Backpacking in Oregon

It was 2021.  I decided we should take a family backpacking vacation.  We had done plenty of hiking, but we had never done a multi-night backpacking trip. I wanted to backpack part of the Pacific Crest Trail.  After all, I had seen the movie “Wild” and Reese Witherspoon was able to do it by herself, so surely we could do it.  For Christmas, 2020, everyone received backpacking backpacks, backpacking tents, lightweight sleeping pads and sleeping bags, and water bladders/filters.  We were all set.  Did I mention it was 2021? There was a drought and record-breaking wildfires in Oregon in 2021.  So of course, that is where I chose to go backpacking.

Our group consisted of me, my husband-Greg, my daughter-Sarah, my son-Ryan, and my son’s fiancée-Kelly.  Also included were our dog, Josie, and Kelly’s dog, Stella.  We opted to drive to Oregon, because we wanted to go home by way of California so we could stop in and visit with our daughter, Ally, who was not able to go on our vacation because of work.  It would take us several days to make the drive.  I had also booked an Airbnb in Portland for a few days after the backpacking adventure.

My husband and I had different thoughts about what traveling on this trip would look like.  In my mind, I had pictured five backpacks thrown in the back of the car, a couple of coolers, and we were good.  In reality, this is what we looked like.

My husband built a camping box, put it on a trailer, and we hauled it across the country.  He calls it the Chuckwagon.  He also built a smaller one for my son, so he and Kelly hauled one on the back of their car as well.  This is us, stopped at a gas station parking lot, cooking tacos out of the back of our car.  Definitely a Beverly Hillbilly sort of vibe to this trip.

I booked campgrounds along the way for each night.  The first night I scheduled a campsite at a hipcamp. Hipcamp offers unique camping experiences by private landowners who rent out their land to campers.  We were scheduled to stay at Uncle B’s hipcamp in Monroe, South Dakota.  I had never stayed at a hipcamp before and I didn’t know what to expect.  My family was a little apprehensive about the name.  Uncle B?  Does that sound a little creepy? I told them we were either going to have a great experience or we would be murdered in our sleep. Either way, it was going to be an adventure.

We ended up loving Uncle B’s hipcamp, and Uncle B was really nice as well.  His hipcamp was a small farm.  He had a very large vegetable garden, and a variety of small animals, including a litter of new puppies. 

He brought us eggs every morning, and he brought us supplies to make s’mores every evening.  He personally met and had conversations with all of the campers.  He invited us to go into the barn to see the puppies. 

The bathroom/shower facilities were very clean and nice.  And we were not murdered in our sleep. 

We continued to make our way to Oregon.  We stopped at Wall Drugs in South Dakota, and we detoured slightly so we could stop at Mount Rushmore for a little while. 

We stayed at a KOA in Sheridan, Wyoming the next night, we stayed in a campground in the Tetons the following night, and we camped at Crescent Lake in Deschutes National Forest in Oregon the next night.  We were supposed to stay one night at Crescent Lake campground, and then set out on the trail.  My family pleaded to stay an extra night at Crescent Lake to rest and relax before we started backpacking.  I booked an additional night, and we rested from our long drive. 

We sat around a campfire, explored the area, and went for a swim in the lake.  Well, we sort of went for a swim.  The water was extremely cold, so we didn’t stay in for long.  Crescent Lake is a deep lake that is was formed by retreating glaciers, located in the Cascade Mountains at higher altitude, and it has limited direct sunlight due to its location in the mountain range.  So it is very cold. We thought our dogs might enjoy a swim.  Our furry dog, Josie, seemed to like it ok.  Kelly’s dog, Stella, was not a fan.  Here is a picture of Kelly-posing prettily for the picture, Ryan-looking lovingly at Kelly, and Stella-thinking this was the worst day of her life.  

By the way, we were not the ones who made the cheesy heart. It was already there.

The next day we started out on the trail. Ryan woke up really grumpy that morning. He said he did not think we should be doing this since we did not know what we were doing. He’s had enough experience on our trips to have reason to be concerned. But he should have also known that not knowing what we were doing does not stop us from doing it. By the time we reached the trailhead, I think he had resigned himself to making the best of another family vacation experience.

We filled up our water bladders and our water bottles at the trailhead, and we were excited to try out our new water filter along the trail.  Did I mention the area was currently having a drought?  We hiked for several hours, and we began to consider finding a water source. We had an app that was supposed to show where we could find water.  None of the places on the app actually had water.  It looked like there had been water there at one time, but it was currently completely dried up.  We finally found one place with a little water, but it was covered in mosquitos and looked really gross.  We were also getting covered in mosquitos.  We eventually came upon what looked like a dried up pond or lake bed.  This was a very bad sign for water, but we found if we stood in the middle of the lake bed, the mosquitos did not bother us as much.  We decided to camp there for the night. 

We still had not found water, so we passed on trying to cook our dehydrated food, and we chose to just eat our snacks for dinner.  We put all of the extra food in a few bags and Greg and Ryan hung them in a tree to protect them from the bears. 

I guess they did it right. We were not eaten by bears that night. I actually have significant concerns regarding bears when hiking, especially in grizzly bear areas. And we were not exactly experienced backpackers. I once watched a program about dealing with bears on the trail. They taught that your response to the bear depends on whether the bear is being predatory or defensive. I’m not sure I would be able to determine this logically when I am facing a bear. I suppose I could just ask the bear, but then I feel like he would eat me just for asking stupid questions.

We set up our tents, ate our snacks, and tried to get some sleep. Something big inspected our tents during the night.  We all heard it, but none of us was brave enough to open the tent to see what it was.  In our minds, it was a bear or an elk. In reality, it was probably a raccoon or, at most, a deer. 

The next morning, we got up and ate a few more of our snacks.  We were a little apprehensive about going further on the trail since we had very little water left and we had no idea if we would be able to find more.  We decided to go back to the trailhead where we started, fill up on water, and then decide where we would hike next.  As we were hiking, Kelly said, “I would like to see the ocean.”  It took us about five seconds to decide to abandon our hiking plans and go to the coast instead.  I found a nice hotel in Newport, Oregon. 

We arrived at the hotel, very dusty and dirty from our previous adventures, but they were very nice and assured us they were used to dirty travelers.  We checked into our rooms, took showers, even bathing the dogs.  We went out for a nice dinner, walked on Nye beach, and thoroughly enjoyed our time in Newport.  Our hotel was right on Nye beach and the next morning I went for a run on the beach.  It was beautiful.

If we had known about Newport when we were planning this trip, we would have planned to stay there longer.

We left the next day to go to Portland.  We spent a few days in Portland, walking around the city, eating street food, and going to Powell’s bookstore.  Powell’s bookstore is the largest independent chain of bookstores in the world. They actually give you a map when you arrive so you can find your way around the store.  For anyone who is reading this and knows me, you would know that being surrounded by that many books was wonderful.  Having to navigate a map was not.

After our time in Portland, we went to Sacramento to visit with Ally for a couple of days, and then made the long drive home.   We have a rule in our family. Whoever is driving gets to pick the music. Sarah drove most of this trip, so this was my experience in the passenger seat. I love watching Sarah enjoy her music. Watch the video and see why.

Tips:

1. If you have never been backpacking before, your first trip should not be in an area that is experiencing drought and wildfires.
2. Actually, now that I think about it, you should not backpack in an area that is experiencing drought and wildfires even if you are an experienced backpacker.
3. Since I now know how little I do know about backpacking, I have joined the Backpacking Badass program.  It is a program that helps you learn backpacking skills so that you can be safe and confident on the trail.  I am currently working through the modules of the program and have learned a lot.  If you are interested in checking it out, go to www.shedreamsofalpine.com.
4. I highly recommend visiting Newport, Oregon.  We stayed at the Elizabeth hotel, which is very nice, but there are an abundance of hotels on the beach and in the town from which to choose.  The town is walkable and peaceful, and was a great way to unwind after a backpacking adventure.
5. I always thought mosquitos were thicker in wet areas.  Apparently, the Oregon mosquitos like dry conditions very much.  We had the bites, in all sorts of places, to prove that fact.
6. For a really nice hipcamp, check out Uncle B’s hipcamp in South Dakota.  We would like to return some day and stay there as a base while we do day hikes.  The hipcamp website is www.hipcamp.com. 
7. If you do choose to stay at a hipcamp, be sure to check on the facilities before you book. The different hipcamps vary quite a bit on the amenities they offer, so you want to make sure you know what you are getting before you book. 
8. Ally has since informed us that it was a very bad idea to camp on a lake bed. She also informed us that hiking on a closed trail is a very bad idea (see previous post). Perhaps I should listen to my oldest daughter more often.