Bear Lake

  • Moderate (to Eagle Creek Meadow)
  • 8.8 miles round trip
  • 1250 feet elevation gain
  • Open early July through October
  • Use: hikers, horses
  • Difficult (to Bear Lake)
  • 12.8 miles round trip
  • 2240 feet elevation gain
  • Open mid-July through October

Not all of the best goals in the southern Wallowa Mountains are as difficult to reach as Arrow Lake and Eagle Lake. Even families with children can generally manage the trek to Eagle Creek Meadow, a creekside field surrounded by granite canyon walls reminiscent of the Swiss Alps. From there, a side trail climbs the canyon wall 2 miles to beautiful Bear Lake, one of the few large alpine lakes in Northeast Oregon that has never been dammed to serve as an irrigation reservoir.

Start by driving to …

This chapter taken from the book 100 Hikes/Travel Guide: Eastern Oregon.