Solo Backpacking in Central Oregon

I’ve done a TON of things solo….all kinds of travel, concerts, car camping, hiking, movies, etc. However, as of July of this year, the one thing left to do on my own was backpacking. This was the summer to give it a go.

“Solo travel is not about being alone; it’s about being present in the moment and open to new experiences.” – Unknown

Living in Central Oregon we are VERY close to some pretty special wilderness areas (an hour or less with no traffic). Because they are so special, they require permits which is appreciated. Locals who have been around for a while hate it, but over time, so many places in Colorado (my previous home state) have been loved to death, it’s really sad. I’d hate to see this happen in Oregon.

Every year in April, overnight permits for the Central Cascades Wilderness Area are released. You can secure 3 permits for the season if you’re lucky. You really need to identify what you want prior to the release so you can quickly navigate to the trailhead and desired dates. Luckily, I was able to snag permits for Pamelia Lake in the Mt Jefferson Wilderness and the coveted Green Lakes in the Three Sisters Wilderness. Both are off the charts beautiful areas.

Once you secure a permit and start your trip you must enter at the designated trailhead, but you are able to venture out anywhere in the back country in that area for as many days as you reserved. One thing to note, additional permits are released in a 7-day rolling window at 0700 throughout the summer so all is not lost if April is too early to plan.

What was the experience like at Pamelia Lake?

I hiked up about 6 miles/2,200 feet to Hanks Lake from the Pamelia Lake trailhead. It got fairly steep after Pamelia Lake and it happened to be one of the hottest days this summer. UGH.

My pack was WAY too heavy on this trip. That coupled with the heat caused me to stop and start what felt like 1,000 times. Ha! Historically, I pack all kinds of fun things – games, wine, shelter, tattoos, etc. However, someone (me) may be getting a little older and can no longer handle 35lbs + on their back! Since this trip, I have been replacing old backpacking gear with ultra light options. I’ll be testing all of it out in Colorado in a couple of weeks.

The scenery was incredible, the skies were the bluest of blue, the water was crystal clear, my campsite was sweet as can be (great views of Hanks Lake), I met some super cool people along the way and had only had one bear encounter. At 2:00 am (what I believed to be) a bear nudged my empty backpack that was leaned against my tent. I screamed and it ran away very quickly. The sound of it galloping off was confirmation of what type of animal it was. Definitely bigger than a breadbox – it was no ground squirrel for sure.

The only buzz kill was that my sleeping pad had a slow leak and I ended up sleeping on the ground most of the night. I thought it was a user problem so it wasn’t replaced, but realize now it’s the pad itself so it’s going buh-by. I actually may just have the hubby send it back to the vendor for repair.

What was the experience like at Green Lakes?

Green Lakes is probably the most sought after trail permit to secure! The trail is nice and smooth, they built sturdy bridges for the river crossings, and the Green Lakes themselves are gorgeous.

It’s about a 4.5 mile/1,175 ft elevation hike to the Lakes. There are 28 designated camping spots dispersed reasonably far apart from one another. You can’t camp anywhere else within this part of the wilderness.

Without a definitive plan where to pitch my tent, I asked backpackers descending the trail where they hunkered down. In the end, I accidentally ran into a woman in the outdoor ‘bathroom’ who recommended sites 1 and 2 (I took site #1). These are definitely 2 of the best sites in the area. Site 10, 14 and 16 were also recommended.

Because this is a heavily used area and very pristine, Forest Rangers are out and about checking permits and ensuring you know what you are doing. I had 2 of them stop by my tent and ask about waste disposal plans, cooking set up and made sure I knew there were no fires to be had. It was honestly a little unnerving as I was napping at the time.

The cool thing about using Green Lakes as a basecamp, you can do several beautiful day hikes from there. I hoofed it to Golden Lake (6 mile RT) and No Name Lake (13 Mile RT).

All I can say is both were some of the greatest experiences since we moved to Oregon. It’s incredibly freeing and empowering once you know you can do something like this and come out of the woods alive! Now that I have done it twice, it’s a breeze and plan on doing more of it after I RETIRE in November. Whoo hoo! Life is Good!

“Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.”

– Neale Donald Walsch

…i choose this…

Pam