Hager Mountain Fire Lookout

Leg one of our little excursion out into southeastern Oregon was an overnight hike to stay at the fire lookout at the top of Hager Mountain, just south of the town of Silver Lake.

Hager Mountain Fire Lookout Photo Album

We left Portland on Sunday morning and headed out towards Bend across the backside of Mt. Hood. Early morning snow flurries against a dark sky made the transition from the forest into the Warm Springs desert more dramatic. Canyons, sagebrush, and big sky signaled our arrival east of the Cascade mountains. We traveled south through Madras (where my mom grew up), Redmond, Bend, and LaPine, before turning southeast for the "Oregon Outback" on Highway 31.

Highway 31 is a two lane road that appears to be the only narrow break in a very dense forest of orange-barked Ponderosa pines (the Fremont National Forest). As the road continued to rise and twist around rocky rims and canyons, shifting cloud and sunscapes indicated that we'd likely see a variety of Spring weather on our weeklong adventure.

Arriving in Silver Lake (population 250) we noticed three things: 1) a lively exchange among neighbors and children outside the corner church 2) a pair of mating cows and 3) a very large, dark cloud shrouding the top quarter (we estimated) of Hager Mountain.

The Hager Mountain trailhead is 9 miles south of Silver Lake, five miles past the Cowboy Dinner Tree ,a cowboy steakhouse where all the food is cooked, served, and enjoyed without the use of electricity. At the trailhead, the conditions were worse. The wind was blowing pretty hard and the black cloud loomed even larger. Taking a look at the tight curves on our topo, we decided explore a back road that apparently served as an alternate route to the summit.

Spots of snow on the road were growing increasingly deep and we were itching to be out of the car, so we pulled over, loaded up our packs, strapped the doggie packs on Elka and Simon, and set out towards our destination. Both the trail and the road were about four miles to the lookout, but the road offered a flatter grade around the southeast, non-weather side of the mountain. Just as we started, the black cloud thinned out a little and offered us our first view of the treeline, Hager's rocky peak, and the lookout cabin. The cloud closed up again just as quickly, but the quick glimpse goosed our motivation and we were off!

The first mile of the road climbs slowly up a forest clearing (likely man-made) that has developed into a lovely area of sparse towering pines, scrubby sagebrush, and squishy vernal streams meandering among fescue and red rock. Gentle snow flurries clung to Elka's black fur. Not much snow on the road, except wide drifts around the exposed turns. Each climb of a switchback gave us a chance to admire the stately giant ponderosas, their orange bark a brilliant contrast to the gray skies and white snow.

Eventually, the road got steeper, and the snow deeper. The dogs, usually insistent on leading the way, fell in behind Jeff so he could break them a trail. And although I know "cold" is a relative term, it was darn chilly.  The snow was falling pretty consistently now. The dogs were obviously cold, and we unfortunately coudn't tell them about the cozy retreat at the end of the trail. We were all psyched to reach the gate which lies about .9 of a mile from the lookout. Still in the trees, we knew the fun part - popping out into the weather on the exposed rocky peak - had to start soon!

We hit treeline about .4 miles from the lookout. It is difficult to describe the view and conditions, except for just a relentless swirl of icy snow. The wind was roaring and tried to push us back down the mountain. After the second switchback, we saw it! A steep, skinny, snowy trail led about 30 yards up past the outhouse and a wood shed to Hager Mountain fire lookout. Warm fire, hot tea, and a cold beer (thanks, Simon, for carrying the tall boys) - here we come!

Stepping out of the icy wind and into the shelter was almost surreal. The four walls of windows were completely frozen in ice, not that there was anything but stormcloud to see outside anyway. The inside of the lookout is very tidy, and offers both a woodstove and a few other propane-fired luxuries - four burner stove, refrigerator, and two wall mounted lamps. A kind soul had filled a box near the stove with chopped firewood. A leprachaun had stashed a small bottle of rum under a cabinet, with a note that read "to warm the soul." In one corner, an uncovered twin mattress butted up against two windows.

Snow, melted in a big pot on the woodstove, provided all the water we needed. And rather than fire up the fridge, we just stuck our few perishables (bacon and a carton of eggs!) into a big bowl of snow.

As the sun went down out over the desert, the whiteout at the summit took on a thick glow. We kept the fire roaring and hung up our clothes on the line stretched across two walls. We cooked a simple dinner and enjoyed reading the journal entries from other lookout visitors, as well as the official log kept when the lookout is staffed during summer.

The winds roared and pummeled the windows into the night, but we fell asleep at some point. Early in the wee dark hours, silence woke us up and we stared out into the darkness. An unbelieveable carpet of stars encircled the lookout. A bit disoriented, I asked Jeff where all the snow had gone! In fact, the peak was steep enough that we were now looking solely at the dry desert floor. The lights of Silver Lake twinkled faintly in the distance. We snuggled contentedly back into our sleeping bags to wait for the day's light.

Our morning treats were a fresh fire, bacon and egg bagels, and fantastic views of the forested slopes of Hager and the vast desert beyond. The imposing form of Fort Rock loomed like something out of Mad Max. To the east, we saw the blue water of the Thompson Resevoir and the rocky Winter Rim. We lingered over breakfast and played outside in the white powder with the dogs.

Finally, it was time to pack our things and tidy up the lookout. Jeff filled the wood box and I wrote a short note of thanks in the journal. The dogs were excited to follow their tracks and scent down the trail. Clouds and sun continued to intersperse and expose new vistas, but eventually the snow took over. We returned to the car about 1pm, happy and ready to set off for Part II of our adventure.

Comments

[jen]

We can't wait to hear about part II. I am so glad you are doing this. I just read the entire post out loud to Jason. He loved the part about "the silence woke us up."

[Brandon]

Great post, enjoyed it. I'm running around finding anything I can about folks working or hiking to Fire Lookouts in the Pacific N.W. I'm blogging my journal from one summer I spent in a lookout in the Mt. Hood national forest and in doing so have re-invigorated my interest in the area.

Thanks for the post, this looks like someplace I'll be checking back on -- keep writing!

Bpaul

[Roy Hager]

What are you doing on my mountain???? har! har!
It is true that I have the same name, but I have not been able to find out how that mountain got that name. I liked your story and I hope to someday visit the mountain too.

Happy Hiking
Roy Hager