Oregon’s Strawberry Mountain Wilderness: Everything You Need to Know

I didn’t even know Oregon had a place called Strawberry Mountain Wilderness until the summer of 2020 when I stumbled upon it while researching a road trip. This wilderness area quickly caught my attention because of its lakes and Strawberry Mountain, Oregon’s 30th tallest peak at 9,042 feet. I was trying to bag as many summits as I could that summer and this seemed like a perfect one to add to my list. You can read more about that journey on my “Mountain Summit Hikes Throughout Oregon” guide. I quickly fell in love with this area, its views and can’t wait to go back someday to explore it more.

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Things to Know About Strawberry Mountain Wilderness

• Be sure to always practice the Leave No Trace Principles while on trail. This means leaving it better than you found it. Take out your trash, never marking on rocks or trees, limiting your footprint by staying on trail, knowing campfire guidelines for the area and camping on durable surfaces others have already camped in.

• There is little to no cell service in this area, so carry a pre downloaded GPS map or have a paper trail map you can follow. The trail is well marked and easy to follow, but there are multiple junctions. If you go the wrong way on accident, you will want a map to guide you back to trail.

• There are bears in the Strawberry Mountain Wilderness, so know what to do if you encounter one. Most Oregon black bears are skittish and shy away from people, but you should always go prepared for an encounter. Know what you wildlife is in the area. Remember to never approach of feed any wildlife as it causes habituation.

• Be respectful of your fellow hiker. Share the trail and lakes and know there will be others in the area. With that said, if there is a viewpoint or sight people will want to see and take photos of, try not to stand in front for long periods of time and share the space.

• Do not play music out loud. Use headphones if you wish to listen to music. When I did this hike, a lot of people were blasting music at the lake. Remember not everyone likes the same music and playing it out loud so others have to hear it is disrespectful to your fellow hiker. It is also harmful to the wildlife in the area to have music playing loudly.

• Strawberry Lake can be very crowded on weekends. The parking lot fills fast and spots around the lake go quickly. If you want to just hike to the lakes and not summit, be sure to go and snag a lakeside spot early and be prepared to share the space with others.

Location

Strawberry Mountain Wilderness is located in Eastern Oregon, less than 40 minutes east of John Day. If you’re coming from the East, it is around and hour and 45 minutes to the west of Baker City. When you arrive in Prairie City, you’ll turn on S Bridge Street, which turns into Strawberry Road and takes you to the trailhead.

The road is a forest service road with gravel, dirt and potholes, but easily drivable in any car. There is limited parking at the trailhead so be prepared to potentially park down the road a ways and walk. Remember to always park safely on the side of the road. If your car cannot get off the road, you shouldn’t park it there.

Best Time of Year to Go

Although the area is open year-round, the road to the trailhead is closed in the winter months. The best time of year for visiting the Strawberry Mountain Wilderness is summer. You can try to snowshoe up the forest service road to Strawberry Lake in the winter. The summit won’t be accessible. Early summer will still have snow depending on the year’s snowfall, so if you want a snow-free trail, try for late July through September. The mosquitoes are also more prevalent early summer as the snow is melting.

Camping in Strawberry Mountain Wilderness

There is a small, non-reservable campground with 10 sites located at the trailhead for $8 a night. It is a busy campground, especially on summer weekends. If you’re unable to snag a spot and you’re wanting to camp, there is another campground farther down the forest service road called Slide Creek. If there are no sites at either campground, you can try to find a pull out along the side of the road, which is what we did since we had the van.

You can also backpack in the Strawberry Mountain wilderness area, so if the campgrounds are full or you want to get away from the masses, you can backpack up to the lakes or meadows to camp. If you camp at the lakes, be prepared to have people around during the day as that is where a majority of people hang out. I saw a few tents past the waterfall in the meadows above the lake as well, which is a quiet spot to camp.

Strawberry Mountain Wilderness Trail Info

Below I’ll be sharing trail information not only for Strawberry Mountain summit, but for the alpines lakes and waterfalls. You can easily see them all in one day or break them up into multiple hikes depending on your time and ability. This area is a must-see and I hope this guide helps you explore it.

Strawberry Mountain Summit

The trail begins with instant uphill terrain. It is relatively gradual and it switchbacks up through the forest before popping you out at Strawberry Lake. When you reach the lake you’ll want to stick to the east side of the lake where there are multiple trails that will wind around the side. Be sure to look out for the sign posts leading to Strawberry Falls or you will end up walking around the lake instead of taking the trail up to the summit. I accidentally did this while not paying attention– the beauty of the lake had all my attention. I was able to quickly turn around and catch the right trail up.

The trail continues being a gradual uphill climb where it takes you past Strawberry Falls, a 50 foot waterfall. You can see the waterfall from the bottom along the rail as well as at the top. There is a footbridge that crosses the top of the falls before continuing straight to the summit. Shortly after the falls, you will begin to cross through beautiful wildflower meadows and have views of Strawberry Lake below along the cliffside.

When you reach the trail Junction for Onion Creek Trail, you will begin hiking over boulder fields to reach the summit. It is large, loose rocks, but easy to walk over. There are no boulders. The trail is relatively easy to follow as you can see where regular foot traffic has been, but be on the lookout for cairns marking the trial.

The last stretch on the Summit Trail is steep and has multiple trails all leading to the summit. Just keep heading uphill and you will be fine whichever trail you end up taking. When you reach the summit, you will be rewarded with sweeping views of the surrounding wilderness area and lake below. I was able to enjoy the summit without other hikers and it was peaceful sitting up there alone. Most hikers stay at the lakes and waterfall so the summit is a nice trail to enjoy a little more solitude.

Little Strawberry Lake

This short add-on is a must if you have the energy and ability to do it. The trail information starts at the Strawberry basin trial and will be in addition to the mileage and elevation to reach the junction. When you cross the bridge at the top of the falls, there is a branch to the left that takes you to Little Strawberry Lake. It is way less crowded than Strawberry Lake below as well.

The lake is small with tower rock faces on the south side of the lake. The east side of the lake has beautiful wildflower meadows. The lake itself doesn’t have as many openings to enjoy the lake but it’s still a worthwhile stop to see and soak you hot feet after a summit hike.

What to Bring

Always carry the 10 essentials in your backpack! Whether you are day hiking or backpacking going prepared is so important. You can learn more about these items in my “The 10 Essentials” guide.

Wear proper shoes. Trail runners or hiking shoes are the best option for this hike. Hiking boots will give you ankle support for maneuvering over the loose rock near the summit. Trail runners will allow for more breathability for a long day of hiking. You can also pack a pair of lightweight sandals if you want to stop and dip you feet at the lakes. They are great for having out lakeside and not having to walk around in your shoes with wet feet.

There are bears in The Strawberry Wilderness so carrying bear spray is important to keep you safe. You may walk past a bear and not even now it, but having a spray to keep you safe in a worst case scenario is a must. If you’re backpacking a bear can or bear hang bag is essential to keeping your food safe. YOu can learn more about backpacking gear in my “Backpacking Gear” guide.

You will definitely want bug spray on this hike because there are two lakes and a waterfall you will hike past to reach the summit. Even on the summit with the stronger winds the bugs were persistent.

You’ll want to have proper sun protection, whether it be clothing, hats or sunscreen. Sunscreen is a must in warmer months on any trail, but this trail is very exposed towards the end. You should always carry sunscreen to reapply throughout the day. Pack layers to help keep the sun off your skin if you’re exposed for long periods of time.

A good pair of hiking poles will help save your knees from injury on the steep downhill. They will also helping keep you balanced maneuvering over the loose rock.

This is a long hike and you will most likely want to resupply your water. You should always have a filter, but if you choose not to resupply plan to carry at least 3L of water per person. Carry a water filter so you can stop at the various streams or lakes to filter water.

If you start the hike in the dark to try and beat the heat of the day, like I did, you will want a good headlamp. If your headlamp doesn’t have enough lumens it’ll be difficult to see in the dark.

Reminders

• Always practice Leave No Trace, especially in a fragile mountain terrain. Pack out all your trash, stay on trail to minimize your footprint and properly burry or carry out all human waste.

• Never pick wildflowers! It’s actually illegal and highly finable. Just think, if everyone walking the trail picks just “one little flower,” how many flowers will be picked over time? Leave the flowers for others to enjoy. Take only photos, leave only footprints.

The Strawberry Wilderness is such a special place and not one many people seem to know about. I love that although the lakes and campgrounds can be busy, once you get away from them, there’s so much solitude here. The wildflower-filled meadows are stunning and the mountain terrain is such a unique one. The lakes make you feel like you’re in a bowl surrounded by mountains. I love finding these stunning places in Oregon that aren’t as well known and I hope you love it as much as I do!

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