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About Illinois Valley news. (Cave City, Oregon) 1937-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 10, 2016)
Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, Ore. Wednesday, August 10, 2016 Page A-9 Winding Trails: by Al Hobart Thursday, August 11, 1966 Illinois Valley News Preston Peak Climb Few mountain peaks in the Siskiyous rise to an elevation of over 7,000 feet. The two highest are Mt Ashland, 7,533 feet. and Dutchman Peak, 7,418 feet., both situated near the eastern end of the Siskiyous. Fourth member of this small group of rocky aristocrats, outclassed by Observation Peak by a mere 30 feet, is Preston Peak, right here in our own back yard. It is 7,310 feet high. If not in height, there are at least a few important respects in which Preston stands out above its few peers: It is the most spectacular of the group, its bare twin peaks rising above the surrounding mountains like a sentinel ever on the alert. From the higher of its two peaks the great rock drops away sheer for several hundred feet on its north face and for a hundred feet or more to the short saddle connecting it with the lower peak to the east. The south side too is an almost perpendicular drop-off. From the west a steep and narrow backbone of rock provides the only means of attaining this highest point without the use of technical climbing apparatus. Extreme care in selecting secure hand and toe holds is necessary in much of the climb; and to be on the safe side, a few well-chosen words of prayer might help in negotiating the rougher spots. What makes the Preston climb really rough is the fact that there is no trail or easy approach to the main peak. Shale, great boulders and a tangle of brush surround the mountain at the lower levels. The lower peak can be quite easily reached by taking the long trail down Clear Creek from Young’s Valley, up the Rattlesnake Springs trail and along a high ridge leading up from there. My first approach to the mountain was over this route, now so overgrown with brush for much of the way as to be hard to locate at times. The most direct route to the peak from Young’s Valley is by way of Cyclone Gap, past El Capitan, Copper Peak, and Raspberry Lake. This is the route we took when Charles, Joe, and I climbed to the summit a few days ago. Joe’s 10-year-old Danny gamely stayed with us till we reached the most hairy part of the climb near the summit, where on either side of the rocky comb you can look straight down for what seems to be at least half a mile. I met the gang on Rockydale Road at 4 a.m., where they transferred to the jeep, and we took to the mountains at Bear- camp Ridge. Our 8 or 9 hour trip was punctuated by several weird incidents that would have discouraged less hardy souls, but we carried on to a successful and happy finish. Tobegin with, a few miles from take-off old busybody Joe drew my attention to the gas gauge. It said empty–almost. (I had slipped up there–but I think I convinced them the gas gremlins did it.) Then on the way to Cave Junction to get gas Charles braced his big No. 10s on the dashboard smack on top of the cigarette lighter and almost set the jeep on fire. When the smoke from the burning insulation cleared away Little Toot coughed a couple of times, backfired bravely, then took off like nothing untoward had happened. With a full gas tank and everybody comfortably squeezed into Little Toot’s 2-man cab we made good time up the big ridge, past Camp Chicago and Sanger Lake and into Young’s Valley. A short distance farther on, at Bell Echo campsite, the repaired road ends, but we went a couple of miles farther on an improvised jeep trail. When we had hiked the 2 or 3 miles in to Raspberry Lake our steep climb began, and for half a mile we had to fight our way through occasional dense tangles of brush. Finally we reached the base of the last rocky ascent to the summit, and from there it was a matter of picking the best way up. When at last we reached the majestic old rock’s highest point I experienced a feeling of elation even greater than when I stood on the summit of Mt. Shasta, nearly twice as high–because I had once tried to climb Preston’s highest peak when alone, and chickened out. I’d crawled all over the mountain otherwise many times, including the lower peak, but the high point had me buffaloed. Joe and Charles for a long time have wanted to climb Preston too. Now at last we have it, my favorite mountain, with its tiny glacier and all in our hip pocket. Joe, just to be different, climbed the last couple of hundred feet twice–he forgot his rope and had to go back after it. There may be other forms of exercise that are better and outdoor thrills that are greater than mountain climbing, but we haven’t discovered any. 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