Representing all of us crazy seahawk fans at 10,000 feet!! |
Eastern Oregon is beautiful and vast with South Sister along with North and Middle Sister being a prominent feature. South Sister is the youngest of the three volcanoes. Early settlers name the three peaks from N to S Faith,Hope and Charity. Its a perfect mountain as it's non-technical, moderately strenuous and is high in elevation. Its mountaineering at its easiest, not that it's easy but just one of the easiest high mountains to summit while being superbly enjoyable!!
We weren't the only ones attracted to the mountain. It was a typical sunny summer day with droves of hikers and backpackers climbing the mountain.
Lake Moraine, near our campsite |
Night crept on. Soon enough we unzipped our warm air filled sleeping bags to tackle our goal. With headlamps wrapped around our beanies we were suddenly lighting the trail into the wee hours before sunrise. Which is the best time to hike, predawn!!
With no rocks or plenty of rocks in your shoes either way the summit views are worth it. To the north Middle and North Sister were prominent with Mt Washington , Three Fingered Jack and Mt Jefferson in the far distance. To the south Broken Top and Mt Bachelor were prominent with Diamond Peak and Mt Thielsen in far view. The summit has a huge crater in the middle filled with snow. We walked across is to access the true summit. The crater is very wide and the snow makes it relatively flat. I now want to go back play a game of flag football or ultimate Frisbee 10,000 up on the compact snow!!
Looking north at Middle and North Sister from the summit of South Sister |
At the summit we weren't alone. There was a group of young families who were entering the Mazama Club. They made it to the top with their elementary kids!! Therefore if kids can conquer South Sister so can you!! You wont regret it!
Glimpses of South Sister |
Summer blooms |
Looking back to where we started, with Mt Bachelor on the left |
The summit block and |
South Sister's summit crater |
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