South Sister - Bend, OR

I drove north into the Oregon Cascades in order to hike the southern-most of the Three Sisters located near Bend, OR on July 4th. The 10,358-foot South Sister is truly a beautiful mountain, and the weather in central Oregon was absolutely perfect for hiking such an imposing peak. I started the hike at 6:30 am and quickly had to put on micro-spikes as the initial hike through forest became snowy and icy. Gratefully I popped out of the forest quickly and soaked in dramatic mountain scenery as I slogged steadily upwards. I passed Moraine Lake, and then ascended a series of long steep snow slopes that led to the base of Lewis Glacier and a glacial melt pond. After a quick break I tackled the last segment of the hike that steeply ascended the south side of South Sister via a narrow ridge that was bounded to the east by the mildly crevassed Lewis Glacier. Finally I reached the rim of South Sister's volcanic crater, which was filled with very deep snow that  actually transitions into a small crater lake during the summer. I traversed the crater snow field feeling exhilarated since this volcano erupted 2000 years ago, and could do so again in the future. I then ascended up to the highest point on the crater at 11 am, took a million pictures, refueled, and then headed back down. I reached my truck at 2:30 pm and drove into Bend for dinner. Absolutely fantastic way to celebrate the 4th.