N7OLE and I decided on a quick trip over to the McKenzie River area for a night of camping and SOTA. This summit looked like a perfect easy drive up with camping potential near the AZ. The last report being only a couple of years old, I was disappointed to find out that the road is now closed to motor vehicles and gated. The gate was not locked however, within a couple hundred feet, there were massive tree falls that would prevent any transit other than by foot.

The road otherwise as described, and it is really too bad it has fallen into the bucket of what I suspect is an underfunded Forest Service having to close roads due to lack of resources to clear the tree falls.

The hike is a relatively easy 1.3 miles from the gate on very well built gravel forest road. The AZ is in a large burned area, with not much shade. Dogs didn’t like it much on the summit.

Overall the hike is nice but it took a lot of work for a 1 pointer. Might be a better late fall activation when cooler temps prevail.