Hell ’20
The following was published with our partner onX Offroad as part of their new Great Escapes program:
Summary
The Hells Canyon Great Escape is a tour of some of the scenic backroads, towns and experiences in the far northeast corner of Oregon. It is a loop that winds around the Wallowa Mountains, explores Hells Canyon and the Snake River and dips in and out of a number of small towns in the region. This loop uses bits of the Oregon Backcountry Discovery Route (ORBDR) and passes very close to a piece of the Trans-America Trail (TAT), so it can be used as an optional add-on for adventurers on longer trips, or it can be used as an adventure in itself. In addition to the driving tour, there are numerous opportunities to hike, mountain bike, fish and hunt in the area.
Vehicles Allowed — All 4x4s and motorcycles that meet OR street legal requirements can complete this route.
Logistics
- Recommended time to complete: seven to nine days
- Total Miles: 745
- Day one: 81
- Day two: 96
- Day three: 113
- Day four: 85
- Day five: 112
- Day six: 165
- Day seven: 93
- Optional Side Trip Miles: 30+
- Longest distance without fuel: 312 miles. Make sure to calculate planned mileage and read fuel notes on Section 5 concerning Sections 5–7.
- Difficulty Rating: 2–6 depending on path chosen and weather conditions.
- Recommended Seasons: spring, summer and fall
- Open/Close Dates: there are no official closure dates, but snow will block many of the higher elevation roads and wet weather conditions will make some of the roads substantially more difficult.
- Cell service: available in most towns, but varied on the trail. Used Verizon and AT&T successfully on trip in 09.2020.
- Lodging: backcountry camping is available on public land throughout most of the trip, but paid campsites and hotels are also available.
Meet the Trail Guide
Matthew Mangus is an adventurer, explorer and self-professed map nerd. When he’s not directing content shoots out in the wild or scouting new locations, he’s exploring remote trails in his modified Land Cruisers. You can follow all of his adventures on Instagram at @mangai_rollin.
Description
This loop route explores The Blue Mountains and Hells Canyon, and loops around the Wallowa and Elkhorn Mountains. It is a mix of pavement, graded gravel roads and some less-maintained forest service roads. It’s designed to connect numerous sight-seeing attractions, hiking/MTB trails and fire lookout towers.
Much of this route is snowed in during winter months and largely unmaintained. Be prepared to buck blowdowns and/or reroute. During the summer wildfire season, be prepared for fire bans. In late September and early October, the forests can be busy with hunters.
Sections are all run counterclockwise, and this route description starts and ends off of I-84 at Meacham, OR (coming from Portland, OR), but you could enter from multiple points and run in either direction. If traveling in a clockwise direction or entering at a different point, be sure to study the lengths of each section to understand the mileage (for refueling), rhythm and potential camp spots. There are some beautiful places to camp along this route.
Segment One — Meacham to Oriental Campground: 81 miles on gravel forest service roads.
Air down as soon as you leave pavement in Meacham.
Highlights: climbing the Tower Mountain Lookout.
The forested terrain in the Blue Mountains rises to elevations of 4,000 to 5,000 feet. Highlights include Tower Mountain Lookout at nearly 7,000 feet, and Oriental Campground at nearly 3,000 feet along the beautiful North Fork of the John Day River. There are numerous campgrounds, and a plethora of dispersed camping options in this area. This section follows a portion of the ORBDR, so you may run into adventure tourism travelers as well as locals.
Section Two — Oriental Campground to Elkhorn Crest: 96 miles on mixed gravel and pavement. You can remain aired down and stay below 50 mph for the short stretch of pavement near Sumpter.
Highlights: Desolation Butte Lookout Tower, Fremont Powerhouse, Sumpter Dredge and McEwen Train Depot & Museum.
Local Tip 1: Fuel, clean bathrooms and fresh water are available in Sumpter, OR.
Local Tip 2: There are numerous, beautiful high-country hikes in the Elkhorn Mountains. Mountain goats are in the area and love salt. They will chew on anything salty. If you choose to do any of these hikes, look up the protocols for being around mountain goats.
Forested terrain will continue until you leave the ORBDR to join the TAT for a short stint near Sumpter on the shoulder of the Elkhorn Mountains. Refuel, get back onto gravel and wind around the S flank of the Elkhorns to reach the Elkhorn Crest Trailhead. There is camping and spectacular hiking available at the trailhead. If you don’t intend to hike, there are many more dispersed camping options along the trail.
We camped at a trailhead and hiked into one of the mountain lakes the next day.
Section Three — Elkhorn Crest to The Snake River: 113 miles mostly on pavement. 3–4 hours.
Air up as soon as you hit pavement coming out of the Elkhorns and air back down as soon as you drop off of pavement at the Snake River. Highlights include: restocking supplies, numerous food options and Barley Brown’s Brewing in Baker City, National Historic Oregon Trail Interpretive Center (check out the historic wagon trains and their ruts still visible in the landscape), the ghost town of Cornucopia (gateway to the Eagle Cap Wilderness in the Wallowa Mountains) and swimming in the Snake River.
There are a lot of different trailheads that access the Wallowas nearby. This is a very popular area for backpacking. You can fill your hiking quota and head directly to the river for a swim. There are also plenty of camping options available along the Snake on the Oregon side. You can follow Ballard Creek Rd until it dead-ends at a BLM campground. This area may be very busy during the summer months.
Local Tip 3: The Snake River is warm enough to swim in until late fall. Bring a suit. ….or don’t.
Section Four — Snake River to Enterprise & Joseph: about 85 miles on mixed gravel and pavement. Air up once you drop down to the pavement after the McGraw Lookout Tower. Highlights include: Hess Road Switchbacks, Hell’s Canyon Overlook, McGraw Lookout, hot showers at Wallowa Lake State Park and an amazing meal in the garden at Terminal Gravity Brewing.
Local Tip 4: The beer and the food at Terminal Gravity are excellent.
You can stay the night at Wallowa Lake State Park, but the roaring generators of the RV crowd may scare you off. You can find a more remote forest service campground up near Icicle Creek and be lulled to sleep by the rushing water instead.
Section Five — Enterprise to Dug Bar: 112 miles mostly on gravel. Air down when you stop in Imnaha.
FUEL ALERT: Fuel up in Joseph, OR and make sure you have enough fuel capacity for 350 miles. There are approximately 312 miles (112 + 165 + 35) between Joseph and Tollgate. Note that the Alpine Outpost in Tollgate keeps odd hours, charges exorbitant prices and is known to be occasionally out of fuel. The nearest fuel from here is 19 miles to Weston,OR down in the valley to the west, or 22 miles to the east in Elgin, OR.
Highlights include: coffee and craft chocolates in Joseph, the Imnaha General Store, Hat Point Overlook (make a point to walk out to the overlooks, climb the tower and chat with the ranger), the fun road to and from HPO, the fun road into Dug Bar (slow and rugged), swimming in the Snake River.
Local Tip 5: Imnaha has a rattlesnake festival. Walk loud throughout this region.
Local Tip 6: the road to Hat Point Overlook is tight and twisty with blind corners and no guard rails. Keep your speed in check.
Local Tip 7: there are Bighorn Sheep on the cliffs near Hat Point. Bring your binoculars.
Local Tip 8: it’s a 60-mile round trip into Dug Bar (34 of these are slow and rugged). Only drive this road in clear, dry weather and make sure you have enough fuel and water (or a water filter).
Local Tip 9: Dug Bar is the site where Chief Joseph’s band of Nez Perce forded the Snake River on May 31, 1977 while complying with the U.S. government’s demand to leave their homeland in the Wallowa Valley of northeastern OR and to move onto the smaller Nez Perce Reservation near Lapwai, ID.
Section Six — Dug Bar to Hoodoo Ridge: 165 miles on mixed gravel and pavement. You will be aired down all day, but should be prepared to run on the highway for 18 miles. If this doesn’t appeal to you, see the alternative route that only requires 2 miles on the highway and reroutes closer to fuel in nearby Wallowa, OR but skips the ghost town of Flora.
Highlights include: The scenic 30-mile climb back out of Dug Bar, stopping at the Imnaha general store again, the beautiful Zumwalt Prairie Preserve, Buckhorn Overlook, Red Hill Lookout and descending the switchbacks into Troy.
There is camping available at Hoodoo Lookout, but there are plenty of other campgrounds in the area to choose from.
Local Tip 10: definitely visit Zumwalt Prairie.
Local Tip 11: depending on pace and trip length, consider either skipping Buckhorn and Redhill or camping somewhere along that section and extending the adventure.
Alternate route note: depending on fuel needs, concerns of traveling the 18 miles on the highway (two-lane road with 55 mph limit) at lower air pressures, interest in the ghost town of Flora, consider the optional reroute.
Section 7- Hoodoo Ridge to Meacham: 93 miles of mostly gravel. Air back up just before you return to I-84. This section returns to and follows a portion of the ORBDR.
Highlights include: Lookout Mtn Lookout, the community of Tollgate, Summit Guard Station, Whitman Overook and Interpretive Center.
Handy Information:
Wallowa-Whitman National Forest Headquarters and Whitman Ranger District
1550 Dewey Ave, Suite A
Baker City, OR 97814
541–523–6391
La Grande Ranger District
3502 Highway 30
La Grande, OR 97850
541–962–8500
Wallowa Mountains Office
201 East Second St.
Joseph, OR 97846
541–426–5546
Hells Canyon BLM Office
3100 H Street
P.O. Box 947
Baker City, OR , OR 97814
541–523–1256
https://www.blm.gov/visit/hells-canyon-wilderness
Fuel and Provisions:
Sumpter Stage Stop: https://goo.gl/maps/WfHFJcT6EpADKHtF8
Baker City: Numerous fuel and reprovision locations.
Scotty’s Hells Canyon Outdoor Supply: https://goo.gl/maps/T6unqppC3N57fq2f7 / http://scottyshellscanyon.com
Terminal Gravity Brewing: https://terminalgravitybrewing.com/
Joseph/Enterprise: Numerous fuel and reprovision locations.
Imnaha General Store & Tavern: https://goo.gl/maps/SZRmF1eGAdtNHU4d6
Tollgate — Alpine Outpost: https://goo.gl/maps/HnWtxsmXp1mLP7wr7 / https://www.bluemountianoutpost.com
Remember: Always follow sustainable backcountry practices. Leave no trace, take only photographs and memories, and travel only on designated roads and trails.
