Heading out from Crater Lake National Park we headed north, towards Bend. It was 4th of July weekend and we steered towards an area south and west of Bend called Cascade Lakes. Tons of lakes there and lots of camping opportunities.
The biggest lake around was Wikiup Reservoir. But after seeing the crowds Michael decided we needed to get farther out. He found a spot on the map, a little place called Irish Lake, and was even able to pull it up on Google Maps. It looked pretty easy. The paved road became crushed gravel, then dirt, then rough and rocky. I was driving so we were making pretty terrible time. I don’t do a lot of 4-wheeling. And while Michael tries to be helpful, it seemed like that for every “you’re doing great!” I heard at least three “Jesus Christ”s muttered half under his breath.
As we went along, I have to say that we did not pass any acceptable camp sites. Oh, we saw a few, but they were all either too sloped or directly underneath a wall of dead trees. Sometimes both. I was starting to lose hope. Then, a dream of mine came true. We came around a corner and the sky opened up, the trees fell away around a beautiful lake.
An empty lake. With a big established campsite right alongside it.
I could not believe our luck. This site was amazing. Homemade picnic table? Check. Giant fire ring? Check.
A nice breeze kept the bugs away (for the most part, anyway) and we were the only people there. Or so I thought. I was upstairs in the tent getting out the sleeping bags when I heard a voice outside.
A young man approached our camp and said his truck was stuck in the snow about a quarter mile further up the trail. He had a bottle of whiskey if we’d help pull him out.
We declined the whiskey but broke down the tent and gave the kid a ride back up to his truck. It was an F-150 up to its rear axle in the snow. Yes, snow. We weren’t all that high up, but Oregon got a lot of snow this winter. Anyway the kid and his friend had dug out the wheels but not the axle, so they weren’t getting anywhere. Michael got out our trusty traction plates and a tow rope and had them free in under 15 minutes. I think it took longer to hook up the tow rope than to pull them free. They thanked us profusely and (wisely, I think) turned around.
We went back to camp and set the tent back up. Michael even set up the hammock.
The problem began when the sun went down, and the wind died off. We were swarmed with mosquitoes. I put on long pants and a jacket, and doused myself in bug spray. The problem was my face. No way was I going to put Deet on my face. Guess where the bugs swarmed?
I hid out in the tent and refused to come out, not even around 9:30 when Michael swore that all the skeeters had gone away.
So the next day, we reluctantly left our lovely Irish Lake campsite and headed in to Bend. We needed to resupply, especially with ice, and we wanted to visit the Bend REI.
I’d heard from more than one person that Bend was almost eerily similar to Boulder. They are both cities on the eastern edge of a mountain range, at a similar altitude. So yeah, the area looked kinda familiar. But the Bend REI was like a mashup of Denver, Boulder, and Westminster.
The Westminster REI is in the middle of a big, outdoor mall. Same as Bend. The Boulder REI is full of white college-age kids with money. Same as Bend.
The Denver Flagship REI is a historic building – it used to be the Forney Museum of Transportation History, and before that it was a power plant for the Denver Tramway. I don’t know what the Bend REI used to be, but it looks like it was some kind of power plant, as there were three smokestacks on top of the building.
At any rate – REI. We wanted to pick up better bug spray, as well as a very particular item. Head nets.
Yep. Mosquito netting just for your head. Look, when you’re out in the woods, surrounded by biting skeeters, you quit caring if you look cool or not.
Armed and ready for our next encounter with the insect world, we drove back out to Irish Lake, excited to get back to our fabulous spot. Only when we got there, it was occupied. As in, a white Toyota Tacoma with a RTT, and in our exact spot.
Well, shit.
Actually, there were half a dozen other vehicles up in that area. Who were all these people? I mean, I know it was 4th of July weekend and all, but it was Sunday night.
After only a little bit of searching we found another spot. This one was on Taylor Lake, and while not as ideal, we had our head nets to deal with the swarms that night. I’m happy to say they worked like a champ.
I started a giant fire anyway, adding in some green wood to make as much smoke as possible. After 9:30, the skeeters really did die down, so I was able to enjoy our Revel Gear lights.
And the next morning, thanks to my trusty head net, I was able to take some fabulous pictures of Taylor Lake.
We hung out at Taylor Lake until Tuesday, July 4th, when we went back to Bend. Some locals had told us Bend puts on a good 4th of July fireworks show, and that since the fireworks are set off from the top of Pilot Butte, the show would be visible from multiple spots in town.
The park we ended up at actually ended up being a popular place to watch the fireworks. And to set off your own, too. Apparently fireworks are not illegal in Oregon. These were not weak little sparklers – no, these were the real deal. I felt pretty bad for Bailey. He hates loud noises, especially thunderstorms and fireworks. But we kept him in the back of the truck, trying to minimize his stress.
The amateurs quieted down when fireworks show began promptly at 10pm.
The “show” consisted of 1-2 fireworks going off at a time, and ended exactly 15 minutes later.
I found this disappointing. But then, I grew up outside of Chicago, and in Chicago the fireworks (always on July 3rd) are lit from a barge on Lake Michigan. It’s a spectacular show accompanied by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra playing Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture. Call me spoiled, I guess.
But I will say one thing about Bend’s fireworks show: for all the people at that park, it was the easiest exit ever. People was so polite. I was able to back out of my parking spot because someone let me out. Merging was never so easy. Everyone was friendly.
I thought it was crazy. But I sure didn’t complain. We left Bend and went to a camping area just west of town, in Deschutes National Forest. In spite of it being July 4th and after 11pm we didn’t have any problems finding a spot for the night.
Next post: Our Bend adventures continue, with Lava Tubes, giant moths, and swimming in the Deschutes River.