Tag: Road Trip

Posted on

A Summer Lake Overview

 

For us, there are regular excursions to Summer Lake area and the wildlife refuge there. It’s a favorite spot to bird and shoot weather images.

But this week we are looking at Summer lake from a different angle.

 

Winter Rim. The Western edge of the Summer Lake Basin is lined with basalt columns with vertical rock walls plunging to the valley floor below. This offers a beautiful backdrop for the many photos we snap while exploring the refuge.

There is a trail (Fremont NFT #160) running along the top edge of Winter Rim. The Southern OR. Intertie Trail extends from the northern boundary of the Fremont NF to the southern edge of Summer and Albert lakes. At the top of Winter Rim, the views of Lake County are stunning.

At the point we  intersected it, there’s a picnic table that hangs quite literally on the edge of Winter Rim. The view was obstructed with smoke haze on this day, but still very impressive. There is also a rental cabin at this site.

 

We have always used US 31 to get to Summer Lake, but this trip we found a whole new area to explore on the western side of Winter Rim.

 

Posted on

Still Waters

The cascade range between Crater Lake and Mount Washington holds hundreds of natural lakes. Most of them small alpine bodies of water a few acres in size, many of which require walking on mountain trails to reach.

We’re more likely to spend time on rivers or streams, preferring moving water. But this week we explored some of the road accessible lakes near home.

Waldo Lake sits on the west side of Willamette Pass, about an hours drive from us. At 39,000 acres it’s one of the largest natural lakes in Oregon and second deepest, next to Crater lake. Bordered on three sides by wilderness the pristine waters of Waldo Lake are off limits to power boats. Once there you can choose from three different camp grounds, each with a boat launch, but none with day use picnic sites.We quickly discovered the area is a huge draw for paddle craft. While the large parking areas were lightly populated it was impossible to find an open spot to picnic on the bank. This did renew our interest in acquiring a canoe and / or trying some of the wilderness hikes north of the lake.

Princess Creek day use site on Odell Lake is a great spot for a picnic.

South of Waldo, along Highway 58, is Odell and Crescent Lakes. In the fall Trapper Creek, running into Odell’s western edge, teams with spawning salmon. The day use site at Princess Creek CG on Odell offered a quiet spot to have some lunch.

Crescent Lake, a few minutes southeast of Odell, offered sandy beaches and excellent fetch and swim time for Tip.

We finished off the trip with a drive north on the Cascade Lakes Highway, past Davis Lake, Wickiup and Crane Prairie Reservoirs. If we hadn’t turned east for La Pine there are another half dozen lakes along that highway as you swing around the base of Mt Bachelor and drop down into Bend.

Posted on

A Day Trip

This week marked the start of summer and saw Deschutes County dipping a tentative toe into reopening. We remain masked against the potential second wave, avoiding areas of population while still seeking out forest retreats.

Fishing, hiking and photography have offered good distractions and excellent means of social distancing over the last few months.

As society stumbles back to some semblance of normal, if that is even possible, the river banks we frequent are seeing increased pressure. BLM (Bureau of Land Management.) opened Crooked River camping this past week, which greatly increased traffic on parking sites.

Discovering a tent set up in our favorite spot, we moved downriver a couple of miles.

This new stretch of river is more of a canyon with rock walls dominating the far bank.

It is every bit as peaceful and will be added to the list of potential stops.

There are lots of places within an hour’s drive of our house offering fishing, views, trails or a combination of all those.

Day trips will continue to present a great way to maintain a level of sanity in these chaotic times.

New Photo Essay … check it out!

Posted on

Roadside novelty

America developed a national highway system starting in the thirties with a boost after WWII. Paved roads improved commerce but also gave birth to the cross country road trip.

Along our web of highways enterprising business men constructed cement monuments to gophers, dinosaurs and mythical lumber jacks as enticement to the many new sojourners. Some offered food and beverage, but all were rest points so travelers could stretch their legs and spend some money.

The age of roadside attractions has passed or more to the point was bypassed when we upgraded to the Interstate.

However, the monuments remain and it’s amazing what you can find sitting just a mile or two off the freeway. As the weather warms we venture farther from our home base. These road trips, by design, avoid the freeway but any Historical Marker is always a reason to pull over.

Recently we came across a throw back to the time of blue highways, a tea pot shaped gas station in central Washington.

The Teapot Dome Service Station is a former gas station built in the shape of a teapot located in Zillah, Washington. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

It is an example of novelty architecture and was intended as a reminder of the Teapot Dome Scandal that rocked the presidency of Warren Harding.

 

Posted on

A GREAT Pub … just a bit out of the way

Mitchell, Oregon is roughly halfway between Portland and the Oregon / Idaho border. Sitting on the south edge of Highway 26 there are few reasons for you to do much more than just drive past the sleepy little town.

However, Painted Hills unit is just a few miles east and we venture to that spot 3 or 4 times a year. JQ pointed out the existence of a brew pub, but I was reasonably skeptical of the pours it might offer.

Turns out I was mistaken. Tiger Town Brewing offers a great selection of house brews, a guest tap and an amazing assortment of high end whiskey. Who’d of thunk.

We chose a couple of glasses of different ales and a ‘dram’ of Weller’s. Then, from their adjoining food cart we shared a basket of delicious fish and chips. The menu offered a nice variety of pub fare. Tiger Town may be a bit of a drive but if you ever find your self on Hwy 26 in Central Oregon this is a definite must stop.