Oregon: Ray Atkeson Memorial Trail

We hiked on the Ray Atkeson Memorial Trail near Sparks Lake.

We had some great views of South Sister

and Broken Top.

The trail meanders through lava flows and lodgepole pine forests. We were surprised that there were no views of Mt. Bachelor. The first half mile is paved and offers the best views. The rest of the trail system is in the forest and has no mountain views. Atkeson was Oregon's long time photographer Laureate.

Oregon: Todd Lake and Broken Top

Our first stop west of Bend was Todd Lake. It was a short, but bumpy gravel drive to the trail head. Even though the hike was only a few hundred feet to the lake, we were huffing when we got there. The lake is at 6,150 feet elevation so we didn't feel too out of shape. The lake was named for John Y. Todd who built the first bridge over the Deschutes River.

Broken Top was in the distance and here is another view. It is part of the Cascade Range with an elevation of 9,177 feet and is southeast of the Sisters mountains.