SPORTS
Pass highway has much to offer
i—> I-SHMa-!-!-1
I INTO THE
OUTDOORS
BY JAYSON JACOBY
Few state roads arc as de
manding on drivers as the
McKenzie Pass highway.
Thankfully, motorists can
choose from a myriad of off
highway pursuits when they
get tired, ranging from forest
campgrounds to a unique ob
servatory constructed of the
area's most abundant natural
building material: craggy basalt
lava.
To gel to the pass, drive east
of Eugone on Highway 126 past
the hamlet of McKenzie Bridge.
Two miles past the McKenzie
ranger station turn right at a
woll-marked junction with
Highway 242. The McKenzie
Pass summit is 22 miles farther.
The first driving break —
Limberlost campground — is
loss than two miles from the
junction (and about 60 miles
from Eugene). Limberlost is nn
ideal rotreat on hot summer
days — set in the shade of huge
old-growth Douglas Fir trees.
Beyond the campground the
road begins to climb through
serpentine curves, a pattern
that continues most of the way
to the summit.
About four miles past
Limberlost is the turn-off for
the White Branch Youth Camp,
a popular snow-play area dur
ing the winter. The first of two
snow gates is also located here,
and from about November
through June the road is closed
beyond this point.
'I'wo miles past the snow gate
— with a postcard view of the
Three Sisters on the way — is
the half-mile truil to Proxy
Falls, a pair of 100-foot cas
cades thut pour off lava cliffs.
The easy path crosses a lava
flow before splitting near the
falls. The right fork leads to the
lower cataract and the left
branch to the upper.
Just a mile past the Proxy
Falls trailhead is u second,
smaller campground — Alder
.Springs. There are uctually two
separate sites; the second and
largest is a few hundred yards
past the first If you have more
than a few minutes to spend,
consider the almost level, one
mile trail to jewel-like Linton
Lake that sturts from the first
camping site. This scenic body
of water was formod when a
lava flow dammed a creek.
Beyond the upper camp
ground — whore the second
snow gate is located — the road
climbs Dead horse Grade, the
steepest and twistiest section of
u road alroady short on
straightaways.
This five-mile strotch —
which gains more than 1.200
feet of elevation — was named
hack in the pioneer days. The
story goes that a pack horse
dropped dead while making the
ascent By the time you get to
the top of the grade you will
probably believe this tall
sounding tale
Blurry-eyed drivers — not to
mention dizzy passengers —
can unwind after Doadhorse
Grade by stopping at a view
point of the Three Sisters
These three sibling volcanoes
were originally named Faith.
Hope and Gharity by 19th-cen
tury settlers.
Less than two miles past the
roadside viewpoint is the turn
off for the largest campground
along the highway at Scott
Lillie Bellknap Crater, with an elevation ot 6,305 leet, ia one ot more
than 10 peaks visible from the Dee Wright observatory.
Lake. This lake is popular with
campers and anglers during the
summer and is also a huso
camp for hiking trips to lakes
located inside the Mount Wash
ington wilderness area to the
northwest.
A few miles past Scott l-ako
— after passing through the
middle of a beautiful alpine
meadow that is dotted with
wild flowers in June and July —
the highway leaves the forest
and enters the summit lava
fields.
This barren, 65-square-mile
prairie of jagged black basalt is
desolate enough to have served
as a training ground for moon
bound astronauts. Only a few
hardy, wind-blasted whitebark
pine trees have been able to
scratch out a living on this in
hospitable surface
A mile west of the summit is
the turn-off for the Pacific Orest
Trail, the most developed hik
ing/oquestrian trail in the west
ern United States The trail
loads off to the north through
the lava, eventually crossing
the Santiam Pass highway on
its way to the Canadian border.
The highlight of the drive is
at the 5.325-foot summit The
Dee Wright observatory offers
one of the stale's best views of
the high Cascade snowpeaks
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Built utmost entirely of the
lava upon which It sits, the ob
servatory is named after a horse
packer who also helped build
trails in the area Wright also
oversaw the observatory’s con
struction try Civilian Conserva
tion Corps worker* but died tie
fore it was completed
A unique feature is the en
closed mountain-viewing room,
whore holes in the lava walls
Isolate specific mountains
On the observatory’s open-air
top. a brass plaque also identi
fies the area's landmarks
Mount Hood nearly MO miles to
the north, the Three Sisters,
and lava stretches for miles in
all directions.
The summit area also fea
tures markers explaining the re
gion’s unique natural features
In addition, a short, paved trail
lined with interpretive signs
winds through the lava fields
near the observatory. There are
also restrooms near the obser
vatory’s parking area, sure to tie
in demand after the drive.
A pleasant loop trip can lie
made by continuing 20 miles
east to Sisters, where Highways
20 ami 120 lead over Sunburn
I‘ass and back to Eugene
Jayson Jacoby is a sports re
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