Unexpected Couple’s Getaway

I’m sort of a believer in karma, so having great things happen always makes me want to hurry up and find more ways to be really, really good.

Pat and I (okay, really just me) had built a few extra days into our schedule to allow for whatever may come post-wedding.   A few months ago, before the honeymoon was planned, Laurel had mulled over the idea of having a week-long friend gathering after the ceremony.   I got into “make-room-for-anything-to-happen” mode and never got out.

As wedding activities drew to a close on Sunday, we were faced  with the challenge of deciding which of our many, many Northwest friends we should fill our free days with.   We love them all, and like children in a candy store, we were having a terrible time trying to chose.   When I told Laurel about the dilemma, she came up with a brand new solution, “Why don’t you just stay here and think about it?”

Laurel’s parents are really wonderful people — smart, funny, engaging, interested, talented, friendly — so we were excited  to stay and hang out with them and help wrap up the rest of the wedding chores.   We had “whistle-while-you-work” kind of day.   Nothing seems like a burden under the canopy of sweet-smelling ponderosas  alongside the crystal-clear sunny river.

After Rhonda and Dave headed back to Portland on Monday, I started to chip away at the number one thing weighing on my mind over the past few months.   Say it with me now”¦ “Catching up with my blog!”   With a few days of nothingness ahead and no internet access or ringing phones to distract me, suddenly I saw the light at the end of the tunnel!   After they left, I buckled down and started knocking-out entries left and right.   Suddenly, I went from being a month behind to two weeks behind.

We launched the blue canoe and lazed  our way down the river, greeting other folks out for a paddle.   We made our way up a fun inlet where we canoed  right up to the water gushing out of the ground.   It was great!   Because of the late hour, we turned around where Spring River flows into the Deschutes River (the main water source through this part of Oregon).   Before docking, we paddled as far as we could under the footbridge upstream.   It was great!   That evening, after a dinner of delightful leftovers, including fresh Alaska smoked salmon, we took off on a hike down the Forest Service road.

I was surprised  to see how far Laurel and I had run days before: I guess the scenery doesn’t register when you’re trying to keep up and avoid mosquitoes!   We came around a corner and saw a huge rock in the middle of a side road.   As we got closer, we realized it was a bird.   Closer still, a gorgeous adult owl came into view.   So majestic to watch it and see it finally fly into the trees!   Another hike highlight: all the tiny tracks in the ancient volcano dust.   For the longest time I thought they had to be baby bobcats, but there were just so many.   Finally the most adorable little froggies you’ve ever seen caught my eye, diligently making their way across the chasms and mounds of dust in the road toward the water.   Cute!

It was luxurious to lie in bed and read the next morning with the trees sunbathing just outside our second story window.   After a long blog session I was finally just a few days behind and ready for a serious canoe trip.   This time we paddled straight to the confluence, hoping we weren’t biting off more than we could chew.   It was a tense thirty seconds before we claimed a small victory over the Deschutes current.   It was strong, but couldn’t beat our consistent paddling.   We had our moments, what with an impatient, demanding, former rafting guide in the engine room, and a greenhorn in the driver’s seat.   However, we made it to the bridge where most boaters put-in (the goal) and beyond.   To our dismay we later discovered just a bit farther upstream the Little Deschutes joined the main — a whole other playground awaits!   Guess we have to save *something* for next time.

When we sat down that afternoon to plan our exodus the next day, I learned that Pat has still never been to Crater Lake.   I’ve been so many times, I can never fathom that there’s anyone who hasn’t.   We added it to the agenda, and then started thinking about other sights  we might squeeze in.   We missed out on the trips to the lava sights  near the cabin on account of our wedding exhaustion, so we started gathering info so we could pick the best one.   As the list of possibilities grew, we lamented the fact that  we’d missed out on so much.   Then we started asking ourselves when we’d have another chance.   Then we convinced ourselves that we’d be crazy not to put off responsibilities just one more teeny-tiny day while we appreciated more of the area’s natural history.   Then we decided to get a jump start on our list and headed out to catch Benham Falls before sunset!

The following day was for sure, definitely our last day in paradise.   First we checked out the Lava Tubes in the Lave Cast Forest — a fun one-mile loop where lava flow poured through 6,000 years ago.   The lava river built up on the upstream side of trees and hardened before the trees burned away, leaving tubes to the bottom of the flow.   Neat!

Then we went to the visitor’s center to answer the many questions we’d been asking each other about surrounding volcanic activity.   There we learned that pumice is the only volcanic product that floats, the end-product of lava flows depends on the amount of silica and gas in the magma, and the “dust” we’d hiked through the other night was ash from when Crater Lake (formerly Mount Mazama) erupted 7,700 years ago.   We also got a “fast-pass” for the Lava Butte Overlook (limited parking).   With over an hour to go before it was our turn, we decided to squeeze in the Lava River Cave.

I would not, for your information, recommend “squeezing” in the cave.   It’s too big, and there are too many tourists.   But we did it!   At the sight of the “lanterns for rent” sign, I cursed the fact that all our sources of light were sitting on the cabin counter instead of in the car where they belonged.   We didn’t know what to expect, so we thought we’d try our luck with the light giving devices we did have.   I won’t embarrass myself by telling what they were.   Suffice to say they were insufficient.   Pat rescued us by hitting up an outgoing group for use of their lantern.   For a few dollars we got the grand view!   Cave highlights were the place it passes under the highway (fun to think about), the sand gardens, the echo chamber, the double tube, and the terminus where the ceiling shrinks and some 1930’s men dug a passage.

We raced out of the cave to make our Lava Butte time with two minutes to spare.   The view was incredible as we walked around the edge of the cinder cone — Mt. Bachelor loomed in the distance with South Sister, Broken Top, Middle Sister, and North Sister hot on its tail.

Maniacs that we are, we decided we could still make it to the Newberry Crater.   Some tense navigational moments delivered us pretty efficiently to one of the crater’s gorgeous obsidian flows.   We enjoyed the lake views from the pinnacle of the hike and took cheesy photos among the huge, light pumice stones and captivating black glass.

After a stop at the falls, it was finally time for dinner.   We restocked at the Sunriver Country Store, then made an amazing quinoa/veggie/peanut curry.   We ate hunched over a map while making a research outline for our future travel plans.

In the morning, we enjoyed breakfast in the sunshine on the dock, did the post-wedding cabin deep clean, and headed off to Crater Lake.   I’ve always been with a different person, and often in the winter in 10-20 feet of snow.   For the first time, I hiked down to the bottom with Pat.   We spent a luxurious afternoon diving into the pristine waters and cliff jumping (Pat).

It’s a bit scary even just swimming when you can see all the way to the bottom (50 to 70 feet!) – better than any tropical destination I’ve ever visited!   If you’re afraid of heights, a panic attack would be in order.   Jumping from the cliff, a 30 foot jump easily looks like a hundred.   It was the perfect end to our glorious mini-vacation.   Then we were off to Arcata to see my CASA kid, catch up with electronic/internet chores, visit friends, and research the next leg of our journey!