Here's a near drive-up south of Estacada with a hike as short as a quarter mile and 200 feet of gain.
Good Parking At Trailhead
Mount Lowe, OR | October 2016
UPDATE 2021 - Mount Lowe may have been damaged in the September 2020 fires. Check for access.
Naomi Peak, UT | October 2016
Naomi Peak is a great hike along a well-marked trail from the Tony Grove Lake area. Tony Grove is a popular site seeing destination 28 miles NE of Logan Utah. The summit has views in all direction and is highly recommended as a day hike or a SOTA adventure.
Central Point Oregon's Upper Table Rock: September 5, 2016
Upper and Lower Table Rocks dominate the skyline north of Medford Oregon, just off Interstate 5. Upper Table Rock, located in Central Point, Oregon offers great views in many directions, and has an easy, well-maintained trail, used by more than 10,000 people each year. From the trailhead, it's a 30-45 minute walk to the summit, which is large and flat. There's no infrastructure on the mesa, but it is very large and offers both open spaces and some trees usable for supporting wire antennas.
Summit Mountain, MT | August, 2016
(3.6 miles, +2,400 ft, -300 ft, 7.4 mile approach)
Rock Island Butte, MT | September, 2016
0.7 miles, +750 feet, 5.2 mile approach
Rock Island Butte is in the southern portion of the Absoraka-Beartooth Wilderness. We climbed it from the Chief Joseph Trailhead as part of an extended backpacking trip, but it is also reasonable to climb it as a day-hike. If camping overnight, there is an excellent isolated campsite on the south side of Widewater Lake near where the trail dips closest to the lake. There are also numerous campsites in the Widewater-Big Moose area.
Peak 7384, ID | September 2016
Peak 7384 is the next SOTA Peak to the north of Granite Mountain W7I/SR-138. It is bushwhacking at its finest with endless deadfall on the main portion of the mountain. Limited views from the summit make this peak not the most enjoyable, but it is SOTA nonetheless and that is always good!
Peak 7420, ID | August 2016
This peak is about 12 miles NW of McCall Idaho. There is no trail to the summit, but it is an easy bushwhack. To get to the "trailhead" take Hwy 55 north out of McCall and take the Brundage Ski area turn off a few miles north of town. Follow this road to the Brundage Ski area, but instead of turning into the ski area parking lot remain on Goose Lake Rd.
Haystack Mountain, MT | Oct., 2016
(2.8 miles, +2,200 feet)
Haystack Mountain is a nice hike up a well-maintained trail. The summit is a large rockpile that has the scattered remains of an old fire lookout (“L-4” type lookout constructed in 1936 & destroyed on 1977). Although there is room to setup on the summit rockpile, there is a more comfortable flat area about 20-feet below the summit that is well within the activation zone. The trail may be accessed as follows:
Mount Pisgah, OR | October 2016
Mount Pisgah is a 'near' urban summit just east of Eugene. It is known as Mount Pisgah Arboretum and as the Howard Burford Recreation Area. It's a short 1.5 miles, but steep with 1050 feet of elevation gain from the parking lot to the summit. It features some of the last remaining oak savanna that once dominated the Willamette Valley and the summit has good views.