Beautiful and crowded: Top 10 places to avoid in Oregon's outdoors

Zach Urness | Statesman Journal

Show Caption Hide Caption Water safety: 5 things to know before you go Hot weather and high water levels have been a tragic combination on the Little North Santiam River this spring. Marion County Sheriff's Office recommends swimmers follow these precautions.

It happens to every Oregonian at some point.

You wake up on a perfect summer weekend and decide to get outdoors and bask in the state's resplendent beauty.

You pack up gear, load up the family and drive for an hour to one of the state's iconic destinations, only to discover that everyone else had the same idea.

On summer weekends, some of the state's most celebrated places become total madhouses. Jam-packed parking lots, traffic jams and an experience closer to the Mall of American than a natural wonderland is an increasingly common occurrence.

Included below are 10 of Oregon's most beautiful places that also can become overcrowded on summer weekends and holidays.

This list isn't about bad-mouthing these iconic places but rather warning folks visiting them to either consider a very early start or wait until mid-week.

NORTHERN OREGON COAST

There's nothing better than the natural air conditioning of the Pacific Ocean when temperatures hit boiling levels in the Willamette Valley.

Unfortunately, there's nothing worse than getting stuck on Highway 101 when three-fourths of Oregonians also decided to seek relief on the Oregon Coast.

The traffic jams can get unholy around cities such as Seaside, Cannon Beach, Lincoln City, Pacific City and Newport.

The best advice is to make sure you're on the road as little as possible during the height of the weekend days. Arrive early, get a good spot on the beach and make sure you can walk to points of interest rather than driving.

With miles and miles of beachfront, the coast actually handles crowds pretty well, and there are plenty of hidden spots. It's the roads and parking that get brutal.

COLUMBIA RIVER GORGE

Not unlike the coast, the Columbia River Gorge is a place that can handle crowds for the most part, and it's not so bad if you're willing to get an early start.

The problem is finding a parking spot or a few feet of personal space in the middle of the day, on a weekend, at the most popular trails.

Kate Lindberg, outreach assistant with Friends of the Columbia Gorge, said four of the busiest trailheads include Horsetail Falls, Eagle Creek, Oneonta Gorge and Dog Mountain.

Multnomah Falls, of course, is the most popular place in the Gorge and the most crowded. But ... it's generally built as a tourist attraction so crowds are part of the deal.

LITTLE NORTH SANTIAM SWIMMING HOLES

The blissfully cool and crystal-clear waters of the Little North Santiam River east of Salem make for heavenly swimming on blistering hot days.

Sadly, the size of the crowds cramming into the small underdeveloped recreation sites including Three Pools, Salmon Falls and Little North Fork Park bring to mind a different place. (It rhymes with "smell").

"People come in droves to beat the heat, and it just totally overwhelms the small parking lots and facilities," Russ Dilley, Marion County park coordinator, said. "They park on the road, which creates a dangerous bottleneck that becomes really dangerous if there's an emergency and we need to get rescue personal down in there."

SMITH ROCK STATE PARK

This iconic rock-climbing and hiking destination outside Bend has grown steadily in popularity over the past decade, but during the past two years, it has exploded.

The park has 400 official parking spots, but on busy weekends, it gets up to 1,500 and even 2,000 vehicles looking for places to stop, park manager Scott Brown said last month.

The overflow has forced visitors to park on the sides of access roads, with some walking a mile and a half before they reach the park's trails.

Long lines at Smith Rock's only restroom also have created headaches for visitors as the park has seen visitation jump from an average of 442,000 visits from 2002 to 2012 to 635,908 in 2014. It may eclipse 700,000 visits this year.

"In the past, we'd have a handful of days that were overcrowded," park manager Scott Brown said last month. "Now it's happening on a regular basis."

Visitors are encouraged to visit mid-week.

SOUTH SISTER AND GREEN LAKES BASIN

Wilderness areas are not typically full of crowds, but that's not the case in this extremely popular corner of the Three Sisters Wilderness west of Bend.

Despite a grueling hike to the summit of South Sister and a challenging trek into Green Lakes Basin, both of these places often are extremely crowded, especially in July, August and September.

"I don't even consider it a wilderness experience," said Chris Sabo, trail crew supervisor for Deschutes National Forest. "It's almost more of an urban park. The use is very high, really beyond what this area can accommodate."

The main culprit for crowds is the rapid growth of Bend, just 30 minutes to the east, and easy access on Cascade Lakes Scenic Byway.

The spectacular beauty, of course, also is a draw.

Green Lakes Trail is a classic 4-mile hike through waterfall-laden forest and ash canyons to a basin of emerald pools nestled between South Sister and Broken Top. Crowds have done so much damage to the alpine basin that fines for making an illegal campfire can reach a whopping $5,000, and camping is only allowed in designated campsites.

The climb up South Sister, Oregon's third-tallest mountain, gives novice climbers the chance to head above 10,000 feet. But the steep trails often are as busy as a shopping mall escalator. Parking at Devil's Lake Trailhead — where the trip begins — also is a challenge.

MIRROR AND TRILLIUM LAKES

Mount Hood shimmers in all its glory on the glassy surface of these two lakes, home to views that have been featured on countless postcards touting Oregon's beauty.

What those pictures often miss, however, are the people packed along the shoreline, in the parking area or even on the water.

Laura Pramuk, public affairs officer for Mount Hood National Forest, said the two lakes near Government Camp become less than enjoyable on many summer weekends.

"Visitors may not have the kind of experience they were hoping for, as parking can be a challenge and trails and spots for picnicking can fill up fast," she said. "People might like to explore other sites that are more of a drive but just as beautiful, such as Wahtum Lake, Lost Lake, Laurence Lake, Harriet Lake or the Olallie Area."

ELK LAKE

Considering the rough and rutted roads you must drive to reach this lake nestled below Battle Axe Mountain, you wouldn't expect this to be such a busy place.

But the crowds from nearby Detroit Lake have flooded this beautiful lake and campground on the edge of the Bull of the Woods Wilderness, and finding a camping spot or place to park on sunny weekends can be next to impossible.

Elk Lake simply isn't developed to accommodate the crowds that come here.

JEFFERSON PARK

It truly pains me to include this alpine paradise on this list of overcrowded destinations, but I've probably heard more complaints about this Mount Jefferson Wilderness spot than any other.

The hike to Jefferson Park is most crowded on the 5.5 miles from Whitewater Trailhead, where parking often bleeds down the road.

A common complaint is the number of people tenting in illegal spots at Jefferson Park — you're only suppose to camp at designated sites — along with uncontrolled dogs roaming around.

The crowds have led many to speculate that a permit system might soon by installed in the same way that is present at Pamelia Lake.

BAGBY HOT SPRINGS

The reputation of these hot springs has greatly improved during the past few years in this Mount Hood National Forest destination southwest of Estacada.

A vendor stationed at the campground and trailhead has helped cut down the rowdy crowds, trash and vandalism that marred the hot springs in the past.

Even so, crowds can make getting a chance to soak in the hot springs a challenge. Because there are only so many places to soak, you'll sometimes have to wait in line for hours before getting a chance to dip in these magic waters.

Luckily, the 1.5-mile trail from Bagby Springs Trailhead and Campground is quite beautiful, so there's a lot to do in the area.

CLACKAMAS SWIMMING HOLES

In the same way that swimming holes on the Little North Santiam River get crowded when the weather gets hot, so too do these overcrowded party spots on the Clackamas River near Estacada.

High Rocks and Carver parks are both notorious places where crowds, drinking and some drowning deaths have become uncomfortably common.

Zach Urness, who is happy to respond to any angry comments resulting from this column, has been an outdoors writer, photographer and videographer in Oregon for seven years. He is the author of the book "Hiking Southern Oregon" and can be reached at zurness@StatesmanJournal.com or (503) 399-6801. Find him on Facebook at Zach's Oregon Outdoors or @ZachsORoutdoors on Twitter.