LaPine State Park is located near Bend, Oregon
in a subalpine pine forest along the Deschutes River
Our campsite was huge!
Our outdoor living room with the Deschutes River right out the back door
The beautiful, twisting, cold Deschutes River.
The River is a
major tributary of the Columbia River.
The stretch of river behind our campsite
Hiking
Hiked the Deschutes Loop Trail & the McGregor Loop Trail
Dave checking out the current to see if the river looks floatable. Some workers at the LaPine Visitor's Center said they hadn't done the "snag" cleanup yet so we might come across blockages in the river depending on where we put in and took out.
View of the Deschutes River from a section of the McGregor Loop Trail
This picture has a snow covered mountain in the background. Hard to see unless you zoom in.
Later in the day, we hopped on our bikes and rode to see this
500-year-old Ponderosa Pine in the park.
500-year-old Ponderosa Pine in the park.
The tree has a circumference of 326" and stands 191' tall.
The trunk of the "Big Tree"
Kayaking
Today's kayaking day! Dave drove the jeep about 11 miles downstream and rode his bike back to the RV for our float. We carried the kayaks down the short trail to the river behind our campsite.
The bridge that leads into LaPine State Park
Our first stop along the river made a nice place to eat lunch
A view of the "big tree" from the river
One of the interesting sites along the way was this log cabin
that was apparently built too close to the water.
Another stop along the river to stretch our legs
Cycling
Cruising along the dusty singletrack of the Fall River Loop trail
At the far north end of the trail, we arrived at Fall River Falls.
The short waterfall was pretty but somewhat underwhelming
after some of the falls we've seen on this trip.
This is the "snag" section of the Deschutes that we avoided on our float.
And it's Snowing Again!
Newberry National Volcanic Monument
The area
includes more than 110 miles of trails for hiking, biking and horseback riding,
and just celebrated the 25th anniversary of its designation in 2015. What
is now Lava Lands was created about 7,000 years ago after a volcanic
explosion left behind a miles-wide sea of jagged lava rock, creating a
unique geological landscape.
Entering
the Lava River Cave -- a 1-mile-long cave formed by molten lava that left
an underground lava tube — the longest in Oregon. At 42-degrees Fahrenheit
year-round, the cave is a cool underworld and home to a colony of bats.
The cave
is dark and does not have any park-provided lighting. You have to carry your
own light source. We rented a flashlight from the park for $5, much more powerful than our headlamps.
Lava Butte
- We drove up to the fire lookout on top of the cinder cone and walked
the
.25-mile rim trail for panoramic views of the North Cascades and the entire
Newberry National Volcanic Monument.
View of the fire lookout from the rim trail, the crater is down to the left.
A view into the cone. It's COLD and WINDY up here!!!
Lava Butte Lava Flow, a 9.5-square mile mass of volcanic rock that
poured out of Lava Butte around 7,000 years ago shapes the river.
The lava flow runs all along the east side of the river,
clearly
having shaped the course of the river.
Birds of Newberry National Volcanic Monument
The story behind the Twisted Trees
We had a great time while staying at LaPine State Park. The campground is beautiful and the hosts and rangers were friendly and helpful. I think we spoke to them every day of our stay. And we loved the Bend area of Oregon!! Apparently the locals do also...
