Oregon's Dazzling Secret Lake Offers Swimming, Berry-Picking, And Kayak-In Island Camping

Hidden in a remote area of Oregon's Cascade Mountains is a dazzling secret lake, where you can kayak to your own personal island to spend the night under the towering summit of Diamond Peak. The appropriately named Summit Lake has an elevation of 5,600 feet and is part of the glaciated basin below Diamond Peak, so its crystal clear waters that transition between turquoise, gold, and sapphire are fed entirely by snowmelt. While it's only accessible via a rough and difficult forest road (only attempt it with a 4WD or high-clearance vehicle), the effort is worth it to reach this serene location where you can kayak to a number of basalt rock formations to camp on your very own island for the night. In fact, it's one of the only mountain lakes in the state where you can do so.

If you're in the mood for a fruity treat, paddle over to Berry Island and pick berries in the huckleberry groves, before setting out across this lake's water that's so clear, you can see the shadow of your boat trailing across the bottom. Otherwise, take your pick from the boat-in islands off the lake's peninsula, and enjoy the solitude in this epic landscape of pine-covered islands with basalt rocks and sandy shores, where you can swim and kayak to your heart's content. It's not only water activities here either, as there are a handful of hiking trails near the lake, including a portion of the Pacific Crest Trail that leads to the top of Diamond Peak, where you can enjoy a totally different but equally awe-inspiring view of Summit Lake, one of Oregon's best secret glistening lakes.

Considering its remote location and unique feature of islands where you can camp, there are a few things visitors should be aware of when visiting Summit Lake to make sure they have the best experience possible. It's possible to canoe instead of kayak; it just depends on your preference as far as carrying the gear you need, particularly if you're taking a solo camping trip. Among those essentials, don't forget to bring a shovel to deal with bodily waste since this secluded location isn't exactly serviced by trash collectors. Unfortunately, some have not gotten the memo, so you may encounter the remnants of previous campers on the islands and pullouts of Summit Lake. 

If you'd rather do some more traditional mainland camping instead, the Summit Lake campground has a few free, first-come, first-served sites just northwest of the lake's peninsula. Here, you'll find a few picnic tables and fire pits, plus a single-vault toilet and the boat-launching area. There are also dispersed camping sites around the lake. The campground offers access to the Emigrant's Pass/PCT trailhead that leads about 5.75 miles up to the top of Diamond Peak via a difficult but rewarding trail.

As they say, "beauty is pain," and so it is with a stunning site like Summit Lake, which is known to have clouds of exceptionally brutal mosquitoes that one can imagine exists in one of Dante's circles of hell, not in a refreshing Oregonian paradise. But alas, so it is, so bring tons of mosquito spray but really, the best option is to consider avoiding the summer months and going after August to avoid Summit Lake's annual mosquito convention.

Located just over an hour from Oakridge and just under two hours from Eugene, Summit Lake is only accessible by car and a high-clearance one at that. You have Forest Service Road 6010 to thank for that, a particularly treacherous stretch thanks to its deep potholes and boulder-lined stretches. It becomes even more difficult to drive in the early summer, when the springtime snowmelt makes it muddier and more dangerous. All the roads around Summit Lake are primitive and require a good amount of patience (plus a 4WD).

There are two routes to reach this pristine oasis: The shorter one from Oakridge goes past Crescent Lake, but it has a longer stretch on the notorious FSR 6010, while the longer route takes the paved Forest Service Road 21 that's just south of Oakridge and goes to NF-2154 south of the lake, so you can spend less time on the FSR 6010. While the journey to get to Summit Lake may sound intimidating, it's definitely doable, and more than that, it's worth it to reach this unique location that stands out among the many clear lakes hidden in Oregon's Cascade Mountains.