Oregon 2016
August 2016
We left home Saturday, August 13, 2016, and flew to Portland. We spent the first night at the Country Inn and Suites near the airport. Nothing memorable happened—no riots, at least not near the hotel. The next day we headed east for sightseeing and some easy hikes in the Columbia River Gorge.
Columbia River Gorge
Sunday, August 14
Sunday was a day of waterfalls. We started with Latourell Falls, on a 2.4-mile loop trail.
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Latourell Falls
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Upper Latourell Falls
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Upper Latourell Falls
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Probably the most interesting sight of the day: Latourell Falls and the mossy basalt
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We took a 1.3-mile hike to see Bridal Veil Falls.
We had Sunday brunch at Multnomah Falls Lodge. We had already hiked a few miles that day, and we walked up with packs, hats, hiking poles, and boots, but they told us to come in and then treated us as well as their more civilized guests.
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Multnomah Falls is the tallest waterfall in Oregon. It might also be the most visited.
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An easy walk along a paved trail got us a view of Multnomah Falls without people in the way,
although they were nearby.
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We took a five-mile hike to see streams, waterfalls, and green woods without so many people around.
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Keith on the trail
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Falling water and green woods
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Fairy Falls
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Wahkeena Falls
We spent the next night at the Brookside Bed & Breakfast in Hood River, where we had a big room and a friendly host. We bought Keith’s new favorite beer glass after dinner at the Double Mountain Brewery & Taproom.
Eagle Creek Trail to Tunnel Falls
Monday, August 15
On Monday we retraced our steps a little to take a longer hike on the Eagle Creek Trail. It’s an interesting trail that leads to a rather magnificent waterfall. The trail passes through a rock tunnel behind the waterfall and then along the almost vertical rock face beyond it. The part just beyond the falls isn’t for anyone with a fear of heights, although a cable attached to the rock provides some extra security (except when people are passing each other). The waterfall was our destination. We went far enough to get the best camera angles and then turned back.
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Eagle Creek Trail on the way to Tunnel Falls)
Eagle Creek Trail)
Tunnel and falls)
Looking back at the waterfall—Keith’s favorite shot, taken with his iPhone)
We couldn’t quite get a good shot of the entire waterfall from top to bottom, but here’s a
view of the top.)
Mary and Keith at a wide spot in the trailAfter the hike, we drove toward Mount Hood and spent the night at the Best Western Mt. Hood Inn.
Mount Hood
Tuesday, August 16
On Tuesday we drove to the Timberline Lodge and went in for a look. The Best Western had been fine, but the lodge would have been a step up.
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Impressive view through the back window)
It felt like a good place to stay.)
PatioAfter seeing the lodge, we hiked to Paradise Park. The scenery varied a lot; so, there are a lot of pictures.
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Still near the beginning)
On the way to Zigzag Canyon)
Mary at the overlook)
On the Paradise Loop Trail)
Mary’s favorite shot—wildflowers and mountain)
Mary likes wildflowers.)
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It seemed that we saw more rock and cinder than greenery; we just took more pictures of the greenery.
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That’s probably Mount Jefferson in the distance. All the lonely mountains you see in this region
are active volcanoes.)
A reminder that Mount Hood is a volcano)
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That’s Mount Saint Helens (topless) in the distance.)
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Through the trees (with added color saturation to correct a weak original photo))
Sitting beside the stream we had just crossed, Mary cooled her feet and replenished calories.)
Up from the canyon)
Final shot from the Zigzag Canyon OverlookAfter the hike, we drove to Bend and checked into the Holiday Inn Express. We had dinner at the Deschutes Brewery Public House.
Crater Lake
Wednesday, August 17
On Wednesday, we drove to Crater Lake National Park and started a counterclockwise loop around the lake with many stops for pictures and one hike. The color of the lake was remarkable—none of the pictures below has been adjusted, even to correct a bad exposure.
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We picked a good day to see the color of the lake.)
Wizard Island)
One of many amazing views)
From this angle, even in person, it was easy to imagine you were looking up at a deep blue sky
and not down at deep blue water.)
For our hike of the day, we chose Garfield Peak on the crater rim. We parked near the Crater Lake
Lodge and walked in to take a look before starting up the trail.)
Nearing the top, looking at people above us)
At or near the top)
At the top of Garfield Peak)
On the way down, Keith saw a view he wanted to remember and asked Mary to stop for a photo. You can get
magnificent views of the lake without hiking, but this was a hiker’s view—you had to work for
it.)
Looking back up the trail)
After Garfield, we finished the counterclockwise loop. The views from the other side weren’t quite
as good—too many trees—but Keith used the trees to frame this shot of the Ghost Ship.
After a day at Crater Lake, we spent the night at the Holiday Inn Express on the river in Roseburg.
Pacific Coast
Thursday, August 18
On Thursday we drove to Coos Bay on the Pacific coast and turned north. We made several stops for photos, including the Heceta Head Lighthouse State Scenic Viewpoint and the Cape Meares State Scenic Viewpoint, our last stop of the day.
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It was foggy at first. We could hear sea lions through the mist although we never saw them.)
As we drove, the fog dissipated.)
Heceta Head Lighthouse)
Inside the Heceta Head Lighthouse)
Devil’s Punch Bowl)
Cliffs at Cape Meares)
Cape Meares Lighthouse)
The Octopus Tree at Cape Meares)
View of the sunny sideWe spent the night at the Ashley Inn in Tillamook.
Friday, August 19
On Friday we returned to Cape Meares to get some photos in the morning light. The light wasn’t great for photos, but we had the place to ourselves, which was nice. Afterward, we continued our drive up the coast, with a stop at Ecola State Park, where we hiked the Clatsop Loop Trail and the Tillamook Lighthouse Trail.
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Cape Meares in the morning)
Offshore rocks at Cape Meares)
Zoomed in)
The Tillamook Lighthouse)
Zoomed in)
Ferns along the Lighthouse Trail)
End of the Lighthouse TrailWe spent the last night at a bed-and-breakfast in Arch Cape. It had a great location right on the beach and just a short walk from the tip of the cape. Our hosts were civil to us but nothing like our previous bed-and-breakfast stays (e.g., Hiker Hostel, Duck Roost Inn, Castlemaine Inn, Franconia Notch Guest House, Brookside B&B). In our experience, most B&B hosts treat their guests like friends or family; these guys treated us like customers. Still, everything was high-quality.
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View from the B&B)
At the tip of the capeSaturday, August 20
After breakfast outside and a few more beach photos, we drove to Portland and caught our flight home.
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Moon through the morning fog)
Arch at the cape)
A good breakfast with great sceneryOpinions
If you’re looking for things to do on vacation, Oregon offers a variety. We could go back.
We were most impressed by Tunnel Falls, Mount Hood, and Crater Lake. As we mentioned, Tunnel Falls
isn’t for anyone with a fear of heights. We were OK with it and would do that hike again. Others
look at the pictures and say, Nope.
Crater Lake was amazing, but we were lucky to see it on a clear day. We have friends and family who saw it
when it was less impressive because of cloud cover or smoke. We might not go back there, but only because it
could never be better than it was the day we saw it.