Early Signs of Spring ~

Yesterday, it hailed here in the Rogue Valley.  Just when everything is bursting back to life, Mother Nature reminds us that she is in control.  But as we start to dust off and ready ourselves for the 2014 season, we are surrounded by some of the finest offerings of early spring.  It's a beautiful time to visit Ashland.

Lake of the Woods ~

Just an hour from Ashland you'll find beautiful Lake of the Woods.  It's an easy drive, just head north on Hwy 5 - exit at Crater Lake Hwy - and then watch for Hwy 140 toward Klamath Falls.  It's a pretty drive though green valleys with majestic Mt. McLoughlin ever present.  

Just recently, a family staying with us asked for a suggestion as to where they could go to get in the water and splash around in an attempt to cool off from the baking summer heat.  We sent them to Lake of the Woods and they loved it! 

The resort has been in operation for 91 years - they have cabins available for rent and a camp ground

The lodge restaurant and bar

The back deck is a great place to have lunch and enjoy the view

Yummy!

The view from the lodge deck

Marina and boat launch

 

The Umpqua Scenic Byway - Stop #7

Glide, a blink of a town and near the end of the Umpqua Scenic Byway and our 7th and last stop on our day trip.  Well, technically, dinner in Roseburg was our last stop, but this was the last nature stop of the day.  Because we only had the one day, we did not even begin to see everything along the byway.  We missed a lot of falls and other great sites, but we covered a lot of territory and enjoyed a beautiful day.  I think it gives us a reason to make the trip again, perhaps heading in the opposite direction this time?  If you are in the area, never miss the opportunity to take the Umpqua Scenic Byway.  It is a prime example of mother nature at her finest! 

Have you ever seen two rivers collide?

The Little River and the North Umpqua River come together.

The Little River is coming in from the left side of the photo.  I don't think it is as dramatic in the summer months when the rivers are rushing their banks.  Apparently, in the winter months and/or spring run-off you'll see the great collide.

See the guy standing (on the left) on top of the rocks?

See the c-r-a-z-y guy about half way through his jump into the river?

See the c-r-a-z-y guy who lived to swim to shore?

Pretty!

Thanks for coming along on this beautiful adventure!  You never know what's around the next bend when you're taking a drive and that's the very best part of a road trip, don't you think?!

The Umpqua Scenic Byway - Stop #6

Stop #6, Watson Falls, was a highlight of the day, no doubt about it! Definitely a "must see" stop for anyone in the area.  Sixteen miles west of Diamond Lake, Watson Falls is reportedly the 3rd tallest falls in Oregon.  The trail takes one fairly close to the base of the falls, actually you are almost "aside" the falls by the time you reach the end of the trail.  Although at times it felt a bit longer, the trail is less than a mile, 0.6 so the internet tells me.  It was an easy climb, didn't leave me winded.  

The trail was however, a series of switchbacks through the very green and lush forest.  Sometimes my mind wanders to the strangest places and as we were climbing the trail Daniel Day Lewis and Madeline Stowe suddenly popped in to my head!  Even though the move (The Last of the Mohicans) is graphically violent, it is full of awesome moments. Who can forget Daniel Day Lewis standing behind the waterfall telling Madeline Stowe to "Stay Alive!"  "I will find you!"  I mean please, does it get any better?  

I was going to show you the infamous waterfall scene, but click here and see what I found much to my dismay.  You'll just have to trust that the surrounding forest reminded me greatly of  Hawkeye's trek through the forest to "find her!"

This stone is near the parking area, but you actually have to cross the road to access the trail.

Here we go!

Smile for the self-timer!

First glimpse of the falls!

So pretty!

I'm pretty sure Hawkeye is just around the corner... but hopefully not the bad guys. Yikes!

Right through the trunk of the tree.

As high as we can climb.  Interestingly, there is no pool of water at the base of the falls.

Through the trees.

Beautiful!

Not done yet, next stop coming up!

The Umpqua Scenic Byway - Stops #3, 4, and 5

There is no way we could travel Hwy 62 and not make a stop (#3) at Beckie's Cafe.  If you're a follower of this blog, you know about Beckie's.  This time though, we were ready for lunch and so we took a big step beyond ordering pie and we sat ourselves down in a cozy wooden booth and ordered burgers, salad and fries.  Yum-o!  Yes, of course we ordered pie to go. Silly question. Huckleberry Pie, which was amazing!

I also took just a moment to take a seat in what I believe must have been Paul Bunyan's chair.  Getting in was easy, just slide back.  Getting out, well, that took a helpful hand!

Paul Bunyan's chair!

Moving on down the road we witnessed the Pacific Northwest at it's most stunning!  We started to see this incredibly HUGE mountain in front of us. I don't believe we've ever seen such a sight!  Take a look at Mt. Theilsen! Stop #4.

Elevation - 9,184 ft.

Stopped erupting 250,000 years ago.

Spectacular!

And in the same vicinity is Diamond Lake, stop #5, which looked beautiful from our roadside viewing area.  Because it was getting late in the afternoon and we wanted to make a couple of more "must see" stops, we opted not to drive down to the shores of Diamond Lake.  We will return another day.

Diamond Lake

Next up, stop #6 at Watson Falls!

The Umpqua Scenic Byway - Stop #2

Stop #2 on our exploration of the Umpqua Scenic Byway is the Natural Bridge interpretive site.  There is a paved parking lot, informational maps, facilities and picnic tables all making for a nice place to stop.  There is a paved trail, very easy to walk, that follows the Rogue River to the natural bridge.  You may be thinking you need to spot a bridge at this point, but it's not really what you're looking for.  Instead, the "bridge" is a massive bed of lava rock where the rivers disappears.  The water flows through an underground lava tube and shoots out further down river.  It is mother nature at her finest, creating such wonders!

The paved trail ends but if one is so inclined you can continue to hike the dirt trail to the Rogue River Gorge, or simply turn around and follow the path back to the parking lot. 

An overview of the area.

For those who need to learn a bit more!

The start of the trail.

The first overlook.

The mighty Rogue!

An information placard at the Inlet overview along the trail.

The river disappearing in to the rocks!

Where's the river?!

There it is!

The Umpqua Scenic Byway - Stop #1

Recently, we had the opportunity to take a day off, something that rarely happens during high season, but sometimes the universe intervenes and we jumped at the chance to spend a day embracing Mother Nature.  We've been wanting to explore a bit more of Oregon and the Umpqua Scenic Byway provided us with a glorious day of being on the road.

Our first stop was just about 45 minutes from home, Mill Creek Falls Scenic Area.  Had we paid better attention to this huge map in the parking area, we would not have taken a couple of wrong turns, but we eventually found our way to the falls and it was well-worth the extra steps. 

Must remember to read the map before hitting the trail!

The start of the trail.

Does a tree make noise when it falls if there is no one to hear it?

Moss

Our first glimpse of the falls!

A few steps closer!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nxSXjhk5Keo

It's me!

So pretty!

Stop #2 coming along soon so stay tuned!