One of my favorite alpine outings is to the McNeil Point Shelter in the Mt. Hood Wilderness.
On the last Saturday of August I made my 26th trek to the Point on a hot, humid and very hazy day. The haze was due to large wildfires to the south.
After leaving Bald Mountain the trail began a 2 1/2 mile climb up a ridgecrest. There were several spots providing hazy views of the summit of Mt. Hood, the Muddy Fork Valley and Yocum Ridge.
After reaching several tarns, only one with any water, underneath 6,100-foot McNeil Point, I took a break and enjoyed the butterflies and scores of little frogs.
The next 1 1/2 miles, mostly on a rough climbers’ trail, gained 800 feet before reaching the shelter on McNeil Point. On the way I was treated to pretty wildflowers and evidence that black bears had been eating lots of ripe huckleberries.
Another grand day in the Pacific Northwest.
The sun trying to burn its way through the thick haze from wildfires
Avalanche Lily
McNeil Point Shelter
Sitka Mountain Ash
A hazy summit of Mt. Hood behind a tarn below McNeil Point
Bumble Bee enjoying an Explorer’s Gentian
Trail leading around Bald Mountain
Old Man of the Mountain
Tiny Cascade Frog dwarfed by a dog track
Monkey Flower
A hazy Mt. Hood rising above an alpine meadow
So very glorious. Thank you John.
Thanks for the kind words Jet.
A gorgeous collection of photos, John. The shot of the sun is a beauty. And avalanche lilies still blooming? I thought those would be gone by now. Aren’t you lucky to find some. That Cascade frog is indeed small — or it was a mighty big dog that walked by!
Thanks for the kind comments. The frog was indeed tiny, about like the end of my little finger. Every time I took a step near the little pond, teeny frogs went hopping toward the water as fast as they could go.
Amazing John! How did you ever manage to see it? (Maybe hopping gave it away!)