A great night's sleep on a bed in my own room in Redmond. Then a scenic cycle to the town of Sisters. The three peaks after which the town is named were covered in snow.
I then took the lower, but longer, Santiam Pass, crossing over to the West side of the Cascades. (all the guys took the higher pass). I do not however regret my decision, I had fantastic views of Mount Washington, and a gentle 20 mile descent through forests, which were growing out of volcanic rubble. There were a lot of little chipmunks running around. I descended via the Mackenzie River.
I find it hard to resist a sign for "hot springs", so spent the night camping at a hot springs 'resort'. It was lovely relaxing in the hot sulphur swimming pool. My tent was close to the crystal clear Mackenzie river which increases in size as creeks flow into it. There were nature trails, and a hidden water garden.
I am now on the West side of all the large Mountain ranges. The Pacific coast is not far away!. Those early travellers, like me, must have delighted in leaving the arid land and canyons behind. I did not cross at the same point as them - that route is now used by the freeway (motorway).
Mount Washington.
No comments:
Post a Comment