We love to follow schedules and so had most of the things scheduled for our trip. Like the next destination of our #AwesomeRoadTrip. But the schedules always don't work in life with kids and nature on its fury. We were to reach our campgrounds by the evening of Aug 12th. It was about 250 miles for our next destination. After taking a detour via the North entrance of Crater Lake National Park, we reached Bend and took our first break. Possibly just a short coffee break as we were running late due to the road closures. But we still had ample time to reach our destination before the sun goes down.
The beauty of road trips is that you get to enjoy your surroundings even when you are moving towards reaching your destination. We were getting hungry too as it was going to be evening so we decided to take a break at one of the picnic areas and have food. Fortunately we were to pass a beautiful gorge on the way and took a quick stop for some sight seeing.
As I was talking about schedules. Even though running late we thought we would manage to reach our next stop but what you thinkmight not work out always and so that was going to happen with us just in a short while from now. We were just going to cross a city named Madras ( Can all my Asian Indian friends relate to it ?? :) ). Yeah can you imagine what happened ? There was another wildfire that was showing its wild form. The impact was such that there was smoke all around making it a little hard to breath and the temperatures of the area were soaring high like it was a summer afternoon with sun just on top of your head or may be around an oven. Unfortunately as the highway were closed beyond Madras we had to make a halt there and thus putting us behind our schedule but the good part was that we were just 1.5 hours away from our destination. Hoping the situation to get better soon we retired for the day.
Luckily the morning brought good news about the opening of the highways and we could follow the route that we were supposed to. We crossed the beautiful Warm Springs Indian Reservation but could see the brutal impact of the wildfire with some smoke still live in some parts.
Standing tall at 11,245 feet, Mount Hood is one of the very famous mountains of the world. We were amazed to learn that it is also the second most climbed mountains in the world. It is also a part of the Cascade Mountain Range and is an active Stratovolcano apart from being the highest mountain in Oregon. It provides ample hiking opportunities offering mesmerizing views and for those with limitations can enjoy the Mt Hood scenic loop. The scenic loop is about a 146 miles loop around Mt Hood that contains in itself the intense beauty of nature. So we will be at one of the parts of the loop today and would travel along it the next day.
Soon after following the Hwy 26 / Mt Hood Hwy, we were near the Mount Hood and then our camp at Mount Hood Village Resort. We setup our camp and were soon ready to start our exploration.
Our first stop for the day was the Mt Hood Adventure Park. It had quiet to offer like mountain biking, tubing, chair car lift etc which also turns into a ski resort in the winters. It was a great fun park for both kids and adults with all different kinds of activities.
I would say its worth a visit, be it summers or winters.
After some nice tubing and chair lift experience in the Alpines, our next stop was a hike to the Mirror Lake. The lake gets its name after the mirror reflection of Mt Hood that can been in it on calm days. Yeah as the slightest of winds would prevent from viewing a clear reflection. Unfortunately we didn't get to see one either. But yeah the hike was fun and we got some nice views of the Mountain. It is a moderate hike with an elevation of about 700 feet. The round trip is about 2.1 miles approximately, moderately difficult hike. Also it is important to note that a valid Recreation Pass is required to access the trail and it is open only in summers (May 15th - Oct 1st). The Mirror Lake also leads to another 1.8 miles of trail to Tom Dick and Harry Mt.
After the hike we went back to the resort for the evening. This was our first camping experience at any Resort. It is a nice concept as you get all facilities (shower, laundry, pool, spa and even internet ;)) inside the resort. Nice for people who want to get that experience of outdoor living but still be connected to the world. Some people also use such facilities as vacation getaways or for family/ friends reunions. Ultimately the goal is to have some quality time. So guess its a nice place to visit.
The next day again didn't look that clear and we had our plans for the Timberline Lodge. After bidding goodbye to this Thousand Trails Resort, we mover towards Timberline Lodge to at least get a glimpse of the Historical Monument. It is one of the topmost attractions of the Mt Hood vicinity. Timberline lodge stands on the Southern slope of Mt Hood at an elevation of 6000 feet. It is regarded as the historical landmark and it also operates as a hotel and has a museum inside it. In the winters it provides skiing facilities while summers attraction includes the Magic Mile chair car lift that would take you up at 7000th feet of the mountain providing spectacular views. But alas, as I mentioned the day didn't look good and the visibility was too bad to see the building, leave alone traveling the Magic mile :( .
So disappointed we moved towards the next stop of our ride which would also be a part of the Mt Hood Scenic Loop. Some more beauty still left to be explored before we move to Washington. Be on the lookout for it in my article next week.
It is a campaign that was launched last year basically to boost the exploration of natural beauty in Oregon.
Hope you all enjoy until I bring you more from Oregon. Another part of the Mt Hood Scenic Loop, another part of Oregon, another part of nature's beauty that we explored.
The beauty of road trips is that you get to enjoy your surroundings even when you are moving towards reaching your destination. We were getting hungry too as it was going to be evening so we decided to take a break at one of the picnic areas and have food. Fortunately we were to pass a beautiful gorge on the way and took a quick stop for some sight seeing.
Take a break ... Oh no make a stop !!!
As I was talking about schedules. Even though running late we thought we would manage to reach our next stop but what you thinkmight not work out always and so that was going to happen with us just in a short while from now. We were just going to cross a city named Madras ( Can all my Asian Indian friends relate to it ?? :) ). Yeah can you imagine what happened ? There was another wildfire that was showing its wild form. The impact was such that there was smoke all around making it a little hard to breath and the temperatures of the area were soaring high like it was a summer afternoon with sun just on top of your head or may be around an oven. Unfortunately as the highway were closed beyond Madras we had to make a halt there and thus putting us behind our schedule but the good part was that we were just 1.5 hours away from our destination. Hoping the situation to get better soon we retired for the day.
Luckily the morning brought good news about the opening of the highways and we could follow the route that we were supposed to. We crossed the beautiful Warm Springs Indian Reservation but could see the brutal impact of the wildfire with some smoke still live in some parts.
The very famous Mt Hood
Standing tall at 11,245 feet, Mount Hood is one of the very famous mountains of the world. We were amazed to learn that it is also the second most climbed mountains in the world. It is also a part of the Cascade Mountain Range and is an active Stratovolcano apart from being the highest mountain in Oregon. It provides ample hiking opportunities offering mesmerizing views and for those with limitations can enjoy the Mt Hood scenic loop. The scenic loop is about a 146 miles loop around Mt Hood that contains in itself the intense beauty of nature. So we will be at one of the parts of the loop today and would travel along it the next day.
Soon after following the Hwy 26 / Mt Hood Hwy, we were near the Mount Hood and then our camp at Mount Hood Village Resort. We setup our camp and were soon ready to start our exploration.
I would say its worth a visit, be it summers or winters.
Mirror mirror in the Lake, who is the beauty around here...
After some nice tubing and chair lift experience in the Alpines, our next stop was a hike to the Mirror Lake. The lake gets its name after the mirror reflection of Mt Hood that can been in it on calm days. Yeah as the slightest of winds would prevent from viewing a clear reflection. Unfortunately we didn't get to see one either. But yeah the hike was fun and we got some nice views of the Mountain. It is a moderate hike with an elevation of about 700 feet. The round trip is about 2.1 miles approximately, moderately difficult hike. Also it is important to note that a valid Recreation Pass is required to access the trail and it is open only in summers (May 15th - Oct 1st). The Mirror Lake also leads to another 1.8 miles of trail to Tom Dick and Harry Mt.
After the hike we went back to the resort for the evening. This was our first camping experience at any Resort. It is a nice concept as you get all facilities (shower, laundry, pool, spa and even internet ;)) inside the resort. Nice for people who want to get that experience of outdoor living but still be connected to the world. Some people also use such facilities as vacation getaways or for family/ friends reunions. Ultimately the goal is to have some quality time. So guess its a nice place to visit.
The next day again didn't look that clear and we had our plans for the Timberline Lodge. After bidding goodbye to this Thousand Trails Resort, we mover towards Timberline Lodge to at least get a glimpse of the Historical Monument. It is one of the topmost attractions of the Mt Hood vicinity. Timberline lodge stands on the Southern slope of Mt Hood at an elevation of 6000 feet. It is regarded as the historical landmark and it also operates as a hotel and has a museum inside it. In the winters it provides skiing facilities while summers attraction includes the Magic Mile chair car lift that would take you up at 7000th feet of the mountain providing spectacular views. But alas, as I mentioned the day didn't look good and the visibility was too bad to see the building, leave alone traveling the Magic mile :( .
 |
| Really can't see anything :( |
So disappointed we moved towards the next stop of our ride which would also be a part of the Mt Hood Scenic Loop. Some more beauty still left to be explored before we move to Washington. Be on the lookout for it in my article next week.
Did you know ?
There is something called "Seven Wonders of Oregon". And Mt Hood is a part of those 7 wonders, also including the Crater Lake, our first destination of the #AwesomeRoadTrip ?It is a campaign that was launched last year basically to boost the exploration of natural beauty in Oregon.
Hope you all enjoy until I bring you more from Oregon. Another part of the Mt Hood Scenic Loop, another part of Oregon, another part of nature's beauty that we explored.
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