Salt Creek Falls

We woke up quite early Saturday morning to begin our weeklong trip to Oregon to celebrate our two-year anniversary. We flew from RDU to Chicago O’Hare to PDX. Although the flights were mostly on time, surprising for United, it was a little slow getting the rental car. By about 130 in the afternoon Pacific Time, we finally were off. After a long flight, we had a long drive to Crater Lake National Park. We left Portland taking I-5 south to Eugene and taking OR-58 east through Willamette National Forest. The drive along the interstate was much like every other interstate, but once we got off and starting driving through the forest, the drive became a lot more scenic as we drove through the Willamette Valley. Along this road, we stopped at a Subway near Oakridge and got a couple foot-long subs, eating half and saving the other half for our lunch tomorrow on Wizard Island. The lady at the motel we were staying at warned us that the Crater Lake area in general has limited options for buying food and of course there’s nothing besides a dock, boat house, and pit toilets on the island itself. So the second halves of our sandwiches would make a nice lunch. Continuing on through the forest, we made the stop for Salt Creek Falls. I just can't drive past a waterfall without stopping. Salt Creek Falls is the second highest waterfall in Oregon at 286 feet.

Unfortunately, we didn’t have a lot time to stop and really explore much; a longer trail led to Diamond Creek Falls and Falls Creek Falls, but it was getting late and we didn't have time to go for a long hike. Salt Creek Falls, however, was spectacular and definitely worth the stop and $5 parking fee. It was a very short hike on a paved trail from the parking area to main viewing area. When we first got there, I looked around and didn’t see it at first. Then I got past some rocks and vegetation and turned to my left and WOW, that’s a huge waterfall, almost 300 feet.

And although it’s the dry season in Oregon, the water was still flowing quite well. We got some pictures and enjoyed the view for a few minutes, but we had to continue on and make it to the motel at a reasonable time. We got back on OR-58 and drove the rest of the way to US-97 and took that south towards Fort Klamath and our hotel just outside Crater Lake, Aspen Inn. We were staying in a cute A-frame “honeymoon” cabin. The cabin was small and had few amenities (and was really cold), but really cute and comfortable enough. I wasn’t able to get lodging within the park, so this would have to do. After checking in, we unpacked a few things, took a shower and went straight to bed. We had been up for almost 24 hours, flew across the country, drove across the state, and had to wake up early for our tour of Crater Lake in the morning. I can't remember the last time I slept so well.