Both of these viewpoints offer ample scenery, and with a little effort one can enjoy broad views of vast old-growth forests, wide valleys, towering Mount Shasta and the shimmering diamond of Thompson Glacier far off to the west in the Trinity Alps Wilderness.

If you can tear yourself away from the majestic and sweeping vistas, the Scott Mountain Crest offers a slew of subtle forest delights. The serpentine and peridotite rock formations that give the mountains their unique orange hue are among the oldest geological features in the Klamath Mountains. The high nickel content and low nitrogen levels in these soils mean that only hardy plants that have evolved to fill that particular ecological niche are going to survive in these metal mountains.

Botanical oddities thrive in the rugged Scott Mountain Crest. The orange rock gardens support a variety of interesting plants, including a number of buckwheats and penstemons. The meadows and savannahs boast a profusion of wildflowers — many quite rare — and the conifer forests include a strange mix of pines, with a few ancient cedars thrown in for good measure. It is an ecological stew that is both beautiful and strange.

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