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]