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There are essentially three ways to drive north and south through Oregon: Interstate 5 through the center, highway 97 along the east side of the Cascade Mountains, and highway 101 along the Pacific Coast. We have driven the fast way a couple times and in August 2008 decided to go along the eastern side up to the state of Washington and along the coast coming back to California. Here are some pictures of the scenery along these two routes. |
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 We spent our first night near Bend, half way up along the eastern Cascades. We found a good condo complex that caters to the ski crowds in the winter. It is close to Mount Bachelor, a favorite ski resort in Oregon. We went dog sledding here a few years ago, but that is another story. Just below these units is a pond and the Tumalo Creek. The following morning, while Sharon was getting ready, I took a walk along a trail in the back. It was early and the sun had just cleared the horizon. |
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Just north-west of Bend are several volcanic peaks and a loop that crosses the Cascades and circles Mount Washington (7794 ft). The eastern slopes are rather barren while the west is shrouded in thick foliage. Where the road crosses at McKenzie Pass we encountered large lava fields and an observation tower. |
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The brass market points to several peaks and other features. To the far left is Mount Washington again and in the distance is Mount Hood, our next destination. But first we stopped at the little town of Sisters for lunch and to do a little shopping. |
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That evening we stayed at a resort just west of Mount Hood. Then the following morning we had breakfast at the Timberline Lodge, an old hotel built in 1937. What is amazing is that you can ski here year around. It was a bit strange to see kids all dressed up in parkas carrying snowboards in the middle of August. |
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We still had a full day of driving ahead of us to get to Seattle, otherwise we would have done some hiking here and perhaps taken a chairlift ride towards the top. |
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Mount Jefferson as seen from Timberline Lodge. |