Hyatt LakeAug 05 2017

Fish Lake

Aug062017
Map thumbnail of location

When Scrappy and I started hiking, we had one goal: make it to Fish Lake. It's like 30.70 miles from Hyatt Lake, and if we hurry, we might get another cooked meal!

Plus, we're hearing rumors of wildfires up ahead and we need to reach cell service (or Wi-Fi) to figure out what's going on.

But first, a sunrise!

Looks like the intro to the Simpsons.Looks like the intro to the Simpsons.

Then came wastelands.

So desolate.So desolate.

Then forests, again.

Green, but not very scenic.Green, but not very scenic.

Then lava rocks. Seven miles of lava rocks.

Ouch.Ouch.

Finally, we arrived at Fish Lake just as a rainstorm started. We huddled in the porch to the bathroom structure while we did research on the trail ahead.

It turns out that the fire near Crater Lake has continued spreading, and has finally closed the rim trail. As a result, we'll have to skip Crater Lake -- one of the highlights of Oregon.

This is really sad for me because I have a continuous path of footprints stretching from the Mexican border, and it ends here -- after almost 1,800 miles. Oh well, I guess. I'm not willing to do the, like, 50 miles of road walking to go around Crater Lake, so this is the price I'm paying.

Our tentative plan is to hitch back to Ashland, get to Medford, then rent a car and drive to Roseburg or Bend or Eugene. We've put out feelers for trail angels in those cities to get us back to the trail, and we'll have to see who responds.

At least there was a decent sunset with looming clouds.At least there was a decent sunset with looming clouds.
Zero #14: Fish Lake to Medford to Roseburg to OaklandAug 07 2017