Crater Lake

Located in Southern Oregon, Crater Lake is the caldera of a collapsed volcano filled by rain and snowmelt (they get an average of 45 feet per year). The rim of the lake is over 7,000 feet above sea level so the only runoff comes from the rim of the crater itself.

Crater Lake is the deepest lake in the US (seventh in the world) at 1,949 feet deep at it's deepest point and is considered the clearest in the world with testing for visibilty beyond 140. Down.

The Crater Lake Lodge was built in 1915.

With an average snowfall of over 540 inches per year, there was plenty of snow left when we got there in early July. Here Ted and Joe try a little shoe-skiing. First one on their face wins.

The view of the lake from above is impressive, but you can also take a tour on the lake from docks a short 45 minute hike down from the rim.

Joe had a little trouble climbing this tree. It fell over while he was on his way up, something that used to happen to him as a kid.

Megan and Joette on the guide boat.

This formation is called the Ghost Ship.

The clarity of the lake was phenomenal. The depth at this location seems very shallow but it is over 60 feet.

This is not what it looks like. But it does make an interesting picture.

Sailing at Hood River

Since the Columbia River Gorge is one of the best places in the country to windsurf, we decided to let Megan and Ted take lessons and try it. We went to Hood River, a popular spot with plenty of places offering lessons for people of all ages.

Starting out, they worked with the instuctor on the same board to get the feel of it.

Later, they each had their own board worked at it.

After awhile, they got pretty good.

Rafting on the White Salmon

Rafting on the White Salmon was a fantastic experience particularly since we did it at peak flow of the river.

Just before we go over Husum Falls

We made it!

Ok, that's not really us because I took the pictures, but it gives a good idea of the size of the falls.

... which were actually this size.

Mike Bernard, an old college friend who is big into kayaking managed to get us on videotape, posting it on youtube. Thanks, Mike.

Here we are with Mike after a Fourth of July BBQ.

Heeere's Teddy!

Wow, it's almost Christmas and I haven't posted anything since August.

Lot of catching up to do.

Ted in front of the Timberland Resort on Mt Hood





The Timberland Resort was used for the exterior shots in "The Shining" as you can see here the end of the ominous opening credits

Meg, Joe & Ted in front of Mt Hood in happier times.

Oregon - The Coast - Lincoln City

Just South of Neskowin is the seaside resort town of Lincoln City where Joette, the kids and I spent the day before heading back to Portland

Lincoln City has wide expansive beaches with a couple of rivers meeting the Pacific.

The area is a hangout for seals.

We arrived at low tide and found a spot at the river where the water was shallow enough for the kids to skim board. Mo's Restuarant, a local landmark, was in the background with the pier showing how low the tide was.

Nice spot for a house.

There was a massive field of driftwood on the beach.

Some people had made nice little huts on the beach with the driftwood.

Oregon - The Coast - Neskowin

One of the great things about Portland, Oregon is that there are so many interesting and different things to do and places to go. Joe made reservations for a house on the beach in Neskowin, Oregon about an hour and a half Soutwest of Portland.

Megan and Ted try out a new look in Lincoln City.

The temperature on the coast was at least 20 degrees cooler than in Portland.

But if your a kid, it's never too cold to swim. Ted may look like he's doing a primitive dance or jumping to avoid a 15' man-eating shark, but he's actually learing to ride a skim board.

Ok, maybe it is a little too cold to swim.

Megan kept warning Ted she was going to knock his block off.

Rrraarrgghh!

Megan's turn.

Megan the Mermaid

After a bit of work, the kids got so good with the skim board that they graduated quickly to surfing.

Megan "Hangs Ten".

Oregon

Taking a quick break, blogwise from Peru to insert pictures from our summer trip to Portland Oregon to visit my brother Joe.

If you look closely, behind the fence and trees is Joe's house, an old farmhouse built in 1900 that Joe has spent loads of time renovating. He hosts a critically acclaimed blog detailing his work in words and pictures at http://www.1900farmhouse.blogspot.com/. The header of his blog shows a picture much less obscured by the trees which exhibits how rapidly things grow in the Pacific Northwest. He says they are Douglas Fur trees, but I didn't see any fur on them at all.

Joe gets schooled in a game of cards with Joette, Megan and Ted.

Now Scully has some Fur!

Joette, Megan and Ted in front of the lower half of Multnomah Falls, just East of Portland.

Nearly as high as the Arch in St. Louis, the falls drop 620 feet.

What you might see if you dove off the top of the falls for the pool below.

A view from the bridge with the Columbia River in the background.

Bonneville Lock & Dam, just East of Multnomah Falls

The Dam produces loads of electricity for the area along with helping to widen and control the Columbia River which attracts various watersports such as Windsurfing and Kiteboarding.

Another feature of the Bonneville Dam is the "Fish Ladder" to help salmon and other species of fish swim upstream to spawn. It's more of a "Fish Set of Steps" than a ladder but there are windows below the surface that allow you to view the fish as they make thier way.

Ted and Megan dutifully pose under a massive turbine from the Bonneville Dam to show how big it is.