Fall Is A Coming

CHERYL'S NEWS FROM CAMP WEBEGONE

The seasons are a bit short here at Camp Webegone. Except winter. The others are short to make up for the long mountain winter season.

In Portland summer lingers through September and sometimes to October. Here, summer is already fizzling in only late August. Our mornings stay cooler for longer. The afternoon heat does last for a few hours, so evenings are cool, not cold. But Rich now gets a fire going for breakfast and for the evening.

What a difference a mountain makes.

Cheryl

Julianna visit

WEEKLY WEATHER REPORT FROM CAMP WEBEGONE
August 11-18th

High: 82.4
Low: 32.2
Humidity: 36-94
Wind: 5.8
Rain: a few drops

RICH'S NEWS FROM CAMP WEBEGONE

My granddauther Julianna came for a visit this week, and we had a grand 'ol time. Jules mastered riding Cheryl's bike even though her feet were off the ground. The first night we did rounds and met most of the campers, and Jules got to pet many dogs. No better way to break the ice than appreciate some one's dogs.

As of today we have not found the stray cat that is hanging out around the camp but are still hopeful. Jules was very focused on finding him.  

Crater Lake was beautiful, and it was beautiful to share the experience with Jules.

 

And of course Smores were a new part of the diet. I think Cheryl has been waiting all summer for an excuse to eat them. And Jules made the fire. 

Probably the most memorable moment was the toilet 3, which lets say is very aromatic. I am sorry to say it was the last time Jules assisted me. Ah well! I give thanks for having a less than acute smeller!

One of the delights of being here is having people come who “get it” when they come to our site, and Julianna did just that. She walked in and immediately felt the peace and power of the place. I think it is living in tall trees, at least in part.

The time went too fast, but we have a plan for a longer visit next year. It has been too long since we have been able to hang out. Cheryl and I are both delighted she could join us. 

And a nice bonus was having Carole be able to experience our summer home. Life is good.

Rich

A Story in a Picture: Sunset Reflecting on Trees

CHERYL'S NEWS FROM CAMP WEBEGONE

Sunset Reflecting on Trees

Thunder, Lightning, Hail and Rain

 CHERYL'S NEWS FROM CAMP WEBEGONE

August 12 and 13. 

And the rains came. Plus a bit of hail. Both days, Rich and Cheryl seek shelter inside the trailer. It's a small space, but dry and protected from the elements. We pass the time napping, reading, playing and cribbage.

Our Rainy Day View

But you can only do so much of that, before you want a change of pace. Rich suggests arm wrestling. Since he has long forearms, Cheryl suggests thumb wrestling - where she figures the odds will be more even. 

Rich tells Cheryl that he is a vicious thumb wrestler. And Cheryl thinks, how vicious can someone be with just a thumb. She was about to find out. Rich gave Cheryl a handicap by wrestling with his eyes closed. But even with that, it was a bit like Godzilla thumb wrestling Hello Kitty. 

It was a good laugh for both. 

PS: Challenge Rich sometime if you dare.

Cheryl  

Midnight Ride

RICH'S NEWS FROM CAMP WEBEGONE

There are moments that standout as markers in time. My most recent marker occurred on August 1st. A midnight ride to Medford.

This event has changed my mindset about going to Medford. From Portland it seemed like a long trip, but gradually it is becoming mentally more accessible. Riding down in Cheryl's car rather than the truck also makes a difference. I guess old age makes some of these comforts more meaningful.

So, around 1am Cheryl helps me figure out that the pain I am having needs medical attention. She drives me to Providence Hospital Emergency Room in Medford, which is quite un-busy at 2:30am. Having consulted the book Where There Is No Doctor, I already figured I knew what was happening. By 5am, after a CAT scan and blood work, it was confirmed. I have kidney stones, painful ones (to make an understatement). 

They are not so big, so Ultrasound is not required to break them up. The hospital allows us to sleep for a couple hours, as no pharmacies are open to give me the drugs. Ah yes, and the next step is the nausea from the drugs, which I rapidly discontinue as Advil dulls the pain enough to get me through the next 24 hours or so. 

This placed us back in the trailer for two weeks. Trailer as infirmary again. It has been a great place for healing.

It is now 18 days later, and I am feeling energetic again. I am well and healthy and today we biked up for the first time for a Cinnamon roll at Beckys Cafe. Oh, it is such a hard life. Now when do we get to eat the huckleberrys we picked today! Just 18 days after the midnight ride.

Rich 

Kayaking From Natural Bridge

CHERYL'S NEWS FROM CAMP WEBEGONE

(Editor's Note: For those who don't know, whitewater rapids are rated on a scale of I to VI, with VI being the most difficult.)

Rich and I have been told that the stretch of river at Natural Bridge would be rated a level four rafting difficulty. 

• Class IV (advanced): Intense, powerful but predictable rapids requiring precise boat handling in turbulent water. Depending on the character of the river, it may feature large, unavoidable waves and holes or constricted passages demanding fast maneuvers under pressure. A fast, reliable eddy turn may be needed to initiate maneuvers, scout rapids, or rest. Rapids may require “must make” moves above dangerous hazards. Scouting may be necessary the first time down. Risk of injury to swimmers is moderate to high, and water conditions may make self-rescue difficult. Group assistance for rescue is often essential but requires practiced skills. For kayakers, a strong roll is highly recommended.  Wikipedia

We will not be trying this.

One day, while cleaning at the day-use center, a car with a kayak attached to the top arrived. Rich and I have been waiting so that we could watch someone kayak the Rouge River from Natural Bridge. Rich talked with the kayak's owner, who said he would be kayaking the river solo. 

When trying the rapids, folks generally launch from one of two places: from a rock outcrop that is under the footbridge, and from Natural Bridge. This kayaker would be launching from Natural Bridge - the more difficult of the two. 

His first task (after some warm up stretches), was to tote all his gear on a 10 minute walk up to Natural Bridge, climb over a fence, go down a bank, cross the Natural Bridge, and then head down a rock bank to the launch site.

 

He then sets his kayak on the rock. More warm up stretching. Then he gets in his kayak. Launching is pushing the kayak so it slides off the rock into the water. The Rouge moves swiftly here, so he has to be ready to quickly navigate between two rocks. And then it's right to the falls. The kayaker said that after this first bit, the rest of the river is a piece of cake.

These are two photos taken of the portion of the Rouge that we watched him kayak. The photos were taken from the footbridge. 

This is the upriver section.

And this is the down river section.

It was really impressive to watch him. And, of course, the kayaker had a lot of fun.

Cheryl 

Three Scary Spiders

NEWS FROM CAMP WEBEGONE

There are many, many arachnids here at Natural Bridge Campground. Of those I have seen, these are the three largest and scariest.

This spider was in one of the pit toilets. It was about an inch long. Rich and I went to get something to relocate it, but the spider had already vamoosed.

This daddy long leg spider, which was as big as my fist, was on the outside wall of the healing arts tent.

While giving Rich a Reiki treatment in the screened shelter (or the Safe House as we call it), this at least one inch long and very scary spider joined us. The spider was on the outside. Have not seen it since.

Cheryl

50 Shades of Gray Water

WEEKLY WEATHER REPORT FROM CAMP WEBEGONE

High, 88
Low, 50
Humidity, 34-85%
Wind gusts, 4.7
Rain, sprinkle

CHERYL'S NEWS FROM CAMP WEBEGONE

As you my recall, Camp Webegone is a dry camp - no water or electricity. So, where do we get water and how do we manage it? Rich and I have three sources of water that we use.

1. A National Forest well
2. The Rouge River
3. Rainwater

For the rain water, we capture it in buckets as it flows off the trailer. We use this water for house cleaning and other tasks where some yuck is okay. If the water is clear enough, we use it for bathing.

Where we get our river water

Rich Hauling Water Buckets

Rich hauls water from the river in buckets and ports them to our site on his bicycle. This water is mostly used for bathing.

Rich Filling Water Jugs at the Well

The well water - our source of pristine water - is used for drinking, cooking, brushing teeth, face and hand washing. Rather than take the trailer to the well (which would be a serious pain in the butt to do), we fill a number of one gallon jugs and one seven gallon container and haul them back in the truck. These last us about seven days.

Disposing of gray water is simple now that we have switched to using Dr Bonner's soap for everything, so that the gray water is earth friendly. Using buckets, gray water is hauled to various plants and trees, which are then given our offering. Personally, I think most of the water we collect ends up in the pit toilet.

A note on bathing. It happens less often here than when living in the city. Rich and I have differing methods. Rich uses the bucket method, like when he lived in Haiti. I do more sponge bathing and about once a week use a solar type shower that I rigged up inside the trailer shower. I heat about two quarts of water for this shower. Not a lot of water, but effective. So far we have not dunked in the river, which, despite it being late summer, still has a temp way too cold for both of us.

Cheryl

Touring the Area for Facebook

A Facebook friendly posting of our sightseeing trips.

Imnaha Springs - wildflower meadow

Water Tower at CCC Camp

Vidae Falls

Crater Lake

Union Creek Gorge I

Union Creek Gorge II

Natural Bridge

Travels With Diane and Larry

WEEKLY WEATHER REPORT AT CAMP WEBEGONE

July 25 – July 30

Weekly High: 85.3

Low 50.0

Humidity: 37% - 85%

Wind Gust: 4.7

Rain: nada

CHERYL'S NEWS FROM CAMP WEBEGONE

While Diane and Larry were staying with us, the four of us had a blast wandering around the area, discovering new sights and revisting old favorites. And just maybe we eat too much pie (is that is even possible?).

Here, in pictures, are the highlights of our travels over these past two or three days (depending on how you count them).

Imnaha Springs - wildflower meadow

 

Water Tower at CCC Camp

Biggest Sugar Pine in US, with Rich and Larry measuring the circumference

Vidae Falls

 

Crater Lake

Singin' in the Rain

Crater Lake with Nancy

 

WEATHER FROM CAMP WEBEGONE

July 18 – July 24

Weekly High: 83.9

Low: 41.2

Humidity: 34 – 92%

Wind Gust: 4.9

Rain: .41 inches

RICH'S NEW FROM CAMP WEBEGONE 

(Editor's Note: timewise, this entry occurs before the previous two)

We have a visitor to our campsite: Nancy Burch. Nancy arrived with lots of food offerings (we eat well!).

It is such a joy to share our adventure here with someone, to share with them the beauty of this wonderful place. We have been waiting for a visitor to come to go to Crater Lake, and the timing could not have been better. Though we did not get to see the incredible blueness of Crater Lake, the clouds made up for it in drama. Even though it was crowded, we managed to enjoy viewing and walking the area. 

Last time when Cheryl and I were here, the clouds moved in and obscured the lake. Well, the day of Nancy's arrival, it clouded over and we had a thunderstorm with a little hail and .41 inches of rain. But that morning we were able to take her in sunshine up the river and really enjoy the sites that are just in our walking distance. (Nancy got to experience a real range of weather during here stay here).

An added bonus is Nancy got to ride Cheryl's bike and that opened up joy for her as she buzzed around the camp through the trees without the hills of SW Portland and the traffic. I see a bike in her future.

Talking, sharing food and bad weather (which we sat through singing songs from the song book until we were all a bit hoarse). It was a delight. Thanks for the visit Nancy.

Rich 

We Are Safe

NEWS FROM CAMP WEBEGONE

You may have heard reports about forest fires in the area we are staying in. Although there are forest fires in all directions around Natural Bridge, none are close to the campsite. We have been lucky. So far smoke from the fires is not even at ground level in the campground. We are told it would be very unusual if we had to evacuate.

There have been some interesting effects, though. Our vehicles are covered with a fine ash. For the past two days, the daylight has had an orange hue to it. And last night, the bit of the moon we saw was also orange. Very strange.

The photo was taken about two weeks at Crater Lake Lodge facing towards Klamath Lake.

Cheryl

Reflections On Friendship

NEWS FROM LAKE WEBEGONE

CHERYL: Rich and I spend most of each day alone together - time we cherish. 

But with the visit of Diane and Larry, I realized I was craving the companionship of friends. Living in Portland, friendship is always present, there in the background easily accessible - simply a part of life. Thank you Diane and Larry for facilitating the realization that Rich and my friendships are deeply cherished, appreciated and add such depth and meaning to our lives. 

RICH: Our short time together with Diane and Larry was filled with conversation, walks, exploration of trees, river, flowers, bugs, good food and laughter. It was a delight to share this gorgeous place with good friends. Our vision is always expanded by new eyes. It has been years since I (Rich) drove the rim of Crater Lake and experienced the changing colors and sights.

A big thanks to all of you, our friends.

Cheryl & Rich