Middle Sister - Oregon Cascades
Date - 9/1/2006
Length - 18 miles
Elevation - 10,300 feet
Date - 9/1/2006
Length - 18 miles
Elevation - 10,300 feet
After living in Oregon for three weeks I was eager to explore one of
the peaks in the high Cascades. Since I didn't really know anyone
in town yet I decided to head out for a solo climb of the Middle
Sister. This dormant volcano was accessible via an hour and a half
drive from town and the route involved a six mile approach leading
to a two or three mile scramble to the summit. A trip report said that
some travel on a snowfield was required, but there were no
crevassed glaciers that I would have to deal with. This information
was encouraging and I left on my trip with no hesitation about being
alone.
By seven thirty I had finished my drive up the Old McKenzie
Highway and I started hiking at an elevation of just over 5,000 feet
on this crisp and crystal clear morning. The forecast was calling for
blue bird skies and a warm afternoon so I was not concerned about
the weather deteriorating, although I packed for the worse. The
first three miles of hiking on the Obsidian Trail were easy as the
path rose a thousand feet while switch backing through an open
forest of Silver Fir.
My first landmark was where the trail passed through an old lava
flow. The sharp and hardened lava rock was new to me and I
marveled at this heap of stones as I crossed it. The fact that this
material had once been flowing down the hillside in a molten state
was mind boggling.
the peaks in the high Cascades. Since I didn't really know anyone
in town yet I decided to head out for a solo climb of the Middle
Sister. This dormant volcano was accessible via an hour and a half
drive from town and the route involved a six mile approach leading
to a two or three mile scramble to the summit. A trip report said that
some travel on a snowfield was required, but there were no
crevassed glaciers that I would have to deal with. This information
was encouraging and I left on my trip with no hesitation about being
alone.
By seven thirty I had finished my drive up the Old McKenzie
Highway and I started hiking at an elevation of just over 5,000 feet
on this crisp and crystal clear morning. The forecast was calling for
blue bird skies and a warm afternoon so I was not concerned about
the weather deteriorating, although I packed for the worse. The
first three miles of hiking on the Obsidian Trail were easy as the
path rose a thousand feet while switch backing through an open
forest of Silver Fir.
My first landmark was where the trail passed through an old lava
flow. The sharp and hardened lava rock was new to me and I
marveled at this heap of stones as I crossed it. The fact that this
material had once been flowing down the hillside in a molten state
was mind boggling.
After traversing the lava flow three more miles of well graded sandy path lead
through amazing open meadows full of butterflies and past an area littered of
shiny obsidian. This site has so much of this volcanic glass that natives used
to frequent this spot to collect material for arrowheads and tools. On this
stretch I was lucky to have several views of the Middle Sister rising above the
surrounding terrain in an imposing cone. The sun was shining strong by this
point, but temperatures were still pleasant due to the early hour. I spotted a
few marmots poking their heads out of a pile rocks and continued along.
Soon I reached the Pacific Crest Trail and decided to turn north and follow this
until I had a clear view of the mountain. Since I had no maps and no clear
description of the climbers' path I figured that I would use the open terrain to
pick my own route to the summit. After passing a falls I reached a gorgeous
alpine meadow full of bubbling springs. From this meadow I was able to look
through an opening in the hills above me and see the day's final goal.
I walked through the meadow and headed up an obvious gully where an
unmarked trail was located. The clear view of the mountain from this spot
suggested I had found the right path. After climbing for several hundred feet
I emerged on a flat plateau at treeline and was treated to an amazing view of
the Cascade's western foothills stretching away back towards Eugene. I
selected a prominent landmark on the horizon to help locate the correct gully
to take down when I was descending later in the day.
From this point I followed a vague herd path to a ridge and climbed through
loose volcanic rock and pumice to its top. This obvious route separated two
glaciers and made for easy walking. I passed several snow banks and
paused for a quick lunch at an amazing spot where there were views all of the
way north to Mt Hood and well into Washington State. The summit was in
clear view and I decided to continue on, with one o'clock being the latest I was
willing to keep pushing ahead. It was early and things looked good.
I eventually reached the base of the Renfrew glacier with the
summit cone of the Middle Sister rising directly in front of me.
Tracks struck out from here and lead directly up the snowfield,
but since I was alone I wanted to stay off of the snow in case it
was crevassed. To avoid the center of the snowfield I hugged
its north side of stayed close to a rocky hill. There were signs
of substantial rockfall at the base of this slope so I moved
quickly until I had reached the saddle between the North and
Middle Sister. This wildly spectacular place provided extensive
views of both craggy peaks and the volcanoes beyond with
glimpses down the steep eastern side of mountain to the
glaciers below.
Roughly a thousand feet of climbing remained to the rounded
top of the Middle Sister. I was slightly out of breath from the
altitude and the exertion, but I felt strong and headed towards
the top, stopping often to take in the magnificent views. I kept
as close as possible to the crest of the ridge, but the eastern
face was so steep that I was cautious not to venture too far in
that direction. The summit cone of the Middle Sister is a pile of
loose volcanic rock that is incredibly sharp and loose. The day
was warming up and as things melted the noise of rockfall
became common. Luckily I was on a gentle enough slope that
this was not an issue. The loose pumice and rock did mean
that for each step up I slid backwards half a step. I was
determined and pushed on, reaching the summit around 11:30
out of breath and happy to have completed the climb.
The views were outstanding and the weather picture perfect. I
saw a group of climbers coming up the eastern ridge of the
mountain and watched several massive rockfalls careen down a
steep gully leading away from the summit. For someone not
used to such big peaks and active geology this was quite
impressive. I was thrilled with myself and spent a half hour
enjoying the incredible view that I had all to myself. Another
peanut butter and jelly sandwich was devoured and I chugged
some water while hanging out in the cool breeze blowing across
the summit of the Middle Sister. The view to the south was
extensive and stretched all of the way to My Whitney in
northern California. A string of volcanoes stretched to the
north and south in a line along the crest of the Cascades and
made for quite the site. The group coming up the east ridge
was approaching so I decided to head back down the mountain
before they arrived. It was twelve o'clock when I turned around
and started down, well before the one o'clock bail out time I had
established to ensure I would reach my truck before dark.
summit cone of the Middle Sister rising directly in front of me.
Tracks struck out from here and lead directly up the snowfield,
but since I was alone I wanted to stay off of the snow in case it
was crevassed. To avoid the center of the snowfield I hugged
its north side of stayed close to a rocky hill. There were signs
of substantial rockfall at the base of this slope so I moved
quickly until I had reached the saddle between the North and
Middle Sister. This wildly spectacular place provided extensive
views of both craggy peaks and the volcanoes beyond with
glimpses down the steep eastern side of mountain to the
glaciers below.
Roughly a thousand feet of climbing remained to the rounded
top of the Middle Sister. I was slightly out of breath from the
altitude and the exertion, but I felt strong and headed towards
the top, stopping often to take in the magnificent views. I kept
as close as possible to the crest of the ridge, but the eastern
face was so steep that I was cautious not to venture too far in
that direction. The summit cone of the Middle Sister is a pile of
loose volcanic rock that is incredibly sharp and loose. The day
was warming up and as things melted the noise of rockfall
became common. Luckily I was on a gentle enough slope that
this was not an issue. The loose pumice and rock did mean
that for each step up I slid backwards half a step. I was
determined and pushed on, reaching the summit around 11:30
out of breath and happy to have completed the climb.
The views were outstanding and the weather picture perfect. I
saw a group of climbers coming up the eastern ridge of the
mountain and watched several massive rockfalls careen down a
steep gully leading away from the summit. For someone not
used to such big peaks and active geology this was quite
impressive. I was thrilled with myself and spent a half hour
enjoying the incredible view that I had all to myself. Another
peanut butter and jelly sandwich was devoured and I chugged
some water while hanging out in the cool breeze blowing across
the summit of the Middle Sister. The view to the south was
extensive and stretched all of the way to My Whitney in
northern California. A string of volcanoes stretched to the
north and south in a line along the crest of the Cascades and
made for quite the site. The group coming up the east ridge
was approaching so I decided to head back down the mountain
before they arrived. It was twelve o'clock when I turned around
and started down, well before the one o'clock bail out time I had
established to ensure I would reach my truck before dark.
Descending the summit cone's loose pumice and
rubble was fast and easy. With each step I slid
and skied the scree for several feet. The col
between the North and Middle Sister was reached
in well under a half hour. Instead of glisading
directly down the center of the Renfrew Glacier I
hugged the cliff that was producing some rockfall
to avoid crevasses once more. Heading down on
the firm glacier ice was very quick and soon I was
done with the snow portion of my climb down.
The rest of the walk off of the upper reaches of
Middle Sister was simple and fast with the loose
scree and some snow fields speeding the affair
along nicely. By the time I reached the Pacific
Crest Trail again I was dusty and had only half of
my two water bottles remaining. I contemplated
filling up with unfiltered water from the spring here,
but saw signs of campers and decided not to risk
consuming contaminated water. It was quite warm
down here and I decided to polish off my water now
and tough it out for the remaining six miles to the
parking lot and my truck. I never would have
imagined consuming more than two water bottles
on this climb, but I could have easily used three.
rubble was fast and easy. With each step I slid
and skied the scree for several feet. The col
between the North and Middle Sister was reached
in well under a half hour. Instead of glisading
directly down the center of the Renfrew Glacier I
hugged the cliff that was producing some rockfall
to avoid crevasses once more. Heading down on
the firm glacier ice was very quick and soon I was
done with the snow portion of my climb down.
The rest of the walk off of the upper reaches of
Middle Sister was simple and fast with the loose
scree and some snow fields speeding the affair
along nicely. By the time I reached the Pacific
Crest Trail again I was dusty and had only half of
my two water bottles remaining. I contemplated
filling up with unfiltered water from the spring here,
but saw signs of campers and decided not to risk
consuming contaminated water. It was quite warm
down here and I decided to polish off my water now
and tough it out for the remaining six miles to the
parking lot and my truck. I never would have
imagined consuming more than two water bottles
on this climb, but I could have easily used three.
The hike out was hot, dusty, and dry. The day had warmed
considerably at lower elevations and I was craving water by the time I
reached the lava flow. My heavy hiking boots, while great for the
loose rock higher on the mountain, were now suffocating my feet
which were aching and burning. I would have killed for a pair of
sneakers as the sixteenth mile of the hike was knocked off, but that
was wishful thinking. I passed a few groups of people and emerged
at the Obsidian Trail parking lot by three in the afternoon.
I had made short work of climbing the Middle Sister and I was
impressed with how well the summer's canoe expedition had kept my
legs and lungs in shape. By the time I drove down to McKenzie
Bridge I was going crazy with thirst and pounded two bottles of
Gatorade purchased from a general store in less than five minutes. I
was home by five thirty and thrilled about having completed my round
trip in less than twelve hours. Now that I had seen what the high
Cascades had to offer I was very interested in exploring this wild
place more often. Living in Oregon was off to a great start.
considerably at lower elevations and I was craving water by the time I
reached the lava flow. My heavy hiking boots, while great for the
loose rock higher on the mountain, were now suffocating my feet
which were aching and burning. I would have killed for a pair of
sneakers as the sixteenth mile of the hike was knocked off, but that
was wishful thinking. I passed a few groups of people and emerged
at the Obsidian Trail parking lot by three in the afternoon.
I had made short work of climbing the Middle Sister and I was
impressed with how well the summer's canoe expedition had kept my
legs and lungs in shape. By the time I drove down to McKenzie
Bridge I was going crazy with thirst and pounded two bottles of
Gatorade purchased from a general store in less than five minutes. I
was home by five thirty and thrilled about having completed my round
trip in less than twelve hours. Now that I had seen what the high
Cascades had to offer I was very interested in exploring this wild
place more often. Living in Oregon was off to a great start.
The upper portions of the Middle Sister loom above the obvious gully I had decided to
ascend.
ascend.
The Middle Sister looms above me while making the approach on
the Obsidian Trail.
the Obsidian Trail.
My route skirted the Renfrew Glacier for much of the climb. Mt Jefferson and the
Cascade crest is visible in the background.
Cascade crest is visible in the background.
The North Sister sits only a mile and a half away from the summit of
Middle Sister.
Middle Sister.
A group of climbers coming up the south eastern ridge of Middle Sister. These were the
only other people I saw on the summit cone today and I left before they arrived.
only other people I saw on the summit cone today and I left before they arrived.
The view south included South Sister, Broken Top, and Mt Bachelor.
The camera's self timer helped provide this shot of myself standing on top of the Middle Sister.
Unlike New England, trees remain fairly large right up to treeline. Instead of dense
scrub there are amazing open meadows and spectacular views in all directions.
scrub there are amazing open meadows and spectacular views in all directions.