East Crater is a peak in the Indian Heaven wilderness. Three years ago, the south side and ridgeline of East Crater were completely burned by a fire that ended up burning about 500 acres in the area, and this fire caused the evacuation of the entire Indian Heaven wilderness area in September of 2017. Not much has grown back on the south side, while the north side, essentially untouched by the fire, is thick with trees.
Turn east off of Fields-Denio Road at 42.1606, -118.6033 onto Whitehorse Ranch Lane.
Turn north off of Whitehorse Ranch lane onto an unmarked road at 42.2577, -118.3200
Turn left at an obscure point at 42.2819, -118.3588
Make a hairpin right turn at 42.2622, -118.3870
Park near a locked gate at 42.2619, -118.3895
Turn east off of Fields-Denio Road at 42.1606, -118.6033 onto Whitehorse Ranch Lane.
Turn off of that onto an unmarked road at 42.3111, -118.2625
Go past the right turn to Willow Creek Hot Springs to turn left at 42.2769, -118.2624
Park at 42.2463, -118.2392
Pueblo Mountain with 4x4.
Turn off of the Fields-Denio Road at 42.1447, -118.6038.
Make a sharp left at 42.1346, -118.6350.
Stop driving a start walking at 42.0996, -118.6686.
1.5 miles, +690 ft
The trailhead can be reached from either the Bernice exit on I-15, or the Galen exit on I-90 south of Deer Lodge. Both roads are suitable for all vehicles. These instructions are from I-90.
This summit is attained in a 4.5 mile, 3500 ft elevation gain hike with well maintained trial for the first half and reasonable trail with loose rock the rest of the way to the top. The trail head is easy to find once you know what you are looking for. There are a few key GPS waypoints that ease your way tremendously. I would not have been able to make this activation without tips from KC7DM, so a huge thank you to him.
West Butte (W7O/CE-111) is a prominent peak located about 23 miles east of Bend, north of Hwy 20. I completed it’s first activation in September 2020, which is surprising considering the mountain’s close proximity to Bend. While much of the summit is within BLM public lands, access is somewhat limited.
Mount Tiny is within the Anaconda Pintler Wilderness Area near Georgetown Lake. Mount Tiny is a great SOTA double with its neighbor Little Rainbow Mountain, W7M/BR-071.
Little Rainbow Mountain is within the Anaconda Pintler Wilderness Area. The summit provides excellent views of high mountain lakes and open alpine SOTA peaks. Little Rainbow is a great SOTA double with its neighbor Mount Tiny, W7M/BR-079