Mountains and Rivers

Labor Day Road Trip, part 3

We had camped that evening near McKenzie Pass so were able to wake up the next morning in time to catch sunrise as the sun started to reflect off the column of smoke from the nearby forest fire. We chatted with another couple who were on their own road-trip and had decided to watch the sun rise over the forest fire. They told us of several fabulous hikes that we noted for future trips and then went on our way.

Back on the western side of the mountains we again followed river drainages up to Mt Hood, watching as the forest became less infused with Ponderosa and more of the forest we knew from home. But we liked the drier more open forests of Southwest Oregon and the arid Ponderosa forest of Eastern Oregon.

By early afternoon we had reached Mt Hood and her pumice slopes. Far up on the mountainside, a large snowfield help on against the summer sun and heat. Also defying the summer were a few die-hard skiers, slowly making their downward to the pumice and even more slowly, made their way back up.

Our route took us around the eastside of Mt Hood through the many orchards to the town of Hood River. Here wee stopped for a bit to watch the sailboarders and kite boarders play in the fabled winds of the Columbia River Gorge.

After that, we joined the long line of traffic - holiday travelers heading home.

Forest Fires & Volcanoes

Labor Day Road Trip, part 2

Before we left on our little road trip, I printed out descriptions of a few of the scenic by-ways we'd be travelling: the highways along the western cascades, the loop through the cascades over Santiam and McKenzie Passes, and the volcano filled drive along the eastern cascades. Each gave us hints and tips of viewpoints and interesting stops along the way. We were excited about exploring the volcanoes on the east-side and woke up with high hopes of new terrain and exciting views.

What we woke up to on the shores of Suttle Lake was the column of smoke from the forest fire that that had settled into the valley over night. Ash fell onto our car in a thin layer as we ate breakfast and packed up camp. Our drive from Suttle Lake to Sisters and Bend beyond took us through the cloud of smoke, lying low over the forest. The plume of smoke would be on the horizon for the rest of our day.

Our first stop of the day would be at the Newberry Monument in the Deschutes National Forest. The monument is a caldera similar to Crater Lake but with twin lakes and the largest obsidian flow in North America. The wonders of Newberry Monument are as grand as the land that produced it. From Paulina Peak you can see a perfect 360 degree view of Central Oregon. We watched as the plume of smoke rose from the horizon to the northwest.

From Newberry we traveled along the volcanic lakes at the base of the east slope of the cascades north to Mt Bachelor. Here we found lakes, trails and snow parks ready for our adventures. But they would have to wait another day, hopefully they won't need to wait too long. Michael even began looking at real estate, we became so enamored with Central Oregon.

But our day wasn't over yet, we still had a trip up McKenzie Pass. I had been told of the fascinating beauty of McKenzie Pass, and was not disappointed when we came across the lava flows spreading out over the crest of the cascades. From here, we watched the sunset over the mountains, lava and forest fire.

Covered Bridges & Waterfalls

Labor Day Road Trip, part 1

At the last minute, Michael & I changed our Labor Day backpacking plans to a Labor Day road trip to Central Oregon. We had quickly driven through Central Oregon on road trips past but wanted to explore just a little bit more this land of Ponderosas and volcanoes. We found that there's just too much to try to cram in to 3 days - that weekend trips should concentrate on one area at a time and one activity at a time. This weekend was for exploring and now we have some ideas.

We drove as far as Eugene on Friday night so we could get an early start exploring the Willamette and McKenzie river valleys. I had looked up a few covered bridges in Lane County, ok I printed out 21 pages of directions and descriptions. So we spent the morning hopping from one covered bridge to the next before driving through the thick western forest that was at once foreign and familiar to us. Along with the Douglas-Fir and Cascade Azaleas were Ponderosa Pines and Manzanita a combination not seen on the western slopes in Washington.

We followed different rivers throughout the day, leaving one drainage to come into another then finally coming to the McKenzie River - an intensely clear river sparkling in the sun. We stopped at a series of waterfalls cascading over lava flows left thousands of years ago. The water was so clear, Olympia was fooled by the apparent shallowness of the rocks below that she stepped into the fast-flowing rapids only to be quickly pulled back by Michael, her tummy half dripping.

We finally crossed into the Eastern side of Oregon over Santiam Pass and was greeted by a great plume of smoke from a forest fire making its way north towards Black Butte. We camped that night along the shores of Suttle Lake.