Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

Wildfire is a powerfully destructive force. And when it has its way with our forests and trails, it’s easy to get stuck on what’s lost, distracting us from discovering what rises from the ashes.

As wildfire season returns to Oregon, there are a few places to travel where we can see what lies in store for the future – forests that have burned and are in the stages of rebirth.

We recently took a trip to explore the Eight Lakes Basin, a beautiful section of the Mount Jefferson Wilderness in central Oregon. It’s home to forests of Douglas fir and hemlock that rim clear, quiet lakes.

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Dave Killen/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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The best way to access the area is by the Duffy Lake Trailhead, where hikers can make day trips or longer backpacking excursions. We were on a three-day horseback trip in the basin, which allowed us to explore the depths of the wilderness a little easier.



The Eight Lakes Basin burned in the B&B Complex fires back in 2003. Two fires between Mount Jefferson and Mount Washington combined, eventually consuming more than 90,000 acres of forest. Firefighters battled the blaze for 34 days at a cost of $38 million.

While some part of the basin appears to be untouched (including much of the forest around Santiam Lake) others clearly bear the scars of the fire: haunting gray and blackened snags, standing like tombstones on the hills.

As our horses walked single-file down the narrow dirt trails, we entered a stretch of burned forest between Mowich and Jorn Lakes. Our party suddenly fell silent as we passed, struck by the eerie beauty all around.

Jagged gray snags stood straight up and still, while a lush carpet of vibrant green growth burst up from the forest floor. Bear grass sprouted up everywhere in between, the cream-colored puff balls bobbing oddly in the breeze. Butterflies frolicked among wildflowers in the brush, as the sun beat down from a bright blue sky.

It looked like an alien world had suddenly sprouted from the bones of a Cascade forest.

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Sights like these aren't particularly unfamiliar – at least not anymore. The Mill Creek Wilderness in the Ochoco Mountains is already there. The burned forests of the Columbia River Gorge might get there soon.



As wildfire continues to scorch forests around the Northwest, fresh life will always arrive to kick off the regrowth. Strange as it may seem, it’s just another part of the forest’s process.

SEE MORE PHOTOS BELOW

--Jamie Hale | jhale@oregonian.com | @HaleJamesB





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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Dave Killen/The Oregonian

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Dave Killen/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Dave Killen/The Oregonian

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Dave Killen/The Oregonian