 The
past and present come together in south central Oregon. A number of
great excursions await those who are inclined to search for clues to
the past, from prehistorical days to the more recent movements of
the pioneer settlers. The high desert is so remote that it's easy to
picture yourself back in those historical days as you gaze out
across the never-ending stretches of space and time.
Picture Rock Pass, elevation 4830', lies just west of
Summer Lake. On a very short hike, you can see ancient petroglyphs
(right), a 150' long cascading hollow log water trough built by the
early settlers, and early scab telephone  posts
in rock cairns. From Picture Rock Pass, you can look east and gaze
across the Summer Lake Valley, or look west across the Silver Lake
Valley to the snow-capped Three Sisters on the horizon.
More petroglyphs are scattered throughout the surrounding
valleys, including these examples photographed near Crump Lake
(below). Rock art in Oregon's high desert is estimated to be from
the Pleistocene era 7000 years ago, making it some of the country's
oldest. Lakes and meadows where ancient peoples probably had camps
make excellent hunting grounds for petroglyphs and other artifacts.
We do encourage you to look for but to not take any artifacts home
with you.
 An
old Indian trade route can be traced from the Warner Basin to the
south end of Lake Abert where it joined a similar trail coming up
from the south. The trail continued northwest, somewhat following
the Chewaucan River until it reached Summer Lake.
Wagon ruts, old homestead buildings and pioneer artifacts
can be spotted periodically which bear witness to the immigration of
modern culture into the area.
Fort Rock, a rock formation nearly one-third of a mile
across and 325' high, was named by William Sullivan in the late 19th
century for it's resemblence to a fort. In 1938, prehistoric
artifacts, including sage-bark sandals estimated to be 9000 years
old, were discovered in the Fort Rock Cave.
Fossil Lake, a dry lake bed which has yielded dinosaur bone
fragments, lies near the Hidden Forest, an unusual setting of
Ponderosa pine trees in the middle of the desert. Large sand dunes
surround you as you enter the Hidden Forest from the west.
Other geological features include Crack-in-the-Ground, a
long natural crack deep enough to contain ice year round;
Hole-in-the-Ground, a large volcanic depression in the landscape;
and a great number of caves and lakes.
 Here
and there along the way lie numerous hot springs, most found
accidently or by word of mouth. This picture shows one that is
somewhere between Crump Lake and Wool Lake that comes complete with
a bathtub for soaking pleasure! Many hot springs are on private
property so be sure and obtain permission before walking onto the
land to search for the springs.
Cattle drives, reminisent of the past cowboy days, still
take place regularly in this part of Oregon. In September 1998, the
folks at the Lodge hosted "The Great Shootout", a
traveling troupe of western actors who relived the shootouts of the
past. The success of events like this mean similar events may happen
each year! Contact the Lodge for more information on this event and
places to explore on your visit.
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