Call of the Mountains

We had to make a trip to Eugene for a repair to our vehicle. We decided to use it as an excuse to head to the mountains! A little over an hour southeast of Eugene is Belknap Hot Springs, a privately owned resort that offers hotel rooms, cabins, a RV campground, and walk in tent sites. There are 2 hot spring pools there that are free for guests (including campers). We hiked in about 1/2 mile to an awesome campsite right on the McKenzie River. The site was large and private, I would definitely camp here again. In addition to an awesome site and use of showers and hot springs, it makes a great base camp to explore the surrounding area. We hiked to Upper and Lower Proxy Falls, Sahalie Falls, and Koosah Falls, along the McKenzie River and then headed to Tombstone Pass to hike the Cone Peak Trail. It was nice to shower and soak after a long day of hiking, before returning to camp to cook dinner and relax. It began to drizzle just as we were getting settled. We put on our rain gear and enjoyed the fire anyway. It rained through the night and all morning. We packed up a wet and muddy mess, it was time to clean all our gear anyway!

Cape Lookout

This post marks the beginning of our summer vacation. We have been living and working on the coast since early December and finished our assignments on June 25. We are not planning to work again until September. We spent our first week off camping and hiking on the coast. We didn’t have any reservations and no real itinerary. It should be no surprise that I had researched campgrounds and trails and had a list of potential locations. We headed north from Florence and decided to camp at Cape Lookout along the Three Capes Scenic Loop just south of Tillamook. The photos below are from the first section of this trip and include Cape Lookout, Cape Meares (Oregon’s shortest lighthouse), Netart’s Bay, and Garabaldi.

The Amanda Trail

The Amanda Trail connects with the Whispering Spruce Trail in The Cape Perpetua Scenic Area and the Oregon Coast Trail. Connecting to the OCT, you hike right into the town of Yachats. This trail is a good training trail as it can be made shorter or longer easily with the connecting trails. It also has some steep sections that are sure to get your heart pumping and thighs and calves burning. There was a mudslide in this area in December and the trail was closed from mid-December until June. There are a lot of downed trees and evidence of the slides is apparent from the trail.

The trail is named for Amanda, an elderly, blind Coos Indian woman, who hiked this trail barefoot with her tribe in the 1800’s. The tribe was forced off their land in the North Bend area and forced to move to a reservation in the Yachats area. Many died on the journey and many more died of starvation and disease once they arrived at the reservation. It is said that Amanda left a trail of blood behind her on the journey, and the trail is dedicated to her memory. There is an area on the trail with a statue in her honor.

Kentucky Falls

Kentucky Falls is a beauty, tucked away high in the Coast Range in the Siuslaw National Forest. To get there, you must traverse gravel logging roads, which I would not advise during or following adverse weather. If you would like to see the falls in soft light, you need to head out early. The commute to the trailhead is at least 1 1/2 hours from Florence or Eugene. It took us longer than we anticipated and by the time we hiked to Lower Kentucky Falls and North Forks Falls, there was a harsh glare, making photography difficult. I have been trying to reel myself in from becoming so obsessed with my photography. I rarely use a tripod anymore, which was once my pride and joy. I find these days that more often than not, it becomes a burden, killing the spirit of the moment and taking away from the experience.

Logging is big business in Oregon, and with it comes much controversy. There are laws and regulations in place to “protect the forests” by replanting, however evidence shows that the clear-cutting method commonly used in Oregon has negative impacts on the environment, ranging from destruction of wildlife habitat to pollution of streams and drinking water. I bring this up because while driving these logging roads, you get a clear picture of recent clear cut. I will say that I have also observed groves of trees with signs posted stating the date they were re-planted. These planted forests were lush and beautiful, albeit the trees much smaller than the groves of protected old growth forests. Logging is a big part of the economy in Oregon. It has been a way of life for generations of Oregonians. Shipments of lumber to China date back to the 1800’s and over 1,500 lumber mills were running by the 1950’s. Only 10% of old growth forests remain uncut, protected on federal land.

A Spring Vacation in Oregon

In early May Rob’s cousin Burton and his wife Priscilla (who are awesome people and close friends) came to visit for a week. They were a site for sore eyes…and it was time for a much needed vacation from the daily grind. We picked them up in Portland, had brunch, then headed southeast towards Silver Falls State Park. We had a small, rustic cabin reserved there for 2 nights, and planned to hike the beautiful “Trail of 10 Falls” the next day. On the way to Silver Falls, we stopped at “The Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival” near Woodburn, OR. The festival was winding down and the tulips were not at their prime, but it was still nice. Silver Falls is a beautiful park and the trail is stunning, rewarding you frequently with its numerous waterfalls. We left the mountains and headed for the coast, where we rented a house at Rockaway Beach for some rest and relaxation. We stopped at Cannon Beach on our way back to Portland. We arrived at low tide and were able to explore the tide pools, which was really cool. We had an awesome trip, enjoying good times with good friends. Times like these pass all too quickly.

Sisters

We took a weekend trip back in March to Sisters OR to enjoy the winter wonderland of the Cascades. Sisters is a small town northwest of Bend on the eastern side of the Cascades. The Hoodoo Ski Resort has a tubing park, which sounded like a ton of fun. We enjoyed our time here. We saw one of Oregon’s covered bridges along the way.

Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area

The Oregon Dunes NRA spans for almost 40 miles between Florence and Coos Bay. It is the largest expanse of coastal dunes in North America. The area boasts dunes that rise up to 500 feet, but there is much more here than sand. Lakes, streams, and forests add diversity to the landscape. We have only explored the northernmost section of this area and look forward to making our way farther south soon. The area is popular for ATV use, but there are sections designated for hikers only.

Sweet Creek Falls

This trail, in the Siuslaw National Forest of the Coast Range is east of Florence near the town of Mapleton. The day we were there, we did not see another human. I’d love to return here soon. I’m sure it is even more beautiful now with the lushness of spring!

Leslie Gulch

The second stop on our journey was at Leslie Gulch, a canyon in eastern Oregon not far from the Idaho border. Just minutes east of Bend, the landscape changes as you enter the vastness of the high desert of eastern Oregon. We drove through miles of sagebrush and distant mountains before reaching the 25 mile gravel washboard road that would lead us into the canyon of striking tuff formations. Leslie Gulch is BLM land and has a free primitive campground. We were the only ones camping during our visit. The rugged landscape is remote. Solitude is easily obtained here; unless you include the company of flies. Flies loved it here and were abundant. If you have ever seen the movie “The Proposition”, there is a scene with swarms of flies that I was reminded of. Luckily, the flies dissipated as the sun set and we enjoyed a peaceful evening alone in the wilderness. The flies returned with the morning sun and we decided to make the first of many changes to our initial “plan”. We had planned to camp here 2 nights, but decided to cut it short and let the flies find someone else to swarm. I have no regrets of taking the time to visit this remote area and would consider visiting again; though I would research the best time to minimize the potential of flies!

Newberry Volcanic National Monument – Paulina Lake Area

It has been a while since my last post. During that time we enjoyed our first extended vacation between work assignments. We saw some amazing places and spent close to three weeks back home, enjoying the company of our family and friends. It was great to see everyone. It is our hope to maintain these cherished relationships we have. It is the hardest part of our new lifestyle; being so far away from the people we love so much. We are now back in Oregon and have settled into our new home, a 5th wheel! We are loving it so far. It is cozy and comfortable. We will be leaving the Rogue Valley next week and heading to the central coast for the next chapter of our adventure. I will begin an assignment in the town of Florence, though we plan to park the 5th wheel inland in the town of Mapleton. I expect it to take some time to get caught up with photos and posts, but will do my best to share our adventure in a timely manner.

Our first stop on the road was in central Oregon, southeast of Bend at Newberry Volcanic National Monument. You may remember this place from a previous post. The Monument has three sections, with one we have still yet to explore. We tent camped 2 nights at Paulina Lake inside the monument. We just so happened to be here during a lunar eclipse/super-moon, which we had the privilege to experience from Paulina peek (elevation7,984 ft). The view of the 4×5 mile wide Newberry Caldera is breathtaking. Within the Caldera lies two lakes; Paulina Lake and East Lake, which are separated by a central pumice cone. Big Obsidian Flow, the youngest lava flow in Oregon, lies within the caldera as well. It was cold here, with water freezing overnight. The pro to this: we had the campground almost entirely to ourselves, which allows you to enjoy the serenity of the environment.