Day 4: Shasta City to Bend, OR

July 2nd, 2014

I got to watch the sun's first rays strike Mount Shasta as I had my coffee and muffins at the nearby McDonald's. Truckers around me had used the back parking lot as their camp site; many were hauling logs. People were already buzzing around, since I was so close to the interstate, and got on it to head north a short distance before getting off at Weed, CA to take US97 into Oregon.

"Enjoy Weed, California!" said one sign as I drove through the small logging town. Logs are still processed here in the outskirts of town.

I was now getting excited, knowing I was approaching an area I had never been in before. US97 skirted the north end of the Shasta mountain range, and the view of the mountain was more grandiose here from the northeast. I pulled into a forest service road that led toward the mountain, but I didn't want to get too high up on the road since I had left the water and backpack back at the van. Sadie and I walked a good mile out and back to get our legs stretched out. She was fine with that, running ahead and sniffing the chapperal. To the north was a high meadow of what looked like an old forest fire. Many dead trees and tree stumps lined northern horizon. The forest road was a well-used accessed point to more jeep trail further into the forest, but I didn't want to explore that. I just wanted some exercise. Mount Shasta is very enchanting; I would enjoy spending a week here just exploring the trails and alpine lakes.

The further north we got on US97, the more pronounced the dead trees became. Dead trees surrounded either side of the highway. It was later explained to me that the dead trees were a result of a scheduled fire set by the forest service, but the fire got out of hand. Sadly, I didn't see much new growth to take over.

This was a pretty drive, despite the dead trees and the heavy truck traffic. Dorris, CA was the last town in California on US97. The grey water tower in town intrigued me, and I ended up spending an hour in this small town trying to coax a small colony of feral cats that someone had left food and water for. There were two white calicos and one grey-white cat, and four kittens, three of which had eye infections. One of the white calicos, who may have been the mother to the kittens, seemed interested in getting closer to me, but her skittish kittens kept running away. The shelter appeared to be a nearby shed.

"There's a man who comes around every morning feeding these cats" said a bearded man, who happened to be the owner of both the town's grocery store and bed and breakfast. "These cats are so inbred. They go around eating other cats' food!" Sadly, I'm sure the kittens won't survive the winter unless they are trapped and given medical attention. Few feral cats are that lucky.

I continued north on US97, crested a hill and there it was: the Welcome to Oregon! sign. It was 9:33am. I had to stop and pose with Sadie by the sign. I had finally reached the last of the Lower 48 states! A few hundred feet past the welcome sign was a sign warning motorists that driving and talking on cell phones was illegal in Oregon.

Now I was fired up. The view north from the high mark on the hill was agricultural. Mountains were in the far northern distance. The fields were a lush green. There was a slight scent of cow manure. I saw what appeared to be raps seed. I had barely driven far when Kevin called, and I had to pull over and talk because Oregon forbids talking on a cell phone while driving. (So does Nevada, I learned later). It was nice to hear his voice, but the traffic nearby made it hard for us to hear each other. I was at the edge of a green field. Red-wing black birds were flying low. It's the first time I've seen a red-wing blackbird this far west.

The drive north on US97 continued to be eye candy. Lakes opened up off the highway, snow-capped volcanoes started to appear, and I truly had the sense of being in a whole new world.I wasn't expecting to see so much agriculture here, but terrain wise it made sense since western Oregon has the mountains and eastern Oregon the desert.

I crossed the Klamath River and saw a huge logging processing plant off the river. Sheared logs stripped of bark and branches were lined up in the water. It was a reminder of how much the logging industry means to this area.

My first image of Oregon was a street-legal tarp-covered dune buggy taking a right turn off US97. The driver was an older man with another male passenger, and behind him was a big Saint Bernard enjoying the ride. I ended up seeing several St Bernards later in Bend.

I stopped in Klamath Falls. It's still a very busy logging town, with murals on buildings showing how the logging industry, settlers and even the air force have played a big deal. I wanted to stop here for coffee, it was late morning, and I wanted to "feel" the place. I parked the van in the shade. In front of me, sitting on a city bench, was a heavily-tattooed balding man in a sleeveless red shirt eating sun flower seeds and throwing the shells into the street. He was totally oblivious of me watching him. He was a reminder that this town still has a rural feel to it. I drove on.

The drive became more "Oregony" as I drove north. The Upper Klamath Lake right off US97 provided for clearer views of the snow-capped volcanoes. They all looked alike to me. I finally felt "cool" breezes for the first time on my road trip, and I was enjoying the drive.

Crater Lakes National Park was on my must-see list for this trip, and drove in. Sadie and I attempted a short hike just outside the official park entrance. She led the way and went down a steep animal trail. I could see the dried flow of lava and ash on the trail. We had to turn around despite Sadie wanting to reach the rushing creek water, the flora was too thick to get through or around. Getting back up to the van was hard enough, carrying a camera! We were by now bushwhacking, too.

There were quite a few people waiting to join me, and my National Parks Pass didn't allow me faster entrance; there was only one attendant. This park was worth the drive.

Had I known that dogs were allowed to be in the vista areas or all paved surfaces, I would have brought Sadie out at the first vista that provided a view of the deep crevices in the area, where cascading water rushes far below. An older couple visiting from California, retired teachers,who were visiting friends in Bend, praised Sadie for her beauty. They come to Oregon quite often but had never been in this park.

The lodge's parking area was crowded. I just wanted to see the scenic views of the famed blue lake. Lodges and gift shops were not in my trip itinerary. Snow still lingered on the sides and off the streets, which radiated more cool air. I was liking this! Even Sadie came to life.

I stopped at ever vista, took photos, and admired the beauty. Dark clouds were moving in from the north, but weather reports said the storm was moving to the east. The dark clouds added a nice contrast to the photos I took. The lake water was so clear, you could see old snags at the lake's bottom! There were plenty of leashed dogs at the turn-offs, and the variety of park visitors included a group of curious monks. Crater Lake was literally a refreshing visit. Sadie was only interested in eating the icy snow, which I encouraged. The farther north we got on the rim drive (heading from the western loop) got less crowded as we got further away from the Lodge. This is one drive where lamenting the ban on dogs on hiking trails (the trails are on the eastern side of the park) didn't matter to me. The views and the cool air were plenty good.

We were in the park for only 90 minutes, but it was non-stop eye candy and invigoration. Once I left the park and drove back to US97, though, I became worried about the incoming storm. It was looking dark now, and it did rain on us a bit. But as soon as the storm came, it ended, and all that was left once we were back on the main highway, was a wet road surface. I was back to seeing logging trucks, road side cherry and raspberry vendors, and coffee shacks. This was clearly not the desolate terrain of Nevada.

My goal for today was Bend, OR. I had heard so many raves about that town in Outside Magazine and other outdoor-related forums. I arrived in Bend and found myself in a cornucopia of cars and streets, one-way avenues and roundabouts. There were plenty of roundabouts to disorient me at first. I had no idea where I was except that whatever neighborhood I was in was a nice neighborhood. It turns out that I was on the edge of the Old Mills District.

I eventually made it to the downtown area along the Deschutes River trail. I enjoy urban river trails and opted to make this our afternoon walk. Skies to our north still looked ominous, but I took the risk anyway. Sadie wasn't happy being on a leash and neither was I, and the trail didn't provide for much shade, but it did meander around some pretty venues. We stayed away from the shopping area on the opposite bank of the river. I wanted to find the old downtown area, but got confused with the directions from an exuberant local man. Sadie did get to drink from the river and refresh in an out-of-sight area, but the trail didn't get more exciting for her until we hit the edge of the downtown area and ended up on busy NW Galveston Avenue sprinkled with outdoor cafes and brewpubs.

If people don't believe that Oregonians like their beer, they need to visit Bend. The town has 16 breweries, most which one can walk to on the Ale Trail. The Deschutes Brewing Company has its large brewery on top of a hill overlooking the town from Colorado Avenue. Its chimneys are a landmark.

There were three beer bars on one block of Galveston Avenue, and I opted to go to the largest one, 10 Barrel Brewing, and sat outside with Sadie under a shade umbrella and picnic table. I chatted with the group next to me, but wondered why I wasn't getting served. Turns out the table was reserved for a party of six and I had to leave. "You can always order your food at the bar and eat outside!" said the server, but by then I was tired of waiting and just walked out. I had misunderstood the hostess when she said that dogs were welcome in the patio area, so I just walked in.

I ended up stopping at another bar a block down the same street and drank two local beers as I sat outside with Sadie in the shade. Sadie got her water and enjoyed the break as well. People were coming and going and it was a pleasant place to people-watch. Bend was all that I had expected it to be: hip, progressive, green and clean.

We had a long way back to the van, though, so after two beers we walked back the same way we came, passing Drake Park and its statues and getting on the opposite side of the river this time. The shopping side was just as busy as the more rural side and was a great way to spend three hours on a summer afternoon. People of all ages and sizes were outside walking, cycling, skate boarding.

I never did get a good sense of traffic in Bend, though. The many one-way streets made city exploring more dangerous. I found the Cascade Lakes Brewpub, which was located off a roundabout, and I sat there for a cheeseburger meal with Sadie by my side. Food and beer were delicious, and my server looked suspiciously like Prince William from England. I could not get WiFi, though.

l did find a McD's where I parked to update my Facebook. Now I needed time to relax as our riverwalk was good exercise. When we got back to downtown Bend, the Deschutes Brewpub was closed, as were most places at 11pm. I still walked around, took some night shots, and just wanted to experience this lovely little town in its nighttime setting. I did not see any homeless people sleeping in the streets. Perhaps they were hiding in Drake Park.

Our campsite tonight was not the best: it was behind a big hotel off a major road. I was too tired to look for something more secluded.