Climbing South Sister in the Summer
“Off all the paths in life, make sure a few of them are dirt.”
With the climbing season on my mind, I wanted to take it back to one of my favorite climbs in Oregon. South Sister is the third tallest peak in Oregon, standing at 10, 358 feet behind Mt Hood at 11,250 feet and Mount Jefferson at 10,495 feet. South Sister is nestled among the cascade mountain of the Three Sisters, which also includes Middle and North Sister. The South Sister climb is no joke, with over 4,900 feet in elevation gain across 6 miles for the ascent, and a loss of that elevation on the trip back down. The summit offers vast and stunning views of Middle Sister, North Sister, Three Fingered Jack, Broken Top, and nearby Mount Bachelor. On a clear day, you can also see all the way to Mount Hood.
The summit South Sister route between July and October is a great introductory mountain for non-technical mountaineering in the Pacific Northwest. Outside of those months, it can be more technical and longer route, as well as an ice ax and traction devices like snowshoes, microspikes, or crampons may be needed. A permit system is in place as of 2021, where a wilderness day-use permit or overnight permit is required for hikes in the Central Cascade region.
The first 1.5 mile starts in a hemlock forest and once you pass the tree line, you are greeted with sandy plateaus with views of alpine lakes, snow ridges, and rocky buttes.
We climbed South Sister at the end of July in 2020 and camped overnight at the Devil’s Lake Campground in a first come first serve walk-in campsite at the state of the South Sister Trailhead. Many hikers backpack and camp overnight, so they can summit at sunrise and be back down before the crowds, but we opted to carry smaller packs for the journey. I wanted to share photos from our South Sister climb.
My climbing partners and I started at 4:30am and finished the hike around 12:00pm with an average pace of 2 to 3 miles per hour with a 30-min rest at the summit, and two 15-minute breaks along the way. I recommend starting early to beat the summer heat as this is a very exposed hike for 90% of the climb.
Our decision to leave early paid off as there was only another person on the summit, which is rare for a summer weekend. From the summit of South Sister you could see dozens of lakes with glaciers, the PNW volcanoes spanning to Mt. Rainier in Washington, as well as obsidian from ancient lava flows. By the time we descended and left the summit, hundreds of people were heading up and it was super hot. Gracie, our pup was very tired and her paws sore (highly recommend dog booties), but she was a trooper on her first mountain summit with us. So proud of our little pup! Keep scrolling for cute pup photos wearing goggles.
False summit snowfield, South Sister Oregon
Found some glacial lakes
The South Sisters climb did not dissapoint. It was a long day, but one that is well worth it. The outdoors offers us so much and we need to continue to take care of it for future generations. Always practice leave no trace and remember there are no restroom facilities within the South Sister wilderness areas, so properly disposing of human and pet waste and carrying out all trash.
