Written January 2019
Day 1
Since we were only staying in McKenzie River for one night, we needed to maximize our way, so we woke up early Saturday morning, and after a quick breakfast, got on the road and made our way out. The weather forecast was looking good for the day, so we decided to go for 2 different hikes today to see a couple waterfalls and a blue pool, for a total of 7+ miles. This was the perfect timing to see some waterfalls, because just that week, I had discovered that the iPhone has a long exposure feature that could be used with the live photos…so this was going to be a great test!
Our first stop for the day was the Waterfall Loop Trail to see Sahalie and Koosah Falls. We got there at around 11, and were ready for a nice 3 mile walk to see a couple falls. Though it was only 3 miles, we took a long time out there, talking lots of pictures…going off on side trails, and hunting for moss for our flower back home. It was beautiful hike!
About 100 yards in, and there’s Koosah Falls!
Pretty Trail
Downstream of Koosah Falls
Koosah from the other side
More downstream falls
First view of Sahalie Falls
Ground level view of Sahalie
It took us about 2 hrs to walk the full loop, and by that time, we were STARVING! The last 1/2 hr or so of the hike…actually it was probably much less…and just felt like a long time, we were wishing for every little turn to be back into the parking lot we were so hungry. But we finally made it out, and scarfed down our sub sandwiches that we got from Fred Meyer the day before. It was just what we needed! Afterwards, we decided to go back down off trail to get a ground-level view of Koosah Falls. Again…beautiful!
Down to Koosah Falls
Our next stop after the falls was the Tamolitch Blue Pool. It was about a 20 minute drive to get to the trailhead. This was an out and back hike, of 4 miles total. The hike itself wasn’t as nice as the loop trail, as we couldn’t see little waterfalls all along the way, but it was still enjoyable. We still got to collect some nice moss and tried to find some perfect fallen maple leafs. The blue pool itself was really pretty…much prettier than the pictures did justice.
Maple Leafs!
Along the trail
Tamolitch Blue Pool
We got back to the car, probably a little after 5, and it was time to find our hotel, without any service or pre-printed map/directions. Thankfully, there were just a couple of road options for us to turn on, so we were able to find it without much trouble…just had to trust our instincts! We stayed at a simple place called Harbicks Country Inn, which looked to be owned and run by a lovely retired couple. It was small, clean place, and worked for us! After a hot shower, we went across the street for dinner at the best bite to eat in town! (and the closest one for miles…) We had a couple of delicious sandwiches between the 2 of us though…pulled pork and roast beef w/ au jus! It was just what we needed after a long day of driving and hiking!
Harbicks and Takodas
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The Dating Life of Norina and Jonathan 