Two miles up, two miles down. 1,200 feet elevation gain.
From left to right: Broken Top, South Sister (yes, still under cloud cover!), North Sister.
Sisters Ranger District fire lookout tower
Three Fingered Jack (the actual name of the mountain).
Forest rangers cabin.
After five years we finally made the journey back to Bend to visit Christy's sister and her family. A trip to Oregon wouldn't be the same without hikes. South Sister sits directly west of Bend and is one of the four ultra-prominence peaks in the state. According to the National Weather Service, it looked to be a great day for the hike.
clear skies at the trailhead. A beautiful view of the peak above the pondarosa's. Everything was falling in place. Especially getting up on time, leaving on time and getting coffee!
The trail is about six miles long with about a 4,200 feet elevation gain. To knock out some of the elevation we started from the Green Lakes Trailhead instead of Devil's Lake, which tacked on a bit more distance.
As we approached the ridge to the final ascent, Oregon showed us her best. Monstrous thunderheads came rolling in, and quickly too.
Needless to say, the hike was cut short due to immense lightning. I guess that's the Cascades? We found ourselves "hurrying" off the ridge and back down into cover. It rained on us a bit but nothing like the Uinta's.
Back to the car we went and home for a nice home cooked meal. Thanks Rick, it was truly a delight. Hours of hiking with family and then going home to some good food, nothing beats it! The peak will be bagged someday, just not anytime soon. It happens. But man, the Cascades....
