Eastern Oregon Fix, April 2015
(Chicahominy, Page Springs, Krumbo
Lake, Catherine Creek, Unity, Clyde Holliday (John Day), Detroit Lake)
Camping Makes You Feel
Younger...Until...
Ah, time for a Maiden Voyage for the new truck. Last year, our poor Ford F-150 almost didn't
make it up the passes pulling our 23-foot trailer (the floor of the truck would
get so hot, my feet couldn't touch it while riding, that's how hard the poor
thing was working). This year, we traded
the F-150 in for a Super Duty F-250...a truck more meant to pull such things as
trailers. Our cat Shoppie even seemed
more comfortable in its cab…no strange straining noises from the engine…ahhhh,
the pleasures of upgrading!
Wed 4/15/15
Starting out, we have that refreshed ready-for-adventure,
ready-for-anything feeling that a person can have. This knowing full well that after a few weeks
of camping, one can FEEL younger because of, well, getting away from it all,
until one looks in the mirror and realizes that for some reason, some cruel
joke has been played over yea these many years…you don’t actually LOOK younger
when camping; in fact, your face can take on a whole new kind of old
leathery-looking appalling at times. The
conclusion is that you feel younger until
you look in the mirror! We should
all follow the advice of a dear friend of mine when she told me, “Darcie, after
a certain age, it’s important to just not look in the mirror anymore!” Ah-hah!!
Got it.
A shift in camping
definitions...
Arriving at our overnight spot at Chicahominy, I’m reminded
of how much easier camping is for us now.
You know, for years, we tent-camped and truck-camped and felt virtuous
about our experience and appalled by those who would not rough it as we did and
appreciate nature by being "at one" with it. We did try out small motorhome (Class C)
camping for a couple of years there but went back to tent/truck camping because
we liked being able to drive around and explore places more and the motorhome
just wasn’t practical for that. I think
it was in Alaska in 2007 when we were tent-camping that we finally realized we
wanted a better alternative (and that it was probably going to be the last time
we opted for the ol’ tent)...aching backs, fighting the elements...our "at
one" days were just not as fun as they once were. Now with our trailer, we stop and set up in
about 15 minutes—no problems if it’s rainy or windy outside—and if we feel like
driving about, we can unhook and do that, no problem.
Our main goal for our first night was to crash. Chicahominy was pretty muddied up and low, so
Chris didn’t even feel like trying to fish.
Shoppie, ever the camping cat, gladly obliged our “crash” plan; she’s a
trooper when it comes to sleeping.
Thur
4/16/15
Phone Karma is Phone Karma…
Chris and I
have resisted smart phones for years and don’t pretend to be real big phone
users—it has undoubtedly saved us money over the years, although we do miss out
some because of the lack of connection.
Chris is happier being less-connected and is after that “ahhhh” feeling
of being out of touch with the world when on vacation anyway. One time, as we meandered our way back to the
correct path we originally wanted to be on, I commented that maybe we might not
have gotten lost if we had had a smart phone to which he replied, “That’s part
of the FUN of the adventure—getting lost!”
Anyway, the
following recount will surely make most people eye-roll and shake their
heads. Enjoy and bless you and your
connectedness!
For some
reason, our Trac Phones were not connecting at Page Springs, even though they
had last year. I wanted to keep more in
touch with my family this year—my sister to stay updated on Mom and Dad, Mom,
who is in a care facility and Dad who is battling cancer and chemo— and was
bummed that I couldn't call.
When Chris
got back from fishing, we decided to test out the Satellite Dish to see if it
still worked and ran into a re-activation issue that required us to contact
Direct TV, which of course we couldn't do due to the cell connecting
issue. He and I drove around trying to
get a signal (no luck), then Chris spotted a phone booth in the small town of
French Glen. I’m thinking, “Really?”
He hops out and picks up the phone—dial tone! He dialed the 1-800 number for DirectTV and
got through—unbelievable! The good
news: our satellite issue was
fixed. The bad news: I still couldn't get a hold of my Dad from
the phone booth—didn't handle out-of-state non 1-800 numbers (we would need to
order up more services when we returned to Salem). Dang!
Fri
4/17/15
Chris was up
early to go fishing and I opted out of the early morning chill out there. We had gone to bed at 9:00 and he was up and
out at 5:00, so I thought I was going to get up—nope! Slept for 2 more hours—guess it’s what I
needed! Went about the biz of “trailer
routines”—fed/tended the cat; made the bed; exercised; washed my face; tidied
up the kitchen; dumped the garbage.
These all sound mundane/routine as I write them down but somehow, in the
boondocks, it gives me a sort of giddy feeling to “play house” in the outdoors
with limited stuff. This applied to our
more rugged tent camping and truck camping years as well when the chores were
more primitive. I remember one fall tent-camping
trip when cleaning up the Coleman stove with a wet paper towel made my world
all complete somehow. (And I can just
picture my cosmopolitan friends eye-rolling about now, saying, “That poor
girl—she needs a facial and a Broadway show—now!”) Friend Connie Biddinger summed it up well
(they snow-bird down to Arizona for 3-4 months every year in their 5th
wheel): “It makes you realize how much
you can live without,” commenting on the limited amount of supplies and clothes
you can have on board, even with the bigger rigs.
What Camping Makes You Face…
Camping does
have a way of getting me back to basics, which is good for me, especially this
year, a year of becoming painfully aware of my physical shortcomings. It forces me to appreciate simplicity and focus
on what’s really important in life.
So today was
about the peace and quiet and surrounding beauty that is Page Springs. I took off on a walk in the amazing weather
(I actually got sweaty/too hot!) and enjoyed a wonderful feeling of solace and
serenity. Chris and I returned to camp
about the same time and decided to head out to look for good footage to augment
our Malheur movie. We have enjoyed
creating “best-of” 17-minute videos of our various trips to post on YouTube
during the winter and have wanted to beef up some of what we have with our
newer HD cameras. We have lots of great
composition shots already, but we’re beginning to appreciate the quality we get
with HD film now—so more bird pics are needed!
More P Ranch shots…a good excuse to mosey around and enjoy the scenery.
We returned
to a great meal provided by Chris’ catch—2 fresh trout—yum!—and watched a DVD
when it got dark then listened to our audio book while falling asleep. So much for “basics” some of you are
thinking. Yeah—I know. Camping is a LOT easier now!
Sat
4/18/15
Okay, time
for me to join this Krumbo Lake attack.
It’s another gorgeous (seriously—didn’t need my long underwear
afterall!) day—beautiful, calm…but really slow fishing. We turned our attention to bird sounds and
shots while waiting for any action.
Chris is so in-the-moment and loving every minute—such a great
example!—meanwhile, the quiet has given yours truly too much time to think and
I ponder the fact that I have to avoid the sun because of my latest melanoma
gouge and tiptoe carefully because of broken bones and bone loss issues—blah,
blah, blah. Chris snaps my pity-party
back to reality with one line: “You just
have to enjoy what you can.” And with
this one line, I’m reminded to count my blessings—so much to be thankful for,
really—Get over it, Darcie! Good grief.
So, no
fish. No problem.
We took the
long way home along Patrol Road and enjoyed getting some HD shots of birds on
the way back. We played Scrabble,
cribbage, showered then took another drive—nice! Supper, movie, bed.
Sun
4/19/15
Today we
head out for Mann Lake. We took the
southern loop route and came up along the Alvord desert—very enjoyable! Mann Lake was uncharacteristically packed with
weekend fishermen when we arrived at noon—thank goodness people thinned out by
3:00. His buddy Steve Biddinger was
already there and met us in his shorts and T-shirt—that’s how hot it was! Chris did some fishing/catching and I read
until the other parties (Steve Fossholm, his wife Lori and her brother Todd)
arrived.
Chris had
wanted to make a lasagna feast so we got that all prepped (lasagna, salad,
garlic crescent rolls) and it was well-received. Chris was anxious to get back out to fish and
so was Steve B. until he learned the Blazers were playing. The rest of the gang watched a little of that
(losing to Memphis), then building a fire sounded like more fun. The Steves got a great fire going and we all
sat around and jawed until dark/time to turn in. Chris and I played cribbage then fell asleep
with our audio book once again.
Mon
4/20/15
Chris was up
and out to fish early. I had what I
thought was some kind of cold coming on—only to find out later it was “desert
nose” allergy/whatever—so I thought I would stay in until I saw how gorgeous
the morning was and headed out for a walk with the camera. I found Chris just in time to film him
catching the biggest fish either of us have ever seen here at Mann. He measured along his fishing pole so he
could get an accurate measurement later (turned out to be 22”—not quite the
2-footer he’s salivating for). Steve B.
caught up with us and we chatted as Chris fished. We headed back to the “point” (close to camp)
to try some casts there. The sun is
actually a little too much—can’t believe this weather! I manned the camera while I read to record
the catches as long as I could but had to give it up to go find some shade at only
9:30 a.m.! Chris continued to have a
ball fishing and the flock of pelicans flew right in front of him about 10
minutes after I left. Dang! Missed my shot!
Had fun
sitting/talking in the shade, then Steve B. cooked up a wonderful dinner
(barbecued pork, pesto noodles, salad).
We still ain’t sufferin’! We
migrated to the campfire once again (nice) followed by watermelon dessert
provided by Lori F. The Fossholms had
brought some of our past Eastern Oregon and Alaska movies to share with her
brother and we had fun re-living those.
Fun times.
By the end
of the movies, I was pretty much not able to breathe and opted for drugs so I
could sleep. Chris also devised a pan of
boiling water/towel tent so I could breathe in steam at 5:00 a.m. when I
couldn’t breathe again, which helped a lot.
Tue
4/21/15
I slept a
little more after Chris left for his early morning fish and got cleaned up and
tidied the place. Still congested but feeling
good and it’s yet ANOTHER gorgeous day here—absolutely amazing! Will have to try a walk--! Ended up meeting up with Chris at the far end
and walked back with him. We breakfasted
then Chris fished some more and Lori and I visited. Surprisingly, our conversations don’t involve
much about fishing—I know that’s a shocker.
She went to make preps for supper and Chris returned. We started to fall asleep for a nap, but a
knock at our door woke us up. As it
turned out, this disruption was for a very good cause. To appreciate this, you need to know about
the Thomas Buoyant legacy:
Chris’
first time fishing at Mann Lake included meeting a fellow avid fisherman who
introduced him to the Thomas Buoyant lure.
He claimed nothing else worked the magic that this lure did at Mann
Lake. He passed one of these lures onto
Chris and he became a rapid convert after catching multitudes of the beautiful Lahontan
cutthroat trout found at Mann. He wanted
to know what he could do in return for this amazing favor and was told to just
do the same as he saw fit. Kind of like
the fisherman’s version of Pay It Forward.
So earlier
that day, Chris had seen fit to pass on one of his TB lures and it was received
in much the same way that Chris had received his. That was the knock on the door—a thank you
from a happy, successful fisherman—and it made us smile. Then we were wide awake again, and at a
too-early-for-evening-fishing hour. We
wound up taking a walk up to a ridge above Mann Lake. It was a pleasant little hike with a good
view but since the weather has been so good for so long, it was a bit hazy for
great picture opportunities. He and I
got back and then went to the far end so that he could try to catch his
2-footer. And I’m still trying to get
footage of pelicans in flight in HD.
Neither happened, but it was fun enough.
Lori
Fossholm threw together a great spread (home-cooked sausages, including
German-style ones that Todd made), baked beans (Todd again—excellent stuff),
corn-on-the-cob, sauerkraut…yum!
Another
great campfire and Lori provided dessert again (caramel corn) which was
perfect.
When Mann Lake Blows You Away…
Then Mann
Lake decided to show its colors in terms of wind. Wow.
The weather changed like magic and the wind picked up such a ferocity,
we all had to go in. Shoppie took to her
travel box and looked like she was pleading with us: “Time to move to another place?” She didn't come out much until the next
morning when it died down for a spell.
Chris and I watched a movie while the refrigerator got charged (our
refrigerator was having issues which we couldn't quite figure out—dust?
Elevation?—and we had to run the generator for a while in order to make sure
our food didn't spoil) and then turned in.
Wed
4/22/15
Windy night,
but we slept well—tried to morning fish/film but the wind picked up again and
sent us back in for breakfast. Chris
made pancakes and sausage—nice!—then we said our goodbyes—Steve B. left first,
heading back to Dallas. The Fossholms
headed out not long after towards Yellow Jacket Lake. We were in no hurry—in fact, Chris decided to
make one last cast while I caught up on journaling/reading. We’re heading up to Bates and Catherine
Creek—unknown territory!—to check out one of Chris’ possible hunts this
fall. Shoppie migrated from her travel
box to under the covers—burrowing down as the wind howled out there—and I
wondered how Chris was managing with fishing in this stuff!!
Well,
okay…so Chris had some luck out there and there was a break in the wind. It’s beautiful again and he’s waffling back
and forth—do we stay or go, stay or go…??
We finally stayed.
While we
were out fishing/filming a group from Baker came up for a lunch break (they’re
camped at Page Springs) to see Mann Lake and they had a weather report for
us…going to be like last night and today—i.e. few breaks but mostly wind
through Friday—“Then on Saturday, some rain and snow!” Chris decided this meant fighting out the
storm as follows: bake cookies, play
Scrabble, and nap. Got the okay from
Shoppie to proceed.
Chris fished
some more and I read…we finished the evening out (with wind howling) with a
light supper and movies. Toughin’ out
the storm…
Thurs
4/23/15
Remarkably
calm at 5:30 a.m. and Chris is ready to try one last fishing before we head for
Burns then Bates today. I headed out to
try and film him about 6:00 (I take longer jumping out of bed when it’s chilly
outside). It still wasn’t windy…yet! I headed out and WOW. WOW is about all I can say…definitely worth
toughing out the extra night! It was
cold at first…in fact, so cold that Chris thought something was wrong with his
fishing line and it turned out his guides were icing up, making it impossible
to cast! His hands were so frozen, I ran
back to the trailer and got him our handy-dandy hand-warmers that we had gotten
at the State Fair. THEN…sun comes out
and warms things up and it’s always astounding to me how absolutely beautiful
Mann Lake can be sometimes. The winds
must have blown away the dust or haze and the mountains shined against
brilliant blue sky. Chris didn’t get any
bites worth reporting but we still enjoyed being out there. And I even got some pelicans taking off into
flight, which was exciting.
When Wrong Turns Turn Out Right…
A family had
arrived the night before and it seemed fitting to leave the place to them to
enjoy. We got about the business of
breakfast and packing up. We were on the
road by about 9:30. Got chores done in
Burns with the sad lack of cell phone service once again; we managed to try and
fail at various available options to communicate but then when we got outside
of Vale (after taking a wrong turn to reach Bates)—voila! Cell service and I got it long enough to talk
to Dad and text my Sis. Whew! Felt so much better to connect. Nice.
Stopped for
burgers and gas in Baker City and got to Catherine Creek campground about 6:30
or 7:00. A longer day of travel than we
had planned but it worked out—the campground is absolutely beautiful. And as it turned out, our wrong turn, which
made us miss Bates, saved us in the long run as we found out on our way back
that the Bates campground was closed still.
Hah! Can your smart phone do
that?
We enjoyed a
campfire then came in and enjoyed a rainy evening with a movie. After that, we fell asleep to the sound of
the creek and the rain…and slept like babies.
Fri
4/24/15
Wow—slept in
until after 8:00 and enjoyed the sunny morning with breakfast. And Shoppie seemed extra excited by her creek
view.
Went
exploring the Catherine Creek hunting unit today—no hurries. Had a beautiful drive (including Union and
Cove) and a nice little hike through the woods but no real visible trailer
possibilities should he draw a tag here later.
Hmmmmm.
We came
back, had showers, dinner, watched a movie and turned in. Tomorrow, we’re planning to take a look at
the Keating area.
Sat
4/25/15
Up at 7:30
this morning (still feels like sleeping in)—dressed, breakfasted, and took off
for what promised to be a long day checking out Keating—hoping for more camping
options for October/November.
It was another
wonderful day of driving and exploring new territory. Saw 4 elk at one point, turkeys, and a whole
lot of pretty, but again, not good for camping access in the future. Rain started in and we headed back to relax
on the trailer—get some supper, watch a movie—tough life! Shoppie’s toughing it out too—was burrowed in
under the comforter and when I dug down to find her and say hello, she just
started purring (loudly).
Sun
4/26/15
Slept in
again, beautiful morning—had breakfast and got ready to go…easy day, just going
to Unity Reservoir. Found a pretty spot
with a view of the lake and have the place pretty much to ourselves. Set up and enjoyed another relaxing
spot. This is a beautiful and
well-maintained campground with all of the “fixings”—nice to be off-generator
for a while with quiet (no pump) unlimited fresh water—feels like a vacation
from the vacation! Showers, supper,
enjoyed lots of swallow and geese action…slept great.
Mon
4/27/15
Got up
earlier today in the cold (20s or so) and Chris is trying out the fishing here
at Unity. It’s amazing how warm it can
feel once the sun comes up—beautiful morning, lots of great bird sounds. But, alas, no fish. Off we go—next stop, Clyde Holliday State
Park (one of our favs) in order to scout out other units for Chris come
fall. He really wants to spend over a
month over here and work 2 different hunts perhaps—mainly the month of October. We’re looking at how that will work out. We took a drive up into elk territory which
meant lots of bumpy roads and tomorrow we look at Magone Lake. Beautiful day out—came back and had a great
dinner, enjoying the breeze and cooling evening. Chris fell asleep by 7:00, which gave me time
to journal and read before turning in.
Tues
4/28/15
Up and out
for a long scouting day today—beautiful mountains, perfect weather. We stopped at Magone Lake and Chris fished a
little, catching a single trout, while we were entertained by a loud
woodpecker. We checked out the camp
spots there and continued on. Saw white
tail and mule deer and ate road food (nuts, cookies, cheese sticks) while we drove. We stopped several times and took some pretty
little walks looking for elk and/or elk sign.
We thought the weather was supposed to get bad today—nope! It was gorgeous! Off came the long underwear—whew! Spent part of our drive-about talking about
all of our years together and all of the adventures we have had. It was a fun way to usher in our anniversary
(#16) and 20 years together (April 30th). Ate dessert, napped, relaxed…another gorgeous
evening.
Wed
4/29/15
The trip is
winding down and one of our favorite things to do as we contemplate heading
home is our “lazy morning”—which involves coffee in bed while watching a movie. Shoppie, the Camping Cat, is also celebrating
because she thinks she has scared off a mouse that got on board. Chris thinks it was the “thud” of her weight
when she jumped off the bed that scared it the most. At any rate, we gave her lots of praise. We relived one of our favorite
movies—“Lonesome Dove”—and then Chris got inspired to cook up a “proper
breakfast” complete with eggs and potatoes, and the rainbow trout he caught
yesterday—wow!
We had a
nice drive to Detroit Lake after packing up.
There’s not much lake to speak of and no people, we love that—got the
place to ourselves! Chris got Shoppie
all worked up by feeding the ducks right outside her window…she enjoyed
that. I was able to get through to
family, so that was nice to get updates.
Dinner,
relaxation, turn in…
Thur
4/30/15
It felt like
being in the middle of a Sci-Fi movie to me—so bizarre but quiet and barren
here at Detroit Lake. Chris fished and I
got up and around in time to meet him coming back up. Chilly but nice in a—bizarre—way!
Breakfast
and a slow easy drive back to Salem to get unpacked and back to our lives
there.
Until the
next adventure when we tough it out once again!
