[pct-l] Oregon Section Hikers

[Greg Mikol]

I'll preface my comments by saying that it's been seven (!) years since
I hiked Oregon, but not much as really changed.

> I realize we're a bit late to the party, but my 16 year old son,
> Soren, (just turned so today) and I (his mother Ripley) are planning
> to hike the Oregon section of the PTC this summer. We live in
> Portland, so our plan is to enter the trail at the CA/OR border in
> late July or first of August and hike home via the Eagle Creek option
> at the end.

Your time frame sounds like it will work. We haven't had an
incredibly high snow year like last year, so everything should be melted 
out and the mosquitoes should be easing up. (Unless you do the Sky Lakes 
alternate north of Fish Lake, there were tons of 'skeeters there when I 
hiked through ~1st week of August.)

> Anyone have a guestimate on average temps at night for selecting
> sleeping gear?

In part, it depends on how warm/cold you sleep. It was 106F the day we 
hiked past Hyatt Lake and whatever the next big lake with a developed 
campground was (southern Oregon). Our water bottles froze solid 
overnight just north of Santiam Pass.

I was perfectly happy the whole trip with a 35F-rated, 1-sided down bag 
from Big Agnes, and a Therm-A-Rest. My wife had a 20F bag and wore a lot 
more clothing to bed than I did.

> Also, where it the best place to enter at the CA/OR border- what
> trailhead? And where to get permits for that section alone? I have
> only seen CA fire permit info. Does OR require fire permits?

Easiest place to start in S. Oregon is just south of the town of 
Ashland, at Siskiyou Summit, just off I-5. I'm told (though I've never 
hiked it) that the stretch from Seiad Valley, CA to Ashland is very 
nice, too. So you could start there, but it's something like a 2000 to 
3000-foot climb out of Seiad.

As for permits, if you're just doing oregon, you don't qualify for a 
PCTA permit (oregon is less than the required 500 miles). But wilderness 
areas along the trail are all self-register / no fee. I think there are 
only 2 areas of heavy use in central oregon (near Sisters Mirror Lake, 
and Obsidian Falls, I believe) that require camping permits. If you have 
a rigid schedule you can probably apply for them now and get in for your 
selected dates. But these exclusion areas are only 1-2 miles long, so 
it's possible to camp outside the exclusion areas. No fire permits 
required in OR, but as always, there may be open-fire restrictions, and 
that varies from area to area. Be aware of current conditions and 
surroundings if you plan on having an open fire.

I really wish I could be hiking this summer...I'd do oregon again in a 
heartbeat. Best of luck on your hike!!

--Greg