Fall Camping

We finally got out to do some camping this month. This a great time of year to go, as the crowds are gone and weather is great. After visiting our friend Al in Bend, and hiking along the Deschutes River and up to Todd Lake, we headed to Elk Lake.

The lake is nestled between Mt. Bachelor, broken top and South Sister, a spectacular setting. The Point campground has sites right on the water where we could launch our kayaks. While the wind comes up in the afternoon, the water is still in the mornings and provided fine reflections.

As it was a full moon while we were there, the view across the lake was beautiful and always changing. It was so bright we didn't need flashlights to walk around camp, even late at night.

After trying to get to Waldo Lake and being blocked by forest fire crews, we returned to Elk Lake for a couple more days, and went paddling on Hosmer Lake. completely different from Elk Lake, it is rather shallow and filled in with reeds, water pickerel and water lillies. Lots of waterfowl live in the lake and it's rich in fish. The fly fishermen keep lanes open through the reeds through the lake, making water trails. Though the lake is big in acreage, it is mostly overgrown so the paddling area is small. We watched osprey sailing over the lake as they watched for fish, and tried to identify the many different kinds of ducks.

After more hiking near Sparks Lake and evening paddling we packed up and headed out of the mountains. We found more areas to explore on foot and by boat, so we'll be back the snow clears next spring.