This was our first camping trip in Oregon, and our first visit to the coast. The more we see of Oregon, the more there is to love. The pictures I am posting in no way do this area justice. It is something you have to experience. We camped at Harris Beach State Park, just north of Brookings. We also visited Lone Ranch Beach and Whale’s Head Beach, which are part of the Samuel H. Boardman State Scenic Corridor. The Corridor is home to 16 miles of trail along the Oregon coast. This will not be our last visit here! On our way home we stopped at Jedediah Smith Redwood State Park in northern California. This is another place that you have to experience. The redwoods are majestic. They are enormous. The trunks must have been 6-8 feet in diameter and you cannot see the top of the trees, they seem to go on forever. In addition to the redwoods, the crystal clear, aquamarine, Smith River runs through the park. It was an incredible weekend. The coast is a scenic 2 hour drive from Grants Pass down the Redwood Highway.

I had so much fun last week on my adventure, that I decided to drive to the town of Prospect for a little more hiking and waterfall enjoyment. The drive itself was amazing. To get to Prospect from Grants Pass, you take a road that has many names; Route 62, Crater Lake Highway, Rogue-Umpqua Scenic Byway, and my personal favorite, the highway of waterfalls. The drive and the waterfalls are supposed to get even more fabulous as you get closer to the source of the Rogue and Umpqua rivers in the Cascade Range. I however, was not the least bit disappointed. I had an incredible day and it was just over an hours drive there. We will be visiting Crater Lake in mid-May, and I just can’t wait.

The first falls I visited was Pearsoney Falls. It drops a mere 12 feet, but cascades beautifully. You can continue hiking for an overlook of The Avenue of the Boulders. These boulders were thrown from Mount Mazama, over 20 miles away, when it erupted over 7,000 years ago forming Crater Lake.  Next there was Mill Creek Falls, with a 173 foot fall. I found it difficult to find a pleasing composition due to overgrowth obstructing the view. Last but not least was Barr Creek Falls, with a height of 240 feet. I found it to be more graceful and beautiful than Mill Creek Falls. We are going to the coast this weekend for our first Oregon camping trip!

The trail to Lower Table Rocks is rated as being more difficult than the one to Upper Table Rocks, I respectfully disagree. It is a little longer hike up but the surface of the trail is more even.  More even means less pain in my ankle, which in my book translates to easier. It was another pretty day, though the clouds lingered over the summit of Mount McLoughlin during our visit. We had a picnic up top and took our time before hiking down. We observed some vernal pools here, we did not see any at Upper Table Rocks. There were more wildflowers at Upper Table Rocks, but that could be a matter of timing.

As I planned for my trip to Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm, Rob seemed surprised that I planned to make the trip in one day. He suggested that I stay the night. My first thought was Silver Falls State Park. I knew that it was in the area and boasts a 9 mile trail featuring 10 waterfalls. They just so happen to have a cabin available at the reasonable rate of $40, sold.

I hope to return here with Rob and hike the full 9 mile loop. I’m not comfortable hiking that far alone, so I opted to hike segments of the trail. I was able to hike to 4 falls; South Falls, North Falls, Upper North Falls, and Winter Falls. I enjoyed every minute of it and look forward to seeing more of this beautiful park soon.

Tulips are one of my favorite flowers. Every April The Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm invites the public to come wander their 40 acres of tulips during peak bloom. The farm is outside Portland, which is 4 hours away. Since Rob would rather not spend his weekend in a car going to see flowers (and I can’t blame him), I decided to go on my own during the week. It was spectacular. On a clear day, Mount Hood makes a stunning backdrop to the tulip field. As you will notice, it was not a clear day.

We arrived to Oregon in similar conditions to those we departed in; dark and raining, and though the roads were well paved, they were winding, steep, and unfamiliar. We had lodging reserved and when we arrived, lets just say we were less than satisfied. I was trying to be positive, there was more space than I expected. It didn’t quite make up for the fact that it smelled like death (literally) and was a dump (almost literally). We were exhausted, it was late, we didn’t know where else to go; we stayed the night. We left the next morning to get breakfast and a few supplies and discuss a plan. I notice in the car that I smell like the hotel, like death; this clearly isn’t going to work. We talk with the proprietor and she quickly blames the stench on the recycled paint they used. At any rate, we will chock this up to experience. In the future, I’ll think twice before booking lodging that I found in the classified section of a local paper online. We find a place a mile or two down the road that had a vacancy, we moved.

Back to being positive, things happen for a reason. If we had not spent the night in the unfavorable place, we probably wouldn’t have found the place we now reside. We are loving our new home. We have a beautiful view of the mountains right out our window, a nice sitting area in the lawn and a small private park right across the street on the river. It is outside of town a bit, so it’s quiet and peaceful, but still close enough. Oh, it is also well maintained and doesn’t stink!

The area we live is within the Rogue River Valley. The Rogue River is one of the original 8 rivers in the National Wild and Scenic Rivers Act of 1968, there are now over 200 rivers protected by this act. The Rogue originates in the Cascades near Crater Lake and runs westward to the Pacific at Gold Beach. Mountains surround the Rogue River Valley; the Cascade Range to the east, The Siskiyou Mountains to the south, and the Southern Oregon Coast Range to the west. The Rogue is known for it’s salmon runs, whitewater rafting, and rugged scenery.

Our first weekend here we biked, hiked, and kayaked and the farthest drive we had was 30 minutes. There is an awesome greenway right down the street that runs along the river, parks everywhere and hiking trails galore. We are loving Oregon and I look forward to sharing our experiences here with you.

This was our first hike in Oregon, and what a beautiful day for it. Though the Cascade Range lies just east of us, the snow capped peaks usually hide beneath the clouds. I was ecstatic to see Mount McLoughlin, what a beauty. Mount McLoughlin is the lowest of the six volcanic peaks of the Cascade Range in Oregon at 9,495 feet. It lies within the Sky Lakes Wilderness. The upper and lower table rocks have an interesting geology, I’m not going to bore everyone with the details, but if you are into that sort of thing, look it up.

Between Joshua Tree and Big Sur the landscape changed, dramatically. It was almost as if you could draw a line on the crest of a mountain near Bakersfield, CA. The eastern side was desert, and the western side was lush and green. We drove through miles of fruit and nut orchards and through a bit of wine country approaching Big Sur. As much as I love the desert, this was a welcome change.

Arriving to Big Sur and Highway 1, we were mesmerized by the views. It reminded us of Hawaii with the dramatic coastline and lush vegetation. The driving also reminded us of Hawaii, particularly the “road to Hana” on Maui. Hairpin curves along rugged cliffs; it’s beautiful if you have the nerve to actually enjoy it.

Photographing here is challenging due to the extreme contrasts. I really needed a chauffeur, as driving on those roads was exhausting to me and zapped what creative energy I had left. We had spent a lot of time in the car over the past week or more, and quite honestly I was sick of it. I would love to tour Big Sur again someday.

The last stop of our journey is in northern California to visit my cousin and her boyfriend. We went on a hike with them to one of their favorite spots in the area, Fern Canyon. We saw a few Roosevelt Elk grazing as we were leaving. It has been an amazing journey and we are excited to explore our new temporary home in Oregon soon.

The drive through Arizona heading to Joshua Tree was beautiful. The area around Flagstaff made me want to linger. Then there was Lake Havasu, it is enormous. The main area was busy with boats and more people than I like to be around, but we drove for miles around this vast lake of turquoise water. There were areas that were peaceful and serene; the first image below is of one of these areas. Entering California, our path took us though the Mojave desert. The miles of barren land was quite a contrast to the desert oasis of Havasu.

We camped in the Black Rock Campground at Joshua Tree and loved camping there. I’d wake in the middle of the night with a smile, hearing the coyotes communicating with each other. Overall, I was underwhelmed with Joshua Tree National Park. It is a place I had wanted to visit for a long time. I’m not quite sure what I was expecting.  I couldn’t help but compare it to Death Valley, which we fell in love with years ago. We had an enjoyable time here and it is a beautiful place, but doubt we will return. Our visit here made us both want to go to Death Valley.

I love the desert. There is something about it that makes me feel right at home, at peace.  We had just an afternoon to spend here, and would have enjoyed more time to explore.  I-40 literally runs through this park, so I am hopeful that our paths will cross this amazing land again in the future.