Crater Lake during Covid 19

 

We traveled to Crater Lake during July of 2020. A lot of the National Park services were closed, including the ferry to Wizard Island. However, there were many visitors - the majority wearing masks. 

My husband and son (along with about 200 others) jumped into the lake.

We also wanted to cycle around the lake, but found that it was going to be too dangerous. So, we opted to drive behind our son while he road down the longest hills between overlooks. I think his fastest speed was about 35 mph.

Deschutes River and Historical Museum

We took a quick trip to Bend and were able to walk along the Deschutes River and also visit the Deschutes Historical Museum. The museum is a quick visit, but well worth it. I would definitely not stay at the Riverside Inn in Bend. We had a pretty bad experience there.

One the way home, we also stopped at Detroit Lake to explore the dam and eat lunch.

It seems like the water level was higher compared to August last year. 

Jackson Bottom Wetlands

The most beautiful place in my own habitat is Jackson Bottom Wetlands. The natural area never fails to inspire.

Steens Mountain

We traveled to the Steens Mountain mid-June. Our first plan was to camp at Paige Springs, but the mosquitoes were rampant. We ended up camping at Fish Lake on the mountain. At Fish Lake, the mosquitoes were about a week behind Paige Springs and the temperature was about 10 degrees Fahrenheit cooler. The wildflowers were out in full force.

The gate at Jackman Park was opened the day we arrived. We are able to drive to the top and see Wildhorse Lake, the Alvord Desert, and Keiger Gorge. 

We did very little hiking, but the boys swam and fished in Fish Lake. We also visited Fields and Diamond. 

Fort Rock

Fort Rock is a highly accessible and beautiful rock formation the middle of high desert country. The volcanic formation sits to the northwest of Christmas Valley. The formation is designated a natural area and is managed as a state park. You can visit dawn to dusk. There is a restroom, some picnic tables and a park host.

The park is surrounded by hay farms, and, hence, a variety of ground squirrels, jack-rabbits and other small mammals. The rodent population attracts large birds of prey - some of whom nest at Fort Rock. We spotted a newly deceased Great Horned Owl below what appeared to be a cliff-side nest. Perches have been added to electrical poles in the area. Along the highway, we spotted a bald eagle, golden eagle, and a ferruginous hawk.Circling close to Fort Rock were prairie falcons, vultures, and raven.

The entire rock formation can be hiked within a few hours. There were several highlights for us. We enjoyed yelling across the formation and hearing our voices echo back. The rock itself is pretty interesting - with a variety of vesicles forming patterns in different section of rock. If you walk close to the rock, it is possible to find several locations where owls drop pellets and thousands of small bones. Walking to the top of Fort Rock, you will be able to peer over the sheer outer rock face. The rock itself has a hollow sound to it when you knock on it.

On our hike, we spotted a few lizards, birds, and jack-rabbits. It also looks like prime rattlesnake habitat.

If you want to camp in the area, north of Fort Rock about five miles is the Cabin Creek Campground - a rough camping area. The campground offers a beautiful Ponderosa pine forest - but not water or toilets. At the south side of the campground are some Forest Service buildings and two bird blinds. We spotted nut-hatches, nutcrackers, mountain bluebirds, and chickadees. We also heard flickers. The mammal population seemed hopping - lots signs (tracks, scat and sound) of deer, elk, coyotes and bobcat. We did not see any mammals, though.

Sunstone Mining - the Sequel

In March, we headed back to the Dust Devil Mine to see if what we could dig up. This time, we brought one of my son's grandmothers...and lunch. We were prepared to give our son as much time as he wanted to find as many sunstones as he could.

Unfortunately, in the spring, the mine does not supply tools.  My husband had a maul in his car toolbox, and this kept my son busy for quite a while. Grandma and I worked with shovels and a shaker table. We found quite a few stones. My son, however, had was determined to dissect a 24-inch diameter boulder. He could see a large stone on one face.

Henry worked on this for about an hour when the man who was watching over the facility showed up and began to give him some good advice on how to delicately pull the boulder apart. He also retrieved his five-pound hammer and the chisel from a jackhammer. The boulder was pretty quickly reduced to many smaller rocks.

By the time the boulder was apart, Henry had a bucket full of specimens (rocks with sunstones not yet removed) and sunstones. Some of the sunstones were fairly large. We spent quite a bit for the stones (more than the market value), but it was worth the expense for the experience.

I asked Henry this morning if there was any sort of an adventure he would like to go on this summer. He wants to return to the sunstone mine.

Hiking the hills in Lakeview

Lakeview, Oregon is a small town (~2,500 residents) in the south, central part of the state. It sits at a mile in elevation and is high desert. From the hills in Lakeview, you can see Goose Lake straddling the border of Oregon and California.

Every decade, high school students repaint the letter 'L' in the hill-side near town. The hike to the 'L' is steep and fairly rocky but short (~ 0.5-1 mile each way). It is a great opportunity to spot deer and wildflowers (in the spring).

This year, our hikes in the hills were unique in the view of the shockingly low water level of Goose Lake (in March). Everywhere we went, people in the area had something to say about the drought. It will be a tough year for cattle as well as the native animals and migrating birds.