I hate good-bye's especially when
it's my family. David and Kaylyn
returned to southern California following Brandon's graduation and it would be
months before we'd all be together again.
I DO marvel at the beauty of our
country and as we approached the snow capped Mount Shasta, I was looking
forward to spending time in the Pacific Northwest. Little did I know just how much time we would
spend here.
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| Beautiful Mount Shasta |
Our first stop for a week was a VERY
small town called Chiloquin and our RV spot was on the Chiloquin river. We watched the excited men (and some women)
fly fishing in one of Oregon's prime fly fishing spots while anticipating our
newly graduated sons arrival from Northern California. The weather was perfect in May and the
twilight hours opened up its' heavenly skies to BATS! I was NOT prepared to see these creatures
swooping through our nice spot diving close to our heads. The pre-Halloween show lasted minutes as the
full moon rose and the sky slowly grew dark.
The campfires were glowing around us.
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| Our spot on the Chiloquin River |
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| Beautiful Oregon! |
Brandon arrived and the next morning the
three of us traveled further north for a week in La Pine State Park. Our objective to being here was for Brandon
to apply for finance jobs and to see if we enjoyed the growing area of Bend,
hearing from several sources that it's a great place to live.
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| Still in the College mode |
BEND /LA PINE STATE PARK (Play
before Work)!
Visiting this beautiful state should
not be spent indoors (if the weather cooperates). The first day we toured the countryside
stopping first at Mount Bachelor. Being
June, the ski season was over with only a small amount of snow remaining. That didn't stop some die-hard skiers from
hiking to the top and skiing down and us delighting in a snowball fight. It was the two skiers and the three of us on
this side of Mount Bachelor and we watched the guys descend down the mountain.
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| Colorful "Devil's Lake" |
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| Mount Bachelor-June 1st |
Continuing our drive along the
Cascade Lakes National Scenic Byway, we
took in the beauty of the Three Sisters (volcano peaks) later stopping at some
silt blue lakes (Lava Lake and Devil's Lake), enjoying a picnic lunch at Lava
Lake. The color of the lakes and rivers were every shade of beautiful blue changed by silt and depth.
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| "Lava Lake" It's easy to love this place! |
Perry and Brandon spent another day
with a guide who taught them to fly fish.
They both caught fish but released them due to their size . Nonetheless, a great memory for Dad and his
son!
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| Add caption |
Another nature-filled day enjoying the Wizard Fish
Hatchery with hiking along the Metolius River.
It was a spring like June Day with perfect temperatures, flowers in full
bloom and butterflies along the river. I
was in a good place, with all the right external conditions and having our
youngest son with us on our adventures.
Returning to the State Park, we stopped at a burnt area of Idanha (a
part of the Pacific Crest Trail) with amazing views of the volcanos. Many trails were destroyed by a fire from
years ago but in a few years this area will be beautiful once again from
regrowth. After a long day of driving
and hiking, a cold beer was enjoyed at one of many breweries in Bend.
BEND
With Brandon's resumes in hand and dressed
professionally, the three of us headed
towards Bend, Oregon.
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| The Business Man |
I got my hair
done while Brandon visited various financial offices dropping off resumes. We enjoyed lunch at the Café Yumm and drove
around the fast growing area.
Albeit surrounded by volcanoes,
there were still awe-inspiring views of beautiful trees, mountains and
rivers. Could I find myself settling
down here? There are a lot of factors to
consider in my life, and Bend offers a few of the many on my list.
While in Bend, we met with my best friend's son who
was visiting in the area.
Our last day was spent exploring the surrounding area
of La Pine State Park. Newberry
volcano, the "Big Obsidian Overflow" and the magnificent Paulina
Falls, all in the Deschutes National Forest.
The obsidian lava overflow is over 1300 years old. We climbed to the top of the volcano over the
pumice and obsidian (black glass) that offered a breathtaking view.
The days of exploring central Oregon with our
wonderful son was coming to an end. As much as we hated to part ways, he was
about to go into the "adult" world of apartment and job hunting. I will miss his exuberant, energetic and
youthful zest for wanting to explore the lakes, rivers and waterfalls (I
wouldn't let him climb the protective barrier fence to take pictures of Paulina Falls)!
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| Paulina Falls |
Next we were heading to Washington States' North
Cascade Mountain Range before meeting friends in Deerpark, Washington.
NACHES, YAKIMA and MOUNT RANIER
A near five hour drive to our next destination went
from tall pine trees in Oregon to dry but mountainous areas of Washington. Heading west towards Naches, WA (a short
distance from Yakima), we continued to climb in elevation along the Naches
River losing all phone service. I never
like being at an RV park where there is no service, however the tall trees and
rushing river made it forgivable. The
nearest service was up the road at a local bar and we could only communicate
via wi-fi. Calls were made to our kids
letting them know we arrived followed by planning for the upcoming week.
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| A remote spot along the NachesRiver |
We heard the Chinook Pass (the closest and easiest
route) to Mount Ranier was recently opened knowing the hour and a half drive
would be worth it.
Years ago (In our much younger years) , Perry had a
strong desire to climb Mount Ranier. As
a family (along with my Mom and Dad) we made the trip to Ranier staying at the Paradise Inn. Perry would make it to the summit! He trained
for this moment for several months and this monumental feat made us all proud
knowing he successfully climbed the 14,400 ft. mountain with no injuries!
The drive along the Chinook Pass was almost ghost-like
as we were the only ones on the road for miles.
The roads were good but as we continued to climb the snow along the side
of the road was well over 10 feet high.
We continued along the Chinook Pass still not seeing other cars, but the
scenery (once we were through the dense clouds) was stunning. Waterfalls, (post spring) were full, abundant
and flowing furiously. Driving alone on
the highway through dense fog, we nervously continued our drive in the Mount
Ranier National Forest stopping at the base of Mount Ranier called Mirror Lake. Snow and ice surrounded the lake but when the
sun broke through the clouds, the
reflection of the mountains made you understand how it got its' name. It was a cold cloudy day and the visibility
of the entire mountain was non-existent.
We reminisced at the Timberline Lodge and if you looked closely enough,
climbers were spotted on the mountain.
Stopping at viewpoints on our way back gave us a much better view of the
spectacular mountain.
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| June 7th, roads clear, 10ft of snow |
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| Stunning Mount Ranier |
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| Mirror Lake |
Exploring the area the next day (not far from where we
stayed) took us to Yakima for fresh fruit, wine/beer tasting and grocery
shopping. Yakima is a large agricultural
area with one of the largest hop growing areas in the nation. From where we were parked for the week, we
could drive thirty minutes into thick trees, waterfalls and yes….bears, and another thirty minutes east taking us to
a much drier climate in Yakima. The
change in scenery within a short distance amazed me.
A short drive west took us to Little Naches (a densely
forested area) to do some hiking. Not
long into our hike we noticed fresh bear droppings on the trail. Needless to say, it was a very short
hike! NO THANKS!
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| Hike in Little Naches (one BIG tree!) |
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| Hops for beer in Yakima |
Despite not having service of any kind and getting in
touch with nature, it was time to move on from this beautiful spot towards
Deerpark, Washington, a small town outside Spokane. We were to be here for a week stay visiting
friends before heading to Idaho.
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