{"id":3010,"date":"2019-09-23T20:20:04","date_gmt":"2019-09-23T20:20:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/?p=3010"},"modified":"2020-05-27T17:36:57","modified_gmt":"2020-05-27T17:36:57","slug":"jefferson-park-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/2019\/09\/23\/jefferson-park-3\/","title":{"rendered":"Jefferson Park"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Sunday, August 11 &#8211; Tuesday, August 13, 2019<\/p>\n<p>The original plan was to have a five day weekend &#8211; Saturday through Wednesday &#8211; and do the Three Sisters Loop. Due to weather and other circumstances those plans first changed to a four-day loop around just North and Middle Sister, and then they changed to a three-day trip to Jefferson Park.<!--more--><!-- more --><\/p>\n<p>There are several ways to hike into Jefferson Park and we&#8217;ve always taken the easiest way via the Whitewater Trail. That trail had been closed since the 2017 Whitewater Fire, but had just reopened on August 1, so we were able to take that route.<\/p>\n<p>Driving Whitewater Road to the trailhead was VERY different:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48712504602_9cd14a105a_c.jpg\" alt=\"Whitewater Road\" width=\"800\" height=\"313\" \/><\/p>\n<p>We started hiking at 1pm, switchbacking up the hill through a forest that had been thoroughly burned:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48712505782_2daf086afb_c.jpg\" alt=\"Whitewater Trail\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48712007213_5ffe787434_c.jpg\" alt=\"Whitewater Trail\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48712551492_e35610bcd3_c.jpg\" alt=\"Whitewater Trail\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" \/><\/p>\n<p>There were some patches that escaped the fire:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48712547742_3f675c3fc1_c.jpg\" alt=\"Whitewater Trail\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48712605442_290e928163_c.jpg\" alt=\"Whitewater Trail\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>But otherwise it was pretty scorched:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48712607997_27f5d2b25a_c.jpg\" alt=\"Whitewater Trail\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Since the trail is now shadeless we welcomed the overcast day. This would be a brutal hike on a hot day. The burned trees have also opened up the views:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48712381661_7a5dbcfd11_c.jpg\" alt=\"Whitewater Trail\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The beargrass is making a strong comeback:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48712443196_895971f29a_c.jpg\" alt=\"Whitewater Trail\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Mt. Jefferson is hiding in the clouds out there:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48712437271_d241d13900_c.jpg\" alt=\"Whitewater Trail\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Once we got to the Whitewater Creek crossing at 3.75 miles we left the burn area behind:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48712598192_1f60009551_c.jpg\" alt=\"Whitewater Trail\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>It was great to be back in the green!<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48712594127_736c0b5bb9_c.jpg\" alt=\"Whitewater Trail\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>There is a little meadow by the second creek crossing and it looks great during the wildflower bloom. We thought we would be too late for that, but we weren&#8217;t:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48716889331_a942dec589_c.jpg\" alt=\"Wildflowers\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48716554518_63cf504bd4_c.jpg\" alt=\"Wildflowers\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48716552968_1068fff747_c.jpg\" alt=\"Wildflowers\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The clouds were low when we arrived in Jefferson Park:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48716881091_77e81bf1cb_c.jpg\" alt=\"Scout Lake\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>We found a nice campsite near Scout Lake (photo taken next day):<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48740362156_7b84eb77e9_c.jpg\" alt=\"Campsite\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" \/><br \/>\nIt was cool, but fortunately not rainy. We ate dinner and then enjoyed a slice of cake that we had brought to celebrate being back in our favorite place:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48717190157_29f1c47a4c_c.jpg\" alt=\"Cake\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" \/><br \/>\nThat night I got up to see the stars, but the moon was pretty bright. I tried to take a picture, but I could not get my polarizer to come off the lens. Still, you can see how the moon lit up the fog hovering over Scout Lake, which was pretty cool:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48717441652_bf15df58a2_c.jpg\" alt=\"Night skies\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>We awoke to a gorgeous cloud-free morning. We ate breakfast and lounged by the lake, soaking up the beauty and sunshine:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48717269156_d0aa7712c5_c.jpg\" alt=\"Morning at Scout Lake\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48716933293_eae02df82d_c.jpg\" alt=\"Morning at Scout Lake\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>While Greg stayed at Scout Lake I went exploring a bit. Here is the other big lake in the area, Bays Lake:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48721902608_96d6977ea9_c.jpg\" alt=\"Bays Lake\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><br \/>\nWe packed day packs and set off north on the PCT towards Park Ridge:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48722409407_0c56cf7365_c.jpg\" alt=\"Hiking to Park Ridge\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48722408872_cace02e508_c.jpg\" alt=\"Hiking to Park Ridge\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48722232191_eb2d60587a_c.jpg\" alt=\"Hiking to Park Ridge\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The wildflowers looked great:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48721898548_e082c3c14b_c.jpg\" alt=\"Hiking to Park Ridge\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48722402977_0d9732c022_c.jpg\" alt=\"Hiking to Park Ridge\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48722226651_8e4f7bd02e_c.jpg\" alt=\"Hiking to Park Ridge\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48722226041_951e2f3604_c.jpg\" alt=\"Hiking to Park Ridge\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>We saw some gentian, the flower that signals summer&#8217;s end is near:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48739932453_81351da4aa_c.jpg\" alt=\"Gentian\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Climbing up:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48721893398_e555b248a5_c.jpg\" alt=\"Hiking to Park Ridge\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>We got some views to the west:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48722223971_fd912946ec_c.jpg\" alt=\"Hiking to Park Ridge\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Final push:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48721891278_27ec1923a9_c.jpg\" alt=\"Hiking to Park Ridge\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>From Park Ridge we had a nice view to the north that included Mt. Hood and Olallie Butte:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48722222066_1781df638b_c.jpg\" alt=\"Hiking to Park Ridge\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Panorama to the north:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48722403942_2ce578a570_c.jpg\" alt=\"Park Ridge Panorama\" width=\"800\" height=\"399\" \/><\/p>\n<p>And in the other direction, of course, was Mt. Jefferson. This view is frequently described as one of the finest in the state and I&#8217;m inclined to agree:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48722086183_1b41b9f5b4_c.jpg\" alt=\"Mt. Jefferson\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>We hung out up there for awhile. We had passed many PCT thru-hikers on the way up and many more passed by as we sat there. With the promise of dinner waiting back at our campsite we started back down at 4:20. The hike back down to Jefferson Park is always spectacular because Mt. Jefferson is right there in your face for most of the descent:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48740247391_35b18b3e76_c.jpg\" alt=\"Hiking down from Park Ridge\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48739921223_cd3041b370_c.jpg\" alt=\"Hiking down from Park Ridge\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48739920578_b1a722521d_c.jpg\" alt=\"Hiking down from Park Ridge\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48739919893_fd0fa9e245_c.jpg\" alt=\"Hiking down from Park Ridge\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>We stopped by Russell Lake:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48740446062_95d3f5a737_c.jpg\" alt=\"Russell Lake\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Back at our Scout Lake campsite we cooked up dinner and enjoyed a beautiful evening with this as our view:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48739931443_8e5123ef2d_c.jpg\" alt=\"Scout Lake\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" \/><\/p>\n<p>That night was supposed to be the peak viewing time for the Perseid Meteor Shower, although viewing conditions were not ideal with the bright moon. We got up in the middle of the night to watch and we did see some meteors, which was really cool. I didn&#8217;t capture any in my photos, but I did get the stars:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48740029618_a5043b9032_c.jpg\" alt=\"Jefferson Park stars\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48740539902_42a9588139_c.jpg\" alt=\"Jefferson Park stars\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The next morning was not cloudless, but it was beautiful:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48740557976_4c365b36d6_c.jpg\" alt=\"Scout Lake\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Park Butte:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48740557261_876d29531f_c.jpg\" alt=\"Park Butte\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>We lingered in camp that morning, reluctant to leave. But we finally packed up and started hiking out at 11:20:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48740743607_7b285a3d08_c.jpg\" alt=\"Scout Lake\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Looking back at Park Butte and Scout Lake:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48740556106_e6818bddf7_c.jpg\" alt=\"Scout Lake\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Hiking back through the burn:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48740229613_15bbd0dc11_c.jpg\" alt=\"Hiking the Whitewater Trail\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>This tree&#8217;s top was killed, but the bottom lives on:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48740740287_7a6555c406_c.jpg\" alt=\"Hiking the Whitewater Trail\" width=\"533\" height=\"800\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Now that we had clear weather we could see further than we could on Sunday. This is looking west:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48740227353_7bfd02c3c9_c.jpg\" alt=\"Hiking the Whitewater Trail\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>We discovered that you can now see Mt. Jefferson for a good chunk of the way through the burn:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48740553926_a61a6db4f6_c.jpg\" alt=\"Hiking the Whitewater Trail\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48740552041_d55627432d_c.jpg\" alt=\"Hiking the Whitewater Trail\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Looking east to Bear Point (left) and Dinah-mo Peak (right):<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48740550221_7b74f366e7_c.jpg\" alt=\"Hiking the Whitewater Trail\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>As we descended the switchbacks down to the car we could still see Mt. Jefferson:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48740223538_011facb0f0_c.jpg\" alt=\"Hiking the Whitewater Trail\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>And it turns out you can now see the top of the mountain from the trailhead:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48740734187_2cfbd2d37c_c.jpg\" alt=\"Whitewater Trailhead\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" \/><\/p>\n<p>I took this through-the-windshield shot as we drove out, showing the full-on view of Mt. Jefferson that never existed before the fire:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/48740546421_3707061626_c.jpg\" alt=\"Whitewater Road\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Our total for the three days was 18 miles and 2,880&#8242; elevation gain. I&#8217;m so glad we made it back here. Jefferson Park is gorgeous and I&#8217;m grateful that it was spared from the fire. I&#8217;m also very grateful for the all the crews who have worked on clearing the road and trail for reopening!<\/p>\n<p>Video:<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/WjqbeAwBjDE\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Sunday, August 11 &#8211; Tuesday, August 13, 2019 The original plan was to have a five day weekend &#8211; Saturday<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/2019\/09\/23\/jefferson-park-3\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Jefferson Park<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3026,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[160,159,158],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3010"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3010"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3010\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3233,"href":"https:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3010\/revisions\/3233"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3026"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3010"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3010"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3010"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}