100728 Crater Lake & Diamond Lake

July 31, 2010 - Albany, Oregon
Boat Tour - My last day at Crater Lake. I finally got on a boat tour. No lightening nor thunderstorms today. I enjoyed the view of the rim from the boat - more interesting and colorful than I expected. Saw a couple pretty waterfalls.

The water in Crater Lake is the cleanest and clearest in the world. It holds the world's record for its clarity reading - down to 144 feet! All the water in the lake comes from either rain or melted snow. There are no rivers that feed it, so no rivers bring silt into the lake. You can drink the water from the lake, and the ranger did just that, on the boat ride I took, as did a number of people in our boat (I didn't have an empty water bottle or I would have had some too).

That explains some of what makes the water so clear and blue. The other factor is how deep the lake is - over 1900 feet deep. That's the deepest lake in the US, and the ninth deepest in the world. The water was the same royal blue as the life preservers the kids were wearing.

But none of that describes for you the awesomeness of this place. This was one of those times where I took a stupidly excessive number of photos. Just about every time I looked at it, I wanted to capture what I was seeing, to show you, to keep, to remember. But none of my pictures truly show it like it really is. You'll just have to go and see it. :-)

Rim Walk - I took the short walk along the rim near the lodge [photo above]. After all these trips around the rim the last few days, the beauty of the lake still stuns me. I thought the displays at the ranger station near the lodge, about the lake and volcanoes, were well done and informative.

Tremors - I saw two more "dust blasts" today. Now that I know what to look for, I know I was looking at very small tremors. Just a reminder that this is still an active volcano.

Top Ten - Well, Crater Lake is definitely on my Top Ten National Parks list, along with Grand Canyon (it IS one of the seven wonders of the world, after all) and Bryce Canyon (unique and beautiful)... (I'll have to get around to making that list one of these days...) Besides the unbelievable beauty of the lake, and its uniqueness, there weren't that many people there. I could go for a walk on a trail, and not meet anyone else on the trail (and did!). And it's on my Top Ten Most Beautiful Lakes list too. (One of these days...)

If you haven't put Crater Lake on your list of places to visit - Do! You won't be sorry.

Hike – The last thing I did was a one-mile hike “through a old-growth forest” with views of a canyon, and it was the only disappointing thing I did there. I was hoping to see some birds. Didn’t. But if I had, I would have been too distracted by the mosquitoes to do anything about it. At first there were no mosquitoes, or I wouldn’t even have started the hike, but the longer I was on the trail, the worse they got, and my mosquito repellent didn’t work as well as I’d like it to. I don't have any tolerance for mosquitoes.


Mt. Thiesen - I got my best view yet of Mt. Thiesen as I was leaving Crater Lake. I always think of my friend Nancy who loves "pointy" peaks when I look at this one.

Diamond Lake Campground - I drove as far as Diamond Lake this evening (which isn't far). I walked down to the lake, enjoying the smells and sights of the lake, and realized that Crater Lake did not smell like a normal lake. [photo of Mt. Bailey and Diamond Lake right]

100727 Crater Lake

July 30, 2010 - Bend, Oregon
Un-Boat Ride – I went over there about 10, hoping to get on the 11 AM boat, but no one without reservations was allowed on the boats in the morning. They would decide about running any boat rides this afternoon, depending on the weather. Rainstorms are forecast again. The weather was threatening by then, so I did some of the things I’ve been wanting to do on the other side of the rim instead.

Rim Drive - Instead I checked out a red sandstone formation and stopped at a beautiful waterfall and watched a fat little beaver busily eating green leaves almost right in front of me for awhile.

Sun Notch Trail– This was a little hike through a meadow and to the rim, with great views of the lake. [photo above] I loved it. I saw, what I found out later was, some pink/purple/fuschia male pollen thingies (that's a technical biological term) on whitebark pine trees. They're not commonly seen, because whitebark pine only grow at high altitudes. They startled me; I'd never seen them before.

Wildflowers – I took a short trail through lots of wildflowers. If you're used to Texas wildflowers, this wasn't much, but it was a nice little hike.

I'm going to spend one more night here, and hope to get on a boat ride tomorrow.

100726 Crater Lake

July 30, 2010 - Bend, Oregon -
Hail - I got a ticket for the 12 noon boat ride around the lake. You have to show up at the ticket booth on the east side of the lake at 8:30 on the morning you want to take the boat ride, and stand in line to get one of the tickets (unless you reserve in advance, which I didn't do). All the tickets were sold for the day, when I got here yesterday, so today was my first chance. It’s quite a walk from the rim down to the lake (one mile of switchbacks, dropping 700 feet), and I was three-fourths of the way there when people coming back up told me the ride was canceled because of the lightening and imminent thunderstorm. I turned around and headed back up to the top, but didn’t get very far before it started raining. Then it started hailing – hail the size of large peas. I hid under trees in dry spots during the worst of it, but kept going also, as I was afraid the path was going to turn to mud and I wanted to get to the top before that happened. It quit hailing before I got to the top, and all that was left was intermittent showers by then. I will try again tomorrow.

Rim Drive - In the morning, when the sun was shining and the weather was nice, I drove around the rim. Still incredible views. It's like the lake is a giant mirror [photo above]. Still so gorgeous it makes me cry.

Earthquake! - After my un-boat ride I drove out to see the fossil fumaroles at Pinnacles Trail. Interesting formations. [photo right] I don’t think I’ve ever seen such a thing before. But the most unforgettable thing happened while I was there. I felt the earth shake – oh, so slightly, for just a second. I was standing quietly at the end of the canyon, just absorbing the view below me. At first I thought the cliff was caving in, and I was done for. I quickly stepped back from the edge. The people I'd been walking with, who were further behind me on the trail, and were walking and talking, didn't feel a thing. But everyone could see all the dusk falling off the pinnacles formations and into the canyon, and the dust hung in the air over the river for quite awhile. So I've experienced my first "earthquake".

Weather - You know, I was just thinking that although I’ve had windy, cold, humid, cloudy, weather, I’ve yet to have a rainy day, and voila! There it is! That's what today turned into.

Cascade Peaks – There are 14 major volcanic peaks in the US Cascade range. Before this trip, I’d seen four: Mt. Lassen and Mt. Shasta in California, Mt. Hood by Portland, and Mt. St. Helens in Washington. On this trip I’ve added Mt. McLoughlin by Klamath Falls, Crater Lake, and Mt. Thielsen,which you can see to the north from the rim. I’ve yet to see: Diamond Peak, Three Sisters, Mt. Jefferson. And in Washington: Mt. Adams, Mt. Ranier, Glacier Peak, and Mt. Baker.

100729 Cascade Lakes

July 31, 2010 - Albany, OR

Today I spent driving the scenic route through the Cascade Lakes region of Oregon. Think of pretty little alpine lakes interspersed between snow-capped volcanic peaks. And this is volcano country, so throw in some lava flows too.

Davis Lake - I stopped at a couple lakeside campgrounds on Davis Lake. [photo above] At one of them, a recent lava flow came right up to the lake (6000 years old is very recent in geologic terms). You can see that it's recent: the rocks aren't eroded much, there is very little soil, and there is very little vegetation. Interesting. This was a pretty little lake and I spent some time just enjoying the solitude and beauty here. I talked to a couple fishermen who told me that the peak I'd just passed on my way to Davis Lake was Diamond Peak, so I drove back and got a snapshot of it [photo right] before I headed on to Lava Lake.

Lava Lake and Elk Lake - I got a good look at South Sister, Broken Top, and Mt. Bachelor behind these nice little lakes. Mt. Bachelor is a popular ski area in the wintertime. The lakes around here don’t allow motors, so the boats are all rowed or kayaks or canoes. Nice. Quiet. It was a treat to see a common merganser and her ducklings on Lava Lake. A mama blacktail deer and her three spotted fawns were standing at the edge of the road as I left so I watched them till they disappeared.[photo of mama on right]
Devil’s Lake – I stopped at this pretty little green lake, mostly because it has the same name as one of the big lakes in North Dakota.

Sparks Lake – On my way to Sparks Lake I got a good look at Broken Top Peak [photo left]. Sparks Lake was the last lake I stopped at this day. I checked it out because famous nature photographer Ray Atkeson said it was the prettiest spot in Oregon. Mt. Bachelor looked nice behind the lake, but the light was not good for getting shots of the lake itself. [Mt. Bachelor below]

100725 Mt. McLoughlin & Crater Lake

July 30, 2010 - Bend, OR - Omigod! Omigod! Omigod! I just kept saying it over and over, at my first views of Crater Lake. I was expecting a beautiful lake, but, there is no way to describe this. The deep blue of the water is unbelievable. This is the most beautiful lake I’ve ever seen. More beautiful than Lake Tahoe. Better than Bear Lake. For awhile I was alternating between crying and laughing as I drove around the rim and saw a different view at each stop.


I was expecting a beautiful lake, but what I was completely unprepared for - were the views from the rim. I drove the road around the rim of the crater (33 miles), and every direction you look away from the crater, the view is incredible. To the north you see Diamond Lake and Mt. Thiesen (and other "minor" snow-capped peaks); to the south you see Klamath Lake, Mt. McLoughlin, and Union Peak; etc.. It just was spectacular. (There so many snow-capped peaks here that only the really high ones "count".) A thunderstorm came in from the south as I was driving around the rim, and it was amazing to watch that come over the valley to us.

There are patches of snow here, especially on the northern side, but just patches. I see people stopping to throw snowballs or climb around in the snow.

My campground is in the "piney woods", as they would say in east Texas. There are lots of trees, so you feel like you have a private spot. Pretty quiet too. I smell wood smoke and pine. Smells great.


I got my best view yet of Mt. McLoughlin, mirrored in Klamath Lake, as I was leaving Klamath Falls this morning.

I haven't been able to blog lately because I haven't had any Internet access. There is often no Verizon signal in this part of the country, at least when I'm out in the boonies ("this is AT&T territory" I was told), which means neither my air card (Internet) nor my cell phone work reliably. Sometimes not at all.

100724 Klamath Falls

July 24, 2010 - Klamath Falls, OR - I said goodbye to Mt. Shasta today. Saw a different view of her, from the northeast, as I left. I could see that there are really three peaks instead of one. I can still see glimpses of her to the south in between the hills, from time to time, so she's not completely gone.


I stopped and enjoyed the colors of Grass Lake, as I drove by on my way here today.


After I got to Klamath Falls, I spent some time in a couple parks and by Klamath Lake, watching the various water birds mostly, and identifying birds to add to my Life List.

100723 McCloud Falls

July 23, 2010 - Mt. Shasta, CA - I'm actually in a little town at the foot of Mt. Shasta called McCloud. Incredible view of Mt. Shasta here.


I took it pretty easy today. I had some paperwork I had to do this morning, so I didn't get "on the move" till afternoon, and came back to the same campground this evening. This is a really nice campground. Big sites. Lots of space. Green grass everywhere. This is unlike any campground I've stayed in before. It's called "Dance Country RV". They have a big red barn on the premises and bring bands in to play on the weekends. (I can just imagine Mike and Rhonda, wobbly, and white-haired, "tripping the light fantastic" into their senior years here!!) There were several big groups around at dinnertime and I thought I was in for a noisy evening, but at 6:30 the campground emptied as everyone went to the barn to dance.
I took a short drive around the area - mostly went to see the upper, middle, and lower McCloud Falls near here, and walked a short trail that went along the McCloud River.

A deer got very friendly while I was there - I think she was hoping for a handout. Obviously someone has been feeding her.

Heading back to Oregon tomorrow.

100722 Burney Falls & Mt. Shasta

July 23 2010 - Mt. Shasta, CA - After Lava Beds and Tule Lake, I changed my itinerary and decided to stay in California a little longer, so I could go see Burney Falls and Mt. Shasta. I remember Burney Falls as one of the highlights of my 2000 trip, and, wasn't disappointed. Over 100 million gallons of water flow over this beautiful 129-foot waterfall daily. Its so wide that I couldn't get it all in one shot.

Then I drove to Mt. Shasta "on my way back to Oregon" and am spending a couple days here. I'd been seeing tantalizing glimpses of its snow-covered peak when I was at Lava Beds/Tule Lake. My first view of Mt. Shasta directly ahead was breathtaking, almost like a moonscape, and it continues to be awesome. I drove around Lake Siskiyou, and then up to Castle Lake yesterday afternoon. On the way there I got a great view of Mt. Shasta, with the town of Mt. Shasta nestled at its feet below.

Castle Lake is a pretty little alpine lake, high enough in the mountains that you can see a few patches of snow on the hills behind it. I hiked a ways around the shoreline trail, where I saw some beautiful delicate white flowers, and was delighted when I realized I was finally seeing wild rhododendrons. I'm sharing with you also a photo I took of a California Sister butterfly.

100720 Lava Beds & Tule Lake

July 21, 2010 - Mt. Shasta, CA - I drove back down into California so I could go to the Lava Beds National Monument, and I'm glad I did. Not only because now I have walked through a lava tube, and I hadn't before, but also because it's a very interesting place. And if I hadn't made the trip to Lava Beds, I wouldn't have seen Tule Lake, which was the highlight of the trip for me!

On the way there I took a walk through a place called Discovery Marsh [photo right]. You may remember that marshes are some of my favorite places. This one was quiet, and beautiful. I heard many red-winged blackbirds, a sound which I love, and which instantly brings back childhood memories. I thought I saw some white-faced ibises, but they were too far away to be sure. I was delighted with this unexpected find, and thought this would be the highlight of my trip to Lava Beds. Not so.

On the way to Lava Beds I also went by Tule Lake National Wildlife Refuge (pronounced "too-ley"). One of the things that made this lake so beautiful was the yellow algae floating on the top of the water. Another was the dark green tule reeds growing along the shore, interspersed with cattails, purple thistles, and lots of bushes full of this beautiful white flower that is unknown to me, but that smelled wonderful. With the wind blowing the lake, it made the water look a very dark blue - beautiful in contrast to the yellow algae. [photo above] I drove along the shore of the lake at about 10 mph, stopping many times, and saw so many water birds and ducks, including some I'd never seen before, some of which I've identified (Earred Grebes and Caspian Terns, for example), but many I'm still working on. There were thousands of birds out in the middle of the lake, too far away for me to see clearly. But there were also lots of mother ducks with ducklings near the shore, who hurried away from the shore as I approached. I saw one with 19 ducklings!

The next day I did the walk through a lava tube. Then I drove by Tule Lake again. This time it was less windy, so I was able to see better, I saw some birds I hadn't seen the day before. I was surprised and saw three river otters playing in the lake, but they didn't stay around long. I saw more American Coots than you can even imagine! And the second day I finally saw three white-faced ibises! (They didn't have white faces because it wasn't breeding season; they are actually almost an iridescent black.) It was another delightful day at the lake!! :-)

Before I left the area I stopped at Petroglyph Point (part of the Lava Beds National Monument) and looked at the petroglyphs carved into a huge sandstone rock by the ancients who lived in the area. And while I was checking out the petroglyphs, a couple of barn owls were checking me out!

100719 Birds, Birds, & More Birds

I had a lovely time this morning watching birds near our RV campground in O'Brien, Oregon. Got a good look at acorn woodpeckers [left], Stellar jays [below right], scrub jays [below left], brown-headed cowbirds, and others. Loved it.

I spent most of the rest of my day driving to Klamath Falls. I saw my first snow-covered mountains again. I haven't seen any snow-topped peaks since spring in Mesa. Mt. McLoughlin has a little snow on it, but there is a mountain southwest of here whose top is completely white. Beautiful!

When I was almost to Klamath Falls, the road ran next to Klamath Lake, and there were many Western Grebes on the lake, including many young ones [adult left, juvenile below right]. They are such striking birds, with their clear black and white lines and red eyes. I've never seen more than one or two at a time before. And I also saw a Clark's Grebe, first time. They look very similar. I stopped and watched them all for awhile.

Finally, this evening, I spent some time at the town park, and watched some American White Pelicans [below] and more Clark's Grebes fishing in the lake.

It's summertime again! It was in the 80s today. Sunny all day. A little too warm for me, but I'm heading north and to higher altitudes so I expect it might get cooler. I heard that, as of last week, they still had snow at Crater Lake!!!

100718 Trees of Mystery & Jedediah Smith Redwoods

July 18, 2010 - O'Brien, Oregon - Yes, Oregon!! But barely. I'm just over the state line a little. And just for a while. I'm taking the scenic route from Crescent City, CA, to Tulelake, CA, through Grant's Pass in Oregon.

This evening is the kind of evening that makes me love living in an RV. It's well after dark. But my door is open, my fan is on. It's a lovely, warm night. But not too warm. I can hear the crickets and the birds outside. There is a light breeze blowing through the RV. It's almost like I'm outside myself. I have a couple neighbors in the RV park who were very friendly this evening and I chatted with them awhile. I walked on a trail by a little creek behind the campground as the sun was setting (without even a sweater on!). I saw a beautiful scrub jay (blue on top and white underpants) and red-headed woodpeckers, but it was too dark to get good photos of any of them. The red-headed woodpeckers were fighting over the top of a light pole, playing "king of the hill". I'd never heard anything like the sounds they were making (not quite like Woody the Woodpecker, but I could see a little similarity). My neighbors tell me if I walk over to their house (RV) in the morning I will see the red-headed woodpeckers again, for sure. Probably other birds too, as there are a lot of them around. I am excited about seeing the red-headed woodpeckers. I guess it's time to admit that I'm a birder, of sorts. :-)

I started out this morning with a gondola ride that lifted me up over the tops of the redwoods and sitka spruce, up 570 feet to the top of a ridge. This was at a commercial place called Trees of Mystery. There are large concrete likenesses of Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox that kids can climb on. I remember well a similar pair in Bemidji, Minnesota, that I visited with my grandparents when I was in elementary school. There were lots of foxglove there - including some white ones [photo above], which was something new to me. There was a trail that ran by some oddities - a partial cathedral tree that has been turned into a pulpit area for weddings [photo above left], a tree with kinks in it that make it look like a lightening bolt, etc., all oddly-shaped, or very large, redwood trees that they have given names to. The best part of the experience was definitely the gondola ride, skimming along amongst these tall trees. Wow!

I stopped for lunch in Crescent City and saw the Battery Point Lighthouse there. The most interesting thing about that lighthouse is it's inaccessible at high tide, so there are only certain times each day that tours are held, and there are some days when the lighthouse is completely inaccessible all day! The daylilies are blooming now, and there was a profusion of them along the roadside on the way to Crescent City.

I stopped at the Jedediah Smith Redwood State Park and hiked a short loop trail. I was unexpectedly very sad at the fact this would be my last walk in a redwood forest, probably for a long time. I've taken many walks in the redwoods in the past week or so, and I have grown to love these redwood giants. I'm going to miss them. I wish for each of you a walk in a redwood forest during your lifetime.

The Scenic Byway to Grant's Pass follows the Smith River canyon, and other rivers, and there are some great views along the way.

I spent some time looking at possible routes into, around, and through the Cascades, and realized that any route I take will be a scenic one, so I can take any route I want! :-)