2016 – Soaking Up the Outdoors in Oregon

Amy: Gray skies and low clouds clung to the morning sky as we drove the remaining miles up the Northern California coast toward our next destination: Oregon. Deciding whether to continue up the coast of Oregon or check out Crater Lake was a tough decision. We’d heard the coast was magnificent, but since we had just gotten coastal views in California we thought we’d head inland.

As soon as we started heading east, the sun and blue skies emerged to greet us. The drive revealed forested mountains and sparkling rivers next to the road until our first stop in the town of Grants Pass. We briefly explored the downtown, which was covered with decorated statues of bears, and stopped at the Climate Brewery for a small sampler before picking up groceries for camping near Crater Lake National Park.

=After reviewing the weather forecast and updates from the National Park, we found it was still snow-covered and chilly near the rim of Crater Lake. We were reconfirmed with our decision to head to Union Creek, which is just outside the park, during our brief stop at the charming Del Rio Winery. After a few sips of some Oregon whites and reds and good conversation with a couple of locals we headed up to find a camp spot.

The Union Creek Campground was quiet and we picked a sunny spot as we knew the cool temperatures were coming. The next morning we headed into Crater Lake with our first stop at Rim Village. Being early season and mid-week, there weren’t too many other visitors. We crunched through the sun-baked snow and peered down into the caldera to view of some of the richest blue waters we’d ever seen. The waters were highlighted with streaks of snow dipping down into the blue from the high banks above. Although the snow prevented us from being able to drive around the crater, we agreed that the snow made the landscape quite interesting and dynamic.

The roads were on the brink of being open to cars, but could only be explored on the western side with our feet. We spent the afternoon walking up the road to various viewpoints to get different perspectives on the lake and the smaller volcanic feature inside called Wizard Island. Most other visitors decided that the walk was not for them, so we had the viewpoints all to ourselves. This changed radically the next day when we returned and the same road was now open to vehicles.

The views into the lake, which was formed when Mount Mazama erupted almost 8,000 years ago, were slightly less blue the next day due to wind and the overlooks were pretty full of visitors…quite a change from the day before. With our visit complete, we drove through the snow-banked roads back into the warmer forests and made our way north.

We took a small side trip to Newberry Volcanic National Monument just outside of Bend and planned to hike through the volcanic tube. However, we couldn’t go through as we had worn our shoes in a number of other caves during our travels, which brings concerns for white nose syndrome, a disease that could potentially impact local bats. Not wanting to hurt our flying friends, we instead checked out Lava Butte and appreciated the views of the many volcanic mountains and features surrounding the area.

Being the Friday before Memorial Day weekend, Jon had pre-planned a stay for us at the Northwest Outward Bound School basecamp in Redmond. Jon had been there years before when he was the staff recruiter for OB, so he asked if we could camp there to avoid the long weekend crowds. We were warmly greeted by the staff on the base and set up our tent in the old campground area, not far from the Deschutes River. We again helped with some trail maintenance in return for our stay. After a morning hike by the river, we headed into Bend to meet up with some friends who moved to that area about a year ago.

We stayed with Ally, Jason, and their 4-year-old son Jackson in their home nestled among the pines on the western side of Bend. They enjoy being outside and good beer as much as we do, so we knew we would have an entertaining visit. We kicked off our stay with a trip to Good Life Brewery (one of Bend’s many craft breweries) and jumped in the hot tub after having Ally’s homemade Incan Stew.

We arose the next morning to find ourselves putting on some warmer gear, as we planned to head to Mt. Bachelor ski area. It was closing day at the mountain and they were doing a “pond skim” where adventurous types attempt to ski across a pool of water while sporting crazy costumes. We weren’t quite that adventurous, but we did get to do a few runs in the slightly slushy snow. Both Jon and I were pretty excited to get in a few late season turns on the Oregon volcano. We capped off the day with some tailgating at the base of the mountain and then hit the Deschutes River for a little stand-up paddle boarding. The skiing, grilling, and SUP left us tired, but appreciating the great outdoor scene in Bend.

Photos courtesy of Ally Mumm

We’ve been working with insurance to determine replacement of our stolen mountain bikes. We figured Bend would be the perfect place to look for bikes that would be comparable. We visited a number of bike shops and sought some helpful guidance from bike experts so we could submit a claim and hopefully get bikes later this summer. We also had to visit the Deschutes Brewery Tasting Room, as they offer free samples, followed by a walk through the downtown area.

We finished up our time in Bend with a hike up Pilot Butte with Ally and some snuggles with their dog (Tux) and cats (Roxy and Lars), and lots of play time and stories with Jackson. We enjoyed our stay with friends and a little break from sleeping in the car or a tent. What wonderful hosts in a divine city.

We wrapped up our time in Oregon with a drive up past Mt Hood and camped at the quaint Tucker Park County Campground next to the rippling Hood River. We explored the town of Hood River the next day and stopped at Double Mountain for an ale, a tasty pizza, and a few card games then moved on to camp where the Columbia and Deschutes rivers converge. The affordable camp next to the river wonderfully shaded by trees was representative of most of the campgrounds we found in Oregon…well-kept camps at a fair price.

We awoke the next morning to white clouds scattered across a very blue sky and decided to hike the trail along the river for some final views of Oregon. We determined our next stop would be in Idaho, a state that neither Jon nor I have visited previously. We hit the road for some classic rock and time on the highway.

(Dates: May 25-June 3, 2016)