We were on a mission!
We had two more national parks to visit in southern Oregon and northern California while the weather conditions were still optimal. And I soon realized that I would need to brush up on some of my volcano lingo such as ...
Caldera ... Crater Rim ... Fumarole ... Lava Tubes ... Magma ... Obsidian
as we were going to be in one of the most active volcanic areas in the continental US.
(Wikipedia)
It would also be helpful to re-learn the names of the four main types of volcanoes ...
Cinder Cone ... Composite (Stratovolcano) ... Plug (Lava) Dome ... Shield Volcano
And, of course, it's always important to know if these volcanoes are ...
Active ... Dormant ... Extinct
So after leaving San Juan Island, Washington we made a quick stop in downtown Seattle to check out a few of the famous sights like the Space Needle, the original Starbucks Coffee Shop, and the "flying fish" at the Pike's Place Fish Market.
Can you see it???
From there it was on to Portland Oregon where we discovered the sinfully good things that come in pink boxes at ...
VooDoo Donuts.
VooDoo Donuts has many "interesting" choices
that are bound to make your blood sugar erupt!
From there we headed across a stretch of highway that we last traveled through in 2020. We recalled it as being some of the most beautiful national forest areas that we have ever seen. This time, however, the landscape had changed dramatically due to the devastating wildfires that swept through central and southern Oregon in September of 2020.
Now there were huge expanses of burned trees and bare mountainsides. But the green ground cover and an occasional "hardy" pine gave us hope that this forested area would someday show off its natural beauty once again.
Fortunately, the mountain town of Sisters, Oregon was spared from the devastation. We found a nice boondocking spot in the national forest just outside of town
and were happy to wander the streets of this cute village. We could have happily stayed a few more days, but as I said earlier,
... we were on a mission!
First stop ...
Newberry National Volcanic Monument
Newberry National Volcanic Monument is located just south of Bend, Oregon and serves to protect the area around the Newberry Volcano. Still an active volcano, a section of it last erupted about 1,300 years ago.
We were able to drive up and walk around the rim of the cinder cone known as Lava Butte.
Although this area was estimated to have last erupted 7,000 years ago, it was fascinating to still see the miles of lava
... and a few hardy plants attempting to "brighten up" this rather bleak landscape.
The next day we visited a different section of the park that has seen more recent volcanic activity. Here, beauty was emerging as the powerful water carved its way through the rocks to form Paulina Falls.
A little further down the road was probably the most fascinating area of Newberry National Volcanic Monument ... the Big Obsidian Flow. Obsidian, as I'm learning, is volcanic glass. It is formed when lava cools very quickly and thus is very dense and heavy compared to the lava that we saw on the Lava Butte Trail.
Pictures hardly do it justice, but this obsidian rock has a deep black color and a shiny hue. It is very dense and has sharp edges when broken ... just like glass. Because of these qualities, obsidian rock was highly prized by Native Americans for making cutting and hunting tools.
And a fun fact for my medical friends ... obsidian rock was even used experimentally as a surgical instrument, and they found that the incisions that it produced left hardly any scarring when compared to traditional surgical scalpels.
And while I would have loved to take this obsidian "heart" home with me, just the quick act of holding it for a picture gave me a small but deep cut on one of my fingers ... but I can attest to the fact that there is no lasting scar. I decided that it was probably best to just leave it here and avoid more finger cuts ... and a huge fine from the Park Service.
After refreshing some of my volcano "lingo", it was time to move on to one of the most awe-aspiring sights in the United States ... a sight that wouldn't be possible had it not been for some pretty powerful volcanic action. But first, let's check out some more waterfalls,
have dinner under the shadow of Mount Theilson,
and enjoy a sunset behind Diamond Lake.
Next stop ... Crater Lake National Park!
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