Company Part III

 Today, we are so excited that Brian, Tom’s son and his friends, Jeff and Zeke are coming for the weekend.  Tomorrow we will take them fishing.  Here’s hoping we can all catch our limit of salmon and a few jacks!

Since we spent the day getting ready for their visit there’s not too much to blog about.  So, we’ll share a few pictures that didn’t make the blog previously.  Enjoy!

From our first sunset in Gold Beach

to the Jet Boat trip with our first set of guests.

From our first fishing trip

to our trip to the Redwoods.

From Tom’s brother Charles and his sister-in-law Pennie

to our second fishing trip with them.

From Crater lake 

to more family and friends.

You Can’t Fight the Weather—It Always Wins!

Today was a fishing day.  Rain and wind was predicted but John said if we got an early start we could probably beat both.  Seven-thirty was the start time.  The temperature was about 64 degrees when we started.  There were lots of brave fishing people and we were among them.  We fished for about an hour with people all around hauling in fish.  Our turn!  Another hour went by and nothing.  All, of a sudden, John said, “Betsy, you’ve got a fish.” I didn’t even feel it.  Reel, reel, reel and I landed a jack. 

 I’ll take it—one in the boat. 

 As the day wore on so did the weather.  The wind picked up to the point that it was pulling the boat around.  Then there were also off and on showers.  We can fish in the rain but the combination of wind and rain became a bit much and we decided to call it a day.

  We made a pot of chowder, a pot of vegetable beef soup and a wild blackberry cobbler.  

Tom’s son, Brian and his friends Jeff and Zeke are coming for a visit and we want to be ready.  They might be treated to a salmon dinner, too. We’re looking forward to their visit.  A day of fishing will be in order for Friday.

  Last night, my son, Jamie, his wife, Megan and daughter, Alexandra treated us to a lovely dinner at Spinner’s.  

It’s a very nice restaurant here in Gold Beach.  It was a thank you for some child care for Alexandra while Megan went back to work, but it was really play time for Alexandra and me.  

Thank you, for a very nice evening.  

Finally! Crater Lake

 If Carter Lake is not on your bucket list, it should be!  

Even if you’ve never heard of it add it to your list! At first sight it will take your breath away. 

 As the name implies, it was a volcano.  A massive volcanic eruption 7,700 years ago left a deep basin where a mountain peak once stood.  Centuries of rain and snow filled the basin, forming a deep blue lake whose waters are unmatched in color and clarity.  

Clarity is measured by how far down a black and white disk (Secchi disk) can be seen by the naked eye.  The crystal clear blue water of Crater Lake measures 134 feet making it the clearest lake on earth.

At 1943 feet it is the deepest lake in the United States and the seventh deepest in the world.

Wizard Island did not erupt at the same time but came after the lake began to fill.  

A friend wanted to share our picnic lunch with us 

and brought along a friend of his own.

We circled the rim stopping at several points for  incredible sights and vistas.  

You can see from the pictures below how the sides of the mountain collapsed into the crater.

We learned about the whitebark pine native to this area.  They looked like they were ready for Halloween with their weird positions and bleached color.  

They are also called the “ghost tree”—see, ready for Halloween.  

All in all, it was a wonderful day full of spectacular views and good memories.

If At First You Don’t Succeed—Try, Try Again

 That’s just what we did.  We started out one morning last week to visit Crater Lake but were turned back by the firefighters due to too much smoke and fire in the area.  So, this was the day to try again.

Last week we went North because the Southern route was closed due to the fires. This time we went south to Crescent City, California because Highway 199 was recently reopened.  

Just South of Gold Beach we passed “WhaleHead” rock.

We passed through the Redwood National Forest just east of Crescent City.  Even though it had been recently reopened to traffic it was still smokey

 with some areas still smoldering.

We passed by areas next to the narrow highway which had recently burned.

As we passed through the areas which were recently threatened by fire we were very impressed by the gratitude expressed by the area homeowners with hundreds of handmade signs and banners all along the highway. 

 The fall colors are starting to show themselves among the evergreens.  

I know we’re all ready for fall.  

Oregon is getting a reputation for the outstanding wines produced here.  We saw acres of vineyards and signs for many  tasting rooms.  

We didn’t get to stop today because we were on a mission—Crater Lake!  

Another interesting crop we noticed on our drive was Christmas trees!  

It’s going to be a while before the ones we saw will be adorning anyone’s living room at Christmas.  

This trip was a real treat for Tom.  He had been here some fifty plus years ago and knew it was a place he wanted to come back to.  

He was even able to trace the entire Rogue River from the headwaters at Crater Lake all the way to the mouth at the Pacific Ocean. 

We crossed the Rogue several times on our journey.  A stop we wanted to make was the Rogue Gorge.  

It was a beautiful part of the river, where several people had also stopped for this peaceful view.  

The total driving time today took us about 9 hours, and it was worth it!  

 Tomorrow:  Crater Lake.

No Fish but a Big Win!

 Another gorgeous day in the Pacific Northwest.  

Being from Dallas, we are Dallas Cowboy fans.  It’s a noon game at home but in this time zone it’s on at 10:00 am.  The game is not being shown in this area so we have to listen to the play by play on the iPad.  The first quarter was so bleak it seemed like a loss for sure. The game picked up in the second and third quarters and in the fourth quarter with 3 seconds left in the game, a miracle comeback and a win!!  Plus, we got to see the last 10 minutes on TV since the previous game was over.  We got to see the unbelievable comeback! 

Looks like a great day to fish.  We decided to go back to one of our early fishing spots up the Rouge River

 The only thing we caught here was moss and seaweed. Yuck!  I can pick off just so much of that stuff.  Tom even waded out sans waders for a better advantage 

but nothing worked.  Move on.  

We tried another spot where we had fished previously.  The tide was in so we couldn’t get our lines out far enough, plus, I caught the “flying C” lure in a tree!  Move on.  

This time, we moved back home for a little dinner.  Maybe that will change our luck. 

 Next, we tried the sand bar by the channel.  

The boats were still very thick— must be something happening. 

The current was so strong, it kept pushing our lures back to the bank.  It was just not a good fishing day.  We decided it’s well worth it to pay a guide. And on Wednesday, we’ll do just that.

As we left the river the sun was just going down. I never tire of the beautiful sunsets we’ve had while we have been here.

A nice local couple happened by and agreed to take a picture of Tom and me as the sun set.

A Fish is a Fish

Today we decided to fish in the river channel from the sand bar.  We had to get an early start to beat the boats which go up and down the channel.  Since we don’t fish again with our guide John until Wednesday, we are bank fishers.  Seven-thirty seemed like a good time.  Rods, chair and coffee in hand we have high hopes of catching a big salmon before the professionals arrive.  

Tom was the first to get a bite!  Yikes, not exactly what we were hoping for!  

Another bite and another hatchery salmon. So this is how it’s going to be.  Now it was my turn and I caught 2 as well.  

We caught 7 in all before the boats arrived in mass. 

 Time for us to go.  It was not a lost day at all.  Tom got to watch his college team, Oklahoma State University win their first game.  (I think maybe he planned that all along). 

It was a perfect day temperature wise.  If you ever find yourself in “hot water”, I hope it’s a hot tub!  

After we watched the  Dallas Stars win the first game of the Stanley Cup finals, we thought we might try a little evening fishing. Again loaded (a little less gear this time) off to try again.  

The Blue Heron and the seals would love for us to provide a fish or 2 for them.  

They were out of luck and so were we. 

 I took a few scenery pictures and we decided to call it a day.