These adventures actually took place over a week and a half ago. As you will find out in posts to come I have had an extra busy last week with several different people visiting and all sorts of travels. I joined a group from my apartment for a couple days as we hiked and camped all around the area. We started off one evening with a hike up to the top of Carpenter Mountain which is actually one of the two main peaks in the HJ Andrews Forest. The photo above is taken from a meadow part way up, it reminds of the Blue Ridge Mountains back east.
This is looking up towards the lookout and fire monitering station at the summit, there was still a lot of snow to hike through on the way.
The summit offered a beautiful 360 view of the surrounding land including the Three Sisters to the east.
This is Wolf Rock just outside of the Andrews Forest boundary. I have been told it is the second largest rock monolith in Oregon, truly a sight to behold.
A view of a snow covered field near the top appears very much like a glacier with the flowing rivulets where runoff is channeled giving the sense of movement to the entire pack of snow.
That weekend we headed east through the McKenzie Pass towards the towns of Sisters and Bend. Above I snapped a photo of stand of trees in a gigantic plot that had been burned leaving behind an army of skeleton-like trees.
We pulled over for an unparalleled view of Mt. Washington.
A rock lizard I found near the turnout.
The town of Sisters was great. I am guessing there is a town building code for "Western" themed architecture (or at least facades) as the whole place felt like a step back in time. On the far end of town we caught sight of this sign and just had to pull in.
The landscape changed drastically as soon as we neared Sisters. It is really amazing actually feeling and seeing the effects of the rain shadow on the environment. One moment we are in one of the heaviest rainfall areas in North America, and then forty minutes later we are in an arid semi-desert environment. The flat, open agriculture and ranch fields near the road allowed for wonderful views of the mountains for extended periods of time.
We camped for the night along the Metolius River. I went for an great run on a stretch of singletrack which meandered along the bank of the river for miles and miles. Only about a half mile walk from our campsite though was a magnificent spring. I have never seen anything like it. It was virtually a waterfall that just came out of the ground. It was an unbelievable amount of water and we were told that this one spring alone makes up for at least 20% of the river's water.
Wildflower #34: A Douglass Lily, these are remarkable little flowers. The bright orange petals curl backwards creating an appearance my mother refers to as a "Jack-O-Lantern" look, very neat.
Our campsite right along the river.
Wildflower #35: These yellow flowers with monstrous pubescent (fuzzy) leaves grow in tight groups all around the arid Ponderosa Pine stands east of the Cascades. I call this one Sarah Flower because my girlfriend Sarah Thomas (her visit will be in a later post!) was fond of these.
A little climb up a slope was rewarded by views of a wonderful sunset, clear skies, and glorious peaks.
The Three Sisters at sunset.
The next day we took a locals advice and drove down to hike a trail south of the town of Sisters. Much different from trekking I had done earlier in the summer in moist, lush forest, this hike was much more like hiking in a desert.
After less than a mile the trail wound along a cliff with views of the valley below.
Again, the Three Sisters. This time from almost exactly the opposite view as Carpenter Mountain.
The trail then hugged a very fast moving creek which looked delightful after so much time under the sun. However, this pure snow melt creek was 38 degrees so no swimming took place.
Where we stopped for lunch, a pretty stand of Ponderosa Pines. Just minutes before a member of our group spotted an antelope but I was unable to get a photo.
On the way back we neared the creek again. You could clearly see where the water rose higher earlier in the spring. The rocks were carved into beautifully smooth sculptures displaying the effects of uncountable years of erosion.
Near the end of the trail I dared to try to wade in a little, but the severe temperatures of the creek made it unbearable for even a minute. My feet began to tighten and cramp after only seconds underwater.
On the way home we made a stop at this fun ice cream shop which had magnificent views of the Sisters from the seating area. Good ice cream too!
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