Thanks Jim. My Escort is a 5 speed, but I ended up returning the hitch because the 2nd gen Escorts are not rated to tow anything, and there's only 1,000 lbs between the car weight and the GWVR. Weighed my boat and it was about 550 lbs with the batteries but no motor, so that would have been really pushing it with passengers included.
So, I ended up finding a $500 truck on Craigslist... runs pretty good just needed a new radiator and alternator, both of which I've taken care of. Almost finished with the new parking brake cable so I should be up there soon, hopefully at Wickiup tomorrow. I can't find much information online about the boat ramps there, how many are there and if there's more than one, which one is easiest? I plan on camping at one of the free sites on what I think is the west side of the lake, by the Deschutes arm.