Road Trip Through The PNW

After my family left Seattle, we began our extensive drive (thanks, Dad) South toward San Francisco. We didn’t have those few driving days completely planned out ahead of time, but we knew we were going to visit the Redwoods, visit Crater Lake, Multnomah Falls, and drive along the northern California coast.

The drive through Washington, Oregon, and northern California was unbelievable. I kept thinking to myself, “Wow, I could imagine living here and enjoying this all the time.” While we were driving through mountains, we kept advancing highe and higher, and when we got to the top, there was what felt like a very random and out-of-place lake. We had to stop and take photos, of course. It was quite beautiful and we even got our feet wet.

We also stopped at a place called Multnomah Falls. Now there is a backstory here, so I digress. A few years ago, when Pinterest was a bit newer, I started a West Coast board where I pinned pins of places I had visited before or wanted to visit. I came across this pin of a waterfall that looked like it went on forever. I immediately wanted to visit it, but I figured it was not in the United States. I googled it and realized that it was, in fact, in the United States and also on the West Coast! So away I pinned. Well fast forward a few years later to when we were planning this trip and I thought, “Oh my gosh! That pin of that waterfall that is somewhere in Oregon…or Washington..or Northern California..? We can go there!” I located the pin on my Pinterest board and emailed the link to everyone and it was a done deal. I just find it funny how things happen sometimes.

Well, when we got to the falls, we took pictures and walked up the path to the little bridge where you can get a little closer and take more pictures. I soon realized that there was a path past the bridge and that you could actually walk all the way to the top of the waterfall. I was stunned and excited. Not everyone elected to hike all the way up, but my brothers, my cousin, and my uncle joined me in the hike up. None of us had any clue that we could hike it, and I definitely would have worn different attire if I had known (hello, skinny jeans. At least I was wearing tennis shoes!) Anyway, I would say the hike was about an hour and forty-five minutes to the top, and it was not easy. It was pretty tiring and I think we were all sweating by the time we made it to the top. We didn’t have water bottles because none of us realized we were going to be doing such a physically demanding hike. My cousin, Easton, actually started asking hikers going down if they had any water bottles. Thankfully, one family had one unopened bottle left and did give it to us. The five of us shared it. Yes, five. Also, some of us kept asking people if we were almost to the top, and everyone that we ran into said that we were only ten minutes away. That went on for at least thirty minutes, so that was fun.

Once we got to the top, I think all five of us were extremely happy we had done it. It was one of the most rewarding things I’ve done, and what a surprise to be able to do it at all. At the top of the falls there is essentially a stream where people were swimming and kids were playing. It wasn’t very deep in any spots, but it did seem crazy that there was a 620’ drop only a few feet away. We took pictures, dipped our feet in the water, collected a few rocks, and headed back down. The hike down went much faster and thankfully the sun was setting, so the air was getting cooler. I would say that was a must-see and must-do activity if you’re in the area. I found out after the fact that it was a 2.2 mile hike with 700 feet of elevation gain, full of switchbacks and skinny paths with no guards.

Next, we were on our way to Crater Lake. Once we were approaching, we realized just how treacherous the drive really was. Those are some of the skinniest, scariest, most terrifying roads I’ve ever seen. I’m talking cliffs off the side of the roads with no guardrails. You can actually drive around the entire lip of the crater, but we didn’t have the time to do all that. And besides, I’m not sure if we would have had the guts to do the whole thing.

Anyway, once we got to the top and were able to park, I could not believe my eyes. I have visited the Grand Canyon before and I always say that there are no words and that you just have to visit it yourself to truly understand how big it is and how unreal it looks in real life. Well, Crater Lake is no different. It is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. The water reflects everything and it is just an incredible sight to see.

After we left Crater Lake, we headed toward the Pacific Coast. The Redwood National Forest actually stretches quite a ways down the coast and we took every advantage to stop and enjoy the views. Again, I might sound like a broken record, but I cannot explain how it feels to walk around among Redwood trees. My mom described it best when she said that it feels like you are in Jurassic Park and everything is sized for dinosaurs. It was absolutely amazing.