Lookout Mountain - Crook Co. High Point

Oregon County HP: #6
Difficulty: ⭐️⭐️ (on a scale of 5)
Summit Elevation: 6,926 feet
Mountain Range: Ochoco Mountains
Ancestral Lands: Cayuse, Umatilla and Walla Walla; Nüümü (Northern Paiute); and Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs

PLANNING DETAILS

Location: Lookout Mountain is located in the Ochoco National Forest approximately 30 miles east of Prineville, Oregon.

When to Visit: Late spring to autumn. Lookout Mountain is the tallest peak in the Ochoco Mountain Range. The various trailheads serving this high point are near Walton Lake and Walton Sno-Park, a popular place for cross-country skiing and snowmobiling during the winter months. The Ochoco Mountains typically thaw much earlier than the Cascade Mountains, and Lookout Mountain tends to have abundant wildlflowers in June, July, and August.

Fees/Permits Required: None.

Getting There: Lookout Mountain is most easily accessed using the Mother Lode Mine Trailhead at 5,987 feet elevation on the peak’s northeastern side.

Directions from Prineville:

From downtown Prineville, head east on US-26 for 16 miles.
Make a slight right turn onto NE Ochoco Ranger Station Road and drive east for 8.5 miles.
When you reach the 3-way intersection for Walton Sno-Park/Walton Lake (NF-22). Proceed straight through the intersection onto NF-42 and continue 7 more miles until you reach the signs for the Round Mountain Trailhead.
At the sign for Round Mountain, turn right on Lookout Mountain Road/NF-4205 to access the trailheads. The Upper Lookout Mountain is are a mere 100 yards uphill, whereas the Mother Lode Mine Trailhead is one mile further up this well-graded dirt road.

Parking: There is a dirt parking area with room for 5-6 vehicles at the Mother Lode Mine Trailhead. Additional parking with room for 10+ vehicles is available back down at the Round Mountain Trailhead (one mile away). The closest amenities are located back at the Ochoco Forest Day Use Area and Campground, located 0.5 miles before the junction for Walton Sno-Park/Walton Lake (NF-22).

The closest amenities are located at the Day Use Area near the Ochoco Forest Campground 1/2 mile before the three-way intersection on NE Ochoco Ranger Station Road. The Day Use Area has vault toilets and picnic tables, and the adjacent campground has potable water.

Pets Allowed: Yes.

Kid Friendly: Yes.

Hiking Distance: Varies depending which trail(s) you use from the Mother Lode Mine Trailhead. The shortest distance to the summit is 3.4 miles roundtrip. My loop route was 4.5 miles.

The Summit: Lookout Moutain’s summit is mostly covered with rocks and sagebrush. The crest of the peak has an low square perimeter built from rocks, and there is a geodetic survey marker embedded in a small slab of concrete near on the northwestern corner of this low rock wall (i.e., toward Mt. Jefferson).

Trip Summary

Date Visited: July 11, 2023

Hiking Route Used: From the Mother Lode Mine Trailhead, I created a loop route using the Mother Lode Mine Trail #808A and Lookout Mountain Trail #804 – 4.5 miles roundtrip

My visit to Lookout Mountain was part of a two-day summer adventure to the Ochoco National Forest to bag the Wheeler County high point (Spanish Peak) and the Crook County high point with my 9-month old dog.

After a quick stop in Prineville, we set off east on US-26 past the Ochoco Reservoir to SE Ochoco Ranger Station Road. Summer was clearly upon us too. The mercury was creeping up quickly, and we had to stop to wait 10 minutes for a pilot car to lead us through the road construction where a crew was busy paving the local roads.

Otherwise it was a super easy drive, and I only time had to head off-road was for the final mile between NF-42 and the Mother Lode Mine Trail. Compared to yesterday’s rugged dirt forest roads, this approach was a genuine piece of cake!

When I got to the Mother Lode Mine Trailhead at mid-morning, there was only one other car parked there, and I had my pick of places to park under the shade of the tall ponderosa pines. The only real challenge of the day was picking which trail I wanted to use to get to the summit, as the Mother Lode Mine Trailhead is the central trailhead for three different trails on the mountain:

The Mother Lode Mine Trail (#808A) is the shortest route to the summit at 1.7 miles (each way). This single track trail heads uphill, and after 1.3 miles, the trail merges with the Lookout Mountain Trail (#804) before continuing another uphill to the summit on the mountain’s east side.
The Lookout Mountain Trail (#804) is a bit longer trail and zigzags over 2.85 miles (each way) on single track trail to the summit. During the trail’s final 0.5 miles, it merges with the Mother Lode Trail (#808A) outlined above.
The Independent Mine Trail (#808) is the longest of the three routes at 4.1 miles (each way). The trail to the east of Lookout Mountain for the first 3.5 miles, then joins the Line Butte Trail (#807A) for the remaining 0.6 miles uphill before approaches the peak’s summit from the south.

I had plenty of time, but I knew the dog had limited stamina on this warm summer day, so I decided we would take the short Mother Lode Mine Trail (#808A) for our 1.7 miles ascent and we would return to the trailhead using the slightly longer Lookout Mountain Trail #804, giving us a enjoyable 4.55-mile hike.

Heading up the Mother Lode Mine Trail first

This plan worked out great. The ascent took us through through young forest and several meadows with an absolute abundance of wildflowers in bloom. In one of the meadows below the trail, I spotted an old picturesque log cabin surrounded by lush green and vibrant flowers.

Meanwhile, every new step I took on trail seemed to bring me to a new color of blooms: Purple lupine. Crimson columbine. Blue camas. Western mountain asters. Orange skyrockets. Blue Forget Me Nots. Yellow Oregon Grape. And so on. It was a smorgasbord of wildflowers.

After 1.3 miles, the Mother Lode Mine Trail met up with the Lookout Mountain Trail (#804). If I turned right, I’d head back downhill toward the trailhead. So I turned left and continued up to the summit. But not before I saw a deer wander out from the shadows of the trees and make its way quickly across the meadow below me.

Just a little further up the trail, we came to trail junction and a wooden sign that simply said “snow cabin.” I had no idea how far down the trail we’d have to walk before see it, but I was game. And barely 50 yards into this detour, I spotted a 3-sided log cabin with a small chimney protruding toward the sky.

When I peeked around the corner, there was a plaque on the back interior wall telling me that the cabin was built as a cooperative project between the U.S. Forest Service and the Oregon Army National Guard’s 1249th Engineer Battalion.

We returned back to the Lookout Mountain Trail and had barely a half mile left to summit. The trees seemed to mostly disappear, while scrub brush rose to our west. Soon another wooden sign appeared, announcing the merger of the Line Butte Trail #807A (heading to the south) and Lookout Mountain Trail #804 (heading north down to the Ochoco Day Use Area I’d past earlier this morning).

I crossed over this trail and continue just a little farther west. And just as I crested the top of the mound, the mountain seemed to sharply drop off leaving me with panoramic views of the snow-capped Cascade Mountains. It was a slightly hazy day, but I could see Mt. Jefferson prominently poking up to the northwest. The Three Sisters sat directly in front of me, and off to my left I could see Diamond Peak. I was strikingly beautiful, but my photos couldn’t do it justice. The mountains were still 70-100 miles away after all.

The summit was just as scenic as any highpointer could hope for on a sunny July day. But there was just one thing missing. I needed to find the survey monument.

As I took in my surroundings, I could see a low rock wall forming a square perimeter along the top of the peak. There was also a wide round wooden post that looked as if it might have once held a sign. But the survey marker didn’t seem to be anywhere apparent. I marched from random rock pile to rock pile, yet still nothing appeared.

After what seemed like an eternity of searching (but was probably only 10-15 minutes), I eventually found one lone geodetic survey monument embedded in concrete by the crumbling wall’s northwest corner.

It didn’t have Lookout Mountain stamped on it, and seemed to be a reference marker instead of a summit monument. But that was all I could find after traipsing all over the top of the peak. So it would just have to suffice for my highpointing purposes. It was nearly noon now and that was beating down on us. If we stayed up here much longer, I might find myself carrying a 55-pound dog back down to the car.

As we returned back to the trail, I was careful to head back toward the snow shelter instead of following the sign for Lookout Trail #804 that led north. I didn’t need a 7.4-mile detour in the wrong direction on this trail. I wanted the end of the trail that went back to the Mother Lode Mine Trailhead.

A short bit later we past the snow shelter and to the junction of the Mother Lode Mine Trail #808A that we’d ascended on, but we plowed straight ahead taking the longer Lookout Mountain Trail on our return journey.

Despite adding an extra mile to our journey, this trail was a solid choice for the mid-day heat. It stayed in the forest more rather than crossing through open meadows. There were still plenty of wildflowers. And we even got our feet wet a few time crossing over the few streams rushing down the mountainside and across the trail.

The water looked cool and refreshing, but I was careful to keep Heidi from drinking in any them during our descent. I’d read a warning from the U.S. Forest Service that the water might till contain toxic chemicals from historical mining activities in the area, and I didn’t want to risk her young 9-month old stomach getting sick during the long car ride back to Eugene later today.

I would get to see some evidence of this mining though as we neared the trailhead once again. A tall, abandoned mining building stood on one of the slopes before we got to a footbridge, and there were still remnants of wooden flumes along one of the dry creek beds. So that was a pretty cool feature that made it worth our time to come back down this route.

Less than an hour after we left the summit, we were back at the Mother Lode Mine Trailhead once again. It had been a truly wonderful day to visit Lookout Mountain. The weather cooperated with us. The blooming wildflowers made the perfect backdrop. And the views from the summit couldn’t be beat. All told, Lookout Mountain might have rocketed to my favorite Oregon county high point yet!

BONUS MATERIAL

Additional Trails:

Lookout Mountain Trail #804 (Lower Trailhead). This alternate route begins near the Ochoco Forest Day Use Area and approaches Lookout Mountain from the north using the opposite end of the Lookout Mountain Trail #804. It tends to be a less popular with highpointers and day hikers because of it’s length (15 miles roundtrip).
Lookout Mountain Trail #804 (Upper Trailhead). This alternate approaches from the Round Mountain/Upper Lookout Mountain Trailhead on NF-42. It follows the Lookout Mountain Trail #804 up to the Mother Lode Mine Trailhead adding one mile (each way) to any route beginning there.
Independent Mine Trail #808/Line Butte Trail #807A. This alternate begins at the Mother Lode Mine Trailhead looping around to the east side of Lookout Mountain for the first 3.5 miles, before joining the Line Butte Trail (#807A) for the remaining 0.6 miles and approaching the summit from the south. This alternate can be combined with one of the shorter trails originating at the Mother Lode Mine Trailhead to make a loop hike.

Camping nearby:

The Ochoco Forest Campground is located on NE Ochoco Ranger Station Road and offers 6 campsites on a first-come, first-serve basis. This developed USFS campground is open from May 15 to October 15, and it has vault toilets, potable water, plus picnic tables and fire rings at each campsite. There are also 110V electrical outlets at the group pavilion. Cost: $20 per campsite/vehicle, plus $10 for each additional vehicle.
Walton Lake Campground is located just off NF-22 and offers 25 drive-in campsites, 5 walk-in lakefront campsites, plus 2 group campsites. This developed USFS campground is open from May 24 to October 15, and has 6 vault toilets, potable water, picnic tables, and a boat launch. Cost: $20 per campsite/vehicle, plus $10 for each additional vehicle. Reservations are available for some campsites at recreation.gov., while other sites are occupied on a first-come, first-serve basis.

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