Old McKenzie Pass

We left Whittingtons before 9 am headed for the Columbia Gorge by way of the McKenzie River.  We drove along the Old McKenzie Highway through the Cascade Mountains.  The Old McKenzie Pass follows a wagon trail dating back to 1860 through lava flows that cover 65 square miles.  The lava fields were pretty spectacular, but the thick fog and mist of rain limited visibility.  The area looked like something that would be expected in Hawaii but had some hardy trees struggling to survive in the harsh environment.  I can imagine the reaction of pioneers traveling through this area and coming across the expanse of lava and ash that offered no water, fruits, grain for horses or animals to hunt.  If they hadn’t already endured enough, the lava fields would present a formidable obstacle.

Our first stop at the Dee Wright Observatory in the lava fields was a cold one.  The air was very cold which felt even colder in the high winds at the observatory.  The cold was compounded by a brisk rain that had ice mixed in.  It was very uncomfortable up at the observatory.  The observatory was built in the 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corps and is constructed of lava blocks.  The observatory has windows that look out to local mountains in the Cascade Range.  We would have liked to have stayed longer here, but the cold wind ran us back in to the car quickly.

By the time we got over the mountains, the weather had warmed considerably and rain slowed then eventually stopped.  In addition, the entire habitat changed.  On the east side of the Cascades we saw a change of trees to Ponderosa Pine, Douglas Fir and Incense Cedar.  The environment was definitely high desert.  This is a textbook lesson in the effect of mountains on the climate of an area.  Every middle school student learns about rain shadow deserts in science class.  This was a clear example of that with a near rain forest on the west side of the Cascades and a desert on the east side. We were happy to have warmer and dried weather than allowed us to get out and enjoy the scenery.

Our next stop was the headwaters of the Metolius River.  This river emerges from the side of a mountain and becomes a rushing river very quickly.  This river had beautiful blue water than was very pure and had a healthy fish community.  There was a short walk down to the place where the water boils out of the mountain and a flowing stream over stones and through beautiful mountain meadows.

The Wizard Falls Fish Hatchery was nearby that raises rainbow trout, Dolly Varden, brook trout and sturgeon.  We especially enjoyed the settling pond with the large brood stock.  There were some enormous fish in this pond.  We bought some food pellets from the hatchery and enjoyed watching the large fish compete for the pellets.  We especially enjoyed seeing the Dolly Varden come up and expose their bright red undersides as they swallowed the hatchery pellets.  They are beautiful fish.

We left the hatchery and drove to Smith Rock which is an interesting mountain with volcanic origin that is popular with hikers and rock climbers.  Since this is an Oregon State Park and not a National Park, it wasn’t closed due to the government shutdown.  There were a number of people using the area since the day was so beautiful.  The area reminded me a lot of Seneca Rocks back home.

We drove through the Crooked River National Grassland toward Antelope, Oregon.  The Crooked River National Grassland was a little disappointing.  The grassland was really just typical high desert with sagebrush and other low vegetation.  There was really very little grassland in the area.

Antelope is the town where the commune of the Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh was located in the 1980s at a place called Rajneeshpuram.  This 64,000 acre ranch spanned Wasco and Jefferson Counties in Oregon.  In 1984, in an effort to sway a local election that could affect the Rajneeshpuram, followers of the Bhagwan launched a bioterror attack in which Salmonella was planted on salad bars in local restaurants and other sites in the community.  The thinking was that if potential voters were too ill to vote, the voters from Rajneeshpuram could have enough votes to implement changes favorable to the Bhagwan.  Needless to say, they perpetrators were caught and the plan was foiled.  The commune is now a church camp.

We drove from Antelope toward The Dalles, Oregon, where we would spend the night.  We checked in to the Shilo Inn then went to dinner at Casa El Mirador nearby.  The food was excellent and the servings were large.  Mary had pork with shreds of prickly pear cactus that was outstanding.  I had a very good shrimp enchilada.  Mark & Cindy both enjoyed their meals as well.

We got back to the hotel tired but having had a very good day.  We are looking forward to driving along the Columbia Gorge toward Portland tomorrow.

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