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Wednesday, August 1, 2018 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
Yapoah Lake narrowly escaped Milli Fire
By Craig F. Eisenbeis
Correspondent
Yapoah Lake, which has
always been a bit mysterious
because of its off-trail and
semi-secret status, mostly
escaped the conflagration of
last year’s Milli Fire. Even
though the flames burned all
the way to Yapoah Lake’s
waterline in several places,
the forest surrounding the
lake remains a largely green
oasis at the southwestern
edge of the burn.
This lake first came to
my attention three years ago,
when a lady contacted me for
information about the lake.
I not only didn’t have any
information, I hadn’t even
heard of the lake before.
Although the place is obvi-
ous on any map, it isn’t that
easy to find. Eventually, after
some extensive investiga-
tion, I did find the remote,
quiet, and scenic little lake.
So, when I saw that the lake
had been in the path of the
Milli Fire, I wanted to know
how badly it was hit; and, as
it turns out, it wasn’t too bad.
The trail into and through
the surrounding area, how-
ever, is another story. The
lower part of the Scott Pass
Trail that leads to the lake
was never exactly a scenic
wonder; and the earlier Pole
Creek Fire certainly didn’t
help. Even before that fire,
however, this portion of the
trail was mostly bug-killed
lodgepole pine forest. Some
of this area was not burned
then, but that was hardly evi-
dent because it was mostly
dead, anyway. In the wake
of the Milli Fire, the sec-
tion of trail nearest the trail-
head parking lot hasn’t really
changed much from three
years ago.
The early part of the trail
is in good condition, but the
forest is extremely dry. If
you attempt this hike – and I
can’t really say I recommend
it – the distance totals about
five or six miles, depending
on how much wandering and
exploring you do.
Upon entering the new
Milli burn, the damage is
quite mosaic, with many
trees and other greenery
surviving. Later, however,
everything is burnt to a crisp;
and the trail degenerates into
several inches of fine dirt and
dust. At times, it was like
walking in soft beach sand,
which can be a lot of work
and generate a cloud of dust.
At one point, we encountered
a half-dozen mounted eques-
trians, who stirred up a veri-
table dust storm.
On the bright side, the
trail was logged out early
in the season, so there was
very little deadfall to con-
tend with. Another surprise
was that new trail signs
have already been installed
to replace those that were
burned. The trail forks about
a mile and a quarter from the
trailhead. At this first marked
junction, stay left toward
Scott Pass and Green Lakes;
do not cross the creek on the
right.
After less than a half
mile, the trail forks again.
Green Lakes are to the left;
stay right this time. Yapoah
Lake is off-trail to the south-
west, but continue west
toward Scott Pass for about
another three quarters of a
mile. Three years ago, this
area was a lush and green fir
and hemlock forest; today,
it is mostly burned waste-
land. The not-an-official trail
to Yapoah Lake is actually
more obvious than it used to
be, even though the marker
trees are now gone with the
fire.
As it happens, we left
the trail too early, result-
ing in much hard going on
very steep slopes. In lightly
burned areas, the carpet of
dead needles can be very
slick on a steep slope. We
eventually found the lake,
which had a considerably
PHOTO BY CRAIG F. EISENBEIS
The basin holding Yapoah Lake is a remote and scenic spot that mostly survived the effects of the Milli Fire.
higher water level than
during our previous late
September visit. I tend not to
be a big fan of GPS because
users depending on it often
fail to learn basic outdoor
and orienteering skills. For
this trip, however, GPS —
or, better yet, a map app — is
probably a good idea.
We came in on the steeply
sloping eastern shore of
the lake and ate lunch there
before exiting from the north
end. Although the fire burned
down to the shoreline in this
area, the grove of big old
cottonwood trees was sur-
prisingly unscathed. From
that spot, the top of the North
Sister can be seen peeking
over a ridge south of the
lake. In the areas where the
fire crept down to the lake’s
edge, those portions of the
fire are more like a very gen-
tle underburn.
I don’t really recommend
this trip for the average hiker;
but, for a seasoned and well-
equipped outdoor adventurer,
this can be an interesting out-
ing. The lake itself is very
beautiful; and the fact that it
remains intact after the fire
makes it quite a forest gem in
an area where few highlights
remain.
To reach the Scott Pass
Trailhead, take the McKenzie
Highway (242) five miles
west of Sisters to a left turn
onto Forest Road 1018;
there is a brown sign point-
ing toward the Scott Pass
Trailhead and other features.
About six miles later, turn
right onto Road 1026; from
here, it’s a little over a mile
to the trailhead. This is not a
fee-use area, but free wilder-
ness permits are required and
available at a trailhead kiosk.
And, if you’re wondering
about the name “Yapoah,”
it is borrowed from nearby
Yapoah Crater, a rather strik-
ing cinder cone to the west,
which juts up abruptly from
the surrounding terrain. Most
of the other peaks around it
are forged into one continu-
ous wall of alpine splendor
– part of the Cascade Crest.
Yapoah Crater, however, is
set off by itself; and that’s
how it earned its name.
Yapoah is a native term
that translates as “isolated
hill.” So, in 1924, that was
the name assigned by Edwin
T. Hodge, a University of
Oregon professor who was
studying the mountains that
now constitute the heart of
the Three Sisters Wilderness.
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