Spring Basin, Sutton Mountain and Priest Hole, Oregon

There are a lot of wilderness and wilderness study areas in the east central section of Oregon that are far enough off the beaten path that they don't get very many visitors. I've hiked at Spring Basin once and Sutton Mt. twice so I already knew how to get there and where to park. But they are quiet areas that you wouldn't necessarily know about, even if you were nearby to visit some of the John Day Fossil Bed sites.

Spring Basin Wilderness.

We went from wintry temperatures to 80 degrees rather suddenly and I almost changed my mind about going, since riding in the desert heat with no shade is usually not that enjoyable, but on the flip side I wouldn't have to deal with cold nights, so I decided to go for it.

Spring Basin is on the way to Fossil OR, on Clarno Rd. which eventually dead ends. About 3 miles along it there is a small parking area next to a lone juniper and the trail runs straight uphill from there. This is where I camped, but about another 1/4 of a mile along Clarno Rd. they have put in a Spring Basin Wilderness Area sign board and there is some parking there as well. This is primitive camping with no amenities whatsoever.

Spring Basin Wilderness.

This wasn't an especially long drive from my home in Central OR so I got there with plenty of time to explore all day. There is an old jeep track that runs through the wilderness with a few offshoots here and there. I decided to ride to the end of Clarno Rd. where it starts, and then follow it all the way until it finally ends at the boundary to land that the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs owns. There is a map online that shows the "trails" but they aren't really trails and they don't get much use, so in some areas the old road becomes very faint, although there are a few cairns set up here and there.

Heading up the old jeep track.

I passed by the spring that the area is named after, but there was not a whole lot of water coming out of it.
This is the time of year that the hedgehog cactus are blooming and I got to see lots of bright pink flowers as I rode. I went to a ridge over looking Hay Bottom Canyon, then continued on passing the trail that goes back downhill to where I parked, and kept going to Horse Mt and beyond. Once I reached the boundary signs I turned around, although there isn't a fence or any no trespassing signs, according to the map this is private property that you are supposed to stay off of.

Spring Basin Wilderness.

Spring Basin Wilderness.

The hedgehogs were blooming.

Looking down onto the John Day River.

The view from a cliff near where I turned around.

The next morning I drove over to Sutton Mt. passing by the Clarno Unit of the John Day Fossil Beds.

The Palisades at the Clarno Unit of the John Day Fossil Beds.

You would never see the Sutton Mt. trailhead if you didn't know where it was, but since it is right by mile marker 15 on Hwy 207 that makes it easier to describe. There is a large area along the highway where you can park, or you can drive in through a wire gate and park or camp there. Again there are no amenities, other than a creek for stock water that you would be sharing with cows.

The wire gate into the Sutton Mt. area.

Just through the wire gate there are camp spots. My rig is parked along the highway.

This is a straightforward follow the dirt road up to the top of the mountain ride, but when I had hiked it before I had always wondered where the road continued on to. So after admiring the views down onto the Painted Desert and looking for more hedgehog cactus, (they were there, but these ones were not blooming), I followed the road some more. It drops way downhill, passing a spring, a pile of lumber and an old stove that was once someone's home, then crosses a gully and heads back uphill rejoining itself eventually, so I was able to do a loop which I always like to do if possible.

Halfway up Sutton Mt.

Views from the trail up Sutton Mt.

Riding up Sutton Mt.

On Sutton Mt.

Looking way down from on top of Sutton Mt.

Originally I was thinking of spending the night there, but instead I decided to drive over to my next destination which was Pat's Cabin Wilderness Study Area. It's located on the opposite side of Sutton Mt. from where I was, and the BLM map showed the quickest route as leaving from a junction that was very close by. The route starts well and ends well but unbeknownst to me, the middle section becomes narrow, windy, and one lane gravel for quite some time. But once I was committed, there was no point in turning around. The legend on the BLM map shows this road as being a "main road" not even gravel. So that was completely inaccurate. There is another perfectly good way to get there along Burnt Ranch Road past the Painted Desert. At the sign for the recreation sites there is an old rickety cow corral, and that is where I parked. There are lots of other camping spots nearby but I thought I would take advantage of the handy corral for my horse's overnight stay. Once again no other amenities at this spot, although Bridge Creek is nearby, across the road.

The signs right near the corral where I camped on Burnt Ranch Rd.

The old corral on Burnt Ranch Rd. 

According to my not so accurate map, the trail into Pat's Cabin was supposed to be directly across the road. In the morning I headed over to the creek and saw that it was not going to be an easy crossing. I went up a small hill and tried to see if there was even a hint of a trail, or old road on the other side, and I saw nothing, so I decided to scrap that plan and ride to Priest Hole instead.
It's 3.5 miles of road riding to get there from where I was parked. I am really glad I decided to do this, because it turned out to be a lovely spot along the John Day River. Across the river there is another, not quite as big or spectacular, but beautiful none the less, version of hills similar to the Painted Desert. I'm sure this is a busy place in the summer, but other than one guy camping alone, I had the place to myself. I rode along the river for awhile and then rather than go back the same way I continued around on the loop road, and then back to my camp spot along Burnt Ranch Rd. A car passed me twice and finally the guy asked me if he was going in the right direction to get to Mitchell. I said "no Mitchell is the other way". His GPS was sending him on quite the wild goose chase.

Bridge Creek.

Road riding to Priest Hole.

Along the John Day River at Priest Hole.

At Priest Hole.

The John Day River at Priest Hole.

The John Day River at Priest Hole.

Priest Hole.

Some painted hills across the John Day River.

It was getting pretty hot so I was glad to be done my ride a little early, and so I drove home passing the Painted Desert on the way. I've seen this area before on previous hiking trips, so I did not stop this time, but it is certainly worth a visit.

The Painted Desert, my photo from a previous visit.

The Painted Desert, my photo from a previous visit.

GPS COORDINATES TO SPRING BASIN

GPS COORDINATES TO SUTTON MT. TH

GPS COORDINATES TO THE CORRAL ON BURNT RANCH RD.