Location: Columbia Gorge, Oregon...Memaloose Campground
Last night we camped at a really sweet spot next to the confluence of the McKenzie River and Olallie Creek. It's a pretty magical place deep in a fern and fir tree forest. We went to sleep with the rushing roar of the river. In keeping with the theme of the trip to get in a hike or a bike ride everyday we managed a 3 mile hike after a dinner of popcorn and wine. (Maybe it was more in line of a drunken walk.) After girl chit chat this morning we packed up and headed for the next adventure...hot springs deep in the Cascades. What we didn't plan on was getting lost, frightened and burned in the process.
Word to the wise, never trust anything you read on the internet. While planning this trip (albeit while drinking wine and eating popcorn...mmm do I see a pattern here), we thought it would be a hoot to find some hot springs to soak our sore muscles. We figured by this time in our journey we would have tortured our bodies enough to have earned a good long soak. A local "secret" spot w Austin Hot Springs located 4 miles up from a US Forest Service campground on an obscure forest road. Three maps and a GPS got us close, but we still backtracked multiple times trying to locate this geothermal wonder. In the process a girl's gotta pee and we found an abandoned dilapidated picnic area with a moss covered vault toilet. Look good to me until a snake slithered across my path. (What is with me and snakes?!) Don't ask how the situation resolved itself let's just say we never checked out the vault toilet.
We were not going to let these elusive springs get the better of us! Denise's hawk eyes finally spotted a rusted gate with a hot water sign posted on a tree in the woods next to a raging river. We parked the car and began our trek over to the river when bam...I slipped and fell on a rock bruising the palm of my hand. No broken bones, nothing that wine later tonight won't cure - we ventured on. On the edge of this raging river is a manmade circle of rocks, creating pools, with a few people soaking in them. It's hard to fathom that the water is warm enough for people to soak, especially in the snow melted river. We made our way down to the pools and saw some old rusted warning signs saying be extremely cautious "water temperatures increase suddenly and without warning. Some temperatures near boiling 200 degrees." Denise went to where the pools were, cautiously tested it, and then stepped in. She couldn't stay in and thought it was about 115 degrees. I was outside the pools, walked into the water and it was freezing cold. Not one to like really hot water, I was timid about going into the pools so I was careful to stay outside the rock pool. My next step...HOLY MOLY...was scalding hot!! Seriously burning my foot. It's hard to grasp that 200 degree water is bubbling up from a underneath a freezing river bed and can still burn you. Lesson learned. I don't know if the pictures today will do this justice. We decided this place no longer seemed so magical and decided to venture on. Plan B.
After some reconnoitering we decided to head for the Columbia Gorge and get in a lunch at Timberline Lodge and perhaps a bike ride at the Old Historic Columbia Highway Trail. What we didn't plan on was unmarked roads, single lane gravel byways and logging operations. While planning this trip Denise was inspired by the idea of driving up the backbone of the Cascades. Be careful what you wish for. We KNOW the backbone, vertebrae by vertebrae of the Cascades. Needless to say we had a late lunch at Timberline Lodge at 4:00 pm.
Well fed we ventured thru the Hood River Valley picking up some cherries and apples and headed for a campground on the Columbia River. The campground isn't much to write home about but what it has going for it is location, location, location. It's proximity is near the Historic Columbia River Highway State Trail- one of my bucket list items.
Historic Columbia River Highway State Trail
This turned out to be one of the highlights of the trip. We traveled on the old scenic highway (paved, my fave) built by the WPA between 1913 and 1922. It was one of the first scenic byways in the United States and a true engineering feat. We rode our bikes thru spectacular rock tunnels, canopied paths and breathtaking views overlooking the Columbia River. This portion of the trail was almost 10 miles round trip and a nice mix of up and downhill. Perfect for an evening ride!!! Tomorrow the we tackle the longer portion of the trail (20 miles) before heading into Washington. Life is good.
