley has been filled with varying concentrations of smoke for weeks from wildfires raging to the north, east, and south of us. Yesterday’s morning of clarity in the Bear Creek Valley was an exception, since, by afternoon, the smoke was back. So it’s entirely on me for not doing an air monitor check before driving all the way to a trailhead. 😥

Continue reading →

Spruce Lake (Crater Lake National Park) 30-Jul-2021

2021-07-302021-07-31Posted in Hiking, Southern Oregon, U.S. National Parks & MonumentsTagged Beckie's Cafe Oregon, Crater Lake National Park, Day Hiking, Hiking, Rogue River - Siskiyou National Forest, Southern Oregon, Spruce Lake Oregon5 Comments

Today emerged hot, cloudy, sultry, and hazy with smoke. Thunderstorms drenched us in the afternoon but the morning sprouted only a few pathetic rain drops. These only added to the sultry. A morning outside was about all we were up for. So we did two very short hikes which, when combined with a lunch outside at Beckie’s, made for a morning well spent. That there was pie 🥧 involved had nothing – Nothing I say! – to do with the quality of this day. 😉

Continue reading →

Little Silver Creek Lake (Galice, Oregon) 09-Jul-2021

2021-07-092022-03-30Posted in Hiking, Southern OregonTagged BLM, Bureau of Land Management, Day Hiking, Hiking, Little Silver Creek Lake Oregon, Little Silver Lake Trail #1184, Rogue River - Siskiyou National Forest, Siskiyou Mountain Club, Southern Oregon7 Comments

A landslide lake is – as the name suggests – a body of water formed when a canyon wall slides or slumps to dam a creek or stream. These aren’t created very often, as major slides are not common events. Nor do they usually last very long, as the dam is typically swept away by subsequent rain events. Little Silver Creek Lake is unique in that it is a landslide lake that has survived for over 100 years – it is one of the only landslide lakes to survive in the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest. This made it a worthy destination in the ongoing search for, and exploration of, trails not previously hiked.

Continue reading →