Maxwell Butte – Just Peachy

October 7, 2023

I’ve seen Maxwell Butte from a number of places over the years and have always wanted to hike up it. Today we did.

The trail starts out in lower elevation forest where fall color was underway:

As we gained elevation we left the vine maple behind and any fall color we saw came from the huckleberry bushes:

The trail is pretty much a long straight shot eastward from the trailhead:

At one point we passed a woman with her off-leash dog who came running out of nowhere to bark at us. The woman did not apologize for her dog startling us, which is par for the course with dog owners on trails. We reached the junction with the Lava Lakes Trail, which ends up at Duffy Lake in a few miles. We stayed straight:

There was a pond near the junction:

Ferns in fall color:

After gradual elevation gain we started gaining it more rapidly. The trail was in good shape throughout:

We started getting views to the south:

Almost there:

The summit:

There’s a mighty fine view of Mt. Jefferson up here. Notice Mt. Hood to the left:

That is Mowich Lake down below, at the foot of Red Butte:

Duffy Lake, Mowich Lake, and Santiam Lake visible, with Mt. Jefferson on the horizon:

Mt. Jefferson and Three Fingered Jack:

Santiam Lake:

Black Butte in the distance:

Coffin Mountain’s distinct shape, with Bachelor Mountain to the right:

To the south we could see Mt. Washington and the Three Sisters:

There was once a fire lookout up here, an L-4 ground cabin that was built in 1933 and removed in 1965. A few old pieces of the woodstove and other detritus are strew about: