Oregon Part 2

Wednesday, July 2nd

After breakfast we left Roseburg, and headed south to Ashland. There we checked out the Shakespeare Festival Theatre complex, and strolled along the river in Lithia Park. We were surprised to learn that Ashland is a sister city of Guanajuato, México where we had visited over the Thanksgiving break last year. The riverwalk along Calle Guanajuato is enticing with all of its café tables, and the giant mural of the city where Alex and I pointed out all the places we had been.

We doubled back up I-5 to reach the Dancin' Winery outside of Medford for a wine flight and lunch. Although Willamette Valley wines are the most well-known, especially for Pinot Noir, I felt the Rogue Valley selection at Dancin' more than held its own.

The scenery on the road up 62 towards the west entrance of Crater Lake National Park changes dramatically as the brush and smaller flora give way to densely spaced towering trees. And Crater Lake itself is just stunning. A volcano that blew its top over 7700 years ago created huge cavities in the rock with all the magma and gas that was released resulting in the mountaintop collapsing in on itself to create the namesake crater. Centuries of rain and snowmelt emptied into the cavity gradually creating the deepest lake in the United States, and the bluest, clearest waters I have ever seen. A second volcano then pushed up through that to create Wizard Island inside the lake.

We finished the day with the drive to Bend, and a quick bite at a pub downtown.

Thursday, July 3rd

A short drive from the hotel on a dirt road brought us to the trail head of Tumalo Falls. It being the July 4th Holiday Weekend, we parked in the overflow lot. Clear vantages of the falls appeared along a short hike up the hill, and the path leads to a lookout where you can peer down over the stream leading to the waterfall. The source of water for Tumalo Creek which feeds the falls comes partly from a natural spring, so the dramatic 97 foot waterfall doesn't periodically wane from a lack of melting snow pack.

The plan for the next stop was to check out the Lava River Cave south of town, but I didn't realize you needed to book a timed entry reservation in advance. It wasn't a total loss, though, as the nearby Newberry National Volcanic Monument had plenty to explore. We walked the path from the Lava Lands Visitor Center that winds through a massive basalt deposit for clear views of Mt. Bachelor and The Sisters.

We didn't make it all the way to the top of Lava Butte, the volcanic hill overlooking the lava flow field, because we had already gotten our hiking in at Tumalo Falls, and there was more on the itinerary to see. There just aren't enough hours in the day. The lava flow around the area was reminiscent of what I remembered seeing on the dry side of the big island of Hawai'i.

We went back to town for lunch at Jackson's Corner in Old Bend, and then made our way to the High Desert Museum which had some impressive exhibits on volcanology, history, and local flora and fauna. At the raptor center we sat for a talk where one of the local ecologists told us about the impressive Great Horned Owl sitting on her hand. That evening we headed to the Deschutes Brew Pub in the center of town for dinner, and strolled around downtown Bend.

Friday, July 4th

After stopping to take a picture of the last Blockbuster in operation, non-negotiable for any Gen-Xer or Xennial traveling through Bend, we made our way up 97 through Redmond to the impressive Smith Rock State Park.

We saw climbers on the tuff and basalt walls wondering just what in the hell they planned to hold on to as it looked completely sheer from the other side of the valley from where we were watching.

Next we headed northwest on 26 for some views of Mt. Hood. We had a picnic lunch at one of the snow parks in the mountain's shadow. When I was planning the trip, I had thought about going up to Timberline Lodge, since the building itself is architecturally notable, and was the filming site for the exterior of the hotel in The Shining. But since I'd already been to about a thousand ski resorts, I decided against it. Instead we took 35 around the east side of the mountain. This area must be a monarch migration corridor as there were tons of them whooshing past our windshield, and an unfortunate few that met their sudden end against it.

The tall forest started turning to rolling hills with seemingly endless pear tree orchards, so we decided to keep our eyes open for a fruit stand. What we found was much better. The Gorge White House fronts a massive U-Pick orchard and berry farm. You can grab a bucket and go pick whatever is in season, enjoy wines from the local vineyard, or cider from the local cidery, or just hang out in the inviting bucolic landscape. It seems as though any seed you throw on the ground in this state just grows without any effort. At least that was what was going through my head when plucking black cherries from underneath rows and rows of low trees. We also grabbed fistfuls of blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries that were popping out all over the endless aisles of bushes.

Our next stop as we headed westward on I-84 back towards Portland through the amazing Cascade River Gorge was the iconic Multnomah Falls. Fortunately, I HAD remembered to make a reservation here, which got us past a throng of upset and confused looking tourists onto the grounds where we climbed the steps to the bridge and took some photos. Like Tumalo Falls mentioned above, the water is spring-fed, so there was no worry of the tap petering out due to lack of snowmelt. Looking up at the magnificent 620 foot double waterfall, you can see why this place is the most visited location in all of the Pacific Northwest.

After navigating the crowds back to the parking lot, we headed back to Portland to meet up once again with family for a nice 4th of July BBQ.

Later that evening we walked down Alder Street from the hotel to watch the fireworks from the SE Morrison Bridge. Obviously, it wasn't nearly the to-do we experienced last 4th of July in Boston, which I can only imagine was absolutely insane this year, but it was a nice experience nevertheless in a great American city inside of an amazing American state.