State: Oregon
Location: Rogue River National Forest
Length, One-Way: 9.3 miles
Trail Type: Out and Back
Minimum Elevation: 4634 feet
Maximum Elevation: 5220 feet
Best Season: May to October
Difficulty: Moderate
Usage: Heavy
Lower Proxy Falls
Trail Information
The High Lakes Trail offers many opportunities, from a short hike along the Great Meadow to a 19 mile out and back’ mountain bike ride across the Cascade Crest between Fish Lake and Lake of the Woods. The compacted gravel surface is attractive for the hikers and cyclists through out its Length, while the Lake of the Woods/ Great Meadow section is level and accessible for person with disabilities.
On the trail you will experience the harsh, yet beautiful lava flows of Brown Mountain and view the symmetrical shape of Mount McLoughlin (el. 9,495 feet), the highest peak in the southern Oregon Cascades. Bald eagle, Osprey and a variety of other birds are common at both lakes. Botanical enthusiasts will especially like the wildflower display at the Great Meadow area in late spring and summer. Portions of the trail are located within a mixed conifer old growth forest.
Campers have a choice of four high quality campgrounds; Fish Lake and Doe Point at Fish Lake and Aspen Point and Sunset at Lake of the Woods. Both lakes offer friendly resort services with cafes, cabins campgrounds and boat rentals, fishing tackle and other services. The trail offers interpretive signing at the four trailheads and at selected locations along the Great Meadow and Brown Mountain lava flows.
In the early 1900′s the eleven mile Cascade Canal was built to carry water from Fourmile Lake to Fish Lake and subsequently to Medford. At a point 1/2 mile west of the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail (PCNST) the water from the canal disappears in to a lava tube and enters Fish Lake one mile away. Appearing as a small pond when the canal is flowing, the deposit of sediment has created a meadow at the edge of the lava when the canal is dry.
Directions
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