Shoot The Crest

Tiny sections of the Pacific Crest Trail take you into colorful and diverse territory worth a thousand photographs.

I’ve always dreamed about hiking the entire Pacific Crest Trail. The PCT is a 2650-mile stretch from Mexico to Canada through the High Sierras and along the crest of the Cascades, through three states, two dozen national forests, 33 wilderness areas, seven national parks, and some of the most beautiful scenery in the world.

I have yet to tackle the whole trip. So far I've only managed to "cherry-pick" my way to a few of the very best sections.

Last year two friends and I cherry-picked trails in Oregon's Mount Jefferson and the Three Sisters Wilderness areas on a hiking and photography adventure I'll never forget.

Story and Photos by Randall J. Hodges

Whitewater Creek in the
Mount Jefferson Wilderness

Three sisters Wilderness

After a day's rest, we stocked up on food and film and dropped the car off at Devils Lake on Cascades Lakes Highway. We filled up with a good breakfast in the mountain town of Sisters then continued on to the trailhead at McKenzie Pass. (Take Hwy 20 west from Bend to Sisters. From Sisters take Hwy 242 to the PCT Trailhead at McKenzie Pass.)

We picked the 26-mile stretch of the PCT along the Three Sisters. The Three Sisters are volcanoes, each over 10,000 feet, that stand in a row and are encompassed by lava flows and volcanic debris, providing moon-like landscapes, spring-fed creeks, and flower-filled meadows perfect for hikes and photos.

We climbed around cinder cones and into a small meadow cut by a giant lava flow. As we ascended a pass, clouds blocked our view from the shoulder of the North Sister. The area, even shrouded in clouds, was awe-inspiring.

In the beautiful evening light, we marched through meadows and along small tarns, enjoying the glowing landscape. The South Sister never fully revealed itself, but the views were flooded with glowing orange and pink tones.

The next morning we faced another 12-mile day, so we got started early. We entered the incredible Wickiup Plain, a 2-mile-long meadow lined with trees on one side and an immense lava flow more than 100 feet high on the other.

We pitched camp as afternoon turned to evening and a thunderhead started to build. Right before sunset it broke off the 10,358-foot South Sister and proceeded to unleash a monsoon right over us as we scrambled for shelter. Puddles formed around us, then finally, the sun started to break through. I captured some incredible rainbows on film.

In the morning we headed to the summit of South Sister. With 3000 feet of elevation gain in about 2 miles, the hike is strenuous but not dangerous or technical. Another thunderhead gathered. After some discussion about the safety of proceeding to the summit in a building storm, we decided to go on, after a dozen youngsters in a scout troop passed us. If they could do it, so could we.

We reached the summit around one o'clock and it began to snow. Yes, snow in early August. From our viewpoint, we could see eight volcanoes rising from the clouds above the Cascades. After a time, we started the 4-mile trek down and arrived at the car in early afternoon just as it started to rain.

I had hiked 52 miles, camped for eight days, and shot more than 1600 images. Another stretch of the Pacific Crest Trail had been cherry-picked. Time to start planning the next trip.

Above: Lava beds in Three Sisters Wilderness

Below: Reflections in a tarn, Three Sisters Wilderness.

Northwest Travel Magazine
September/October 2007