9 min
Overview
Little Catalpa Lake lies nestled below a scree slope on the Frog Lake Buttes. It's a short hike in, good for those with young children or fishermen who plan to stay all day. If you want a longer approach, try the Catalpa Lake via Bonney Meadows Trail Hike. According to Lewis A. and Lewis L. McArthur's Oregon Geographic Names, the lake was named by a "fish-planting crew" around 1950. Catalpa trees (Catalpa sp.) are native to the east and south of the United States, and other species live in the Caribbean and east Asia. They are popular deciduous flowering trees in gardens and one would assume that one of the "fish planters" from the Oregon State Game Commission had a fondness for them, thus introducing a "non-native" name into the wilderness. The Catalpa Lake Trail #535 uses an old road bed for its initial course. Rhododendrons and huckleberry form the understory. The path drops off the road bed and enters the Mt. Hood Wilderness (This section was added under the Mt. Hood Wilderness Act of 2009). Cross Green Lake Creek before the trail rises gently and then drops among mountain hemlock, Douglas-fir, silver fir, and western white pine. Arrive at Catalpa Lake, which is backed by a scree slope below the Frog Lake Buttes. You can head right around the lakeshore and reach a campsite with an historic thunderbox. Watch the resident rough-skinned newts floating about in the waters. There is no trail all around the lake, but you can bushwhack through the rhododendrons to make the circuit. Unfortunately, there are some rather unhistoric camp leavings among the rhododendrons.
Trail Stats
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45 m
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Photos
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