A Brief Trip to the Central Oregon Cascades

[Wandering Sagebrush]

The Bride and I needed a quick get away, so we loaded up the Airstream, threw a canoe on top of the truck and headed off to Newberry National Volcanic Monument to camp at Paulina Lake. I like to chase kokanee up there, but this was just a simple relaxer, nothing more. Our favorite campground is Little Crater, but when we got there, we discovered that there is now a reservation system in effect this year. It seems to be a poorly administered reservation system, too. Many of the campsites were marked reserved, but were in fact wide open. Had we not taken an 'open' site, I would have gone back and grabbed one of those that were 'reserved'. It appears that the issue is communication between Uncle Sam and the contractor that cares for the campground. I really dislike the reservation concept. Oh well, we were at a great place to relax.

We didn't even put the canoe in the water, but rather did a lot of walking. I've had issues with my left foot for a while, so it was good to just be able to roam around. There's a nice set of hot springs a mile or two from the campsite, so we walked out there. Too many people to go for a dip, but it was a nice walk. There are a couple of volcanic glass flows along the trail, too.

On one of the days, we tried a new route to Cabin Lake, my favorite bird photography spot, and ran into another photographer who had a really nice Alaskan cab over camper on a F350 with an aluminum flat bed. Lots of aluminum storage boxes around the camper, and under the flat bed as well. Truly a nice set up. He mentioned that it was his permanent home for the past 14 years. I don't know if I could do that, but a couple of months would be just fine. I am impressed with the Alaskans. No photo of the rig, as I only had a big lens with me. I did get a couple of bird shots, but we didn't want to stay long and push the other fellow out of the blind. Here's a green-tailed towhee.

Edit: The owner of the Alaskan camper was kind enough to send me a photo of his rig. I like this...

We had one night with a truly spectacular sunset. Just enough cloud cover to really make things pop.

The mornings were't that bad either. Subtle, but pretty.

Not an expedition, but a nice get away. Now back to yard work...

 

[ski3pin]

Very nice, Mr. Sage, thanks for letting us tag along. Many times the "reserved" tags are put up a week in advance so always check the dates written on them. If it is not that date, you are free to move in until then. Most of the problems stem from miscommunication between the contractor run recreation.gov website (they are the folks that get that extra "reservation fee") and the folks on the ground - both ways of course.

 

[Wandering Sagebrush]

Mr. 3pin, we met people who were kicked out of reserved sites that were not reserved at that time, plus others that were allowed to stay. It wasn't applied consistently. This is their first season with the reservations, and it's causing a lot of problems for the contractor. I've reported the issue to the monument manager and contractor, so we'll see what they have to say.

 

[ski3pin]

Sounds like it's also causing problems for the folks that want to use the campground. Let's hope they get all the kinks worked out and thanks for reporting it to the admin folks.

All in all it looks like a great area and good for you two on gettin' away for a few days. That airstream thing is sure shiny!

 

[Wandering Sagebrush]

<snip>That airstream thing is sure shiny!

Watch out, Aluminitus is infectious! I know of a site Administrator that has more than one...

 

[Casa Escarlata Robles Too]

Mr. 3pin, we met people who were kicked out of reserved sites that were not reserved at that time, plus others that were allowed to stay. It wasn't applied consistently. This is their first season with the reservations, and it's causing a lot of problems for the contractor. I've reported the issue to the monument manager and contractor, so we'll see what they have to say.

That sure is an issue.We have always used sites that were reserved for following nights but not the night we stayed and have had no problems.
Sounds like they are new at that.
Thanks for the report. Nice landscape shots and the Green Towhee.
Frank

 

[huskyrunnr]

You do beautiful photography.

Takhlakh Lake at Mt. Adams last week was the same way regarding reserved sites. Sites may be reserved online four days in advance but the campground host receives the information only once a week. This leaves you open to being kicked out of a reserved site that is not posted as such on the night you occupy it. This possibility was confirmed by the host.

The largest and best sites were unoccupied for a couple days at a time.

It is valuable to know this is not an isolated problem.

 

[takesiteasy]

Nice spot- thanks for the report! We appreciate the ability to reserve a camping spot, especially in the busy times. Makes doing a long drive to get to a spot feasible. But there are undoubtedly administrative issues as you point out. Hopefully the bugs get worked out of the system.