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Goodpasture Bridge at Leaburg, Oregon |
Mary & I left Whittingtons before 9 am and drove east
along the McKenzie
Highway. Unlike Monday’s trip, we
stayed on the newer McKenzie Highway for our drive to Sisters, Oregon. The drive was very nice and the weather was
much more cooperative than on Monday. We
made a few stops at a covered bridge and state salmon
hatchery in Leaburg, Oregon. The Goodpasture covered
bridge in Leaburg was built in 1938 and still carries vehicular and
pedestrian traffic today.
There were several scenic overlooks and view points along
the highway but the fog was heavy and didn’t allow much in the way of
views. We were hoping to see some of the
snow covered mountains in the Cascades but we could only catch glimpses through
openings in the clouds.
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Sahalie Falls |
A stop at Sahalie
Falls was worthwhile. A walk took us
on a short walk to the falls where the falling water and the fog made a thick
mist in the canyon. We took several
snapshots until the sun peeked through the clouds and formed a rainbow over the
falls. It was a beautiful place.
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Clear Lake forming the headwaters of the McKenzie River |
Clear Lake is formed by a spring that makes a beautiful
clear blue lake that is popular with locals and visitors alike. A trail around the lake is a nice walk with a
lot of birds and wildlife. Where the
spring forms this lake is the head of the McKenzie River.
We stopped for lunch at the McDonalds in Sisters,
Oregon. According to Cindy the town has
really changed in the past few years.
When they lived here in the 1980s Sisters was a sleepy small town with a
very laid back atmosphere. Today the
town has as many Lexus as pickups on the streets and Sotheby’s has a real
estate office in the town.
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Lava Field along the Old McKenzie Pass |
We took the scenic route back from Sisters which was the
route we drove on Monday. Since there
was heavy rain the whole time we were on this road, the Old McKenzie Pass, we
didn’t get to see as much as we had hoped.
The weather was much better today with no rain. The fog still limited visibility of the
mountain peaks and the air was very cold in the low 30s. Above 5000 feet there was a good bit of snow
on the ground making the lava
fields look interesting with the snow covering.
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Mary at the Dee Wright Observatory |
We drove to the Dee
Wright Observatory that we visited on Monday. At over 5300 feet, there was a good deal of
snow making the steps up to the observatory slick but their lava rock
construction made the walking easier. There
wasn’t as much wind but the cold was still intense. We were happy that we brought jackets and
caps. We walked around the observatory
and learned more of the area’s history before getting back in the car for the
drive down the mountain.
We stopped a few places to hunt a few geocaches as we drove
back to Whittingtons but still got back by 4:30. We visited with Michael briefly before Mark
and Cindy got home. We had brots, kraut
and mac and cheese for dinner. As always, everything was very good.
We plan to do a short trip to Cottage Grove, Oregon on
Thursday then come back early to prepare for our early Friday flight back.
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