21 miles of hiking • 4250' elevation gain • 1 night
I didn't have time to hike this weekend, but had a few spare hours this morning and last night, so I went down to a place that was on my list for this year—Canyon Creek Meadows—to do some studying and hiking.
I left at 2p on Monday and got to the Santiam Pass trailhead by 4:30. As mentioned elsewhere, after the burn, this area has been rather dusty, hot, and less-than scenic. I started up the PCT, but after about 3 miles, you're out of the burn section, and into the typical Jefferson/Three Sisters type scenery. I never saw the burn before the burn, so I can't wait to see what the burn area will look like in 30 years.
The PCT traverses along the western side of Three Fingered Jack and comes to a pass with great views of Jefferson. I ran into two other hikers doing a PCT section, but otherwise, the trail was pretty quiet. It was in the high 80's in Portland, but it wasn't too bad up in the mountains.
After rounding TFJ, I dropped down into Canyon Creek Meadows. You cross the creek and can head up to a nice tarn, with views down toward Jefferson.
I went back down to the flat portion of the upper meadows, started a fire, did some studying, and then watched the beady-eyed dear stare at me for awhile.
This morning, I woke up and headed east toward the meadows proper. There was one other group on a Tuesday, which makes me think this area is quite popular on the weekends. The trail meanders down back toward Jack Lake, and then splits off toward Wasco Lake to the north. The trail renters the burn area and then climbs back up the hill to meet the PCT.
I took the PCT back to the pass below TFJ, and then back to Santiam Pass. Fortunately, it was cloudy and windy all morning, which made things quite pleasant. I ran into two etymologists looking for moth eggs on the way back. Fun.
Back at the car by 11:30. Wow. What a nice little area.
