This past Labor Day weekend, the Idahoroshenks decided to break out the tent one last time for the season. We decided to head down to the Eagle Cap Wilderness in Oregon, one of our favorite places to go. We wanted to try out a different section of the forest along the Lostine River, one of the many National Wild and Scenic Rivers in the US. We left early in the morning and scored a great free camping spot in the Wallowa Whitman National Forest, which encompasses the wilderness area, near Two Pan trailhead. After setting up our trusty tent, the two- and four-legged Doroshenks went out for a short hike towards Maxwell Lake. Since it was getting dark, we decided not to trek it all the way up to the lake (about 4 miles away), but instead hiked in about 2.5 miles and got some awesome views of the river canyon and Eagle Cap Mountain. We headed back down the mountain and settled in at the campsite for some reading, eating, and fire watching.
The peak way in the back is Eagle Cap Mountain
The next day, we got up early and attempted to tackle the East Fork Lostine River trail to Mirror Lake. The morning started off chilly (probably in the low 50s). The hike was a 14 miler round trip and we weren't sure if Margo was going to be up to it, but we knew it would be an awesome day no matter how far we got. The hike started out uphill, climbing a few very steep switchbacks. It was early, so we saw few people and horses out and about, which was probably good so they didn't see how bad I was huffing and puffing up those hills. We then entered a beautiful valley created by glaciers long ago. We hiked along for a few miles, passing a few backpackers, and enjoyed the fantastic scenery.
The River Valley with Eagle Cap Mountain in the distance
After hiking along the flat valley, we climbed again for another 1.5 miles up to Mirror Lake. It was beautiful! At 7400 feet, the weather is a bit unpredictable and it started sleeting and got very windy. We sat for a quick lunch, took some pictures, and decided to head back down. On the way back, we passed horses, lots of backpackers, and other dogs. Margo and Chester were in hog heaven with all the tail wagging, horse poop, and human attention. Feet tired and muscles aching, we finally made it back to the trailhead and our camp. It wouldn't be a trip to this part of Oregon without eating some of Ember's Brewpub fantastic pizza or drinking the local Terminal Gravity brewery IPA, so we grabbed our goodies to go and enjoyed a relaxing evening by the fire. Margo hit the hay early, while Chester searched the campsite for those annoying chattering chipmunks (you never know when they might attack). We all slept well that night!
Mirror Lake