INLAND OREGON, HERE WE COME!

BYE BYE COASTAL HIGHWAY!

Well, we headed inland, with SO much more of Oregon to see!

First stop, Silverton, Oregon!

We stayed at a great campground called Silver Spur RV Park…

After we set up for the day, i noticed a lot of HEAVY smoke behind us!  I wondered if there was a big fire since there have been lots of them out here in the Northwest!  We found out later that it was controlled burning of the crops after they had been harvested…it was scary to me until I found that out.  Look at the pictures and see if you agree!

The first day we decided just to go and explore the little town of Silverton!  It was great!  One of the things they are “famous” for is the story of BOBBIE THE WONDER DOG! (yes, just like our friend on the trip with us – Bobbi!). Bobbie was a 2-year-old Scotch Collie mix from Silverton.  In August of 1923, The Brazier family took Bobbie on a road trip to Wolcott, Indiana.  Local dogs chased Bobbie away from a gas station, and the family could not find him despite an exhaustive search!  Heartbroken, they returned to their home in Silverton, Oregon without him.  SIX MONTHS LATER…Bobbie reappeared on the family’s doorstep in Silverton!!! His Paws were worn down to the bone, and he was scrawny and dirty!

This was confirmed by the Oregon Humane Society – Bobbie walked at least 2,551 miles – and potentially up to 3,000 miles! He crossed plains, deserts, and the freezing Continental Divide during the dead of winter!  Letters from farmers along the route later proved he had accepted food and brief shelter from strangers as he traveled west!

Bobbie received hundreds of letters from around the world, medals, a jewel-studded collar, and a custom doghouse called “Bobbie’s Castle”.  In Silverton, his legendary journey is still celebrated with a large downtown mural, a statue, and a replica of his doghouse!

After that, we decided to look around the town, and then drive out to a covered bridge called the Gallon House Bridge – it’s one of the oldest bridges in Oregon

IMG_1067

Silverton also has a farmers market every Saturday from May – October – guess what? We were there on a Saturday!  So off we headed! It was great and we bought some delicious produce!

The plan for the day was a hike to see two waterfalls…little did we know the hike would just about kill us! Haha – the hike was at Silver Falls State Park, and it is a beautiful park – it’s the largest and most popular state park in Oregon – it is known for its trail of ten waterfalls! Our plan was to hike to two waterfalls – South Falls and Lower South Falls.  The round trip was almost 3 miles, but what we DIDN’T realize was the steep downhill to the falls…which meant we had to come back up!!!!!  Down to the falls was mostly steps – over a hundred for sure!  And then after hiking to both falls, we had to get back up to the top where we started!  WOW!  For almost 70 year olds, we did great if I do say so myself!  We took our time and stopped when we had to!  IT was worth the trip for sure!  The waterfalls were amazing – and the trail has you walking behind them! What an amazing view!

Enjoy the photos and videos!

 

!

HERE ARE SOME VIDEOS – ENJOY THE SOUND OF THE WATER FALLING!

dji_mimo_20260829_110816_20260829110816_1788039738451_video

IMG_2505

IMG_1094

After a picnic lunch at the park, we headed back to the campground for dinner and a relaxing night – we deserved it!

Our next destination was PROSPECT, Oregon and the Crater Lake Big Rig RV Park – I love that name!  The park is nestled in the woods, with pine trees everywhere – it might be our favorite park so far on this trip!

One of the full timers here does wood carvings, and they are placed in different areas of the campground – it was so fun to discover them as we walked around the park.

We had another full two days planned, so here goes…

After setting up the trailers, we headed off to…another waterfall!  This was an easier walk, but unfortunately you couldn’t get a great view of the falls…we tried, and here they are!

On the way to the falls, we crossed a bridge over a gorge with the most spectacular waterfalls  – who knew!?  Another beautiful sight we were blessed to see!

LISTEN!…

IMG_1192

IMG_2607

IMG_2610

Another delicious dinner at the campground – Bobbi made spaghetti and we enjoyed the night amongst the pine trees and then had a great night’s sleep in the trailer!

Tomorrow…CRATER LAKE!

I have to say…we were all so excited about Crater Lake because of the videos Leonard and I had watched!  The drive from our campground to Crater Lake was BEAUTIFUL – through the forests, around windy roads, climbing higher and higher as you approach the lake! And then!

Spectacular!!!!!  We all just got quiet because we were in such awe of what we were seeing! The water is the bluest water I have ever seen, and the lake is huge!  We got out of the truck and walked over to the viewpoint and just stood there, staring at its beauty! There are so many overlooks all around the rim of the lake, and one view is better than the other!

Crater Lake was formed  about 7,700 years ago when a volcanic mountain – Mount Mazama – collapsed.  It is fed entirely by rain and snowmelt, with no rivers flowing in or out, making it one of the clearest and purest water bodies!  It is the deepest lake in the United States – the deepest area being 1,949 feet!!

There were two hikes that we had on our agenda – one was easy and one wasn’t! guess which one we did? NOT the easy one!

We hiked the Watchman Peak Overlook Trail – It is a 1.6 round trip hike, that goes up to an unmatched view of the entire lake –  it doesn’t sound bad when you write it on paper – 1.6 miles is not that long.  UNLESS the whole hike is uphill! It’s a 420 foot elevation gain, and wow, it was a workout!  At the top is a fire tower that is no longer in use, and the view is unbelievable!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If you look closely, you will see the tower at the top of this mountain! This is where we went!

Here are a few videos that show the hike – the last three are the best – reaching the top!

dji_mimo_20260831_113736_20260831113737_1788223366461_video

dji_mimo_20260831_113714_20260831113715_1788223367482_video

dji_mimo_20260831_114204_20260831114205_1788223364574_video

dji_mimo_20260831_115234_20260831115233_1788223359679_video

dji_mimo_20260831_120450_20260831120451_1788223354731_video

dji_mimo_20260831_120450_20260831120451_1788223354731_video

dji_mimo_20260831_120450_20260831120451_1788223354731_video

The parking lot below is where our truck was parked!

We are all so proud of ourselves for doing this hike at our age! It feels so good to accomplish something that is difficult and when you get the reward of the view we had, it makes it all worth it!

 

After hiking, we found a great picnic area and had a much deserved lunch!  There were birds around us, and we decided to put some food at the end of out table to see if they would come eat it, like they did after our jet boat ride! We were so surprised!

The LAST video is hilarious because there were three cheetos on the table, and instead of eating one of those, the bird came towards me!  it was actually terrifying!

IMG_2694

IMG_2696

IMG_2698

IMG_2695

What a great day!!!!  After pulling ourselves away from the lake and the views, we headed back to the campground – did some laundry – and decided we deserved dinner out instead of cooking!  Haha – there is a little restaurant near our campground called Beckie’s café and we heard great things about it – their specialty is pie! (I KNOW that’s not dinner, but so what!?!)

 

What a cute place it is! We had a great dinner and of course, pie! (except for me – I don’t like fruit pies so I got a scoop of ice cream!)  Here is how the others felt about the pie…

Before going back for the night, we had to see ONE MORE thing!  Right near the restaurant is the Natural Bridge – there was just a little bit of daylight left, so we headed off to find it…WOW! WOW! WOW!  As soon as we got out of the truck, we could hear the rush of the water, so we knew it was close.  After a short walk, we found the water!!!!!

I am not going to try to explain it, because I can’t do it justice!  What a great ending to a great day!  Again, enjoy the sound of the rushing water!

dji_mimo_20260831_194046_20260831194046_1788233538048_video dji_mimo_20260831_194102_20260831194103_1788233536225_video dji_mimo_20260831_194732_20260831194731_1788233527333_video

Tomorrow we head to Bend, Oregon!  There is so much to do there and we are excited to investigate a new place!  Thanks as always for coming along on our journey!

UNTIL NEXT TIME…