Pepper Mountain Hike

Overview

A short hike on abandoned logging/lookout roads takes you to a viewless summit at the very western edge of national forest lands on Larch Mountain. Pepper Mountain is a member of the Boring lava field, a scattered group of late Pliocene and Pleistocene volcanoes that include Mount Sylvania, Mount Tabor, Mount Scott, Beacon Rock, Nesmith Point, and Larch Mountain itself. A small lookout once stood on top of Pepper Mountain, but it was abandoned in the 1950s. For some views down the western slopes of Larch Mountain towards the Sandy River valley, a short side trip is also recommended. Walk back up Brower Road to Road 1500. The latter, even though it is on public land, serves as a private driveway, so stay on the road. This is typical woodland for this elevation in the Gorge, a canopy of Douglas-fir and western hemlock with Oregon grape and sword fern dominating the understory. As you approach the house at the end of the driveway, you’ll see an abandoned track leading up to the right. There’s a No Vehicles forest service sign at the junction. Head up the mossy track, and pass around a berm and then a barricade of boulders. Vine maple and salmonberry overhang the road bed, while oxalis, false lily-of-the-valley, bleeding heart, candy flower, woods violet, and starry Solomon plume all bloom here in the spring. Pass another track coming in from the left and reach a clearing on a saddle where blackberries want to take over. The second and lower vent of the Pepper Mountain volcano is to your right. There’s a junction here and for Pepper Mountain, take the trail leading up to the left. You’ll pass through salmonberry thickets and then hike up through a carpet of false lily-of-the-valley and candy flower. An old logging cable lies embedded in the track. Pass under a canopy of alders as the road curves to the right. Here, you’ll get a glimpse of the silhouette of Larch Mountain through the trees. The track opens up, and you’ll eventually reach the clearing at the summit of Pepper Mountain, once the site of a small lo

Trail Stats

Photos

400px-PepperMountainMap

400px-PepperMountainMap

250px-View_to_Ross_Mountain_and_Tualatin_Hills%2C_Pepper_Mountain

250px-View_to_Ross_Mountain_and_Tualatin_Hills%2C_Pepper_Mountain

250px-Oxalis%2C_Pepper_Mountain

250px-Oxalis%2C_Pepper_Mountain

250px-Old_car%2C_Pepper_Mountain

250px-Old_car%2C_Pepper_Mountain

400px-Old_lookout_road%2C_Pepper_Mountain

400px-Old_lookout_road%2C_Pepper_Mountain

Tags