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Blistering heat on the horizon, didn’t deter four hardy hikers from summiting Hager Mountain on July 22.  But that wasn't the "real" objective of this hike.  John Sweat planned to revitalize an apparently old CONC tradition, by hiking Hager Mountain, then having dinner at the locally renowned Cowboy Dinner Tree, for which he had already made reservations.  

To the point, the group reached the lookout on top of Hager Mountain in an hour and a half!  With a brilliant persuasion of chocolate chip cookies they were welcomed to  the deck by the lookout on duty, Yvonne.  She answered all of their questions regarding her duties while the group took in the 360 degree view. 

With a quick descent down the mountain, they had 30 minutes till dinner was served.  They occupied that time with libations in shade of the juniper trees and in snooping around inside the gift shop.  When seated they were served ice cold lemonade that never tasted so good!  Family style salad and soup followed, and  rolls which were to die for.  The entrée consisted of either a whole chicken or 28-30 oz. steak.  Sides of baked potatoes, were cooked to perfection.  Needless to say there were plenty of leftovers to take home, in the provided doggies bags!

On August 6, John Sweat led a hike to Patjens Lakes.  It was a full house on this particular outing, many of whom had never been to Patjens Lakes, including John, himself.  The trailhead begins on the Westside of Big Lake, South of Hoodoo.

The weather was perfect with good cloud cover, as the first few miles was through a burn area.  On the first ascent they were greeted with ripe Huckleberries; a pleasant distraction while cresting the ridge.  On the descent the group entered lush vegetation with old growth conifers for a couple of miles.  They enjoyed a break on the shore of Middle Patjens and to their surprise had very little insect activity.  When out of the lakes basin they came into view of Big Lake.  They skirted around the southside of the lake back to the trailhead.  At 6.9 miles and only 400 feet vertical, this is truly a fun trail!  

Contributed by Eric Ness

Sunday, July 30, 10 CONC hikers joined me for the Scott Mountain-Hand Lake loop.  AQI out of Hoodoo showed levels well below 100, so there were no concerns about huffing and puffing up the trail.  Temperatures of mid-70s were predicted, but at the top of Scott Mountain there was a surprisingly cool breeze so not everyone sought shade for lunch.  Scott Mountain is only 6100 feet, but situated such that you feel right in the middle of the Cascades.  Mt. Jefferson, 3Fingered Jack, and Mount Washington are right there to the north.  And to the south, you look right into the glaciers on North Sister.

The hike itself has 1500 feet of elevation gain and 9 miles of hiking, and is listed as difficult by Sullivan.  Hiking clockwise you pass Benson Lake and stay in the shade of the trees all the way to the top.  On the way down, you descend through a small burn, then hike next to a lava flow until you reach Hand Lake, with more views of the Three Sisters.  I’ve never hiked it counterclockwise, but this might be advisable to get past the lava and burn in the morning while it is cool, and take your time viewing Benson Lake on the way down.