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ragman and rodman Member
Joined: 28 Apr 2005 Posts: 1219 | TRs | Pics Location: http://rgervin.com/ |
The Wallowa Mountains are located in northeast Oregon... my map of the area states that "At the heart of the range lies the Eagle Cap Wilderness, which only lightly shows the touch of man"... while this is no longer true of the more popular Lakes Basin area of the ECW, this is still a very gorgeous area... think Enchantments with more trees... and due to over-usage, don't be surprised to see a more stringent permit system in the future for the Lakes Basin area.
Nine of the fifteen highest mountains in Oregon are located in the ECW, which has more than 20 peaks and prominent points above 9000 feet... with Sacajawea Peak being the highest at 9838 feet.
Day 1:
Backpack 7 miles from the Two Pan Trailhead (5584') to Mirror Lake (7595') in the Lakes Basin area... at least 3 miles of this hike are a stroll up the East Lostine River Valley, one of the most lovely valleys I have ever seen... with the constant views of Eagle Cap Mtn at the end of the valley pulling you towards Mirror Lake.
After setting up camp at the east end of Mirror Lake, we decided to hike up to Point 8441 for better views of the area... Point 8441 is located ~.5 miles north of Mirror Lake at the south end of the Hurricane Divide... as expected, views were much better than those at Mirror Lake... add two miles and 846 feet of elevation gain for the roundtrip hike to this view point.
Photos of our backpack to Mirror Lake and hike to Point 8441.
Day 2:
A loop trip... hiking from Mirror Lake towards Horton Pass... where we took the Eagle Cap summit trail just before reaching Horton Pass... then exiting the Eagle Cap summit (9527') on the south side... reaching the low point (~9200') on the ridge between Eagle Cap and Glacier Peak... where we used a snow field to drop 200 feet to a very wide bench (~9000') that runs from the southeast side of Eagle Cap to the northeast side of Eagle Cap... continued north on the bench, eventually turning east on easy terrain towards Glacier Pass... dropping to Glacier Lake (8166') just before reaching Glacier Pass... then up to Glacier Pass (8520')... down to Mocassin Lake (7473') and closing our loop back at Mirror Lake.
This day hike was ~9 miles, gaining 2500 feet of elevation... with the crux of the hike coming at the snow field which we used to get from the ridge between Eagle Cap and Glacier Peak down to the 9000 foot bench... we didn't have ice axes, but found the snow just soft enough for our comfort level.
Considering our intermediate mountaineering skills, this hike was as about as good as it gets for us.
Photos of our hike to Eagle Cap Mtn and Glacier Lake
Day 3:
Backpack in the rain from Mirror Lake to the Two Pan Trailhead... ugh!!
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Davidą Token Canadian
Joined: 25 Jul 2002 Posts: 3040 | TRs | Pics Location: The Great White North |
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Davidą
Token Canadian
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Tue Aug 26, 2008 11:05 am
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(Tip of the Cap)
Great report - great photos - well worth the click-through!
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wildernessed viewbagger
Joined: 31 Oct 2004 Posts: 9275 | TRs | Pics Location: Wenatchee |
Awesome. I remember thinking the Wallowa's reminded me alot of looking at the Olympics from Lillian Ridge, beautiful range of peaks.
Living in the Anthropocene
Living in the Anthropocene
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JimK Member
Joined: 07 Feb 2002 Posts: 5606 | TRs | Pics Location: Ballard |
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JimK
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Tue Aug 26, 2008 12:44 pm
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We were to the east in Idaho the same days. Keep those non Cascade trip reports coming. That is one area I want to get to soon. Nice photos as usual.
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ragman and rodman Member
Joined: 28 Apr 2005 Posts: 1219 | TRs | Pics Location: http://rgervin.com/ |
wildernessed... what an awesome photo of Eagle Cap... I now have it on my computer... unless you are claiming copyright privileges.
Jim... I'll be looking for your Idaho report... I have a mid-September date with Leatherman Peak and Mt. Borah.
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ActionBetty Im a dirty hippie!
Joined: 06 Jul 2003 Posts: 4807 | TRs | Pics Location: kennewick, wa |
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ActionBetty
Im a dirty hippie!
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Tue Aug 26, 2008 1:59 pm
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Nice..glad you guys got to summit and hang out at Glacier
"If you're not living good, you gotta travel wide"...Bob Marley
"If you're not living good, you gotta travel wide"...Bob Marley
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wildernessed viewbagger
Joined: 31 Oct 2004 Posts: 9275 | TRs | Pics Location: Wenatchee |
ragman and rodman wrote: | wildernessed... what an awesome photo of Eagle Cap... I now have it on my computer... unless you are claiming copyright privileges.
Jim... I'll be looking for your Idaho report... I have a mid-September date with Leatherman Peak and Mt. Borah. |
No problem
Living in the Anthropocene
Living in the Anthropocene
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Don Member
Joined: 25 Apr 2005 Posts: 2013 | TRs | Pics Location: Fairwood, WA |
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Don
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Tue Aug 26, 2008 4:39 pm
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wildernessed wrote: | I remember thinking the Wallowa's reminded me alot of looking at the Olympics from Lillian Ridge, beautiful range of peaks. |
Interesting. The area is often compared to the Sierras, which I suppose is fitting. Approaching via the West Fork Wallowa River, I was reminded a lot of the North Cascades while in the valley. But up higher the Wind Rivers came more to mind - as in the Titcomb Basin area.
Thanks for the excellent TR! Having looked down on the East Lostine, I definitely want to go back and hike it due to both its scenery and rich history.
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joker seeker
Joined: 12 Aug 2006 Posts: 7953 | TRs | Pics Location: state of confusion |
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joker
seeker
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Wed Aug 27, 2008 12:10 am
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Timely report - thanks. I was eyeballing that general area (going in via Lostine valley) as a possible "wet weather backup" for a trip next week. It's great to see your photos and the comments about the area.
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