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About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (April 7, 1963)
Climbing McLoughiin Is Natural Physical Fitness Features Sports Medford&jTribune SECTION B MEDFORD, OREGON, SUNDAY. APRIL 7. 196a PAGES 1 to ft BY EVA HAMILTON Mail Tribune Sldff Wriler Ernest W Smith, ol Bulle Falls doesn t talk about physical fitness. He alks about rocks and trees, wild flowers and itorms. He doesn't need to talk about it He doesn't even think about it. He just has it and has had it for a lone time When Smith was the age of many valley youths, who are row prepping for 50-milc hikes In ileu of physcial fitness, he was walking three miles to teach school or climbing a mountain with a 30-pound pack on his back. He made his first trip up Ml. McLoughiin. knowr to old timers land he is one of them) as Mt. Pitt or Snowv Butte, in 19(19. In 1917 he constructed the first lookuu't on the mountain, and again in 1930 he helped construct the second and last one. It was abandoned when the forest service decided that the same fog which chilled the bones of the lookout man also obscured fires, which were always on the lower levels. Native of Central Point A native of Central Point, where his grandfather, Dr. R. L Parker, took up a homestead, Smith has spent his life in Jackson county. In so doing he has followed many lines of work school leaching, fire fighting, sur veying, fire finding, carpentering and engineering Po litical history of the valley he has known well, but geologieial history of mountains he has always found more interesting. Under the former heading he recalls that his father's pupil was his teacher. Smith's father. Edgar E. Smith, taught the Central Point school in 1888. The laic Gus Samuels, former Medford city treasurer, was one of Smith's pupils. Later Samuels, who taught school for a while before going into other public work, was Ernest Smith's teacher. Ernest's father was Jackson county's deputy clerk under Nate Jacobs and deputy sheriff under A. S. Barnes He shared his school scat at Jacksonville with Don Colvig, son of the late Judge William Colvig. Ernest's grandfather doctored Jefferson Grigsby, Agate postmaster, in 1902, and received his fee in potatoes. The review of old time names and incidents could go on and on. But it is of the mountain, not the valley, 11 that Smith speaks and his description of many trips up and down the steeps of AH. McLoughiin is a lesson in survival. Comes Into View The mountain probably came into his intimate view firM when he taught thr Patton school north of Ran cheria in 1906. Rancheria la not far from Snow Shoe camp from which many people start the trek into Blur Canyon and up Mt, McLoughiin. It offers reserved seats, so to speak, when nature puts on an electric show with Mt. McLoughiin as the stage. Smith taught the school for S35 a month, paid $15 a month board and walked three miles to the school house. He had obtained his certificate by examination from Pat Daily, county school superintendent. He took a correspondence course In engineering and qot a job with the Butte Falls Sugar Pine company before Owen-Oregon took over the holdings. Later he was surveyor for 20 "years for Medford Corporation, successor to Owen-Oregon. Surveying for Railroad He was surveying on the old Pacific and Eastern railroad, which penetrated the area, when the catas trophic 1910 fire blazed over Cat Hill. In July, 1910, Smith made his second trip up Mt. McLoughiin. It was a hard trip for the members of the railroad survey crew. They tramped through six miles of forest, blazing their own trail and not lost in the darkness. In June. 1911. Smith decided to make the trip again before the smoke of late summer obstructed the view. The group started out on foot with blankets, frying pan and enough provisions for three days, traveling by way of Four Mile lake. There the men found the mound half covered with snow and old drifts several feet deep. The next day rain prolonged their plans and after taking refuge in a cabin they decided "more grub': would be needed before they made the climb. Four of the group started out for Odessa or Pelican Bay 12 miles cast. They bought supplies in a logging camp. The following day it rained again but by morning the clouds were breaking away after an inch of fresh snow fell. Four Hours of Climbing After four hours of steady climbing over new and old snow, which was frozen hard, the men reached the top. The sun was shining but the wind blowing "cold and hard." They dug into the snow for the box placed there by the Mazama club, registered their names, took a few pictures and started the return trek. When they got out of snow they entered lava rock and thick brush for several miles but finally reached Mosquito Ranger station at the fool of the mountain. The next morning Smith realized that his face had become blistered from the sun on the snow and his eyelids were so badly swollen that he could hardly see. One companion stayed with him while the others con tinued home and sent his brother-in-law in to get him. His eyes have never completely recovered from the damage. In 1917, Smith was transferred by the forest service to Mt. Pitt to prepare to construct a lookout house. This time he made the trip to the Mosquito Ranger station wih a mule team and wagon. The next day with Dee Wright, he packed his outfit on to horses and started around the mountain from the west side by Fish lake to the southwest side where the trail begins. A distance of 16 miles. Wright had had much experience packing in the mountains of Oregon. He had packed the material for a similar house on Mt. Hood and other lookouts. The Ml. Pitt house was to be 12 feel square and the lumber was all cut to fit. There was one door and 19 double windows lo be packed in. At the time horses had never packed to the top of the mountain. Smith wrote in his report of the project, Offers No Difficulties The first part of the trail was through open timber and offered no difficulties other than blazing out a definite course and cutting out an occasional pole or log. but as it ascended the way became more rough and obstructed by boulders and loose shale. The builders finally opened a fair trail lo beyond the timber line. Then it became steeper and steeper and the loose shale more difficult to cross. Wright rode up to the end of the trail and then ventured on beyond and aross the loose shale and up and back and forth by many switchbacks until he reached the top. He came back down and took his whole pack train with a light load back up, and soon had a trail broken. Smith said he was told lo go along ahead as a man couldn't keep up with the horses." With 10 pounds on his back he reached the top in 1 hours and waited half an hour for the pack train to reach the top. The top of the mountain was composed of piles of boulders, of broken lava rack of all shapes and sizes, from pebbles to same several tons in weight, Smith re called. With a crowbar and a peevy he "pried and rolled what rocks he could handle from the lop to the edge of the foundation site. Occasionally he yielded lo temptation and sent one down the north side where it would roll and leap and bound sometimes for a mile or more until it came to rest amid millions of others. The larger rocks he broke up with dynamite and in a few days had space large enough for the house. In addition to building the house, it was Smith's job to watch for and report forest fires. He had a map and constructed his own alidade (fire finder) as he had previously done on Devil's peak. By taking a reading from two or more lookout stations he could locate a fire very accurately with this "crude makeshift con traption" and did. Far from Completion The lookout was far from completion when Smith realized that an electric storm was brewing. He didn't anticipate being in one as he had noticed queer glassy places on many of the rocks on the summit, caused, he was sure, by lightning strikes. He covered up the supplies as best he could and started for Mosquito Ranger station. All the ridges looked alike to him in the fog. He had always prided himself on his ability to find his way anyplace in the woods but when he emerged from the fog he found he was on the northwest instead of the southeast side of the mountain. He reversed his course and arrived at the ranger station. Convinced that the storm was over, he left his Butte Falls home again and started his fifth ascent of the mountain. He climbed more slowly and stopped often to rest and to drink from the large depressions in the rocks which had been filled with water by the storm. He carried a three-inch mirror with him and flashed messages to his wife. On Sept 17, a forest officer brought him Mr. Jenss as a helper. The work moved more rapidly and was near ing completion when another storm blew up. The two men got the windows in, propped up the door and de cided to sleep in the house, although they were not sure it would stay on the mountain top. The guy wires had not yet been attached. Could Feel It Tremble They could feel it tremble when an extra heavy gust of wind moved through. In the morning they found their bed and the lookout floor covered with a thin coating of snow. They went lo their tent to get break fast. They had closed it tightly but the wind had driven in the snow. Even the chimney of the oil stove was filled with snow. They despaired of trying to cook and went back to bed to keep warm. About noon they started for the ranger station. And it was then found that men can get lost even with a compass it wasn't standard). After arguing over the directions of the compass for some time, the two men proceeded down the mountain. When they got out of the snow they suddenly found themselves in a stretch of lava potholes sometimes SO to 100 feet wicie and 10 to 20 feet deep with ridges of lava rock between them. Potholes were followed by brush, which became taller and thicker and every leaf was loaded with water from the storm. See Scattered Pine They were ready to despair when the fog lifted and the two hikers saw the scattering pine trees beyond and knew they were traveling toward the northwest. They changed their courses and were soon out of the lava rock. Two miles down the mountain they struck the wagon trail to the station and home. Once again after the storm. Smith started up the mountain. Ranger Bert Peachey brought in kerosene for the stove and groceries. Jenss was moved to Rustler peak to help build a smilar lookout and Smith continued alone. Before he left, however, the wires were establish ed for lightning protection. The project moved forward rapidly in good weather. When the snowbank from which he got his water sup play was almost gone, Smith decided it was time to leave the mountain. Packing up his remaining belongings, about 30 pounds, he took the trail. Far below he saw a piece of board and recognized it as part of the shutters he heard depart with such a clatter during the storm. Reaching Mosquito Ranger station. Smith wrote he was tired but once on his trusty bicycle and headed for home, down grade, fatigue practically left him. That was physical fitness, 1917 style. mil i hi r'TTMiifl WtSCif : I I " ...HKSSf V, M&m&i ajkW . JPjSj EL a (HlS QJk Bfli 1 rx : I IhNVKl.' wEKffflMB Br V.I On Devil's Peak in wis. Ernest Smith made his own fire finder, which he WM using in this photo. Forest officials said it contributed to the design of the Osborn tin finder, which was adopted. The most destructive fire in his experience was the Cat Hill burn in 1910. ' ' A l . ! HSMJP'. ''vifl , I tic with This is the lookout house constructed on Mt. Pitt in 191V. The guy wires had been attached and secured against the itorm when this photo was taken Oct. 12. Kvnn on the summit of Mt. McLoughiin. Smith has always maintained hl home. In 1017, he communicated with his wife when both flashed messages with mir rors. Mrs. Smith, sewing in her easy chair, doesn't enjoy mountain climbing. V tku f. the .pot on the .summit of lit. Put. where the Urtbau constructed Dee Wr.s ; tr...n Inn Thi photo how the tone found m, i - , second looko.1 e which w built on Ml. Pitt Just completed the first trip up the mountain with supplies when this picture was taken In 1930. Smith also worked on this project abandoned many years ago.
