Three Sisters

I haven't heard of too many folks doing this loop but this is a spectacular run. It is also a very long day. You'll have slow going through the sand sections and over a couple of passes but you will be rewarded with breathtaking scenery and a wide variety of trail conditions. Put this run on your calendar. 

Meadow near Moraine Lake south of South Sister

When To Do This Run

Much of the trail around sisters is at 6000 feet and it seem to retain snow longer than other places in Oregon. The season is probably from Mid July through September. I'd suggest checking with a ranger before heading out to get the latest conditions. If you run in September you better be real fast or bring a good flashlight.

General Route Information

This loop is 43.7 miles long. The starting point for this run is north of North Sister at Lava Camp Lake trailhead off of HWY 242. From there you run down 2.6 miles to Scott pass and take a left on Scott trail (trail 4068). After a few miles you take a right and head down the east side of the Sisters all the Way to Green Lakes. From there you head south and west, crossing the climbing route for South Sister and then head up North west to connect with the PCT. You then head north on the PCT until you get back to your car.

I'm providing directions for running this loop clockwise. There are two reasons for this. First the east side, while scenic, isn't quite as scenic as the west side and I'd rather cover that when I'm strong. Hopefully the beautiful scenery on the west side will distract you when you are tired. Secondly, if you run CW then somewhere after green lakes you pick up the PCT and stay on the that trail for 19 miles to the finish. When I get tired (or when it is dark) I'd prefer to just stick with one trail and not deal with route finding.

For the most part, this run is pretty straight-forward. Of course you need to bring a map but most of the trail intersections are clearly marked and route finding isn't terribly difficult. Water supplies are adequate as well. You can generally expect to find a creek every 10 miles or less. On the east side a few of the streams are silty but there are more streams to choose from.

The trail itself is in good condition. A few sections are sandy and you'll have trouble running through that but most of the trail is in excellent conditions. The trail is generally rolling with two big climbs. One on the south side just before Green Lakes and one on the west side at Dilldock pass I haven't done this run with an altimeter watch but I'd put the cumulative elevation gain at under 6000 feet.

Maps and Reference Information

Equipment

This is going to be a long day. Make sure you bring your 10 Essentials along.

Maps

You need to bring a map for this run. Unfortunately, Green Trails hasn't come out with a map for this area yet. Instead you'll need to take along the Three Sisters Wilderness Map. This is a great map with all the trails clearly marked, the only disadvantage is that it is somewhat bulky. This map is available at REI.

In addition to the above map there are couple of books with good descriptions for this route. Backpacking OREGON has a good description of this route with background information and a number of alternative side trips listed. I also used Hiking Oregon's Central Cascades from FalconGuide for some of the milage information (this book also has a rough contour map for the route).

Weather

At times this run can be fairly exposed and you are certainly going to be out for a long day. I'd suggest checking the weather.com link for Sisters or the National Weather Service Northwest forecast.

Ranger

It's a good idea to check with the ranger before heading up to find out if there are any trail closures or other info. The McKenzie Ranger Station appears to be the best bet 541.822.3381. You may also want to check out the Deschutes National Forest at 541.383.5300

Mileage Splits and Time Estimate