Gearhart Mountain Wilderness is a small wilderness area in Fremont-Winema National Forest in southern Oregon. It is dominated by the volcanic outcroppings of Gearhart Mountain, but you don’t need to hike all the way to the summit to enjoy the picturesque rocks.

A mere mile from the trailhead, Palisade Rocks offer a playground of volcanic outcroppings to explore. Trails wind through the area, inviting you to discover the nooks and crannies created years ago by volcanic activity.

This is an in and out hike. Consequently, you can make this adventure as long or as short as you’d like. For a short day, play around in the rocks and head back to the trailhead. If you want a longer hike, continue along past Palisade Rocks to The Dome or Gearhart Mountain.

Regardless of length, afterward, head back to the trailhead. This time, follow the old road past the gate on the opposite side of the parking lot from the trailhead. Continue approximately 1/3 of a mile to the base of a now abandoned fire lookout.

Topo map and GPX track:

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Style:

To Palisade Rocks: Out and back hike on a well defined trail.

To the old fire lookout: a short walk on an overgrown old road, followed by a short class 2 scramble through the rocks to the lookout.

Distance and Elevation Gain:

From the well marked trailhead at the end of road NF-012, it is roughly 3/4 of a mile and a few hundred feet of climbing to the start of Palisade Rocks. The rocks continue for ~1/3 of a mile. Round trip from the parking lot to the end of the rocks is approximately 2.2 miles.

Back at the trailhead, walk the other direction past the gate up the old access road for the lookout. Hike 1/3 of a mile up the road to the old parking area where an outhouse still stands (I did not check if it was functional). Continue on the single track trail as it starts up the rocks and scramble up the class 2 approach to the old lookout (closed to visitors for safety reasons – it is not maintained and is decaying).

Trailhead and Permit Notes:

National Forest road 012 to the trailhead is a bit washed out and rough, but perfectly accessible via our stock pickup truck as of this writing in July of 2020. The road dead-ends at the trailhead with room for plenty of vehicles. There are no facilities at this trailhead. If you need to use the bathroom and don’t like squatting behind a tree, there is a campground with basic facilities just in from the turnoff from the paved NF-34.

Useful Guides and Gear:

There are many wildflowers that can be found in Fremont Winema National Forest at the right time of year! This book is really helpful at identifying the various blooms.