Cottonwood Canyon SP

April 28, 2024April 27, 2024

Spring at Cottonwood

A dog friendly cabin, our favorite, at Cottonwood Canyon State Park.

A few years ago we discovered a spot on the lower John Day with cabins, bass fishing and great walking paths. Since then we try to snag cabin reservations in spring or fall, but it’s no easy task.

It takes some time for the sun to clear these hills in the morning

Cottonwood Canyon State Park is one of Oregon’s newest additions, and for us a cabin makes the overnight easy.

Spring’s growth on sage and in the grasses turns the hills a bright green

We have also made day trips there, as there is an excellent day use area.

Our cabin was one of four sitting on old pasture land. The river runs along the south edge, at the base of rock wall.

Looking south from the cabin toward the river

Walking to the cabin from river’s edge, you pass a line of willow, then cottonwood, across a stone beach, before passing through a hedgerow of sage, onto a grassy plain.

A line of rounded hills mark the park’s northern edge and in April they are green with fresh growth, but only an occasional tree.

Big Horn Sheep can be seen grazing high up amid rocky outcroppings. We’ve also seen a variety of raptors, song birds and Canada Geese.

While area signage warns of cougar or rattlesnakes, we’ve yet to encounter either, which is fortunate.

It’s a peaceful spot to spend some time, wander the banks of the John Day and while not during spring runoff, there are smallmouth bass to catch.

October 29, 2023October 27, 2023

A Game of Cards on the John Day

There are folks that aspire to primitive methods when camping . . that is not us.

We booked a cabin at Cottonwood Canyon State Park, roasted german sausages on a gas grill, and turned up the electric heater as the fall winds turned cold.

There are rock formations and sage, but very few trees.

Trails were hiked. Lines were wet and books were read.

However, every evening tables were pushed together and six of us engaged in a semi-friendly game of Contract Rummy. I never got all.

It’s interesting to me how many variations of rules there can be for such a simple rummy game. Our family has always played card games.

While this particular variation on rummy is ‘optimum’ for 4 people we’ve dealt hands to more than a dozen players after a large family meal.

The rules are simple enough for children to pick up. However, around the Schommer family table there might be rough language thrown about.

All in good humor, usually. And so it was this week when we met the Wilcox and Yecnys for a two day stay beside the John Day River.

Cottonwood Canyon and the John Day River

We’ve mentioned Cottonwood Canyon State Park before in this blog, but as with all good places there are frequent return visits.

The site is on a lower stretch of Oregon’s only un-dammed river, sitting on a flat between a couple of rock, sage and prairie grass covered hills.

The camp sites are spacious, so RV’s aren’t stacked like parking slips at Walmart. We always choose the cabins, they offer amenities like electric lights, heat and air conditioning.

I think this would be considered Glamping, and we love it.

Canyon walls hit with the first light of day

These two days the cabin also offered shelter from the winds, as well as a good space to sit six people for a meal and afterwards a game of cards.

A good time was had by all.

September 3, 2023October 11, 2023

Up close . . . another Wildfire

An unexpected hazard on our way to Cottonwood Canyon. Wind gusts of 47 mph tossed mounds of tumbleweeds across the road, making one lane impassable

fireweatheravalanche.org maps fires of all sizes

Let me bring you up to date in case you haven’t been reading the blog these past few weeks.

Large sections of the west are on fire. Smoke chokes the air of an even larger region. And, there’s not been much relief from Ma Nature.

This week, hoping to find a space with clean air, we drove up to Cottonwood Canyon.

Months ago we put a reservation on a cabin at that state park. Looking forward to lazy time on the veranda and smallmouth bass fishing, the car was loaded and headed north.

Upon arrival a flustered Park Ranger informed us that we had to leave. Cottonwood was under a Stage 3 Evacuation.

We did not even get unpacked. After a two-plus hour drive, this was not welcome news.

View of fire from Cottonwood Canyon State Park

But this news was not completely unexpected. There was a massive plume of smoke roiling over the crest of a hill on the eastside of the John Day River.

To the north, upstream, a hillside was completely blackened and smoldering.

View looking south from the park to scorched hillside.

Cottonwood Canyon State Park was firefighter’s base camp

As we looked on, fire swept across face of mountain within minutes

We had been looking forward to this two-day stay, now we were driving back down Highway 97.

By mid-week, past our reservation window, the park had reopened with little or no fire damage.

We have two days reserved in October which should be outside wildfire season.

Until then it seems smoke-filled skies will continue to disrupt our summer plans.

April 9, 2023April 8, 2023

Cabin Camping

I don’t think it would qualify for an Instagram post as ‘glamping‘, but this week we spent a couple of nights in a cabin on the John Day River.

Winter snowstorms still pester the Bend area, but at the park we enjoyed sunny days and mild spring-like temperatures.

Oregon State Parks offers overnight stays in cabins, teepees and yurts at parks all over the state. Most of these exist at coastal parks, however a dozen parks east of the Cascades have structured camping options.

Most importantly for us, there is always at least one cabin that allows pets.

Cottonwood Canyon SP has four “rustic” cabins available by reservation year-round. These two room units can sleep 8 people, have electricity to provide lighting, wall mounted heaters and an AC unit.

Cooking isn’t allowed inside, but there’s a gas grill, picnic table and fire pit next to each cabin.

A covered porch offers un-obstructed views east across a grassy flat, willow-lined river and the canyon walls.

Big Horned sheep in the canyon’s rocky hills

Our first morning was spent watching Big Horn Sheep graze on the rocky north face just above the campground.

Later in the day, we hiked up to the foot of that slope and the Pinnacles Trail Head. This trail and one on the opposite side of the river (Lost Corral Trail) follow the John Day for 4.3 miles around a couple of bends in the river.

Winter runoff made fishing impossible, but we managed to fill our time catching up on reading, watching wildlife, and relaxing.

Reservations are snapped up quickly, but we’ve managed to find a couple of open slots in the fall and hope to become regular visitors.

February 19, 2023February 18, 2023

Fishing for Small Mouth Bass

I may have mentioned adding a streamer box to our fishing sling pack. To fill that box, part of this week was spent at the tying bench working on streamer patterns. The other part was spent doing some on-river testing.

As this will require a laboratory we chose a small stretch of the John Day River.

River access to the John Day is a problem. There’s no shortage of fishable water if you have a boat … well, and a permit.

Winter water levels expose gravel and rock.

To gain wadeable access (a stream bank within walking distance of a safe parking space) we chose a spot 40 river miles upstream from the Columbia . . . a place called Cottonwood Canyon.

Cottonwood bridge and J.S Burres SP are more than just boat take-outs. Where OR 206 crosses the John Day River there is a fairly new state park. In it you’ll find walking paths paralleling a wide gravel bank positioned opposite perfect holding water for Small Mouth Bass.

As a bonus, picnic tables sit under shade trees on a grass lawn right next to day-use parking. Only downside … it’s a long drive.

Throwing streamers to the far bank in search of Small Mouth Bass

Bass are warm water lovers, be mindful that warm is a relative term. There are plenty of reservoirs and lakes in Central Oregon with good bass fishing. Unlike their large mouth cousins, Small Mouth Bass take to moving water.

As the John Day’s water temperature rose the small mouth moved in. At roughly the same time there was a notable drop in seasonal Steelhead run. To some, bass in the John Day is an invasion, but it’s not unlike the introduction of German Brown Trout to western waters.

Willows define a space between water and sage.

Like Brown Trout, Bass are hunters thus streamer patterns are effective. Presentation requires stripping line over holding fish.

I was successful this summer in bringing them to the surface and trust me, the hook up is a kick. However, as the water temperature drops so do the feeding lanes, which is pretty much river fishing in the winter; regardless of species. For this, instead of tiny bead head patterns on dual rigs, you swing weighted minnow patterns about the size of your thumb.

Winter on the Deschutes has Redside trout using folds in the current to hang out, while the river brings dinner.

Small Mouth Bass hold near the bottom waiting on small fish, their meal includes a chase.

Sunny days are as abundant as wind in this part of the state. Our visit was on a sunny day, perfect for a winter outing.

The trip didn’t include any catching, but there was a lot of casting. More trips have been added to our calendar, as well as more time at the tying vice.