Columbia River Gorge - Portland OR

RATING: ♦♦♦♦♦

We made last minute plans for a two-day stay at the Columbia River RV Park in northeast Portland. We were looking forward to full hookups so we could do our laundry. We weren’t expecting to do any sightseeing on this stop, since we’ll be back through this area in a couple of weeks when we’ll be able to stay longer. But after we checked into the campground, the sun came out, and it was a perfect day to explore.

It was a 35 minute drive along the Columbia River to Vista House, which is a small museum and memorial to Oregon pioneers. The site is situated on a rocky promontory, 733 feet above the river, overlooking the Columbia Gorge. The views are spectacular.

While at Vista House, we stopped to talk to a group of young people who were headed to Multnomah Falls. Again, we weren’t planning to do much sightseeing, but it sounded like the falls were pretty close, so we went for it.

Our drive took us along the Historic Columbia River Highway scenic route. There are many beautiful waterfalls along the highway, but because it was getting late in the afternoon, and we especially wanted to see Multnomah Falls, we stopped at only one falls along the way, which was Bridal Veil.

Bridal Veil Falls was a short walk from the highway, but steep downhill. It is very pretty and well worth the hike down and back up. We’re glad we stopped.

But then we arrived at Multnomah Falls, and were blown away by how magnificent it is! The falls is the tallest in Oregon, 620 feet high. The land surrounding the falls was developed in the early twentieth century and includes paved pathways, viewing bridge, and lodge.

The falls attract over two million visitors each year, making it the most-visited natural recreation site in the Pacific Northwest.

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Newberry National Volcanic Monument - Deschutes National Forest OR

RATING: ♦♦♦♦

Newberry Volcano National Monument was designated to protect the area around Newberry Volcano in central Oregon, just south of Bend. The monument lies within the boundaries of the Deschutes National Forest, which is managed by the U.S. Forest Service. It’s called a “monument”, but it is actually over 50,000 acres of natural wonders including lakes, lava flows, and other geologic features unique to the region.

Fun fact: In July 1966, twenty-two astronauts trained here for upcoming Moon landings. Apparently, this area resembles the moon.

There are four primary visitor destinations: Lava Butte, Lava River Cave, Lava Cast Forest, and Newberry Caldera. We visited Lava Butte and Newberry Caldera.

Lava Butte

There is a system of small cinder cones on the northwest flank of the massive Newberry Volcano which rises to the southeast. The Lava Butte cinder cone volcano rises 500 feet above the visitor center. We drove to the top via the steep, narrow road that circles the cone. From there, we could look down into the crater or view the surrounding mountains.

Newberry Caldera

Newberry is an active volcano, the largest in the Cascade Volcanic Arc when its lava flows are taken into account. From north to south, the volcano has a length of 75 miles and a width of 27 miles. The volcano contains a large caldera, or cauldron-like hollow that can form when a magma chamber collapses after a volcanic eruption.

Over time, Newberry Caldera filled up with water that created two lakes, Paulina Lake and East Lake. Visitors have access to boating, hiking, camping, and many other summer and winter activities.

We hiked a one-mile interpretive trail to the really cool Big Obsidian Flow, which is a massive lava flow of obsidian and pumice. It covers about one square mile. Obsidian is a dark, natural glass, formed when lava cools without crystallizing. It has been used for pottery and arrowheads.

Our last stop was the Paulina Falls Trail to see the double waterfall.

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Crater Lake National Park - Klamath County OR

RATING: ♦♦♦♦

Crater Lake National Park was on our list of places to see along our route through Oregon. All the pictures we had seen made the lake look so beautiful, blue and sunshiney.

But it seems we arrived in the area a little too early in the season. It was cold and snowy when we visited in mid-May, with about 10 feet of snow remaining on the ground from the winter. In order to see the crater, we had to either climb up the drifts that surrounded the lake or climb up the stairs in the visitor’s center to the second floor and look out the window.

Nevertheless, Crater Lake was worth the visit. At 1,949 feet deep, it is the deepest lake in the United States. It was formed around 5700 BC, when Mount Mazama collapsed into itself during a tremendous volcanic eruption, losing 2,500 to 3,500 feet in height. The eruption formed a large caldera that was filled in about 740 years, forming what is now known as Crater Lake, a beautiful lake with a deep blue hue.

The caldera rim ranges in elevation from 7,000 to 8,000 feet, and the lake surface is at 6,178 feet. The lake has no streams or rivers flowing into or out of it. All water that enters the lake comes from rain or snowfall.

It was an interesting drive through the park and up the mountain. We made a quick stop at a road marker that overlooked a deep river valley with cool rock formations.

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