- Oregon County HP: #29
- Difficulty: ⭐️ (on a scale of 5)
- Summit Elevation: 3,407 feet
- Mountain Range: Oregon Coast Range
- Ancestral Lands: Siletz; Confederated Tribes of the Siletz; Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde; Cayuse, Umatilla and Walla Walla
PLANNING DETAILS
Location: The unnamed Lincoln County high point is located in the Oregon Coast Range, approximately 25 miles east of Lincoln City, Oregon.
When to Visit: Spring or late autumn. Although this high point’s low elevation makes the summit accessible year-round, the preferred route (Mill Creek) is closed from mid-May to October during wildfire season. There are two alternate routes to this high point, but visitors using those routes may need to purchase a $100 non-motorized Weyerhaeuser recreation permit to traverse the Black Rock logging area.
Fees/Permits Required: This high point sits amid a patchwork of public land managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and private logging land controlled by Weyerhaeuser. A recreation permit is not required to drive to the Lincoln County high point using the eastern route (Mill Creek). However, a permit may be necessary for the northern route (Murphy Road) and the western route (Bear Creek) if traversing Weyerhaeuser’s Black Rock logging area.
Getting There: Lincoln County’s unnamed high point can be accessed from the east via Oregon Highway 22 and Mill Creek Road.
Directions from Salem:
- Follow OR-22 west for 21 miles toward the community of Buell, Oregon.
- Turn left onto Mill Creek Road, immediately after OR-22 crosses the bridge over Mill Creek.
- Drive south on Mill Creek Road for 3 miles to Mill Creek Recreation Site. The pavement ends 0.5 miles before the park, and transitions to a well-graded dirt logging road.
- Just beyond Mill Creek Recreation Site, there is a white Weyerhaeuser Gate spanning Mill Creek Road. This gate is closed and locked during the wildfire season, which typically runs from mid-May through October. If the gate is unlocked and open, visitors may drive the remainder of the way to the parking area just below the summit. This drive is 49.4 miles round-trip on dirt logging roads.
Eastern Route (Mill Creek)
- If you arrive outside fire season, the Weyerhaeuser gate across Mill Creek Road should be open.
- Follow Mill Creek Road (a wide dirt logging road) southeast for 8.6 miles. There are yellow mile markers posted every 1/2 mile on Mill Creek Road and multiple narrow one-lane bridges.
- At mile 8.6, you will reach a 3-way junction with Shumway Creek Road. Turn left onto Shumway Creek Road and follow it south for 5 miles toward Boulder Pass. Approximately 2 miles into this section of the route, Shumway splits and makes a tight hairpin turn to the right. Keep right here and follow the hairpin turn around.
- After approximately 5 miles on Shumway Creek, you will pass through a metal gate, and then reach the junction of logging roads at Boulder Pass. Continue straight through the intersection, exiting on the widest and most distinct logging road (Black Rock Mainline).
- Follow Black Rock Mainline for 5.6 miles, where you will encounter an unnamed logging road on your left. Turn onto this unnamed road and drive west for about 0.8 miles until the road splits.
- When you reach the fork in the road, veer toward the right onto the dirt road that heads uphill and follow it for the next 4.3 miles. This road will be in rougher shape than the active logging roads, but it is still passable in a higher-clearance car or SUV.
- After 4.3 miles on this smaller dirt road, you will reach a final junction. Turn right onto the single-lane dirt road that heads uphill and follow it for 0.6 miles to the wide turnaround spot that serves as the parking area for the Lincoln County high point.
- This parking area is only 0.25 miles from the summit, and the remainder of the trip will be on foot.
- Hike west toward the Lincoln County high point. The easiest route follows an abandoned and overgrown road. After 0.15 miles, you should be able to see the summit of the county high point ahead of you to the west. Continue uphill by the most direct route possible until you reach the boulder outcropping at the peak’s summit.
NOTE: This route takes visitors through a network of dirt logging roads that crisscross each other. Visitors should come prepared with a GPS route or other means to avoid taking a wrong turn.
Parking: There is no designated parking for this high point. However, there is room for 5 vehicles at the end of the logging road, approximately 0.25 miles from the summit. The closest amenities (bathrooms, water, trash) are in the towns of Dallas or Grande Ronde, Oregon, 15 miles from Mill Creek Recreation Area.
Pets Allowed: There are no signs prohibiting animals.
Kid Friendly: The eastern route brings visitors within 0.25 miles of the summit. However, the final hike up to this high point includes some off-trail navigation, which may be unsuitable for very young children.
Hiking Distance: 0.5 miles (round-trip)
The Summit: The summit of Lincoln County’s unnamed high point is partially covered with tall evergreen trees beside some boulder outcroppings. At the base of the tallest boulder, there is a glass jar with a summit log inside.
TRIP SUMMARY
Date Visited: December 2, 2025
Route Used: Mill Creek Road route and cross-county travel – 0.5 mile hike (round-trip)
I have one major regret from my last county high point. When I drove out to Laurel Mountain (Polk Co.), I wish I’d had time to add the Lincoln County high point to my trip. Instead, I had to return and add another 50 miles of driving on the same logging roads to my SUV.
After a successful trip to nab Laurel Mountain on Veteran’s Day, I returned for my second drive on Mill Creek Road a few weeks later. But first, I double-checked that this new route didn’t go through Weyehaeuser’s Black Rock logging area. I didn’t want to get stopped by the logging company for failing to purchase a permit (which costs $350 for motorized travel or $100 for non-motorized visits).
My drive from Eugene up to the Mill Creek Recreation Site near Buell, Oregon, was uneventful. But the entire drive north, I wondered if this visit was really a good idea on a Tuesday. What if there were lots of logging trucks rumbling up and down the roads? It wasn’t a federal holiday or weekend.
When I reached the Weyerhaeuser gate, it was still wide open. And soon, I was repeating the 13.4-mile drive toward Boulder Pass that I’d made just a few weeks earlier.
The last few weeks of rain made the logging road muddier than before, so I wasn’t flying down the road at top speed. All the potholes were flooded like mini ponds, and the roadway was slicker than I liked.
After 8.6 miles on Mill Creek Road, I made the left turn onto Shumway Creek Road. Still no logging trucks. Things were going along fine.
I made it up to Boulder Pass without any issue. But from that point onwards, the route was entirely new to me.
Boulder Pass sounds impressive, but it’s really just an intersection where six logging roads converge like a giant roundabout. Yet unlike a typical road junction, none of these dirt logging roads that met up here were clearly marked. The logging truck drivers knew the way, and Weyerhaeuser wasn’t overly concerned with visitors like me, it seemed.
During my last visit, I’d turned left at Buolder Pass to drive south toward Laurel Mountain. But this time, I needed to continue west toward the county line between Polk and Lincoln counties. The unnamed county high point was only about 10 miles west of the pass, just over the Lincoln County line.
According to my GPS map, I needed to depart Boulder Pass on Blackrock Mainline. This was the widest and most defined logging road on the opposite side of the pass, so it wasn’t hard to locate. I’d come into the junction from the east, and I was departing it due west, so I drove through Boulder Pass at roughly the same trajectory that I’d come in on.
Things were going along swimmingly for the first 300 yards down the Blackrock Mainline, but then a logging truck came barreling my way at 25 mph. I quickly pulled over to the left side of the road, where there was a bit more shoulder room, and I let the truck pass. Crap! There were definitely logging trucks out here today! Was this really a good idea?
I only needed to drive 5.6 miles on Blackrock Mainline. If I hurried, it would take about 15 minutes, so it might not be such a big risk. Still, I rolled down my window as I continued driving west to make sure I could hear any other logging trucks that might be coming around the next corner.
After the first 3.5 miles on Blackrock Mainline, I reached an intersection marked with a lot of pink tape. The GPS track I’d downloaded showed a left turn here. According to my map, though, taking that detour didn’t seem to make much sense. That road just circled back around. I could stay on Blackrock Mainline for another two miles before I really needed to turn.
When I reached the 5.5-mile mark on Blackrock Mainline, I still hadn’t seen any other vehicles. My left turn off the main logging road was just ahead, and I’d avoided my worst fears. I hadn’t come face-to-face with any more logging trucks. Nor had anyone from Weyerhaeuser tried to turn me around and send me back home. I was almost there.
I turned left onto the unmarked dirt road, but I didn’t even make it a mile before the road forked. The right side ascended while the left side seemed to remain flat. My intuition told me I needed to head uphill, but none of these dirt roads had signs or markers with names or numbers on them.
I didn’t want to end up doubling back after a bunch of wrong turns (as I had on my visit to Laurel Mountain). So I checked my GPS route to confirm that I did, in fact, want the single-lane dirt road on the right.
This uphill road was a bit narrower than the main roads I’ve been on, but it was in good condition for the initial few miles.
The smooth road didn’t last forever, though. The higher I climbed, the worse the road seemed to get. This dirt road was clearly no longer maintained, with several downed limbs fallen across it and even more rutted potholes. But it was still drivable. Even a Subaru could make it up the road.
I reached my final junction 4.2 miles after the fork in the road. I turned right onto a narrow road that continued to climb up the hillside. And that’s when the rain began to fall.
After 0.6 miles of driving on this unnamed lane (and 24.7 miles from the Mill Creek gate), I finally reached the parking area. Of course, Lincoln County’s high point doesn’t actually have a parking area. It was really just a turnaround area where the dirt road ended. But there was enough room for at least five vehicles, and I was the sole person out here, so I had my pick of where to park.
The rest of my journey would be on foot. But I was still officially in Polk County. I needed to head west over the county line into Lincoln County and ascend the final 130 feet of elevation.
As soon as I stepped out of the car, the rain seemed to pick up, and the clouds closed in. A hill rose above me to the west, and I briefly considered scrambling up it, since that was the direction I needed to head. But there was a perfectly fine overgrown abandoned roadbed that went around the mound’s left side, so I tried that first.
After a few minutes of hiking uphill, the old road crested a rise, then leveled off. I was now standing on the invisible county line between Polk and Lincoln Counties. And I could make out the 3,407-foot county high point on the next small rise.
The roadbed I’d been following continued west, but then it began to drop in elevation. It wasn’t going to take me the entire way to the summit. I’d have to trek the final 350 yards uphill on my own, picking my way around some large fallen trees until I saw a small rock outcropping above me.
The summit was relatively flat and butted up against some tall evergreens. I confirmed on my GPS that I was on the highest terrain. It was now just a matter of picking out which of the medium-sized boulders protruding from the summit was the highest natural point.
Nestled at the base of one of the boulder clusters, I spotted a rusty lid atop an old glass spaghetti jar. I’d found the summit register without any real effort! I opened the jar, wrestled the notebook and pen from inside, then flipped to the last page.
I recognized the final name written on the sheet. It was the highpointer who’d posted about the eastern (Mill Creek) route about a month ago. I said a silent thank-you to Eric G. He’s the reason I attempted the drive to Laurel Mountain on that route a few weeks ago. And the reason I even knew that I could take this route without having to pay for a Weyerhaeuser permit or taking a long hike.
I flipped back through the register to see if I recognized any other names, then I got to the front page, which listed the mountain as “Saddlebag Mountain East Summit.”
The register had the correct elevation, but that wasn’t the name of this peak. As far as I knew, it was still unnamed. I hadn’t seen any names on any of the maps I used, nor was there a name for the peak on Peakbagger.com.
LiDAR confirmed that this summit was 3,407.7 feet, while Saddlebag Mountain, 3 miles to the northwest, measured only 3,389 feet. So I was going to chalk this naming discrepancy up to the fact that his register had been created in 2007. It was nearly twenty years old. Perhaps the log’s creator just wanted to give this high point a real name. It wasn’t a mystery I needed to solve. I was in the correct spot, and that’s all that mattered.
The rain continued to pick up, so I shoved the perplexing log back into the jar and returned it to its spot at the base of the boulder. Better to get back to the car ASAP. I still had a lot of muddy miles on logging roads to drive before I was done with this trip.
As I drove back down toward the gate on Mill Creek Road, I had a bit of time to reflect on this minor accomplishment. I now had my 29th Oregon CoHP under my belt, and I was done with all the high points in the Oregon Coast Range.
I was nearing the end of this journey. I’d spent so much time over the past three years driving to all corners of Oregon. I’d definitely seen more of the state than most of my fellow Oregonians. And with a little luck, I’ll finish my Oregon CoHP list in 2026.
BONUS MATERIAL
Alternate Routes
- Western Route (Bear Creek). From Lincoln City, Oregon, head north on US-101 for 5 miles to the junction with OR-18. Turn east on OR-18 and drive for 4.8 miles until you reach North Bear Creek Road. North Bear Creek Road heads south into the Siuslaw National Forest toward Four Cabin Corner. Approximately 10.2 miles from the highway, visitors will reach a locked gate. This gate is approximately 4.5 miles west of the summit, and visitors can approach it on foot without a permit. More details about this western approach are available HERE.
- Northern Route (Murphy Road). From Lincoln City, Oregon, head north on US-101 for 5 miles to the junction with OR-18. Turn east on OR-18 and drive for 16.4 miles to Murphy Road. Murphy Road is located on the south side of the highway between mile markers 16 and 17, just west of the highway sign for Murphy Hill Summit (elevation 706 feet). There is a gate at the entrance to Murphy Road that is locked for much of the year. The Murphy Gate sits 9 miles north of the summit. This route requires a Weyerehauser recreation permit as it traverses the Black Rock logging area. Non-motorized permits cost $100 per person; motorized permits are $350 per vehicle. This route is the longest approach (18 miles round-trip from the gate), so past visitors opted for the less expensive permit and rode bicycles to the summit.
Public Camping Nearby:
- Champoeg State Park Campground is the closest public campground for visitors using the eastern route (Mill Creek). Located approximately 25 miles north of Salem, this large developed campground is open year-round and offers 21 full-hookup campsites, 54 campsites with water, 6 tent sites with parking nearby, 6 cabins, 6 seasonal yurts, a hiker-biker camping area, bathrooms with flush toilets and showers, picnic tables, fire rings, a disc golf course, fishing, trails, and a visitor center with historical exhibits. Reservations are available online. Cost: $22 for tent sites, $33-35 for RV sites, $54 for cabins, $64 for yurts.
- Devils Lake State Recreation Area is ideal for visitors using the western or northern routes to this high point. Located in Lincoln City, this lakefront campground is open seasonally from May 1 to December 1.The campground offers 28 full hook-up RV campsites, 5 partial hook-up RV sites, 54 tent sites, 10 yurts, a hiker-biker camp, flush toilets, hot showers, picnic tables, fire rings, firewood sales, fishing, and kayaking. Reservations are available online. Cost $33 for tent sites, $60 for RV sites, $92 for yurts.
Resources:
- Lincoln County High Point (Peakbagger)
- Weyerhaeuser Recreation Permits
- Lincoln County, Oregon (official site)
- About Lincoln County (Oregon Bluebook)
