AG7GP's blog

Cougar Peak was another summit for the day I thought there may be better access on than there really was. Instead it was not much better than Yainax Butte which I did earlier in the day. There is a trail or road going up that can make for a good hike. It is an unusual mountain of piled shale. We drove further up than most would choose to. Steep drop off, brush in narrow road, driving on large flat shale, and 3 point switchbacks. My designated SOTA driver, Robin N7HAP, goes the extreme sometimes!

Yainax Butte, or as the surveyor pin says, “Yonna”, was a mountain I was hoping to drive up to the lookout and do a quick activation on my way to SOTA campout/"expedition" in the Fremont NF west of Lakeview. The roads were awful. There are a couple ways to get there, just follow the maps but once you get to the main access road to summit, it is extreme 4wd rutty, rock crawl for about 3 or 4 miles. We ended up going all the way but I do not recommend it. It would be better off as maybe a  day hike up rather than drive.

I have to say, this summit is now at the top of my list. I went expecting an easy drive to 8 pt summit, but there was still about 3-5 ft deep snow drifts about 1 mile before summiting, but boy was the hike nice. The view is incredible. You can see just about all the regional highlights, snowy side of Mt. McLauglin with Fourmile Lake at its base right beside you, Crater Lake Rim, Thielson, Shasta, Upper Klamath Lake, Siskiyou Crest, Red Buttes, Aspen Butte, some big ones west of Crater Lake I did not get the name for, lava flows, and natural lakes.

On my way home from activating Pelican Butte I took a detour to see if Rye Spur  was accessible for a future date. Take the turn towards Fourmile Lake (FS RD 3661) off of 140 the turn right on FS RD 360, then right FS RD 363. It turned out we were able to drive the FS RD 363 pretty close to the summit and chose to hike the short walk up and do a very quick activation. It was probably about a half mile up with a gradual, easy ascent. The last of the road going in is very tight and a bit rough. It dead ends at a good turn around with fire pit.

Table Mountain is an easy, near drive to, summit with one of the best views in my opinion. You are looking down at Howard Prairie and Hyatt lake, with a fabulous view Mt. Mcloughlin on your left and Mt. Shasta on your right. Since this is near my home area it is a great place for us to look at all the summits we have done and want to do. See what still has snow, what is open.

I love Bald Mountain. Not sure what it is about this gem. Maybe just like Wagner Butte and Grizzly Peak, it's a mountain I stare and gaze at frequently. It is the view from our ranch meadow (Brickpile Ranch) so again one of those mountains I wanted to hike but never did until SOTA. Each activation I have done from a different areas since it is a long summit, only once have I took the trail. If feeling ambitious I recommend doing Point Mountain or Anderson Butte same day.

Point Mountain has a pretty good trail most of the way. It is mainly a steep bald mountainside especially for the last  few hundred yards of the climb. I do not recommend short cutting, the brush is too thick where it gets tempting because you are oh-so-close to the top. This is also an area known for bear. My first trip up I got growled at by something in the thicket ?? Turned around and kept to trail...

We (me and N7HAP) did this after W7O/SC-267, I would recommend doing them both if up there. We went up expecting a nice 75degree day but got that Oregon liquid sunshine instead. This was N7HAP's first successful activation! He also logged the very first SOTA contact for this summit, YAY!

Summit 3334 will likely be named ”Hornet Hill” due to the local road names going up. But don't let the name stop you! It is a nice knoll with a partial view. Grassy area with oak and tall pine, and plenty of wildflowers, and some interesting lighning damage on some timber. Plenty of area to set up.

I was driving by Negro Ben every week for a job so decided to give it a try on my way home one morning, being that it was “just a 2 pointer” I thought no problem. It was a little exciting for my first solo activation. The majority of the walk up was easy, just a gated road. Then you have to bushwack your way up from the end of the road (SEE UPDATE). A few yards in I had a rattlesnake slither right across my foot as I took a long stride up the bank. Yikes! I set up in the timber, there is some open areas at the very top but I was looking for shade in July.