Smell the Sagebrush on Wagner Butte (Ashland)

Among the small glories found on Wagner Butte are the sagebrush fields that interrupt the forested fir covering the mountain. In those fields, the hike is transformed by the aromatic air, different from the tree-covered trail we climbed for most of the short journey. The ascent takes more than two hours, three-plus if taken slowly with stops in the sagebrush, before reaching the 7,255-foot summit. Along the way, you’ll pass the Sheep Creek Slide, a mud and rock avalanche which cleared a large swath of the mountainside of all but a few surviving trees back in 1983. Of course, the view from the summit, a former fire lookout now reduced to rubble, is worth the effort. On a clear day, the towns of Medford, Phoenix, Talent, and Ashland can be seen, as well as Mt. McLaughlin and Mt. Shasta.

Vince Tweddell, vincesoutdoors.wordpress.com