Ahh the Watchman! A short but steep summer hike can quickly turn into a winter destination, and the 360 degree views from this iconic fire lookout tower will be well worth your effort.
- Distance: 8.5 miles
- Time: 6 hours
- Elevation gain: 1200+ ft
- When we went: Feb 16, 2022; 10:30 am
- GPS for trail start: Rim Village
- Can you ski back to the car?: No
- Route Finding Difficulty: Easy
- Physical Exertion Difficulty: Intermediate
- Map
Getting there: Start off parking at the Rim Village Visitor Center, and walk down to where the Rim Road heads west. This is a popular cross country ski destination, so there will generally be lots of tracks. You get immediate views as you head west down the snow covered road. Skin about 3.5 miles on the Rim road. This makes route finding very easy!
The views will come in and out with some spectacular angles of Wizard Island. Here could be a beautiful spot to stop for a snack!
The road in is a mellow up and down with no significant elevation gains. Once you get to the base of Watchman Peak, you will turn right and head up through the trees. There are other points of entry, but we found this to be the most straightforward and by no means too steep to skin.
Drop your gear below the tight tree line at the top, and run up to the tower for some epic views. This tower was built in 1932 and was both a fire lookout and a trail museum at the time!
When you’re ready to head down, strap in for the mellow gladed run that awaits you. Make sure not to head too far to the skiers left, as it will quickly drop off into a cliff area and you’ll be stuck hiking back up. Go down the way you came and you’ll end right back up on the Rim Drive you came in on. Please note that you can either do laps on Watchman, or cross the road and continue on below into another gladed section if you have more time. Either way, when you’ve had your fill, skin out the way you came in.
PROS:
- Beautiful views all throughout the day.
- If you have friends with you on x-country skis they could hang with you for a while.
- Easy route-finding.
- Low Avalanche Danger.
CONS:
- A lot of skinning for the amount of snowboarding you get.
- Cannot snowboard to car; must allow time to skin out.
THE SPLIT DECISION
Jay’s Take: “My feet were absolutely killing me by the end of the day! Make sure your boots are comfortable because this is definitely mostly skinning. The views were magnificent and I did leave feeling like I would be willing to do it all again, especially if we could do Hillman Peak at the same time. I also ordered new boots on the drive home.
Tyese’s Take: “Uhm, absolutely stunning, but if I do that again, I want to hit Hillman Peak the same day, and also hit the lower trees below the road. Start earlier, and make it a big day. That was a lot of skinning for the amount of snowboarding we got. But those views…. Wooo!”
Final words: Remember that a national park pass is required to get into Crater Lake! You can buy them as you drive in.
