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again, we returned to the Klamath basin, this year for two weeks.
We purchased an old RV and stayed in the Lava Beds National Monument campground,
as we did in 2000. This year we were about six weeks earlier in the
summer than before--lots of wildflowers were visible. The panorama
shown above was taken from Hippo Butte and shows the entire Monument plus
Tule Lake. Click on it to enlarge it and remove the title.
You can also click on any image shown to see it in a larger version. |
| We
lucked out and were able to get our favorite campsite almost immediately.
It offers excellent privacy and sits on a low ridge looking northeast.
Dave set up his ham radio station on battery power and took advantage of
excellent conditions to talk to nearly 40 countries. |
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Dave has this portable
telescoping antenna mast that was a breeze to put up. On it, he hung
a nearly-invisible wire dipole. The mast fit into a metal "foot"
which was kept stable with rocks. |
| This time,
we resolved to actually climb Three Sisters. The weather cooperated
the day we hiked after being well into the 90s before. Three Sisters
aren't directly accessible by trail, which meant overland hiking through
some very rough terrain. |
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We reached the base of
the cone and began climbing through the very soft cinders to reach the
summit. Like most cinder cones, a lava plug was visible at the top. |
| As we climbed out of the
brush, many wildflowers were visible growing on the bare cinders.
The color was spectacular. |
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The summit of Three Sisters
didn't look a lot different from the flank, although a juniper managed
to make a home here. Quite a few desert paintbrush were blooming. |
| The view
at the summit looking southwest offers an excellent view of the Lava Beds
backing up to the Medicine Lake Volcano system. |
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We found a benchmark attached
to the lava plug at the summit that had been installed back in 1933. |
| One problem
about hiking overland and on some of the lesser-frequented trails is the
abundance of a non-native plant called "cheat grass". The seeds of
this grass become lodged everywhere and can be real irritating, as you
can see in the photo! |
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One day, when it was very
hot, we decided to travel out to Alturas and then up to Lakeview, to see
what the country east of Lava Beds looked like. In Alturas, we saw
this strange sign, apparently advertising the new "Catch and Release" Budweiser... |
| Driving north on Highway
395 takes you past Goose Lake, a large but shallow lake which straddles
the California-Oregon border. This panorama was taken from an overlook
next to the highway. |
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Lakeview was scorching
at nearly 100 degrees. A lot of construction work was being done
on the roads here, resulting in long waits in the sun. We had lunch
and continued on Highway 140 back to the Klamath Falls. |
| Eastern Oregon is mostly
high desert, very remote and beautiful. |
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We also did some exploration
up in the Newell/Tulelake area, locating the old Tule Lake shoreline before
it was drained, and the infamous "Bloody Point", scene of attacks by the
Modocs on emigrants in the mid-19th Century. Today it is farmland
and unrecognizable unless you know where to look. |
| Horse Mountain defined
the edge of Tule Lake back then, and was a landmark for emigrants.
It is unusual-looking. |
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Tule Lake was reclaimed
beginning at the beginning of the 20th Century and continuing on for fifty
years. The Lost River was diverted and controlled by dams such as
this one in Merrill. |
| Arriving back in camp,
we watched the thunderstorms grow as sunset approached. Fortunately,
it appears none started fires. |
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Sunset was beautiful setting
behind Schonchin Butte. |
| Moonrise was spectacular
because of the clouds. This photo was taken with a brief exposure
using the digital camera. The brush in the foreground was lit up
by a fluorescent lantern. |
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Not many lights out here
at night, but some are visible and make a nice photo at dusk. |
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