11 days ago

Hiking the Paulina Lakeshore "Grand" Loop, I have dubbed it, includes NOT JUST the classic Paulina Lakeshore Loop (7.5 Miles), but also ADDS:
- Little Crater Viewpoint (East Side of Lake)
- Paulina Hot Springs (North Side of Lake) (THIS VIDEO!)
- Paulina Creek & Falls (West Side of Lake)
- Big Obsidian Flow (South Side of Lake)
Including the Lakeshore Loop itself, it is a solid 5-PACK OF HIGHLIGHT FEATURES and can be done in ONE CONTINUOUS HIKING LOOP, without moving your vehicle, totaling approximately 12 Miles of Hiking IN ALL! I recommend starting at Little Crater Campground Day Use Parking & Trailhead and Hiking the "Grand" 5-PACK Loop Counterclockwise.

*Tip - this Video is 4K, stream it to your Big Screen Smart TV!*

Paulina Lake and East Lake are in the Caldera of Newberry Volcano and are the Crown Jewels of the Newberry National Volcanic Monument! This was a Day-Hike in Central Oregon, Newberry Crater National Volcanic Monument, starting at Little Crater Campground Day Use Parking & Trailhead and doing my own hybrid design I call Paulina Lake "Grand Loop" which captures 5 of the best highlights of the whole area in one continuous 12 mile Grand Loop hike - Little Crater Viewpoint, Paulina Lake Loop, Hot Springs (east side of Lake), Paulina Falls (west side of Lake), and Big Obsidian Flow (south side of Lake).

Weather was a low around 28, high around 70, blue bird day and very windy. This was hiked on 9/21/2021, trail was completely clear of snow, and there were NO Mosquitoes!

On AllTrails, this hike is a hybrid combo mix of "Paulina Lakeshore Loop", "Paulina Falls", "Hot Springs", "Big Obsidian Flow", and "Little Crater Viewpoint".

As far as road conditions, it's highway all the way until the turnoff for the campground, you enjoy paved roads right up to and including the parking lot. In my opinion, the road MOST DEFINITELY DOES NOT require 4-Wheel Drive. As far as permits, this hike DOES NOT require a special Recreation.gov permit.

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