Triangulation Peak is located near Detroit, Oregon. It is a well known location to have a perfect view of Mount Jefferson. However, this trail is not as popular as many other trails due to being further South and takes about 2.5 hours to get to from Portland. The trail of Triangulation Peak is about 2.5 miles with little elevation gain. The only climb is only at the last 0.5 mile of the trail.
We left Portland around 7AM in the morning to drive to the trail head. Before we get to the trail head, we drove by Detroit Lake and the camp grounds were complete full. So despite of uprising of COVID-19 outbreak, it did not stop people to enjoy the July long weeend.
After driving by Detroit Lake, we made a left turn into the Forest Road. The first 5 miles of the Forest Road is well paved. The road is a bit narrow but not really a problem for 2 cars to pass by each other. The next 3 miles of the road is on gravel road. The gravel road is well maintained however.
We got to the trail head by 9:30AM in the morning. There were already 4 cars there and the parking space was limited. We were early so able to get a parking space ourselves. The trail itself was narrow but not difficult. However, there was a lot of uproot branches which could trip people over. There were also many bugs flying around in the morning with high moisture in the air.
After about 40 minutes, we got to an intersection. The trail on the right is to the peak and the left path goes further into the mountain. We took the right path and the trail started to climb gradually. After about 15 minutes, we got to the top of Triangulation Peak. From the peak, the view of Mount Jefferson was magnificent. We could also see Broken Top on the very far side. The forest down below also look so tiny and the breeze at the peak just made the morning feel so awesome!
By the time we got back down to the trail head, there was a lot more people coming in. There was not enough parking space for everyone and thus people had to park on the side of the road. Thus it is recommended to come early if possible.
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