Tumble Lake Hike
From Portland Hikers Field Guide
- Start point: Tumble Lake Trailhead
- End point: Tumble Lake
- Trail Log: Trail Log
- Hike Type: Out and Back
- Distance: 4 miles round trip
- Elevation gain: 1100 feet
- Difficulty: Moderate
- Seasons: June- November
- Family Friendly: Yes
- Backpackable: Yes
- Crowded: No
Contents |
Hike Description
This quiet and remote lake hidden in a high valley above Detroit Lake is a perfect family day hike or overnight getaway.
From the trailhead, the first few steps of the hike start steeply, up a short embankment, but once you clear the ridgeline, it will be a gently rolling easterly walk past an interesting rock pinnacle and a nice viewpoint down to the lake. After about a half mile, you will reach a junction. Turn right to head south down into the Tumble Lake Basin (going straight leads to Dome Rock). The first downhill portion consists of forested switchbacks, and then a short section of the trail requires some scrambling within a rugged rocky stream bed. You will then traverse cross two steep open meadows which will be in bloom late June through August. As you flatten out into the basin, you will begin seeing the shaggy forest of Alaska Cedars, dripping with moss. Prolific huckleberry bushes fill the understory. Several shaded campsites are available at the lake edge.
Once you arrive at the lake, continue on a faint user trail south and follow the lake outlet stream to some mossy rock ledges that give the viewpoint of Detroit Lake seen in the photo above. Here you will see the water disappearing over the cliff edge to form Tumble Falls.
Maps
- Maps: Hike Finder
Trip Reports
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Related Discussions / Q&A
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Guidebooks that cover this hike
- 100 Hikes in the Central Oregon Cascades - by William L. Sullivan
More Links
- Map from Willamette National Forest
- Here's a nice report from a family who spent a few days camped at Tumble lake.
Contributors
- CFM (creator)