Behind the Scenes: Tam McArthur:
https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/deschutes/recarea/?recid=71841
As usual Natalie took to Instagram and Trip Advisor to plan our next get away. We strive to have little adventures that are a short trip from home. We planned to leave after work on Friday and make our way to Sisters, Oregon. I packed the truck prior to her arrival from work and we hit the road. Our plan was to stay at the Best Western in Sisters and use that as our basecamp of operations for our adventures.
Natalie taking a photo of 3 Creeks Lake.
Saturday morning, we headed into the 3 Sisters Wilderness to climb the Tam McArthur trail to the rim above 3 Creek Lake. The road is a narrow winding road that eventually becomes gravel. You don’t need a 4x4 or lifted vehicle to travel this road. It is rough in spots, but easily manageable in any car – drive accordingly for conditions. The hike itself isn’t long, but there is a 1200ft elevation gain in roughly 2.5mi (5mi RT). The trail is well groomed and really just a beautiful hike. At the start of the hike we realized we might be in the clouds at the top, but that didn’t spot us. Heck we were at the hike, what were we going to do – go back home?
I was excited to get out and test my new Nikon 24-70mm 2.8 Lens with my Nikon D810. I wasn’t too impressed right off with the lens. But I think after breaking it in with 4-500 photos on this hike alone it made the cost worth it. I really wanted to see its versatility with the views as well as the details. The detail even in the horizon is pretty good. It is also so sharp that I either need to reduce the in-camera sharpening or watch my sharpening in post.
This section was one of my favorites
What I loved about the hike was the landscape. The short growth trees, the colors and the wide-open terrain. The fog that had settled in made for some great lighting for photographs. No shadows to deal with – just one big soft box. The plateaus were wild and free and Rogue enjoyed tearing up and down the land. As we got closer to the rim, we leashed him up because looking over you couldn’t tell how far the drop was.
Testing out my new 24-70mm 2.8 lens.
After we returned to the truck we piled in and headed over to the lake for a little chuckit with Rogue. We gathered up our beach chairs, whiskey and camera gear. We couldn’t tell if Rogue was shaking with excitement or was cold. Either way nothing stopped him from running into the water. We both cringed upon seeing him jumping into the water. He quickly found out the water had a drop off and it wasn’t just his undercarriage hitting the water it was his top coat too…. He absolutely loves to play ball and the beach was a perfect spot for it. German Shorthaired pointers take some effort to tire out. So, the hike alone probably did it, but we wanted to be sure. We explored some more of the coastline and found a sand dune where Natalie and Rogue could have a foot race to the bottom. I think Rogue just toyed with her, but Natalie had a couple steps on him.
3 Creeks Lake from the beginning of the trail
As we left, I reflected on the area and the hike. It is certainly an area that is worth grabbing a camping spot and staying a couple of days. There are a lot of trails around there and the scenery is worth it. Bring your fishing poles if you fish as the lake does have fish in it. Plan ahead and enjoy your trip to Tam McArthur.