Memorial Day Weekend at Fisherman’s Bend

I am so behind that I actually had to go onto Facebook to remember the places that we’ve visited the last few months. My goal this week is to make a serious attempt at bringing my blog up to date.

So, this entry finds us at Fisherman’s Bend Campground on  Memorial Day weekend. A favorite campground for us when wanting hook-ups. Although the campground was booked to capacity, the large sites allowed for some amount of privacy which I greatly appreciated. I know most campgrounds have rules about the number of people and vehicles that are allowed per site, but our experience is that the rules aren’t often enforced. We knew it would be a busy weekend, but the smallish site across from us was the base camp for about 20 people and countless cars. Not sure how they get away with that. This is one of the reasons that we really prefer small federal campgrounds during the summer camping season. A LOT less people!! Still, even on the crowded holiday weekend, we enjoyed our stay here. It was a perfect base camp to explore the area.

Private campsite at Fisherman’s Bend.

Really cute little bistro set I found before our trip. Light weight and folds up nicely! Perfect spot for coffee in the mornings!

Little treasure at our campsite!

Our first day we decided to head up to the McKenzie River Scenic area…a part of Oregon we never explored. The weather took a turn for the worse as showers made their way in which probably worked in our favor. The crowds were very, very light at two popular hiking destinations! Our first Stop was Fish Lake Historical Site. Fish Lake was first used by the US Forest Service as a Ranger outpost in 1905. It was a popular wagon destination/camping spot. Some of the old cabins can now be rented out through the forest service. I can imagine it would be a fun place to snowshoe into during the winter! If you’re passing through this is a fun place to spend an hour or two wandering around.

Heading into Fish Lake Historical area.

Walking through the woods with lava lined paths…reminded us of Hawaii in some ways.

One of the neat old cabins, complete with ice house kept cold with natural springs.

After spending an hour or so exploring Fish Lake we headed down the road to Koosah Falls! What a beautiful area! The walk along the falls are well kept and quite easy to maneuver. The pound of the fast moving waters was almost deafening in some spots and the mist and low clouds that hung in the forest made the hike kind of surreal.

The hike leads you along the river…

Koosah Falls in the mist

A little show of color along the old trails.

We ended our afternoon with a stop at Tamolitch Pool, located on the upper reaches of the McKenzie River.  Also known as Blue Pool, this beautiful scenic area is a popular hiking destination. It’s a fun 2 mile climb up to the alpine waters, along a river, through old growth forest and over ancient lava beds. The hike itself is every bit as beautiful as the final destination.  The frigid water to the pool springs up from the ancient lava flow and the color is absolutely unbelievable. Sadly, a colleague of mine lost their teenage son in a diving accident here about a year ago. It was a rather solemn experience to stand and admire the beauty while knowing the terrible tragedy that took place.

Cooper exploring the lava beds.

Little burst of color in the midst of GREEN

A view of the pool as the sun poked out.

We returned to camp and rewarded our efforts with a wonderful dinner!

I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of ending my evenings like this!