Mount McLoughlin - Hiking trail near Klamath Falls, Oregon, United States - Description

Located within the Sky Lakes Wilderness the 5.5 mile long trail to the summit of Mt. McLoughlin winds through rocky terrain. After it leaves the Pacific Crest Trail (at a point a little over a mile from the parking lot), the trail ascends through a boulder strewn forest. Watch for blazed trees and a well worn path. Above timberline, marks spray-painted on boulders are unreliable. Once you reach the main ridge, follow the ridge line up to the summit. Watch your footing and avoid the loose scree on the left.

Each year a number of people become disoriented or lost on the way back down, usually due to coming down a different route than they used when climbing the mountain. Tempting as it may seem to descend the sandy, cinder slope, the lower you get down this slope, the further away you become from the trail. . . and once down to the timberline, it's a 2-mile strenuous boulder-hopping hike back east to the trail. The proper way to descend is simply to follow the same ridge-line route that took you to the summit.

From Medford, OR take Route 140 East (Lake of the Woods Highway). Before Lake of the Woods, turn left onto Route 3650 to the trailhead.