We were camped along the Snake River which I have mentioned as one of the anchors for the Oregon Trail. As we moved westward, the Snake kept getting wider and deeper. If you think of highways that follow meandering streams, you will recall that the road often changes from one bank to the other. With bridges, that is a trivial (if somewhat expensive) event to take advantage of better terrain or a more direct route. When the settlers were traveling along the shallow Sweetwater River they crossed several times for just those purposes. As the Snake got wider, crossing became more complicated. By the time they got to Western Idaho it was a major problem. TheThree Island Crossing of the Snake pictured below presented just such a dilemma:
If they stayed on the south side of the river, they took a much longer and much more rugged route. If they successfully crossed the river, the route was shorter and smoother. Even with the three islands to aid in the crossing, it was perilous. Many perished in the attempt. Many chose to follow the more difficult southern route. And many successfully crossed with the assistance of friendly Indians.
The settlers followed the Snake until they reached Farewell Bend on the Idaho- Oregon border where the Snake turns north and carved out the impassable Hell's Canyon. Dot and I spent the large part of a day traveling to and around Hell's Canyon but we could not capture its immense, rugged beauty in a picture.
Instead the settlers followed Burnt River and the Powder River basin into Oregon. We were able to find some of their wagon wheel ruts just north of La Grange, Oregon:
These depressions in the ground occurred because as each wagon train passed they moved the biggest rocks or fallen trees from the "trail". Those that followed stayed in the same path and would improve it a little more. Before long thousands of wagons, cattle, people, and horses had made their way along the same narrow path. The result was a permanent depression in the soft soil. This is even more evident in sections of the trail that are more wooded:
At this point we decided to leave the Oregon Trail and head west through the mountains to reach some hiking trails between Crater Lake and Mt. Bachelor. This day of mountain driving was probably the most difficult and the most breathtakingly beautiful of any day we have traveled in the coach.
A surprise awaited us in Crescent, Oregon. The temperature drops below freezing at night, then climbs into the 70s and 80s during the day. As we drove up to Crater Lake we had two more surprises. When we drove up to the ranger booth at the park entrance, the ranger was wearing a bee-keepers hat. When I handed her my park pass I felt my arm was in an "OFF" commercial. Mosquitoes thrive in the high dessert when Spring is late and the melting snowfall produces a lot of moisture. The second surprise was as we gained elevation:
Oregon's mountains had record snowfall this year (nearly 650 inches). Only 1/3 of the loop around Crater Lake has been cleared. Each day they clear about 1/4 mile of additional road. They claim that the 30foot by 30foot by 1/4 mile produces quite a lot of snow to move. But the lake was worth the trip:![]()
Crater Lake is 5 miles wide and 6 mile long, and 1950 feet deep. It has no outlet and is fed only by rain and snow melt from its own basin. The intense blue color in the picture is its true color. Our skiing friends will appreciate knowing that a few miles away at Mt. Bachelor they are still skiing. Dotti and I road the chairlift and to prove it we have this picture at the summit lodge with the Three Sister Mountains in the background.
And so we will leave you with smiles on our faces until our next posting on this adventure.
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