Christmas at Home

For the last 2 years we have celebrated Christmas while working near Salem, OR at Willamette Mission State Park and visiting with Terry's family a few days after Christmas.  Terry took this photo last year on Christmas Day in our new bigger trailer with couch.  Luxury living!

This year we are excited to be back at our cabin near my sister and seeing our friends here.  Christmas celebrations have quickly filled our calendar between doctors appointments, exercise sessions  and moving  7 months of stuff in from the trailer; a long slow process.  

The stockings are hung from the mantle above the wood stove and its flickering flames warm our mornings  and evenings.  I baked some cookies today and Terry has the wood bin filled.  We've had a dusting of snow and our bird feeders are up and well stocked.  We are enjoying the company of our friends and sharing activities with them.

Though our travels this year seemed especially full of beauty and special places, being here at home for Christmas and winter is delightful!

 We wish you a Christmas filled with the simple things that give you pleasure and peace.

The Splendor of Oregon

The rainy skies that brought lots of snow to Mt. Hood finally cleared and today we could see the 'Mountain' at last. Of course, I screeched at it's beauty and Terry slammed on the brakes not knowing why I screamed.  This is one of  the views we have of Mt. Hood from our Park.  It never fails to take my breath away.  The days we can see it are a true delight.

With Jane closer to Portland, however, some of our adventures have been up her way.   We both were so excited about seeing the Japanese Gardens there.  The traffic wasn't bad as we skirted the edge of town twisting and turning uphill to find it.  As we approached we noticed some parking lot construction and thought little of it until the sign before us read CLOSED until March 2016.  What a disappointment!  Little did we know that the Portland Rose Garden was across the Park street, however.

The view from above was a certain invite down the massive stone steps.  The Rose Garden is high above the city with glimpses of high rise buildings between the massive trees. ( Oregon trees are just magnificent anywhere you go.  I love them all-- especially in the fall!)

This walkway is one of 4 that have Rose Gardens on each side.  It would take most of the day to see all of the roses.  We spent about 3 hours and took lots of photos.  It was so much fun exclaiming over the varieties and sizes and colors.  All these blooms were there to enjoy in late October.  I can't imagine the Garden in summer!  That's another trip one day.

The only way I know to get to Jane's house is on rural country roads that parallel Interstate 5.  The farms and huge tree nurseries along the way are beautiful every trip I make.  One morning I left early to get back to the park and never expected that the sunrise would break through the clouds.  It was such a lovely morning that I stopped 4 times for photographs.

The pink sky and blue-gray mountain contrast was so intense against the deep green of the fir trees!  Oh! Oregon!  You can see why all those wagon trains were headed here.

On Veterans' Day we accepted the Park Staff invitation to honor Terry with a day off. And off we went to lunch at our favorite restaurant on the coast in Yachats.  The Luna Seafood House is owned by a boat captain who catches the fare served in his restaurant.  We both had salmon for lunch that he caught the day before.  So fresh and so delicious!  You can imagine our surprise when the check came and Terry's lunch was complimentary as a thank you for his service.

 
Last weekend Jane and I visited the Oregon Garden about 15 miles east of our park.  It was a chilly morning that cleared off enough for us to enjoy several hours there searching out plant combinations for Jane's garden at her new home.  The many nurseries in the area designed the garden that opened in 2001.  Very impressive for a young garden.  The trees still had lots of color to enjoy!

We can hardly believe that in 9 days our time here at the park will be over.  I have learned to love 'maintenance hosting' here.  We have both enjoyed seeing the jobs we do make the park safer and more pleasant for the visitors.  It will be sad to say goodbye to our friends and co-workers.  The times we have shared with our families have been wonderful and we will miss their closeness.  By mid-December we hope to be back with family and friends in NC however.

Oregon Family and Friends

We are settled in our corner next to  the Willamette Mission State Park Office and Shop area.  It's nice to have our" Enjoy Life" flag to decorate our spot and make us feel at home.  This is our third year here so we have lots to enjoy that is familiar.  It's especially good to be working with 3 Rangers who know us and our skills and keep us busy.  We've had beautiful sunny days and little rain.  Oregon is hurting from a long, dry summer.

Some recent rains have the grass growing again and Terry just mowed this morning.  This is the view from our dinette across the flagpole circle as the sun stripes the lawn.  Today I had fun pruning the shrub roses that are planted around the flagpole.  The chilly morning turned very warm in the sun.

My sister, Jane, is now living in Oregon about 40 minutes north of us.  We have loved getting to see each other weekly and sharing an Art Studio Tour, line dance classes and landscaping her new yard.
Last week we visited my all time favorite Farmer's Market open 6 days a week and only about 8 miles away.   Jane found some wonderful deals on plants and we ate roasted squash and tasted 10 apple varieties.  It's a fine family farm!

Being back in Oregon has given us a chance to visit with our friends Art & Janette for 4 days in McMinville.  We spend time with Terry's mother and his Aunt Betty in Vancouver, WA. every other weekend.  On Monday Susie and Mike our host friends from 2 years at the Lighthouse came to spend the morning with us and we had lunch at a German Sausage Co in nearby Mt. Angel.  Really fun and delicious!  This weekend Terry's Uncle Rex will come to Vancouver to see us.  We'll miss our yearly visit from Anthony since his new job will keep him in West Yellowstone this fall.

We heard the Oregon Coast calling us when we left Yellowstone and were happy to sleep to the sound of the ocean and see the sunset each day.  This is Tillicum Beach as the day ends.  We also spent a few days in Eastern Oregon on the way to the Coast.  This is stormy Hot Lake RV Park in LeGrande.

Our favorite new camping experience on the trip from Yellowstone was Craters of the Moon National Monument in Idaho east of Boise.  It is remote and quiet and has great Ham Radio reception.  Terry was very happy to be on the radio again after 4 months.  Here's his antennae set up from the back of the trailer.  There's a little lava around also.

The time is flying by here and our first month is nearly over.  We will be here until the end of November and plan to be back in NC by mid-Dec.  This year we will bring our big trailer with us so travel will be slower and we hope the weather won't be a problem.

Autumn in Yellowstone

As I said so many times even after 4 months there would be so much yet to see at Yellowstone.  Seeing the park dressed in early autumn color just made me want to visit all my favorite spots again as well.  This is the Firehole River near Biscuit Basin, a thermal basin I had not seen.  The fall grasses are just too much!

Here's the star of Biscuit Basin, Sapphire Pool, even though it's biscuits disappeared after the 1959 (?) earthquake.  Now I know why people asked where to go to see it.  Wow!

How about up close and deepest bright blue?  This was worth saving for last!  A new favorite!
Shell Spring is also a unique one- with little beads not biscuits.

The bison return to our end of the park in the fall from the eastern valleys and sometimes they like to lead the way.

The elk are constant visitors in the campground and with fewer people around I got a good photo.
What an elegant creature!

My Madison River path from the campground crosses a sea of red, tan and brown grasses with amazing rusty red dragonflies flitting along the banks.  Fly fisher people flit there too!

When we return to visit Yellowstone someday it will be in September I hope.  The crowds are fewer and the autumn colors add such richness to the scenery.

Saying Goodbye to Yellowstone and Montana

It has been so much fun seeing the seasons change here in Yellowstone.  The aspens we watched get their first leaves are now turning yellow, the ferns are brown and bold against the green pines and we have snow showers predicted for Sunday night.  So we might see the full circle last snow (May 16) to first snow in Sept.

We have had such a wonderful chance to see so much of the park and surrounding area that I didn't share on a blog.  So I'll include some favorite photos of different places this time.

We never get tired of making the trip north to Bozeman, MT. for specialty groceries and camp supplies.    The highway crosses 20 miles at the northwestern edge of the park along the Gallatin river and it is very beautiful!  I have been totally enthralled with it's history too!  We have enjoyed the Farmer's Market in Big Sky, a resort town in the valley.

This is Hebgen Lake about 20 miles north of West Yellowstone.  It is one of those stop and stare places that has some RV parks, lovely lakeside ranches and a few restaurants.  A favorite fishing spot for our generous trout fisher friends, Mitch, Ken and Missy.

This is the Hellroaring Creek Trail down to the Yellowstone River Suspension Bridge.  We were nearly eaten alive- not by the bears that had been seen in the parking lot- but by mosquitoes.  We had to give up the hike and never got beyond the River edge to the Creek.  The distant mountain and valley views were great however.

We happened on the wildflower peak on the slopes of Mt. Washburne where Terry set up for Amateur Radio Field Day on June 27.  I wandered around with my camera and did a short hike by myself following a group of other hikers for safety.  The variety and brilliance of the flowers was amazing.  I even saw Silky Phacelia a cousin to the Fringed Phacelia on Whitetop Mt. in VA.  Our lovely day soon turned stormy, but the rain held off and we set up our chairs to watch the storms circle about us.  A special moment!!

These are the valleys below Mt. Washburne- they extend as far as you can see without a speck of civilization in sight.  There are no trails just knolls and creeks, a safe refuge for Yellowstone Wildlife.  I really sense the vastness of the Park here.

I'll share some more photos and stories in future blog posts.  We will do our last Campground Duties in the next 2 days and then have 5 days for a few more hikes, campfires and lots of packing and sorting.  We look forward to getting back 'on the road' again and visiting with friends and family before we start our Oct. and Nov. job back at Willamette Mission near Salem, Oregon.

'Getting Out More'

The seasons here in Yellowstone include the invasion of huge swarms of mosquitoes from early June until early July.  We couldn't really get out much when the bugs ruled, so it is nice that they have moved on especially when Terry's uncle Rex came to visit.  On the evening of his arrival he asked us about wildlife in the campground and we said it had been a month since we'd seen bison roaming through.  An hour after he left we heard a strange bleating and looked out to see our now frequent guest Princess.

Rex's visit gave us a chance to visit the Midway Geyser Basin in the cool of early morning.  The cool air makes the hot pools such as Grand Prismatic steam blue and orange as the bacteria causing the color lifts from the pool.  It is an amazing sight!

The early morning light also made the Firehole River in the distance an eye catcher on this crisp morning.

The next day we headed north over the Dunraven Pass toward the Lamar Valley.  The clouds were just lifting from the mountains to the east.

The Lamar Valley did not disappoint with lots of bison and a mother black bear and her twin cubs.  I was too busy watching the very busy bears to get a photo, but the grazing bison were content in their summer home in the hills.  The grassy hills studded with pines make a perfect setting.  We were so happy that Rex came to visit and we could explore with him.

About 2 weeksWe also had a nice hike to Cascade Lake.  On our first attempt about a month ago the mosquitoes turned us around.  So it was nice to cross three lovely, dry, flower covered meadows to the Lake.

The Lake was full of jumping fish, dabbling ducks and osprey diving for their lunch.  I sat and stared while Terry tried to make a radio connection with his Western states network.  The net came in loud and clear, but the hills around kept his signal from getting out.  Maybe we'll find a better spot.  The wildflowers were everywhere and you can see the1988 fire damage on the hill across the lake.  The large pines giving us shade were not affected.

We hated to leave such a lovely spot.

"The Whole Interruption" Hike

There's a lone geyser about 4 miles from Old Faithful that requires a 2 and 1/2 mile hike in to see.  It's on an old roadbed that follows the river most of the way with lots of river side flowers.  We started in cool chilly weather with the threat of rain and a little bear anxiety.  It didn't last long though as a family soon followed us with twin boys about age 4.  Their chatter would have frightened any bear in a 5 mile radius.  It hastened our trip a little too.  After the river bridge crossing we took time for some photos.

The river became a little more distant and opened to a beautiful meadow where sandhill cranes and elk are sometimes seen.

By this time we were about a mile from the geyser and we thought it might erupt as early as 11 am so we had about 1/2 hour to hustle there.  We could hear the twins coming too so we didn't linger.  The roadbed soon ended at a clearing in the woods as the land rose to a geyser hill before us.  We had been there about 5 minutes when the twins arrived.  We were sitting on a log for a snack when one twin joined us full of questions about why this geyser was out here all by itself etc.,etc.  Before we could answer the geyser began to rumble and puff and spout.

The father of the twins offered to take a photo for us in the midst of the 22 minute eruption.  We watched in total amazement at the shower of water and steam that blew across the hill and filled the creeks running to the river.  In minutes the twins were running down the creek and checking the water temperature.  (Just like some other twins I remember so well!!!!)

When the water blasts slowed and the steam phase started the twins were hustled away to continue their hike to Old Faithful, but not before our new little friend yelled, "But I want to see the whole interruption!"    Even their distracted mother chuckled at this one and off they went.  We stayed for the whole interruption.

Even the steam phase was dramatic!  Our return hike was much more leisurely without an eruption timeline or anyone following us.  We only had to resort to loud conversation and clapping a few times at blind corners in very beary spots.  It was a wonderful hike and our first five miler together in a very long time.

Just down the road from the Lone Star Geyser Trailhead is Kepler Cascades.  My sister Ann  had seen great photos of this spot before we left home and had me put it on the list.  It is a beautiful canyon and very long cascade.  My photo couldn't begin to show it off, but it is a magical place!  Thanks, Ann!

This is the same river we had hiked along to the Lone Star Geyser.  It journeys on to the Old Faithful area after the Cascade.  We are beginning to get a map in our minds and under foot for all the river connections in the Park.  So much to see and learn!

Hikes - High and Low

Yellowstone, like the Grand Canyon, has a North Rim and South Rim too!  The Yellowstone River Canyon has a drive and a trail to explore on each side of the canyon.  We've made 2 hikes on the North Rim, one to near the base of the Lower Falls and another to the brink of the Upper Falls.  ( The Lower Falls is the one most pictured-especially the art of Thomas Moran.)

There's a snow bank still visible to the right.  Click on the photo for a better look.  The short hike down to Red Rock Point ends in a series of steps after a series of switchbacks.  Well worth the climb out!

A few weeks later we started the North Rim Trail where it begins and followed the quiet Yellowstone River on an old roadbed to where it narrows and drops 100 feet in the Upper Falls.

The drop is beginning here and becomes a tremendous roar as it goes over the falls in a short twist among huge rocks.

We hiked on to Crystal Falls in a cool forest glen with only a few folks around.  It was a peaceful spot after the crowds at the Brink of the Upper Falls Overlook.

Notice the little pool and second fall on the right about midway down.  I think the 'little people' bathe there.

My first Ranger Hike in the Park was at Geyser Hill an area behind Old Faithful that has a loop boardwalk passing many springs and geysers.  We had a group of about 20 and a young ranger who forgot to introduce himself.  I thought about our routine at Heceta Head making that part of our welcome!! 

The Ranger warned us at the start that most of his tours had to be re-routed due to wildlife.  This tour was true to form.

We watched people walk up behind the bison trying to get photos and our ranger sent them back.  It was only a few days after the 2nd goring at Old Faithful.  We had to retrace our steps- about 2/3 of the tour- but I was happy to return to 2 of my favorites.  Here's Anemone Geyser which erupted just as the ranger finished his talk.  It seemed as if on cue.

And here's Doublet Pool- my most favorite!  There are 2 of these beauties linked together.

The photo through the steam can't touch the rich aqua blue and the peach and white crust.  The colors are created by micro plants called thermophiles.  See what I learned!  Thanks, Ranger!