Tuesday April 7: Today we leave our civilized campground at the mouth of the Deschutes and head south toward its headwaters south of Bend, Oregon. Thanks to my research and phone calls ahead, I know of one campground that will be open this time of the year, McKay Crossing. Many roads and most campgrounds are still closed because normally at this time of year there would still be 2 to 3 feet of snow on the ground. Oregon has had an exceptionally mild and dry winter, not so good for the summer ahead, but the road to McKay Crossing is open and the campground is not gated.
South of Bend, we run into a snow flurry – hmmm. I am wondering how the road to the campground is going to be, since it is uphill. There is snow on the ground, and as the road climbs, we begin to consider where we might pull off to spend the night. Just then we spot a sign ahead and we are at the McKay Crossing. Clifford parks and we walk through the campground, which is spread out on both sides of Paulina Creek, and pick the campsite that we like the best, as no one else is crazy enough to be out in a snow flurry looking for a place to camp. The site we pick is spacious, overlooks the creek, and is away from other campsites.
Snowy Paulina Creek from our campsite
It is already late afternoon, so we get the Pony (our pop-up) set up as quickly as possible and soon we have heat and hot water on for tea. I am excited that we have some snow – not enough to prevent us from being here, but enough for snowy photos of the creek and the trees. The Pony floor is still damp from yesterday’s tank overfill, but other than that LIFE IS GOOD!
Pony set-up in the snow
Wednesday April 8: It is 31 degrees this morning, so the snow lingers, and only 44 degrees for a high with sleet/snow coming and going all day with little stretches of sunshine in between.
Cool morning – the snow lingers
Clifford greets the morning
Although I can’t get set up for long periods of time in the sunshine, I enjoy being outside most of the day.
Snow lingers on pine branches
Snow on Manzanita
We walk to the waterfall that is just a ways downstream from the camp. It is small compared to Palouse Falls, but quite impressive in its own way. A plaque on a tree commemorates the life of a young man who died here less than two years ago. We guess that he must have tried to jump into the pool at the base of the falls, a foolhardy action at best, and we are especially careful as we inch close enough to the chasm to take photos.
Paulina Creek falls at McKay Crossings
Our solar panel is set up even though today is not the best day to gather energy from the sun. I do a little Carnicom Institute email on Clifford’s tablet (which takes less power than my laptop), but the internet connection is iffy, so I only take care of the most pressing emails. Considering we are in a ponderosa forest miles from town, we consider ourselves fortunate to have any cell service or internet. Solar power is limited today, also, but we are lucky to have whatever is available. I write a blog about our stay at Palouse Falls and edit photos until the battery on my laptop goes dead. I feel a little frustrated about the limitations, but there are many other things to do that don’t involved cell phones or computers.
It is time for me to start switching gears – walkabouts taking photo and reading old journals are at the top of my list.
Sun and clouds and snow
Learning to walk at a slower pace, to chew food slowly, to take one’s time at even the most mundane activities are of value in being present to one’s state of well-being. I am used to rushing through one activity so I can get on to the next, but here there is no need to rush to go anywhere or do anything other than what I am doing at the moment. It is okay to slow down; it is better than okay – it is right and good to slow down, to slow down and enjoy life.
Sunday April 5, 2015: I am up before Clifford, make myself a cup of organic French press coffee, and then sit in the sunshine on the bench by the river. Today is Easter and I take these few quiet moments to contemplate who or what Jesus was or is. Somewhere amidst the baffling contradictions, there is a truth that is significant.
It is chilly out, so I decide to build a little campfire. I didn’t bring much wood and there certainly isn’t anything to scavenge here, so it is more of a token effort.
A token campfire in the morning
When Clifford gets up, we have breakfast and then walk up to the history kiosk at the edge of the campground. Several plaques with sketches and journal entries from Oregon Trail emigrants paint a picture of the hardships they had to endure. There is an old once-covered wagon, the ribbing now bare like the skeleton of a long-dead creature.
The overland vehicle of the 1850’s
On the hillside above the campground, the remains of the old trail can still be seen and from the sketches we try to see where the trail on the opposite side of the river would have gone as the horses and wagons made their laborious way back up to the top of the bluff where the traveling would be somewhat easier.
Remains of the trail above the campground
Because of the difficulty of crossing the Deschutes River, many goods and supplies for building new homes had to be left behind at this point, causing further hardship to the Oregon Trail families as they continued the journey westward.
The rugged Oregon landscape along the Columbia River
The peacefulness of the day comes to an end when Clifford starts his projects: seeing if we can get water in and out of the Pony water tank requiring opening up the bench under which it resides and feeding a tube into the tank; the water tank overfills, leaking water into the carpeting on the Pony floor; the table holding the 7 gallon water jug collapses, damaging the jug; Clifford decides to spray bleach on the Pony walls to get rid of the mildew spots and gets bleach on some of my clothes. I was less than happy about that, both from the fact that some of my clothes were damaged and that bleach is toxic to breathe so I can’t go inside for several hours. I am not a happy camper at this point, but realistically, I know things could be worse, so I try not to be a total grump about the whole business – after all, it is Easter and I am not an emigrant on the Oregon Trail. However, looking at the Pony and the lack of conventional modern conveniences, I can imagine being an emigrant. I do empathize with them, especially the women.
Beauty in the barrenness
Monday April 6, 2015: We go to The Dalles for breakfast and then on out to the Discovery Center. This is a well- designed center that covers the geology of the areas as well as the history, including the Lewis & Clark Expedition and the Oregon Trail. It was very interesting and informative, and we both felt it was well worth the time spent there.
What remains from early settlers
Could he be an early settler looking at his wagon?
In the evening I begin editing photos of our time here at Deschutes Oregon State Park. It has been a pleasant place to stay, but I am eager to move on to more remote camping in the forest around Bend, Oregon, our destination for tomorrow.
Wednesday, April 1 and Thursday April 2: After leaving Palouse Falls, we travel to Pasco, Washington, to spend the night with good friends. They provide a delicious dinner, a fun outing to a local brewery, and a comfortable bed for the night. After a tasty breakfast the next morning, we say our good-bye’s before heading south to Oregon and then west on I 84 along the Columbia River to Deschutes Oregon State Park, which is located on the bank of the Deschutes River at its confluence with the mighty Columbia. As we travel I notice how rugged and barren the landscape is on both sides of the river – not very hospitable at all, it seems to me.
Barren landscape, but great clouds
When we arrive at the park, I am pleased to see that it is a huge lovely lawn with a variety of handsome trees. There are not many campers here this time of year, especially as we are arriving mid-week. We choose a spot on the corner of a loop near the river.
Lovely big lawn and handsome trees
Initial set-up is easy, as the parking spot is paved and level. Once the Pony is set up, I realize there is more mildew than what I could see when we did the modified set-up at Palouse Falls. I tackle the inside with cleaning products from Melaleuca until the Pony smells clean, though I can still see some discoloration from the mildew. It takes quite awhile longer to get things in place because of this extra cleaning, but once that is done we have a good dinner and relax a bit before heading to bed.
Friday April 3: I didn’t sleep well, as the traffic noise from I 84 is non-stop and trains rumble by every couple of hours. On the plus side of things, this is an attractive park, there are flush toilets and showers, the Deschutes River is near at hand, and the trees are quite wonderful. A row of Lombardy poplars line the river bank, a huge golden willow stands tall and solid in the center of the park grounds, and there are other trees the likes of which I have never seen.
A row of Lombardy poplars line the bank of the river
A weeping willow tall and sturdy
Trees the likes of which I have never seen
We are quite comfortable here and, except for the traffic and trains, which are easy to ignore in the daytime, this is a lovely peaceful place to spend a few days.
Saturday April 4: After breakfast I make a picnic and then we head west to Hood River, which we find to be an attractive little town, and then south on state highway 35 toward Mount Hood. Even though the road begins to climb right away, we see many orchards in bloom for several miles. As we get nearer Mount Hood, the landscape becomes more forested, obscuring the view of the great mountain. We take the road up to Timberline Lodge, as Clifford was here as a teenager and is interested in seeing it again after the passage of so many years. For me, it is the first time I have been in the area and I am thrilled to see Mount Hood up close.
Mount Hood behind clouds
Mount Hood from Timberline Lodge
After we have our picnic sitting in the Blazer at Government Camp at the base of the mountain, being too chilly to sit outside, we head back down the road and arrive at our campsite in the late afternoon. I take a few more photos of the river before going inside to make dinner, followed by the evening activities of studying (Clifford) and looking at the day’s photos (me).
Deschutes River seen from the bridge
Deschutes River at evening light
Last light on the river
We have decided to stay another couple of days, as we would like to learn more about the history of the region before we travel on. This area is significant both in terms of the emigrants on the Oregon Trail in the mid 1800’s as well as the Lewis and Clark Expedition before them in the early 1800’s. We plan to catch up on emails and needed downloads for research tomorrow while we have cell service (our means of accessing the internet), and visit the Discovery Center outside of The Dalles, just a few miles to the west, on Monday. For tonight, I will listen to the river and try to ignore the traffic and the trains as I sleep.
Tuesday March 31: After a two-week setback because of Clifford’s health – was it the flu, we really don’t know – we are finally on our way today. We have breakfast at the Red Light Garage so as not to dirty any dishes, and finish packing the Blazer. In Kellogg we stop at the clinic for another blood test for Clifford and Coeur de Alene for gas and fill up the propane that will be our source of fuel for cooking and staying warm. At Spokane we head southwest: destination is Palouse Falls State Park in southeast Washington. Thanks to my research and phone calls, I have found an available and affordable place for us to stay on this part of our route. Not many campgrounds are open in March or early April and there are no national forests as fallback in this part of the country. The barren landscape is more attractive than it was when I was here in February, now having a sheen of green from grasses beginning to grow in this prairie-almost-desert region.
A slight sheen to an otherwise barren landscape
Once we exit I 90 to head south on highway 261 toward the state park, rolling hills of winter wheat are abundant, but soon the land becomes rugged and broken.
The Palouse River runs through a deep channel created eons ago as flood waters changed the topography of the land. Upon arrival at the Palouse Falls State Park, the spectacular falls can be seen from the parking lot as the river races and falls from one gorge into an even deeper gorge. A fence keeps visitors safe from tumbling into the pool far below that forms at the base of the falls before the river dashes on.
Palouse Falls by evening light
Power of the falls
This park is designed more for day-use, but there are a couple of spots where we can park the Pony (our little pop-up) at the edge of the grass – a large lawn-like area with trees and picnic tables scattered here and there. We do a modified set-up this evening, as we will only be staying one night and don’t want to take the time to do a full set-up. It is not so convenient for cooking and doing dishes, but an easy dinner of soup, cheese and crackers is fine for tonight. Mr. Heater keeps us warm this windy chilly evening.
Pony on the edge of the camping area
Wednesday April 1: I wake up before Clifford and decide to go for a stroll up on the cliffs above the waterfall – no fence here! The sun has just risen over the bluffs behind the falls and as I walk along the cliff top, I have a great angle with the light hitting the falls, but not blinding the camera. Mist is rising from the pool due to the coolness of the morning, adding a special ambiance to the scene. I don’t go far, as I would like to share this walk with Clifford.
Mist in the morning
After an easy breakfast of yogurt and fruit, we walk together along the cliff and head upstream so as to see the river before it reaches its jumping off spot.
The jumping off spot
There is a very impressive cascade not far upstream and an unusual sharp bend in the course of the river, which we learn was caused by the cataclysmic events in the far distant past.
Cascades upstream from the falls
We admire the river, the falls, and the rugged landscape before heading back to the Pony to get ready for the next leg of our journey.
