Oregon pt. 2

Day 6: 

We went to Crater Lake National Park again to drive more of the scenic rim.

 We stopped and saw “castle in the crater” which is made up of layers of pumice and volcanic ash that were sculpted by erosion. 

We also walked and saw the “pinnacles” which are tall needle like spires of volcanic rock. 

Our Airbnb host recommended we eat at Beckie's and he told us they have really good pies. I am not much of a pie person myself, but oh my yums! The  food and the pies were delicious!!! 

We then went to Umpqua national forest and saw 

Whitehorse falls which was just a short jaunt from the parking lot and Toketee falls which was almost a mile round trip. Both very pretty!

Whitehorse falls

Toketee falls

Day 7: Nothing too exciting to note about today. We drove to Eugene, Oregon which is our final stop and where our flight departs from. The part of Eugene I saw was a little sketchy. We went and saw the Owen Rose Garden which was nice to walk around. It would have probably been better in the spring when the flowers were just starting to bloom. 

We also went bowling since it was across from our accommodations for the evening. 

Since there’s nothing else of importance, Mike reminded me to tell y’all about our accommodations at Mt. Rainier.  Apparently the restaurant and lodgings are run by Ukrainians. They were very nice, but we were not informed of the Ukrainian wedding that was going on just steps away from our cabin. I literally opened the door right as the bride was walking down the aisle!! Made for a very memorable stay. 

My favorite parts from each state were:

1. The morning sunrise at Mt. Rainier with picture perfect everything. 

2. Our stay in Redmond, Oregon where we saw Smith Rock State Park and the alpacas!! 

And of course I loved being able to cross off my 50th state at the same time as my dad! Such fun memories!

STATE 50: OREGON (!!)

Day 5 (cont.)

Mom was still sick today which was unfortunate as we spent a lot of time driving!

But.. we made it to Oregon which is both my dad and I’s 50th state!!! WE DID IT!! 

50th state shirt

We crossed the border and headed to vista house at crown point. It offers panoramic views of the Colombia river gorge. 

We didn’t stay long because my mom wasn’t feeling well. We were going to go to Latourell falls and Multnomah falls, but because of my mom not feeling well and because it was super crowded we headed to our next destination: Redmond. (We were near Multnomah around noon or 1 o clock and the parking lot was full so I don’t know if we would have had much luck there anyway!) 

Had dinner at 5 below steakhouse and breakfast nook and stayed at Sleep inn and suites Redmond. 

Day 6:  Our 9th wedding anniversary!! 

Mom was feeling a little better today (yay!) so all of us went to Smith Rock State Park. This park is actually the birthplace of modern America sport climbing. There’s desert landscape, cliffs, river canyons and so much more. Definitely NOT how I pictured Oregon, but I loved it!!

I did it! 50 states!!

When we drove into town yesterday we spotted alpacas. (!!!!)  After some research I discovered Crescent Moon Ranch is Oregon’s premiere alpaca destination. What luck! And on our 9th anniversary!! Oh my goodness we spent so much time walking around and petting, feeding, and talking to all the alpacas. (Or maybe that was just me…. Mike helped a little.)  The farm is 42 acres and there are literally hundreds of alpacas!!!

We had lunch at a little place right next to the farm called Brand 44 N.

Next stop was Peter Skene Ogden state scenic viewpoint. It’s basically a little rest area with stunning views of the canyon. It reminded me of my trip just a few months ago to Idaho! 

As we drove on towards our destination we stopped at Crater Lake National Park. It’s known for the deepest and purest blue lake in the United States. 

We got our 50th state together!!

9th anniversary photo

Family photo!

There aren’t any places to stay near Crater Lake (unless you get lucky and can book the lodge inside the park) so we got an Airbnb. Of course there is nothing close to the house either except a couple restaurants and a dollar general.  We ate dinner at one of the two restaurants called El Rodeo. I don’t typically like Mexican food, but it was pretty good!

Only a couple days left in Oregon so stay tuned! 

State 49: Washington pt. 2

Day 4: Mt Rainier

Comparison photo- crappy weather day vs beautiful weather day!! 

Thankfully it was only about a 15 minute wait to get into Mt Rainier National Park! We got there around 9am (on Labor Day Monday!!) We entered via the Nisqually entrance and started with the Trail of the Shadows. Unfortunately, my mom had an upset stomach and she missed out on a lot of today. 

My dad, Mike, and I saw Christine Falls and Narada Falls, had lunch at one of the lodges, and then went to our accommodations for the evening. (We did this to get my mom settled and anyways we were having horrible weather so we couldn’t even see Mt Rainier!) 

Christine falls

Narada falls

We wanted to do paradise and reflections lake, but the weather made it yucky and blah. (Mike and I did come back later that afternoon to scope it out, but it was miserable and you couldn’t see anything!) 

Bad weather photo

Reflection lake- bad weather photo

Reflection lake- bad weather photo

Day 5: Since the weather was crappy on the previous day, Mike and I decided to wake up early and get to the park around sunrise. (6:37am!) Mom still wasn’t feeling well and Dad doesn’t like to wake up early so it was just the two of us. OH MY GOODNESS !! What a difference a day (and change in weather) makes !!

Only one car in front of us at the entry and then we headed straight for paradise. The views were amazing and it was right at sunrise so the lighting was perfection! 

We got some great shots! We then drove down towards reflection lake when we saw something in the road.. it was a bear!!! I have never seen a bear in real life before other than at the zoo. I was ECSTATIC!!

Meanwhile my window got stuck in the halfway position as the bear casually strolled by my door. 

Reflection lake was phenomenal !! So beautiful !!

 It was such a great morning and we were probably out of the park by 8am! (Original plan did not involve going back a second day, but due to weather we just had to!)  
Stay tuned for the rest of day 5 and the start of a new blog post: STATE 50- OREGON!!!!!