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Please
click here for – Part Three
A Return to Wildhorse Lake
It
was time to do laundry and we also needed to do the gear shift from our
backpacks back to our daypacks. Redfish Lake Lodge has laundry and showers in
the same building. We've made use these facilities on previous trips. We secured a
campsite in the nearby Sunny Gulch Campground for the night and then made the
short drive over to Redfish Lake.
The
laundry facility was empty – wonderful! – when we arrived but soon became busy.
The Lady, a retired middle school PE teacher, has the knack for handling
crowds. She took charge, assigned washers, filled everyone in on how long the
machines take – “You better be back, people are waiting in line” – and the
facility operated with precision. The clientele was the usual cast of
vacationing characters. And they all eagerly wanted to talk. One fellow was
divorced. The wife got the custom home he built. “I camp on that piece of state
land. They don’t run you off for staying too long,” And he had a bubbly
chocolate lab he expertly used to get women to talk with him. One fellow used to be a whitewater guide. I
got the full list of rivers he worked on. He’s now settled down with a career
and wife in Seattle. This trip was car camping with their small children. The Lady spend
time with an older foreign couple. This is only a small sampling.
Since
it was Thursday night, we drove over to Redfish Lodge for dinner on the lake
shore. It was not too busy and it was relaxed. We ordered from the outside
grill – fish tacos and a grilled chicken burger – and enjoyed the excellent
food and the evening. We finished up by sharing a small soft serve ice cream.
Although it was not busy, both of us were unnerved being around so many people.
We kept our distance.
We
were headed back to Oregon for yet another fly-fishing destination. We left early
the next morning and returned via the route along the South Fork Payette River.
We were interested in seeing the many hot springs on this river. We previously had
checked out Sacagawea Hot Springs. This morning we stopped at Bonneville,
Kirkham, and Pine Flat hot springs. All of these sites are well known.
As we traveled the
weather turned insanely hot. It was 101° in Weiser, ID when we drove
through. It was 99° at Oxbow on the Snake River. We desperately needed cooler
temps for overnight. It was a bit of a drive, and we were chasing daylight, but
we found a lovely, lonely high point in the Wallowa Mountains.
This
brush with civilization also brought a return to cell service. The Lady filled us
in on news of the hurricane approaching the California coast.
The
next day we returned to Fort Sagebrush at the very kind invitation of the
Sages. Our friends the Teds were also on the road and also received a kind
invitation, so it turned into a wonderful reunion at Fort Sagebrush.
All of the plans all of us had made were now affected by flood and storm
warnings as the remnants of the hurricane moved inland.
Our
plans were to head to Steens Mountain to fish Wildhorse Lake. Mr. Sage
expressed interest in joining us. Steens is high country and was under a flood
warning. The Teds decided (since the rain had not yet arrived) to leave and get
as close to home as they could before they ran into the storm. The fort commander (Diana) graciously offered the Lady and me
the guest accommodations at Fort Sagebrush until the weather cleared.
It
rained hard the next two days. We did venture out and explored the nearby area:
Anthony Lakes, Grande Ronde Lake, trailheads in the Elkhorns, and the scenic
byway. I declined taking photos due to the rain and dreary light, but I did
photograph the historic Peavy Cabin that is available to rent.
With
a more favorable weather forecast, we drove to Frenchglen Tuesday morning. Mr. Sage followed with a bit later
start.
We
arrived early afternoon and a storm was pounding the upper reaches of Steens
Mountain. We decided to stay the first night at the lower elevation Page Springs Campground. Mr.
Sage had mentioned the possibility of taking in the family style dinner at the Frenchglen Hotel. The Lady went in and inquired about
reservations for this evening. Bingo!
Pork
chops as big as our plates. My goodness, this was a great dinner!
And,
Mr. Sage thank you so much for picking up the tab, you sneaky fellow!
It rained hard during dinner but cleared after so we could sit out in the
night. The Lady is always so anxious to call out, “First star!” The special
treat this night was being surrounded by the calls of Short-eared owls.
We’ve
fished Wildhorse Lake many times. It is a “put and grow” fishery for Lahontan Cutthroat Trout. Wildhorse is planted with tiny trout on a
schedule (from my observations) of every 7 years. The trout will be largest at year 6 and 7. We fished in 2017 and caught and released large healthy trout. I
believe it was planted again in 2018, so 2023 was near the end of the cycle and
we were looking forward to finding large healthy trout.
We
moved upcountry in the morning to a dispersed site we’ve used previously. We left
our truck there and Mr. Sage kindly drove us all to the trailhead just below
the summit of Steens Mountain.
The
morning sun was heating the storm moisture in the Alvord Basin, far below to the east, and clouds billowed up
the east escarpment of Steens.
The
Lady led the way with Mr. Sage behind. Wildhorse Lake is nestled in a hanging
cirque below the rim.
It
is 1.5 miles and an 800 feet vertical drop to reach Wildhorse.
This
late in the season there were still Lewis’s Monkeyflowers (Mimulus
lewisii) along the steep water courses.
We
started in fly fishing. Mr. Sage was the first to call for the net girl with the big dipper.
A
hopper pattern dry fly worked well on this summer day.
I
soon caught my first Lahontan Cutthroat of the day.
This
trout was 13 inches long and extremely thin. This is in stark contrast to the healthy
6- to 7-year-old cutthroats we caught here in 2017. I fear that something is
going on with the Wildhorse Lake fishery. My concern was further heightened
when we saw a trout floating on the surface. We thought it was dead until it
surprised us by swimming in a whirling motion into the depths only to float back
to the surface. This reoccurred repeatedly.
Clouds
were building. Mr. Sage started up before the Lady and me. We moved over to the
opposite side of the lake and quickly caught and released five cutthroats.
Although longer than the first, all were thin for their size.
As
we say, it was just a hop, skip, and a hump back up to the trailhead. Mr. Sage
was patiently waiting or us. As we were getting our boots off, I struck up a
conversation with the young man in the van with Wisconsin plates parked next to
us. It was fun chatting with Sam Klein, a
professional snowboarder, and his partner Emily. Sam really, really, really
wants to snowboard from the summit of Everest.
After
watching raptors working the thermals on the top of Steens, we returned to our
little piece of solitude, our dispersed campsite.
The
next morning Mr. Sage said he wanted to spend the day looking up and
reconnecting with old acquaintances in the area. I knew exactly what the Lady
wanted to do.
The
Wet Blanket Trail is a route that became a trail. It is access from the rim of
the Little Blitzen Gorge to the Little Blitzen River below, near the head of
the gorge. The trail is 1.5 miles in length and the vertical elevation loss is
1500 feet. There is not a single switchback and the trail is steep. We’ve hiked
the Nye Trail and most of the length of the Little Blitzen Gorge and the Big
Indian Gorge. It was time to hike the Wet Blanket Trail.
It
was an hour to the bottom. We hiked up the river trail about a quarter mile
through aspen……..
……and
stopped at a nice series of cascades on the Little Blitzen River.
StickyGeranium (Geranium
viscosissimum) along the water.
Before
water and snacks, the Lady dunked her head in the cold water to cool
off.
After a nice break in the cool air beside the stream, we donned our packs and hiked back down the river trail to the intersection with the Wet Blanket
Trail, marked only with a laminated piece of paper.
And
we started the climb out.
The
best pace for hiking uphill is to move slowly, keep your heart rate at a
comfortable rate, and never get out of breath. If you can carry on a
conversation, you are going at the right pace.
The
Lady likes to keep track of time. We knew it would take longer to climb up the
trail than it took to descend. We were correct. It took three minutes longer.
We
rendezvoused back with Mr. Sage at Page Springs Campground for our last night
at Steens and our last night together.
We
parted ways the next morning. We all were heading back home. Thank you to the
Sagebrushers for your wonderful company and hospitality. And putting up with
us, the wandering vagabonds.
The
Lady and I still had a special stop on our itinerary before we reached home.
Our
adventure continues. Please click here for - Part Five.
