Volcanoes and a Very Deep Lake

Day 21 ~ Lake Tahoe to Mt. Shasta, CA

It was time to move onto the next leg of our road trip.  Our goal for the day was to get as far as Mt. Shasta, CA but we intended to take our time and enjoy the drive.  Driving along the eastern rim of Lake Tahoe was just as beautiful as a couple days earlier.  This time we really paid attention to the ambience of Zephyr Cove, Incline Village, Crystal Bay and King’s Beach before turning north toward Truckee, CA.  On the “back” side of Lake Tahoe, we noticed a Ritz Carlton resort sign that might be interesting to check out on a different trip.  It appeared to be an all-year resort with lots of golfing and nearby skiing.

I had always wanted to drive over Donner Pass and maybe visit the museum acknowledging the tragic history of the Donner Party  (wikipedia.org/?title=Donner_Pass)  The scenery along I-80 was very pretty and we missed the signage for Donner Lake and Soda Springs and before we knew it we were getting to our exit for CA-20 toward Grass Valley, CA.  This was a very pretty mountain route, following the path of the 1850 Emigrant Trail, with expansive views of the Sierras.  We stopped at the Omega Overlook and took a walk out to view the old hydraulic mine works in the valley below. 

Omega Mine Works

Although we didn’t have a tight schedule, we regretted that we did not stop at the town of Downieville, which apparently has a nice historic district documenting its rich gold mining history.  Continuing onward we drove through Grass Valley, also looking like a pleasant community.  Lunchtime found us in Yuba City and one of the great temptations of CA finally got the better of us.  We had seen In & Out drive-in restaurants throughout CA but hadn’t eaten at one.  Bob tries to not eat beef so it didn’t seem a priority until we were hungry and there it was!  I have to say it is probably a good thing we don’t live in CA or we would become frequent patrons of this chain.  Yummy!

Bougainvillea

Lunch @ In & Out

We headed north on US-99 and were impressed by the stunning rows of beautiful white and red bougainvillea along the highway.  We were also noticing the beautiful orchards of walnut and almond trees.  Curiosity got the better of us and we stopped alongside a grove and picked one of the nuts trying to decide if it was an almond or walnut.  Later that evening we did some “googling” and decided we had stolen a walnut; my apologies to the orchardist!

Walnut Grove

Walnuts on the tree

Walnut cut open

 The road continued toward Chico and joined I-5 at Red Bluffs, going north toward Shasta Lake.  Once again we were struck by the extent and severity of the drought conditions in CA.  Shasta Lake is the largest CA reservoir but the water level is extememly low.  The situation is serious indeed.

Shasta Lake

Mt. Shasta viewpoint

Mt. Shasta

Mt. Shasta

 We began seeing views of beautiful Mt. Shasta, one of California’s most impressive mountains.  It is a compilation of four separate volcanic cones, the last eruption being nearly 240 years ago in 1786.  I hoped it wouldn’t choose tonight to blow again as we were staying at the charming village of Mt. Shasta at the base of the mountain.  The Best Western Tree House motel had a very pleasant mountain lodge atmosphere and we enjoyed our restful evening there. 

Day 22 ~ Mt. Shasta, CA – Crater Lake National Park, OR

Starting our fourth week of the road trip our last stop in CA was at Weed.  The town of Weed has a long history of logging and forestry but just a few months ago in Sept. 2014 it was the site of the massive “Boles Fire” a wildfire that damaged over 200 structures within four hours and resulted in an evacuation of the town.

Leaving Weed on US-97, we continued to enjoy lovely views of Mt. Shasta and also the lovely meadows of Grass Lake as we traveled toward Klamath Falls, OR.  Seeing the Klamath River had new meaning to us having been to the Klamath Overlook in the CA Redwoods area where the river flows into the Pacific Ocean. 

We began to feel we were on the homestretch of the road trip, being familiar with the Southern Cascades.  Today’s destination was Crater Lake, the third National Park we had the pleasure of visiting on this trip.  (www.nps.gov/crla/index.htm)  We’d seen it from the air but never up close.  The scenic byway mountain drive above Klamath Lake was pretty and we knew we were climbing in elevation.  We stopped for a picnic at a pullout overlooking Annie’s Creek and were surprised by the canyon below.   

We parked at the visitor center for Crater Lake National Park and got our bearings.  The eastern rim road was partially closed a few miles ahead but we decided to go to the Sun Notch trail for a short hike for our first view of Crater Lake.  Stunning is an understatement. 

Sun Notch Trail

 

View from Sun Notch

The lake is the deepest blue water and actually the deepest lake (1945’) in the US.  It was formed by the eruption of the ancient Mt. Mazama, about 7700 years ago, and the collapse of nearly 5000’ of the mountain forming the caldera, which is about 5 mi by 6 mi.  The rim drive is a 33-mile loop with lots of scenic pullouts providing many opportunities for photos.  On average, the Lake gets nearly 44’ of snow a year but the Park is open year-around.

Returning to the Rim Village area we took a walk along the rim, enjoying the view.  There were lots of tourists and it was disturbing to see some of them blatantly ignore the “danger” signs and cross the barriers in order to take “selfies”.  The Park has done an excellent job of trying to ensure the safety of 482,000 visitors annually.  I don’t know why some people feel they don’t need to follow the rules; this is the rim of a volcano for goodness sakes!

Tourists behaving badly

Lodge Fireplace

Our big indulgence for this road trip was to stay a night at the historic Crater Lake Lodge, overlooking the beautiful lake.  (www.craterlakelodges.com/)  We loved the Lodge.  It is very basic with no TV, no phone, poor cell service, no spa, etc.  The Lodge offers first- rate service and an incredible view.  We enjoyed drinks on the patio and a wonderful meal.  It was fun sitting in the lobby and meeting different people as we waited for a table and especially meeting one of the chefs who was off for the evening.  He suggested we order our salmon cooked “medium rare” which was something we’d never known to do when ordering fish as an entrée. Following his advice, the salmon was perfect!  By the way, the meal portions are very large and you won’t go hungry at dinner or breakfast.

Day 23 ~ Crater Lake National Park – Bend, OR

Bob rose early to catch the sunrise over Crater Lake and some beautiful photos.  Visiting this Park is all about the view, any time of day or night, and anywhere around the Lake.

We continued the drive around the west rim of the lake, stopping at the Watchmen Overlook (superb!), and further around at the  Cleetwood Cove Trailhead where the trail leads down to the lake’s surface.  In the summer there are boat tours from the cove and fisherman can access the lake, which was stocked back in the 1880’s with Rainbow trout and Kokanee salmon.  Fish are not native to the lake so fishing is actually encouraged, if you want to walk down the long, steep, strenuous trail to the lake.

Culturally and historically, the Klamath Tribe of Native Americans believes Crater Lake is a sacred spiritual place.  One of the things I noticed while at the many overlooks was that tourists (exception already noted) were behaving reverently, speaking in hushed tones, and being respectful.  Remember, the Lake is a volcanic crater and the floor of the Lake continues to rumble.  What a blessing to be able to view it now.  Now that our retirement is not only insight but we are living it we need to remember to take time to enjoy our life and appreciate the blessings we have been given.  Our insight is taking moments to reflect.
 

Reflection

We departed Crater Lake National Park via the north entrance route, traveling through the alpine meadows and the forests back out to US-97.  Our destination for the night was Bend, OR, an area we hadn’t been to for many years.  Just outside Bend we stopped at Lava Lands, the interpretive center for Newberry National Volcanic Monument.  Mt. Shasta, Crater Lake, Newberry, and the volcanoes that continue up through OR, WA and British Columbia are all part of the Cascade Volcanic Arc.  It’s impressive geologically and scenically. (https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cascade_Volcanic_Arc)

We did a quick run through Sun River, outside Bend.  It is a planned resort community of golf courses and homes, and a year around resort with skiing at nearby Mt. Bachelor.  We had visited many years ago and it is still lovely.  The community of Bend is located on a high desert plateau in central OR on the eastern edge of the Cascades.  Bend is an active community, enticing outdoor enthusiasts year around and in recent years it has become known for its brewpubs.  Tourism is its mainstay and it was obvious to us that the town has invested a lot of money into revival of older areas and providing trails, parks, restaurants, and hotels to facilitate tourism.  Our home for the next two days would be at the Hilton Garden Inn located in the Old Mill district, along the Deschutes River. (www.theoldmill.com)

Day 24 ~ Bend & Sisters, OR

We looked forward to driving around Bend and reacquainting ourselves with the community; it’s now grown to over 81,000, which was surprising.  It’s a lively place and is one of those places that feel good to be there!  In the afternoon we took off toward the mountains to one of our favorite places, Sisters, OR. 

 It’s a beautiful drive along the Deschutes River with expansive views of range land reaching right up to the mountains.  The volcanoes dominate the landscape with views of Bachelor, Broken Top, the three Sisters (aka Faith, Hope & Charity), and Mt. Jefferson.  We enjoyed a walk around Sisters (it has also been revitalized) and a drive up to the mountain residential areas of Black Butte and Camp Sherman.  We returned to Bend via the northern community of Redmond and decided to drive up toward Mt. Bachelor.  Many years ago Bob and the kids had gone skiing at Mt. Bachelor on what had to be one of the coldest ski trips ever.  We shared a lot of good memories of raising our family during those years and exploring the greater NW together.

Broken Top & Three Sisters

Mt. Bachelor

Mt. Jefferson

Dinner was at 10 Barrel Brewing Co. and totally delightful!  (www.10barrel.com)  We followed the lead of the folks at the table next to us and shared salads and an entrée.  The food was excellent, Bob enjoyed the brew, and the service could not have been better.  It was a perfect way to end our travels, as tomorrow we would head home.   We are ready.