Wallowa Lake
July, 2014 – For a tiny little village, Joseph, Oregon, had been keeping us very busy with a wonderful variety of activiites.
From the unusual bike ride on the old railroad tracks to the Wallowa Tramway to enjoying the scenery along Wallowa Lake, we had been enchanted by this corner of northeastern Oregon every day.
Indian guide Sacajawea
Everywhere around Joseph is incredibly photogenic. Mark got a beautiful shot of the red and green trees down at Wallowa Lake.
Weeeee!
In town, he got another beauty of the bronze sculpture of the multi-lingual Indian guide Sacajawea.
She helped Lewis and Clark on their 1805 expedition to the Pacific Ocean, not only with translations between two Indian languages, English and French, but with route-finding as well.
Hiking into the Eagle Cap Wilderness at Hurricane Creek
Deer are abundant in and around Joseph, and one afternoon Mark miraculously caught one mid-flight as it bounded across the road.
Who knew acrobatics were part of this hike?!
What a pretty field of flowers!
Hanging out in Joseph with our friends Dick and Katie made our time even more special.
When they suggested we all hike into the Eagle Cap Wilderness on the Hurricane Creek Trail, we were delighted.
There were beautiful wildflowers everywhere.
There hadn’t been any mention of fording rushing streams, but within the first half mile we had to make our way across a precarious log bridge!
And such pretty shapes!
Such delicate patterns!
After a lot of uphill hiking through the woods, the trail suddenly delivered us into the most spectacular meadow.
It was filled with wildflowers, and surrounded on two sides by snow-capped mountains.
We were in seventh heaven admiring all the gorgeous scenery!
The wildflowers came in all shapes and sizes: pink ones and lavender ones,; big ones and small ones. Each seemed to be basking in the brilliant sunshine.
A refreshing waterfall
After communing with the spirits of the colorful flowers for a while, we finally followed the trail through the woods and eventually came to a huge crashing waterfall.
Ahhh!
The stream was shallow, but oh so clear!
This was a great spot for a break, and we all enjoyed a snack while zephyrs of cool air wafted over us from the cascading water, caressing our sun-baked skin.
Yum!
In places, the creek alongside the trail was a vivid light blue and as clear as could be.
Back in Enterprise, we stopped at Terminal Gravity Brewing for a taste of their microbrew.
Sitting at picnic tables outside the brewpub under several huge shade trees, we enjoyed their outstanding Festiva ale, a yummy beer that can’t be found anywhere else!
Joseph is incredibly photogenic!
Joseph captured our hearts in every way. It is scenic, quiet, relaxing and far from the rush and chaos of the real world, a perfect combination for a summer break.
The fields were bright green and yellow when we arrived.
The languid days oozed from one to the next, and at one point we were convinced it was Thursday until we checked our wall clock and it told us it was Sunday. How did that happen? I don’t know, but we were loving the slow pace.
Mark is in his element — lost in the wildflowers!
We stayed in Joseph, Oregon, so long that the daisies that had been approaching their peak when we arrived had begun to fade.
A beautiful starburst in the trees at sunset!
The farm fields around town went from the bright greens and vivid yellows of the mustard flowers (planted to rejuvenate the soil) to the dull grey-greens of cut hay.
Hay bales began to dot the fields from horizon to horizon, and one day we noticed the clear air had become stained with the white haze of smoke from distant forest fires.
We still had one more hike we wanted to do, the Lostine River Trail hike that our friend Kim of the Joseph Branch Railriders had recommended very highly.
But we discovered the “distant” fires were actually very close and disturbing. The Hurricane Creek Trail that we had just hiked was now closed. A fire was burning in the wilderness we had just hiked.
This was the third time this season we had blazed a trail and left it blazing behind us, first at West Fork in Sedona and then in the Bend, Oregon, area and now here.
Reluctantly, we spread our maps out on the floor of the buggy and began to ponder our next move. North? East? South? We weren’t sure… However, after a few days of musings, inspiration finally struck!
Picture perfect…this was a time of pure peace and summertime bliss!
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For more information about hiking in this wonderful area, here are links for the Hurricane Creek Trail and the Eagle Cap Wilderness.
For more info about RV camping in Joseph Oregon, visit these links:
More from our RV travels in Eastern Oregon:
- Hell’s Canyon – A Gorgeous Gorge! 08/07/14
- Wallowa Lake Tramway – Into the Alps! 07/23/14
- Joseph Branch Railriders – What a ride! 07/19/14
- Joseph, Oregon – At Heaven’s Door! 07/15/14
- Baker City Cycling Classic 07/11/14
- On the road to Baker City, Oregon 07/08/14
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