2016-09-01 - Jack and Amys Oregon Vacation - Day 5

Jack and Amy's 2016 Oregon Vacation

Day 5
The Oregon Coast
from Reedsport to Lincoln City

Thursday, September 1st, 2016

The Oregon Coast

Amy and I were both really looking forward to the Oregon Coast Part of our Trip.  Because of this we didn't plan any stops along the way from Prospect to the Coast.

Our Drive for the day

As a result we arrived at the coast earlier than expected giving us just about the whole day to explore from Reedsport to Lincoln City where we would be staying for the next two nights.

Our first stop was a slight detour to the south to check out the Umpqua River Lighthouse.  This turned out to be the most unimpressive and unphotogenic lighthouse that I have ever seen.  Fortunately things would get much better than this!

The Umpqua River Lighthouse

Next up was the Oregon Dunes Recreation Area.  We only saw a small area of the Oregon Sand Dunes, but what we saw really wasn't much different than some of the beaches we have back in the Carolinas!  It was still great to get our first taste of the Pacific Ocean!

The Oregon Dunes

 Amy at the Oregon Dunes

Continuing our drive north the scenery got much more interesting!  Plus there was a really cool fog rolling in and out!

view from a Roadside Overlook looking down at the Sea Lion Caves

view from a Roadside Overlook near the Sea Lion Caves

I probably would have passed on the Sea Lion Caves because it seemed a bit touristy for my tastes, but since it was one of the places that Amy wanted to see I caved in!

 The Sea Lion Caves

 Amy posing with some Sea Lions

Even though we didn't see any Sea Lions in the caves, I am glad we decided to go.  The caves were really neat and we also got a great view of the Heceta Head Lighthouse that you can't get from anywhere else!  Also, since it was mid-week, it was not overly crowded!

Inside the Sea Lion Caves

View of the Heceta Head Lighthouse from the Sea Lion Caves

Me at the Sea Lion Caves 

View of the Heceta Head Lighthouse from the Sea Lion Caves

 Amy at the Sea Lion Caves

After the Sea Lion Caves we continued our drive north stopping at a few more roadside overlooks and beach access areas.

The Oregon Coast

The Oregon Coast

Our next stop was at the Cape Perpetua Scenic Area where I did a little two mile hike incorporating  some interesting features like Cook's Chasm, Thor's Well, The Spouting Horn, and the Devil's Churn.

 Cape Perpetua Trail Sign

 

  Thor's Well at Cape Perpetua

 Cape Perpetua

The Devil's Churn at Cape Perpetua

To tide us over until dinner, we stopped for an afternoon snack (and a flight of beer) at the Yachats Brewery

Enjoying a Flight at the Yachats Brewery

Our final stop along our drive to Lincoln City was Seal Rocks which turned out to be a very cool spot!

 Seal Rocks

Seagulls at Seal Rocks 

 Amy at Seal Rocks

 Seal Rocks

 Seal Rocks

Amy at Seal Rocks

We arrived at our accommodations in Lincoln City, unpacked, and got settled in.

It had started raining (our first rain of the week), but after spending most of the day in the car, we decided to walk to dinner in the rain.  The Rusty Truck Brewery was less than a half mile up the road from where we were staying.  This one turned out to be my favorite of all the breweries we visited during our trip!

 The first rain of our week!  Fortunately we found a Brewery to Dry off at!

 Enjoying a flight at the Rust Truck Brewing Company

Based on the weather conditions, I really wasn't expecting much in the way of a sunset.  However, when we arrived back at our Condo and stepped out on the Balcony, the sky exploded with color!

Lincoln City Sunset (from our Balcony)

I decided to head on down to the beach for a different perspective and some evening twilight photos.

It was a beautiful day along the Oregon Coast!

The Complete Set of Photos from Day 5 of our Oregon Vacation is posted here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/8146392@N05/albums/72157672724141212

2016-08-31 - Jack and Amys Oregon Vacation - Day 4

Jack and Amy's 2016 Oregon Vacation

Day 4
Crater Lake National Park

Wednesday, August 31st, 2016

Crater Lake Panorama

Day 4 of our Oregon Vacation would be dedicated to exploring Crater Lake National Park!

Our plan was to drive the Rim Drive in a clockwise direction around the lake stopping at overlooks and doing a few hikes along they way.

Here are a few shots from various overlook areas near Rim Village and along the West Rim Drive.

 view of Wizard Island  at Crater Lake

Amy at Crater Lake

 

Crater Lake

 Crater Lake

 Me at Crater Lake

 Wizard Island at Crater Lake

Crater Lake

My first hike of the day was along the Cleetwood Cove Trail.  Almost every trail in the park stays at least 1,000 feet above the lake.  The Cleetwood Cove Trail is the only safe and legal way to actually get down to the lake.   Since I really wanted to dip my feet into Crater Lake this trail was on my must hike list!

The Cleetwood Cove Trailhead Sign

Crater Lake from the end of the Cleetwood Cove Trail

Crater Lake from the end of the Cleetwood Cove Trail

The Cleetwood Cove Trail is also a required hike if you want to take any of the Crater Lake boat tours.  We elected to skip the boat tour since I would rater be hiking than sitting on a boat.  Plus the boat provides absolutely no shade, and neither Amy or I like to spend that much time in the direct sun!

 One of the Crater Lake Boat Tours

Next up would be the Mount Scott hike, the longest and most strenuous of the day.  The 2.5 miles (5.0 mile round trip) Mount Scott Trail gains 1,200 feet of elevation on the way to the highest point inside Crater Lake National Park.

 The Mount Scott Trail Sign

View from Near the Summit

Almost There!

View of Crater Lake from the Summit of Mount Scott

This guy was enjoying the summit as well

view from the Summit of Mount Scott

After my hike to Mount Scott, we continued on the Rim Drive stopping at a few more roadside overlooks.

Crater Lake

The Pumice Castle

 Crater Lake

The next hike on my list was Plaikni Falls an easy mile long hike (two miles out and back) to a pretty little waterfall. 

Plaikni Falls Trailhead Sign

Plaikni Falls

Plaikni Falls

Next up would be the 0.4 mile (0.8 mile out and back) hike to the Pinnacles Overlook.  The Pinnacles are fossil fumaroles formed when volcanic gases rise through layers of volcanic ash, cementing the ash into solid rock.

The Pinnacles

My final hike inside Crater Lake National Park would be the Sun Point Loop, an easy mile long trail with several nice views of Crater Lake including a close up view of "The Phantom Ship"

 Sun Notch Trailhead

view of Crater Lake from the Sun Notch Loop

Closeup view of The Phantom Ship

Our next stop was the roadside view of Vidae Falls.  I didn't bother taking out the tripod for this one:

 Vidae Falls

 Vidae Falls

Since there are very limited places to each between Crater Lake and Prospect, OR we decided for an early dinner inside the park at the Annie Creek Restaurant in Mazama Village.  The food was excellent and reasonably priced!

When we returned to the Katydid Ranch in Prospect, OR Amy was ready to relax with her book for the rest of the evening.  But since there was still daylight remaining, I decided to check out Lost Creek Lake about 10 minutes from the ranch

 Lost Creek Lake

After spending the day at Crater Lake, it would be hard for any lake to really make an impression, but Lost Creek Lake was rather pretty and had some interesting features.

 Skeleton Tree Roots at Lost Creek Lake

 The Lost Creek Lake Marina

The rest of the evening was spent hanging out at the ranch with Amy and the Horses!

A friendly horse at the Katydid Ranch

The Complete set of photos from Day 4 of our Oregon Vacation is posted here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/8146392@N05/albums/72157670502930243