July 2003 |
 Home |
The Hummingbirds had been so active at Ainsworth State Park that we decided to leave their feeder hanging until the last minute, as this would allow the little fellows who had given us so much pleasure to partake of the "nectar" until the end. 
They had become accustomed to using our feeder during our ten day stay so we reckoned they would be upset when we removed it. However we didn't realize just how upset they would be! We were all hooked up and ready to go after a final check around the RV when Linda noticed something flying around the inside of the truck - a hummingbird had flown in the window and could not get out. All the doors were opened and he flew off to freedom. We've had so much pleasure watching them feeding and just hope some of their relations join us at Sisters.
We traveled along the Columbia River Gorge, enjoying the scenery, to Hood River where we picked up the historic Barlow route. This route was used by the early settlers heading for California. As they could not proceed any further through the gorge they headed cross country towards California and untold wealth (can lightning strike twice?). On route we filled the truck with petrol/gas and the RV with supplies in Madras (Hot place?) on the way to the KOA just outside Sisters. Although @$35 a night it is expensive for retirees, it is a holiday weekend. We were given a very large site looking across the fishing pond and good neighbours from Kansas.
Sisters, Oregon - el 3186 feet, is situated on the eastern slopes of the Cascade mountains. The name derives from the three prominent volcanic Cascade peaks, each 10,000 feet + that grace the southwestern skyline. North, Middle & South Sister, nicknamed Faith, Hope & Charity and collectively known as the Three Sisters. For over half a century the area's economic mainstay was the logging industry. Sawmills prospered in the rich forest land surrounding the town (This part of Oregon is really one large forest with a few manmade clearings for towns & roads). Once sufficient tress had been felled cattle ranching and farming joined the economic scene. New businesses opened their doors to serve the needs of the ever-growing number of settlers. In the present day Tourism is the main industry of this historic and picturesque small town.
Sisters KOA - is situated 5 miles east on Hwy. 20. This very large RV park although expensive was rich in amenities, a swimming pool, cabins, crazy golf and a fishing pond. More importantly from our perspective it was the only RV Park in the area that had vacancies over the July 4th holiday period.
We arrived in very hot weather and our large site on the shore of the small fishing pond had very little shade, so the awning was extended to help shade part of the RV. Our neighbours from Kansas came out of their Motorhome to welcome us and to advise that strong afternoon winds were not unusual here. That turned out to be a prophetic piece of information as shortly after a dust devil crossed the pond sending a large spray of water into the air. This was quite spectacular to watch until we realized it seemed to be aiming at us. There was little or nothing we could when it came ashore and gathered up dust etc. but it passed to the left of us knocking over chairs and depositing a fair amount of dust through the open doors and windows. We felt it wise to take the awning down before any more "devils" or there bigger cousins did any damage and we left it down for the rest of our stay. Our neighbour watched Wullie erecting our Satellite dish and was so impressed he asked if Wullie could help him as he was having some trouble. To cut a long story short, the guy had a dish on the roof of his Motorhome and a mechanism inside to move it around. Unfortunately only the azimuth direction is scaled with no indication of elevation whatsoever. The crucial (very fine) adjustment is in elevation so this makes life difficult in terms of locating the Satellite. Wullie gave him as much help as possible and left him to the laborious (could be impossible) task of changing the elevation slightly then rotating the dish in the Azimuth direction. He had a few other problems with the TV/Video/Satellite setup in his new Motorhome so intended to visit a dealer the next day.
The following day when we returned from our trip out he informed us he had located the Satellite and we responded by congratulating him for his patience, skill and LUCK. "Don't get too excited" he said as the afternoon winds were moving his roof mounted dish so much he kept losing the signal. He was quietly contemplating doing something nasty to the salesman and the manufacturer - who would blame him?
Scenic Drive - We had waited four years to visit this area so now we are here we want to make the most of it and stay at least a month. Our first trip out was to visit some of the smaller, less expensive RV parks we had previously phoned in the hope they had a cancellation. Our preferred area was Camp Sherman, 15 miles northwest of Sisters situated in the Metolius River preservation area. On route we stopped at a couple of small Forestry sites, just in case we had to dry camp for a few days, then headed for Black Butte Resort at the top of our list. It was our lucky day, a site had been made available for the dates we wanted. We're not sure what swayed the owner - was it because of her love of Scotland? Her husband's father was a Scot and they have had many happy visits to the 'old country'. A pair of happy campers bade their adieu's before heading off on a lay of the land/scenic drive type outing. Thick cloud and some drizzle was not the perfect day for a scenic drive but it allowed us to form a good mental map of the area.
We visited Sahalie & Koosah Falls on the fast flowing MacKenzie River, so clear and blue with snowmelt from the nearby mountains.
Historic MacKenzie Pass (Hwy. 242) had just re-opened for the first time this year. At first we wondered why as the narrow road meandered up to MacKenzie Pass summit, el 5,325 feet, and no sign of snow except on the, mountains high above . As we neared the pass we realized the difficulty involved in keeping this narrow steep road open especially when the wide Highway 20 provides an easier alternative across the mountains. The deep lava beds which line both sides of Hwy. 242 around MacKenzie pass are testament to the volcanic nature of the Cascade mountains. The 22 narrow winding miles offer a very popular tourist drive, with access to lots of interesting hiking trails, so we will be driving this road quite a few times during our stay.
Benson Lake/Scott Mountain -
The parking area at the trailhead was inundated with mosquitoes and we were bitten while applying the repellent. Undeterred (but moaning a bit) we set off on the 10 mile round trip, elevation gain 1700 feet to the top of Scott mountain mainly in forest but with a few small lakes on the way.
The first and largest of these, Benson Lake, had one fisherman trying his luck as we passed by. Next came Tenas Lakes (means tiny in Chinook), half a dozen swimmable pools scattered among huckleberry meadows and forests. At that time in the morning the mirror image in the tiny pools was most photogenic. As we ascended slowly towards Scott Mountain patches of snow started to appear. By the time we reached the base of the mountain the snow patches had become much deeper making the path somewhat obscure. Usually the trail has been hiked by someone else in the previous few days and you just follow their footprints in the snow, hoping they knew where they were going? As the trail ascends the mountain in a sort of spiral, it disappeared completely on the sheltered side and we did cover the same ground twice on occasion. We concluded It was well worth the effort as we consumed lunch at 6,064 feet looking at 5 mountains over 10,000 feet and a few more over 9,000 feet. The one downfall was the flies that had kept us company throughout our lunch break other than the few minutes that the wind got up, seems they don't mind the high elevations either.
We met a few hikers making their way to Scott mountain, we told them we had paved the way but some of our tracks came to a dead end. One youngish couple merit a special mention! He was walking along without a shirt, presumably well treated with insect repellent, but his partner didn't come across as your typical hiker. She was very fashionably dressed, carrying what looked like a cosmetics case (recently employed to great effect?) in one hand with a pink water pistol in the other hand. We presumed she didn't like repellent next to her skin so had filled the water pistol with fly killer or something? Each time she spotted a mosquito it got a squirt from the pink pistol in the hope it would die before it bit her. We wondered how she dealt with the treacherous little fellows who sneak up from behind? The mosquitoes were there to welcome us back to the trailhead so she hadn't shot them all!.
Mattieu Lakes - This 6 mile loop hike starts near MacKenzie Pass, el 5300 feet, so the elevation gain is only 800 feet (let the truck do the hard work). After the lesson learned at Scott Mountain trailhead the repellent is applied before leaving the truck and in Linda's case a net is placed over her head. It looks weird but she can see and the mosquitoes can't get through. The only problem is when she forgets it is on and tries to eat or drink something without taking it off. A wise precaution as the bloodsuckers seem even thicker this morning and stay with us through forest for the first 1.5 miles. A forestry worker at the trailhead told us that he had just started clearing the parking lot and hoped to get the trail cleared soon. This section of the Pacific Crest trail towards South Mattieu lake had numerous obstructions in the form of fallen trees across the path. In some places there were a few trees laying across each other making it very difficult for us pensioners to clamber over, it's not so easy getting ones leg over nowadays!. The trail is very popular for horse riders, goodness knows how they will manage and the holiday weekend (4th of July) starts tomorrow. As we emerged from the forest we were welcomed once again by wonderful views. The day was exceptionally clear and we hiked a mile past South Mattieu Lake and ascended one of the many "cinder buttes" el 6,200 feet. The views were exceptional of all the Cascade volcanic peaks as far north as MT. Hood. It seemed that if we stretched out we could have picked some ice from North Sister's glacier. We returned to South Mattieu Lake for lunch enjoyed in a cooling breeze strong enough to keep the mosquitoes at bay. The return leg of the loop is mainly through forest and passes North Mattieu Lake, nowhere near as pretty as its sister. The return trail also skirts the edge of the huge lava beds which cover much of this area and are a reminder that most of these mountains and buttes are volcanic, many still active today? This hike was not rated highly enough in a way because the possibilities of exploring further once South Mattieu Lake was reached were exciting.
July 4th Holiday - This is one of the busiest holidays of the year - families meet up, children play together while adults catch up on the news/gossip and celebrate gaining freedom from the wicked British Empire!. Here was no exception, the pool was full of children having fun trying to keep cool, some families chose to try their luck with the crazy golf. Knowing the roads would also be busy we chose to have a quiet day, Wullie completing his favorite pastime, the web page? while Linda was engaged in more mundane chores. It was far too hot for much exertion.
Forest Fire - season officially started at the end of June. Although there had already been a few fairly large fires in Oregon they had not effected us up to now, but one had started north of Sisters during the July 4th holiday period (Link Fire) and believed to be human caused whether accidentally or deliberate to be ascertained later. Although over 20 miles away smoke was still drifting across as the fire steadily grew.
Camp Sherman, our next stop was also 20 miles away, and as we did not know the exact location of the fire we were concerned if any of the roads in that area were closed.
Black Butte Motel & RV Park - Camp Sherman
Our long journey of 20 miles took us through the thick smoke on Hwy. 20 and although the firefighters now had the fire 50% contained we wondered if we would need to keep our windows closed for a while. However as we neared Camp Sherman the air cleared with not even a smell of smoke left behind. The road into Camp Sherman was busier than normal as the Link firefighters had set up camp nearby.
This small friendly RV site is situated in the very beautiful Metolius River Preservation Area only a 1/4 mile from the river and the Camp Sherman store. Most sites are taken with resident RV's, this included our neighbours Linda & Malcolm from Eugene and Linda & Chuck (year round residents) who made us very welcome. Right from the beginning we knew we were going to enjoy staying here, well away from the highway, sheltered by beautiful large trees seemingly full of birds and set in an area of natural beauty. The shelter provided by the trees allowed us to keep the awning out all the time providing shade from the constant sunshine as we recorded a few days over a 100 degrees during our stay with 90's being the norm. Wullie was main chef this month as it was much too hot to cook inside, or so Linda decided. As a result we ate outside most nights which was really quite pleasant with little or no flies to cause a nuisance. We would sometimes play cards of dominoes or blether to our neighbours Linda & Chuck who liked us to translate some of the words & expressions used in Ground Force on BBC America. There was some wildlife activity including deer, coyote and hawks. The smaller birds saw off the Coyote and the Hawk on separate occasions by forming a squadron and diving down at them to keep them away from their young. On arrival we set up our three bird feeders and the Hummingbird feeder, and spent some time trying to identify our multitude of visitors many of them very young birds. Species included Grosbeaks (Evening & Black Headed) , Crossbills, Siskins,Chickadee's, Jays, Junco's, Finches and some over friendly Nuthatches one of whom took a liking to Wullie and tried perching on him a few times.
Camp Sherman - The first people to live along the Metolius river were homesteaders. Later wheat farmers from hot & dry Sherman County came here around 1911 by horse and wagon to fish and rest in the cool river environment. Along the way, the name Camp Sherman was written on a shoebox top and nailed to a tree at a fork in the road to show those who followed the way to go. The first store operated out of a tent until a permanent building was built in 1917. Since then summer recreational residents leased land from the Forest Service for cabins and it has been a popular place to live and play ever since. There are numerous non-bookable Forest Service campsites along the Metolius River which are usually completely full during summer weekends.
Metolius Wild & Scenic River - The Metolius river seemingly beginning as a huge spring bubbling out of a mossy hillside (good birding spot) actually originates a few miles away near Black Butte ranch. The eruption of Black Butte el 6436 feet, which dominates the local skyline, buried the start of the Metolius and it now flows underground before emerging at it's present location. 
The Metolius was given a National Wild & Scenic River designation in 1988 because of it's outstanding scenic & recreational qualities. This provides a certain amount of environmental protection which was further strengthened in 1994 by the creation of the Metolius River Conservation Area which includes Suttle Lake, Scout Lake & Big Lake areas as well as the Hoodoo Ski area at Santiam Pass on the western boundary of this 86,000 acre paradise.
The river is left untouched as much as possible e.g. fallen trees are not removed unless they are causing severe problems and a catch & release policy is adopted for the trout fishing. Only Fly fishing is allowed with barbless hooks and all catches must be released. We spoke to many fishermen who had traveled miles to fish the Metolius for its technical difficulty and test of skill, certainly not for their supper. As you would expect there are trails alongside both sides of the river with many campsites amongst the trees on the river banks. Some private land still exists and you have to leave the river bank for a short distance but the trees are beautiful here. The Wildflower displays are marvelous particularly those growing on fallen trees in the river, sort of like a floating garden which of course attract birds & butterflies. We traveled many a mile along the river with our binoculars always at the ready to capture close up views of the many varieties of birds to be seen particularly in the early morning. It was here we discovered that Hummingbirds also catch flies as well as drink nectar. We saw many flitting across the water surface in the classic flycatcher style.
Amongst the nature highlights of our walks were:
A family of river Otters, mother father & 3 kids, whom we accidentally disturbed on our side of the river bank. We watched them swim across to the other side and make their way upstream. We hurried along to a bridge to get a better view and some pictures as they passed underneath. As we reached the bridge a local resident crossed in his car which sent the Otters scurrying for cover on the bank. That's torn it we thought but after a minute, dad popped out, stood up looked around, dropped into the water, checked all about, gave the squeaky all clear signal and the whole family continued their journey. As they passed by we obtained some lovely pictures of these cute little chappies before they disappeared into a sheltered area where we suspect they lived.
The Merganser Duck with her 8 chicks who took turns climbing on her back as she swam downriver with the chicks in line.
We saw
a Bald Eagle soaring above the river and many Belted Kingfishers perched above the river looking for their morning meal as they are not subject to the catch & release policy.
On a walk to the Fish Hatchery literally thousands of butterflies were hatching out along the path, we were stepping carefully to avoid them.
To walk along the river at any time of day was a delight especially seeing the way in which people reacted with nature, the fishermen cheerfully practicing catch & release, the kids floating leisurely & quietly downriver in float tubes, the cabin occupiers with there loungers anchored in slow moving part of the river cooling down in 100 degree temperatures, cyclists taking a rest from the forest roads staring reflectively into the water from one of the many bridges, the firefighters seeking solitude and a quiet place to catch up with their sleep after risking their lives each & every day of the Link fire, the campers looking at the birds, butterflies, wildflowers and all the assorted wildlife including deer. A wonderful, wonderful place to visit and chill out!
Fall Creek to Green Lakes - This 9 mile round trip climbs 1100 feet to lakes just underneath South Sister & Broken Top but the trailhead is on the opposite end of the mountains. This entails a 100 mile round trip to the trailhead. which is near to the Mount Bachelor ski area. The drive to the trailhead was no hardship, other than passing through Bend, as we had mountain views all the way.
This hike has the highest rating in our guide book and it advises not to do it at weekends or holidays because of it's popularity. The trail ascends gently through old growth forest hugging Falls Creek which at this time of year is tumbling very fast due to melting snow from the mountains. This is a delightful creek with numerous waterfalls which were at their best. Dippers were busy diving for food to feed their young. The elevation gain is 1100 feet and it is never noticed due to the ever interesting features of Fall Creek which is worthy of a high rating as a hike of it's own. Once out of the forest we had a very clear view of Broken Top and South Sister with an abundance of brightly coloured wildflowers along the creekside. These features and an obsidian wall on the far side of Fall Creek kept us company until we arrived at the snow covered meadows surrounding Green Lakes, el 6550 feet, nestled between South Sister & Broken Top. The amount of snow made for a lack of wildflowers in the meadow (try in a few weeks time) but the setting between the two volcanic peaks was awesome. The day was so clear we could see south to MT Thielsen and if 12.000 foot MT Mazama hadn't blown its top nearly 8,000 years ago, forming the amazing Crater Lake in the process, we would have seen that as well. We ate lunch by a beautiful cool blue lake as did an Osprey although we didn't see what he caught. Once fed & watered, rested, bug protected and photographic opportunities realised we headed back downhill alongside the still delightful Fall Creek to the trailhead. If you are in the area this is a MUST DO hike the sort you never want to end. Since we had to pass through Bend on our way home Linda decided we should visit the Deschutes Brewery & Alehouse in downtown Bend for our evening meal. She had heard the food was good and the queue for tables seemed to back that up. We jumped the queue by eating at the bar, a nice basket of Fish & Chips washed down by Quail Springs Pale Ale for Wullie and Cinder Cone Red for Linda. Exceptional hike, good food, great Beer - retirement takes a lot of getting used to!
Obsidian - Black volcanic glass is formed when silica rich rhyolite lava oozes to the surface without contacting water. If rhyolite contains water it explodes upon eruption forming frothy pumice instead.
Jefferson Park - A 10.2 mile round trip with 1800 feet elevation gain to meadows underneath the mighty MT Jefferson. A long drive to the trailhead, but with smoke still rising from the nearby forest fire it was best to go further afield to hike. The hike starts in a beautiful old growth forest, an expression we use quite a lot but these huge old trees need to be seen to be believed, Wullie salutes the really big ones. On emerging from the deep forest views opened up across the valley slightly marred by a band of smoke from the distant fire. Bear grass was the most prominent wildflower alongside the forest path but as we reached the 2.5 mile mark the hillside was covered in wildflowers of all hues, Larkspur, Shooting Star, Indian Paintbrush to name but a few. Views of the magnificent 10,493 foot Mount Jefferson started here and stayed with us all the way to Jefferson Park, Park means a high altitude meadow in this case, el 5,880 feet. Jefferson Park is a wonderful place to visit with it's many lakes dotted around, it's very colourful meadows with lots of well trodden trails giving access to a carpet of mainly cerise Paintbrush and large pink Shooting Stars with Mount Jefferson towering above. You can spend hours meandering leisurely through the meadows and around the lakes. We made our way alongside Scout Lake chatting to the only other hikers we met on the trail, before arriving at Lake Bays. A shaded log by the lakeside provided an ideal seat for lunch and relaxation. It was quite a hot day and Linda followed the advice given in our hiking book that the lakes hereabouts are some of the best swimming lakes in Oregon, so in she went. It was so clear, but also very cold as the inlet was melting snow from Mount Jefferson. A very short swim for Linda to cool off, so refreshing but Wullie the Wimp made do with paddling his feet. On the return trip to the trailhead the old growth trees provided welcome shade from the very hot sun. Another MUST DO hike but no Microbrewery at the end of this one, however we might manage a beer shandy at the RV.
Park Meadows - 13.2 miles round trip gaining 1200 feet. Our guide book warns of the tedious dusty 4.5 mile trail to the meadows but does not warn that it descends in the beginning which is something we do not like our hikes to do on the outbound trail. The elevation of the meadows is 6,100 feet so it was not a carpet of flowers yet, although Gentian were profuse. As we walked through the meadows we remarked on how little wildlife we had seen while hiking around Oregon. A few minutes later two male elk crossed the trail as we continued 1.5 miles beyond the meadow to Golden Lake. This is the jewel in the crown of this hike, in fact without Golden Lake the hike is not worth the effort. Golden Lake is set in a meadow of mainly bright yellow flowers looking up to the Three Sisters & Broken Top. To reach our chosen lunch spot by the lake we had to cross a wobbly makeshift bridge. Linda chose to paddle across, we can't keep her out of the water these days.
The return trip from the meadows was a very hard, partly uphill, extremely dusty, unpleasant slog. We passed a group of young backpackers making their way to the meadows and we suggested if they had enough energy to carry on to Golden lake.
Duffy Lake/Red Butte - 12 miles, 1800 feet elevation gain to magnificent views of Cascade peaks in all directions.
At this time of year you must expect dusty trails and this was no exception but the reward at the end made it all worthwhile.
The first 2 miles were through some old growth forests which we love, the big old trees watching over hikers, protecting them from the sun. Very few flowers were evident which made our discovery of a few Cascade Lily's, our first of the year, all the more exciting. Duffy Lake with Duffy Butte looking over is surrounded by trees and although the lake was larger than we expected only a pair of Spotted sandpipers and one small duck were seen. The trail climbs gradually passing Duffy, Mowich and then Alice Lakes before ascending steeply up an indistinct track to the summit of Red Butte. Another dose of breathtaking views of mountains North, South, East & West including MT Hood, 3 Fingered Jack, MT Jefferson, 3 Sisters and others we couldn't identify southwest of 3 Sisters. We shared this "restaurant with a wiew" with some people from New York. Two elderly men who spent time backpacking in the Oregon Cascades most years. One of them grew up in Oregon and spent one summer as a fire lookout on a nearby mountain to earn money for college. Since he had been regaling his son & daughter with stories about the area for years he had brought them along (now in their 20's) on this trip to see for themselves and like all of us they were mightily impressed, so different from New York city!
Obsidian Trail - This 12 mile round trip with an elevation gain of 1800 feet is rated as one of the prime hikes in this area of the Cascades. As a result, and unbeknown to us, the forest service restrict access to 20 hikers and x backpackers per day to prevent erosion and damage.
We arrived at the trailhead with no permit as we had assumed, wrongly, that permits were only required for backpackers. A ranger was at the trailhead checking all hikers had a permit. Of course we did not but he was kind enough to radio to headquarters to see if full quota had been reached today? Five slots were available so luckily we were able to continue on our merry way. The first 3.4 miles is through forest with little or no interesting trees or wildflowers. Climbing a lava flow leads to a viewpoint of Cascade peaks including MT Jefferson & Middle Sister. Soon afterwards a short loop begins, climbing steadily through a series of colourful wildflower meadows to a pleasing waterfall (Obsidian Falls) at a junction with the Pacific Crest trail. The trail passes through an area of obsidian cliffs (black shiny volcanic rock) around tiny Arrowhead Lake with good views of Middle and North Sisters. The next portion of the Pacific Crest Trail gives the best views on the hike, all the major Cascade peaks as far north as MT Hood. We met quite a few backpackers on route, many hoping to climb Middle Sister with the aid of crampons & ropes etc. as the snow is still pretty thick up there. The junction with the climbers route to Middle Sister is situated in lush meadows with little brooks meandering through. Although the flowers were a week or two from their best the cerise Paintbrush and bright yellow Daisy's made an attractive frame for our chosen lunch spot. Clarks Nutcrackers zoomed over our heads on the downward trail and even posed for a photo or two.
Every guide book you read on hiking in this area puts this hike in the premium class and its popularity is confirmed by the permit rules operated by the forest service. However we would not rate it as highly at all, the first & last 3.4 miles through forest is quite featureless little or no flowers or interesting trees. The wildflower meadows are not as good as others in the area (Jefferson Park for instance) and Arrowhead Lakes are really something & nothing. We are not saying pass on this hike as the 5.2 miles outside the forest is really quite good. However the hype surrounding the hike left us expecting a lot more than it was able to provide. So go ahead and do it but don't believe the pre show advertising.
Canyon Creek Meadows - A 7.3 mile loop with only 1400 feet of elevation gain to flower filled meadows underneath 3 Fingered Jack, sounds too good to be true?
This was a good day to take on this relatively short hike as temperatures in the high 90's were forecast for Sisters. Although it would be cooler up in the mountains (80+ in the afternoon) we made a very early start. Jade Lake is at the start of the hike and at this time of the morning provides a mirror image of its surrounds, really beautiful.
As a bonus a pair of Nightjars, rarely seen in the daytime, were swooping over the lake catching large dragonflies to take back to their daytime hideout for snacking on later in the day? It's little wonder this is a very popular hike. These are the most colourful wildflower meadows we have encountered for some time. The lower meadow had the best array, bright red Columbine, deep blue Larkspur, bright yellow Daisies, blue Asters, a mass of Sego Lilies and Indian Paintbrush just starting to appear. We were not the only ones to appreciate the beauty of the meadow as evidenced by the whirring wings of many Hummingbirds.
The snow had only just melted in the upper meadow so flowers were not so profuse but give it a couple of weeks and it will also be a wonderful sight. The early sun had just started to shine on 3 Fingered Jack, showing up the different coloured rock formations against the patches of snow still frozen in crevices. The last part of the trail climbs steeply to a notch overlooking a cirque lake at the foot of 3 Fingered Jack's glacier. Thankfully the sun had not appeared over the mountain yet resulting in a shaded trail augmented by a light wind cooling as it passed over the mountain snow. Apparently this cirque is a stunning green, but today it was still frozen and covered with ice. On this small notch we were joined by a family of Grandmother, Mother and 2 granddaughters (under 10 years old). Gran had obviously been here before and was proud of her granddaughters for making the trip. We took the loop trail back, with a minor diversion to Wasco Lake, ordinary lake surrounded by trees. On trail we met quite a few other hikers who would be doing their hiking in the heat of the day, whereas we were heading for the air conditioned RV and a beer shandy before midday.
A Trip down Memory Lane - We started this epic journey in April 1999 in Eugene, Oregon. During one of the many hot periods we had this month we decided to have a weekend trip away to revisit Eugene and the crowning jewel of Oregon, Crater Lake National Park! Would Crater Lake still be as beautiful? Could we navigate our way around & through Eugene? It's nice to spend time away from the RV now and again it feels like your on holiday.
Took the scenic rotue across the Cascades on Hwy. 58 over Willamette Pass to Salt Creek Falls, Oregon's second highest waterfall at 286 feet. Hiked a 3 mile trail to Diamond Creek Falls - both well worth the visit. Took the country route into Springfield/Eugene and did some shopping. That's the problem in visiting cities you spend lots of money. We navigated our way through Eugene to Timbers Motel in the center of town where we spent approximately 2 weeks in 1999 awaiting delivery of our Ford truck and buying essentials for full time RV'ers. We revisited the Wild Duck Brewery (our first American Microbrewery) for our evening meal and a beer or two. Since 1999 Eugene has prospered and now has 4 microbreweries. We didn't feel able to visit them all but managed a couple of pints and a blether in the Steelhead Brewery. As we wove our way back to Timbers we remarked on how quiet the streets were for a Saturday evening.
Sunday morning had us up bright and early for our trip to Crater Lake NP via some county and forest roads reducing the driving distance by about 40 miles and enjoying better scenery . Stopped at Toketee Falls, which we had visited before so we knew they were worth a second visit.
Crater Lake National Park - This will be our third visit to the NP, the first time was early May 1999 when we could only glimpse the lake through a peephole in the snow, the first time we had seen 100+ inches of snow either side of the road. Our second visit was in August 1999 when we had many breathtaking views of the lake as we spent two weeks in the area. Could it possibly be as good a third time? 
The first viewpoint we stopped at provided the answer - absolutely breathtaking! We both stood in awe at this incredibly beautiful sight. We chatted to a couple who had lived in Oregon all their lives and this was their first visit (but NOT their last) to the National Park, and like us, struggled to express the feelings one has when encountering something as remarkable as Crater Lake. Linda made a good point when she said "As we drive around the USA, particularly in the summer, we remark on how bright blue the sky appears, just like today. However when you reach Crater Lake the Lake is so blue the sky starts to look pale.". We stopped at most viewpoints on the rim, taking photo's and video. 7,700 years ago, Mount Mazama erupted and collapsed into itself forming a Caldera 5 miles wide ringed with cliffs nearly 2000 feet high. The Caldera filled with rain and melted snow forming the lake, surface elevation 6,174 feet, which at 1,943 feet is the deepest in the USA. Cloudcap is the highest point on the rim at 7,865 feet making the NP a "cool" place to visit. They get an average snowfall of 500 inches every year yet the lake very rarely freezes over, and most nights, even during the summer months temperatures at the rim reach freezing. As a result the rim road is closed from mid September to mid June, giving a very short season for visitors. Just to show that perfection is hard to obtain, we had wished for a cloud, no mater how small, to appear in the sky so we could capture its reflection in the lake. Instead we had a boring clear blue sky which as Linda said now seemed pale in comparison to the deep, deep blue of amazing Crater lake. Why is it so BLUE?
The official version -
Light gets absorbed colour by colour as it passes through the clear water. First the reds go, then orange, yellow and green. Last to be absorbed are the blues. Only the deepest blue gets scattered back to the surface where you see it as the colour of the water. No rivers run in or out of the lake
The True? Version - The underpaid & under appreciated staff of the National Park service get up in the middle of the night, fill several tanker trucks with the bluest ink imaginable and dump it into the lake. This version is strongly denied by the National Park Service but we have our secret source known as Deep "Blue" Throat!
Three Fingered Jack - At last we had the luxury of a cool day (62 degrees at 7.30 a.m.) for this 10.4 mile hike with 1400 feet of elevation gain. This is one of those trails that open to both hikers and horses and when we arrived at the trailhead several horse boxes were already there, but fortunately we met none on the trail. Yet another dusty trail through a sparse forest that showed signs of a forest fire many years before. The trail took us to a viewpoint where we had an unusual view of MT Washington and the 3 Sisters and another snow covered peak in the distance which could have been MT. Bachelor. Although we could see them quite clearly the mountains had a shroud of light cloud around them, the first cloud we've seem for many a day. Even the mosquitoes liked this view as they joined us for the first time. More repellent was donned on top of the dusty flesh. As we continued the wildflower meadows appeared, Paintbrush, Lupine's and Heather an early bloomer in these parts. This portion of the Pacific Crest trail meanders around the lower slopes of 3 Fingered Jack and we found a good viewpoint for lunch under the west face of the mountain. As we headed back to the trailhead the temperature had increased by 20 degrees, but was still 20 degrees cooler than the previous day.
Rockpile Lake - A 13.6 mile hike with 2100 feet of elevation gain leading to a high altitude lake on the Pacific Crest trail, and if you are able to the top of a nearby peak for views of the surrounding mountains. Someone had posted a notice at the trailhead, saying they had lost their Rotweiler dog (seems kinda big to lose?) while hiking this trail a week ago, and asking future hikers to keep an eye open for it and return it to them? As if Bears are not bad enough we must watch out for a ravenous (not eaten for a week) Rotweiler?
After 4.3 miles into this dusty trail we both thought Rockpile Lake must be very spectacular as we yomped through a boring forest with very few wildflowers. During the final steep 0.8 miles to Rockpile Lake we saw our first wildlife, a deer who could not make out if we were friend or foe. He kept stopping and looking back at us, we wondered if he thought "why would anyone want to hike this trail?" We finally arrived at what we first thought to be Rockpile Lake, this was the photo in the hiking book complete with a reflection of the top of MT. Washington. We both thought "have we hiked all this way for this" but no, Rockpile Lake, 6,291 feet, was on the other side of the trail. It was still not worth all the effort, although there were a few wildflowers and lots of backpackers camping in the woods. We had a choice of return trail - we could continue another 1.3 miles to Cinder Cone which would give us a good view of MT. Jefferson, Washington, Black Butte and the Metolius Valley, return the way we came (boring), or take the PCT. which would add another 3 miles onto our journey but give us some good views. Linda chose the latter and after the first 2 miles we knew we had made the right choice, excellent views of Three fingered Jack, Black Butte and the Metolius Valley. A much better trail than the one we had come up, although very dusty and steep in parts. We had the remainder of our lunch at Minto Lake - along with a few mosquitoes, the first we had really encountered on the hike. All in all, quite a disappointing hike.
Black Crater - A nice short 7.2 miles to the top of Black Crater but 2,500 feet of elevation gain in 3.6 miles would make it tough.
An early start or so we thought, but already two cars were at the trailhead, and not long after we started up one hiker was nearing the bottom with another 2 not far behind. We wondered what time they started out as it was not yet 8 a.m.?
We had a few views of MT. Washington, 3 Fingered Jack and MT. Jefferson as we ascended through the forest. A small meadow with some Lupines, Paintbrush, Lilies and Columbines, mostly past their sell-by-date, appeared as we traversed the hot, dry side of the mountain. It didn't seem too long before we were looking at the top of Black Crater @ 7,281 feet, the highest we've hiked so far this year. We headed up the cinder cone to a point that was once a fire lookout with intentions of resting, enjoying the view and taking in food and water before our descent. So many large flies spoilt that idea - they did not bother us as they were more interested in what the cinder contained. Even so, it was not nice having so many flies buzzing around us, so we moved to another viewpoint to gawk at the Three Sisters and Little Brother, Bachelor, Broken Top, Jefferson and the largest portion of MT. Hood we've seen from this vast distance. These are all live volcanoes. We could also see Black Butte, into the Metolius Valley and other hiking trails we had already completed. Photo's taken we headed down the dusty and now hot trail looking forward to the cool forested area. The temperature registered mid 80's and it was not yet the hottest part of the day. It reached 100+ degrees later in the day.
Wildlife seen - a coyote and a large squirrel. Not seen any bears yet - or Rotweilers.
Black Butte - Watches over our RV resort so it was only right that we should hike up the 6,436 butte which houses a fire lookout. This symmetrical volcano formed before the last Ice Age. The resulting 3000-foot pile of cinders is one of the tallest cones in the state. The eruption buried the Metolius River, creating Black Butte Ranch's swampy meadows on one side of the mountain and Metolius Springs on the other, where the river now emerges. Our drive to the trailhead was on dusty forest roads and the nice part of this hike was the fact that we could drive part way up the trail, leaving only a couple of steep miles to the top. Exceptional 360 degree views which included our RV site, Sisters, the luxurious Black Butte Ranch, hundreds of peaks, all of Oregon's volcano's plus as far as MT. Adams in Washington. We could also see Bend 20 miles away in the valley.
We have another seven days in this area before moving to the Mount Rainier and Leavenworth areas of Washington State.........................
Next month - Mount Rainier and Leavenworth, Washington.
Miles traveled this month: 1,515
Total miles traveled since May 1999: 94,545
Interesting Hyperlinks:
