3. The Northeast Section. Timber Crater is readily reached by following a motorway from the North Entrance Road. A most delightful hike can be made down the Wineglass Motorway into stately, open yellow pine forests. Three miles down, a spur leads to the right to Cascade Spring several miles away, at which place there is a charming camp site.
4. The Southeast Section of the Park. The principal objective here is Crater Peak, 7265. It is reached by following Crater Peak motorway down Vidae Ridge. A short trail leads from the motorway to the summit. A much longer trip, but also worthwhile, is the trip down Munson Creek below Park Headquarters, following the canyon past Godfrey Glen and the Colonnades to the south entrance. This is a long trip of about 15 miles and requires a whole day. However, a poor trail leads from Godfrey Glen to the road, should one not care to traverse the whole distance.
5. Southwest Corner of the Park. Union Peak, Snow Crater, and Llao’s Hallway are perhaps the most interesting features in the park aside from the lake. Union Peak, 6220, is readily reached by following the Union Peak loop motorway from the Medford Highway, three-fourths mile above Annie Spring. This sharp summit represents the neck of an old volcano that antedates Mount Mazama. To the south of it is Red Blanket Creek, which touches the lowest part of the park and consequently has trees, flowers, and animals found nowhere else within the boundaries. All of this is part of the Pacific Crest Trail. The motorway continues from Union Peak over Pumice Flat, and rejoins the main highway system near Cold Spring Campground.
Snow Crater is a steep-walled depression, no one knows how deep, that is filled with snow to a depth of at least scores of feet, even when the days of the summer melting are over. There is no trail to Snow Crater, but as the forests are open, it is easily reached by following the ridge south of Arant Point for a distance of some two miles. It is well to get specific directions from the ranger-naturalists before starting.
Llao’s Hallway is a spectacular chasm with overhanging walls cut by a tiny creek in the soft fragmental materials, to a depth of one hundred feet or more. It can readily be entered by following a trail down White Horse Creek starting from the old campground on the Medford Highway, four miles below Annie Spring. The Hallway begins less than a quarter mile below the road; with ever increasing depth and impressiveness it continues for about a mile. From the junction with the main creek about a mile away, it is necessary to retrace one’s steps to the beginning. The course below that point is through a deep and dangerous canyon, difficult to traverse, and with little chance of one’s climbing out for five miles or more. Because the Hallway is filled with treacherous snow packs throughout most of the year, it is wiser not to undertake this trip until August or September.
6. Fishing in the Back Country. There is good opportunity to fish in the larger streams of the park but the fish are small. They are usually taken with angle worms.
For all of the trips outlined, it is wise to provide oneself with a topographic map of the park, which is obtainable from the ranger-naturalists on the rim. It is well also to get further information from these men before setting out on the course of discovery.
