Hyatt Lake

An absolute dump. A train wreck. A total waste of time. Up until very recently, those were some of the more charitable appelations applied to the facilities at Hyatt Lake. As of 2007, a remarkable turnaround has begun at this oft-maligned stop. For the first time in memory, there's a bona fide alternative to taking a zero in Ashland.

In 2006, Bob McNeely, the operator of a successful resort on the Oregon coast, bought the down-at-the-heels Hyatt Lake Resort (7979 Hyatt Prairie Road, Ashland; 541 482-3331), with some ambitious plans modeled on his previous endeavors. The new "cabins" in place (actually pre-fabbed trailers trucked into the site) are individually owned by investors, who lease space from the resort. The resort, in turn, rents these out on a nightly basis and services them, in a manner roughly analogous to a timeshare management company. The cabins are *very* luxe by PCT standards, with spiffy kitchens, entertainment media and furnishings, big decks and all the trappings of ski-resort condos. It's the I-Can't-Believe-It's-A-Trailer trailer park.

Essentially, this is a brand-new ballgame for Hyatt Lake. And for neighboring Camper's Cove, a quarter-mile roadwalk further up the lakeshore, which is also under the same management. The entire operation was one big construction site in mid-2007, with more cabins rolling in all the time.

The cabin rates as of 2007 were no bargain ($150) -- but split between a couple of hikers, they represented a fair value, and a much better value than an overpriced motel room in Ashland. This stop was a *very* welcome respite from the rain. The store is still perhaps the smallest on the PCT (read: beer, fishing lures, chips and little else). But the restaurant food options were vastly improved:

Hyatt Lake Resort has a full-service pizzeria (complete with live music several nights a week in season) with a thin-crust pie that is as good as any you're going to find in Ashland. Be forewarned: A medium will take care of two hungry hikers. Seriously. The pizzeria also does deli sandwiches, salads, chicken wings, etc. For other food service, you're facing the quarter-mile roadwalk up to the sister operation at the former Camper's Cove (now re-christened the "Mountain Resort at Hyatt Lake." The new restaurant, "the Cove" is a full-service breakfast/lunch/dinner operation that's heavy on (non-local) seafood and nearly a dozen deep-fried savory items guaranteed to notch up your cholesterol score. In 2007, I opted to stick with the pizza and not log the additional roadwalk miles. If I were at Hyatt for a full zero, I might think differently.

There's another attractive food and lodging option that entails a roadwalk that's about equal to the detour to Hyatt Lake: The Greensprings Summit Inn (11470 Hwy. 66; 541 482-0614) is just a few minutes east of the point where the trail crosses Highway 66. Credit current PCT recordholder and all-around legend Scott Williamson with discovering the Greensprings.

As of Fall 2008, the McGuire family is back in the driver's seat at Greensprings. Diarmud McGuire expects to offer breakfast, lunch and dinner seven days a week during the 2009 hiking season. The lodging side of the operation has eight rooms, six of which are equipped with Jacuzzis. McGuire is also developing luxury cabins on an adjacent parcel. His building plans include a new laundry facility for PCT hikers. So between the rebuilt Callahan's, Hyatt Lake and Greensprings Summit, there is absolutely no reason to be stinky in southern Oregon. If you planned your mileage right, it would even be possible to go three consecutive nights with a bed and a shower between I-5 and Highway 140.