Olallie Lake Guard Station
We reserved the Olallie Lake Guard Station cabin back in February and the time had finally came to enjoy it. We shared the cabin with our cousins and a good Minneapolis friend for the weekend.
Olallie Lake is located in Mt Hood National Forest on the eastern edge and is accessible only by gravel roads. The cabin was built in 1939 and sits at 5,000 feet in elevation. Olallie Lake is considered one of the cleanest lakes in Oregon, it’s major source of water is snow melt. A fun fact is Olallie in Chinook means berry. The lake was named Olallie because of the abundance of berries in the area. Olallie Lakes National Scenic Area is approximately 30 lakes with Olallie being the largest. There are no motorized boats or swimming allowed on Olallie Lake. There are many campgrounds that surround the area. Water from Olallie Lake is piped from the lake through a filtration system to the campgrounds for drinking water.
The Guard Station has running water and is powered by propane. Each light needs to be lit with a flame. The refrigerator also runs off of propane. The cabin sleeps eight, with a full size bed steep stairs, a set of bunk beds and two futons in the living room. It was way to warm during our visit to use the fireplace in the living room. The kitchen is equipped with all you need to cook meals. From the Guard Station cabin, you are able to sit at the picnic table outside the kitchen door and soak up view of Mt Jefferson across Olallie Lake.
The Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) passes through the area. Due to the forest fires burning eight miles away on the other side of Mt Jefferson, the PCT hikers have been forced to reroute to continue their journey.
The view of Mt Jefferson at sunrise and sunset were spectacular. But at about 10am the winds would pick up and the smoke would engulf Mt Jefferson. There would be no visibility of the mountain though most of the day.
During the day we were able to escape the heat and took a swim across the street at Head Lake. The kids and adults played about on the wooden raft. The kids would gently scoop up and marvel over the abundant newts in the lake.
After swimming the hammocks were hung and naps were taken. That evening we enjoyed brats, potatoes and s'mores on the campfire. Our long day in the sun made for an early evening.
The following day we took the crew safely out of the forest and on a small adventure to Little Crater Lake. The lake is a spring fed lake located northeast of Timothy Lake in Mt Hood National Forest. The lake is named after Crater Lake and shares some of the same characteristics such as icey and blue water. Little Crater Lake is 45 feet deep and has a constant temperature of 34 degrees throughout the year.
After our quarter mile hike to see the lake, we stopped at the campground picnic table to enjoy PB&J sandwiches, and cheese and salamis for lunch.
