The Cove Palisades State Park

(+1 inset) Holy cow, what an adventure we are having! Steve and I are now at a lovely state park called L.L. Stub Stewart and will be here until at least Wednesday we think. We were supposed to be in Tillamook today but an enormous wrench was thrown into the works… Our truck's transmission decided it no longer had the will to live and left us on a long and winding gravel road as we were heading out from L.L. Stub Stewart towards the coastal community of Tillamook, Oregon. Long story short, all is well and we are happy and safe with a wonderful site arranged for as long as we need it! I'm sharing a view from the rim of the 600-foot canyon of The Cove Palisades which looks down into the beautiful Lake Billy Chinook . We went on a hike from our campsite up to the top and around a loop trail which took us many enjoyable--though very hot--hours to complete. Incredible, breathtaking views the whole way, with countless flowers and interesting plants and trees to appreciate. I'm also including an inset…WE CAUGHT FISHIES!!! Hooray!!! After some bumpy failures on previous days, Steve caught his first fish one morning while fishing from the shore of Lake Billy Chinook. We learned that a small and adorably cute fishing boat was only $70 for 4 hours! The next day we got up early and soon found ourselves in a spot that was well-known to be a prime fishing spot. It WAS! Steve caught 2 7" Small-mouth Bass, a 12" California Squawfish (invasive junk fish which eats trout and salmon eggs and fry) and a gorgeous 16" Rainbow Trout! I caught a small but lovely silvery shimmering 8" land-locked salmon called a Kokanee! Both of us were beside ourselves with excitement and pride. We'd actually caught our DINNER which would give us two night's meals, hooray! I would love to spend more time chatting but I'm out of time! We will be hopping on our bikes after brunch and heading down the "rails to trails" path that leads between the town of Banks past L.L. Stub Stewart all the way out to Vernonia. It's a 22-mile paved path in total length and today we'll be doing the length between L.L. Stub Stewart and Vernonia. Two days ago we went to Banks and back and it thoroughly kicked our er…behinds with its slow but steady climb from Banks back to our campground. Today's ride will be a lot less strenuous. A good thing as we need groceries today and will be loaded down with full backpacks on the way back! Much love to you, Pam, to you, Marie-Claire, and to all of you who have visited in the past days! Explored on 6/23/19; highest placement, #1.

Hi everyone!! Steve and I are finally back in the world that actually contains an internet connection! We don't know how long it will last but I'm posting this picture while I can. Our last stop was 6 days/5 nights at a wonderful state park called The Cove Palisades, located in north-central Oregon on beautiful Lake Billy Chinook. We'd never visited terrain described as "high desert" before, and were unprepared for the incredible beauty of this place. The canyon walls reminded us of places we'd seen in Arizona, Utah or New Mexico. Incredible. We are now at our next stop, close to the north-western edge of Oregon. The park is L.L. Stub Stewart park, and sits in lovely forest and grassy meadows. We arrived late yesterday so wre're still settling in for this 4-day stay. I'll try to update as I can! Explored on 6/19/19; highest placement, #1.

(+4 insets) (please view large--the main image is really incredible!) An Update, Finally! And It's a War & Peace Doorstop…Big Surprise! :D My apologies for the long absence! The last couple of places we stayed had very little or zero internet so posting wasn't really an option. Steve and I got home from the first part of our trip last week and are working on some upgrades and so forth before we head out again. Let's See Now…Where Were We When I Last Left Off?! Oh yes…Silver Falls…what a place! So much to love and somethings not so nice but not enough that we wouldn't want to spent a lot more time there! After Silver Falls we headed out to a place we'd visited a couple of seasons before, The Cove Palisades State Park, on lovely Billy Chinook Lake. We weren't able to get a reservation for the first night after Silver Falls and stayed at a place called Deschutes Expo RV Campground for one night. It turned out to be really nice even though it was essentially a parking lot. Neat and tidy with plenty of room for our rig, Steve and really enjoyed walking around and checking out all of the RVs and motor homes docked there with us. Maybe it was the ease of parking and long spaces available, but that place attracted the largest concentration of fancy rigs and motorhomes that we'd ever encountered outside of an RV showroom. Walking around and gawking in exclamation, it was a surprise to see some truly high-falutin' rigs there, with dozens of gleaming motorhomes that easily cost $200 and even $300k+. There were some very opulent 5th wheel trailers there too, which had to cost $100k or more. WOW! We felt bad for the older camper vans and bumper-pull trailers we saw here and there…they must have wanted to disappear into the woodwork. After a night there at Deschutes, we were quickly on our way since we barely set anything up for the overnight stay. Then it was just short drive before we were winding our way down into the amazing and picturesque canyon that led to our campground, oh boy! Gorgeous Lake Billy Chinook, Where Desert Canyon and Water Collide! This state park is located in a very hot and dry area of Oregon, hidden in a huge canyon nestled in lovely farmland that stretches for miles in every direction. We have been here once--almost exactly two years ago--and were stunned by the beauty of this canyon's deeply striated walls and marvelous rock formations. As well, the lake is vast and beautiful--and it's also where Steve caught his first fish! Heat Waves are Hot! Back when we put the first part of our trip together, we made reservations with crossed fingers for reasonable temperatures. When I did some research on historical data, I noticed that the range varies drastically from year to year and all it takes is a few days closer to the hottest part of the year to become totally miserable. Our visit in 2019 was two weeks later than this year and it was pretty bad, so we hoped it would be better two weeks earlier. Nope. We arrived on a comfortable day but we braced ourselves for what would be coming our way. Weather reports warned that Northern California and Oregon would be hit by an early heat wave which could deliver several days of 100 degrees or more. *moan* So, for the next week the thermometer ratcheted up and up and kept us inside once the heat took over by late morning. By the book, we saw highs of 95, 100, and 105…and then 100, 90, and back down to reasonable. The Garbage Drop-Off Was Wafting Stink at its Finest! Let me just say this: visiting the trash compactor one hot evening to donate our chicken and fish carcasses was simply incredible. I thought I'd prepared myself by not breathing through my nose--I knew what to expect. But every step closer was like passing through an invisible WALL of STENCH that curled my hair! In fact, it rivaled the 20-foot high mounds of oyster shells I took pictures of on Vancouver Island. Wait. No. Nothing comes remotely close to those oyster shells--how disrespectful of me to compare! It was really awful though, trust me. Not on the Recommended Experiences list. The Cove Palisades is Best Enjoyed First Thing in the Morning You may know that I go for walks every morning just as soon as I've showered and had my coffee and "Witch's Brew" spirulina-kelp-etc. drink and supplements. It's the perfect way to say hello to the day and appreciate the wonderful place we're visiting. Ideally, I aim for 3 miles and I try to get at least an hour's walk in but sometimes it's 45-minutes or less because of weather or limited interest. In my book, the longer the better! The marvelous 4.5-mile hike that I worked out at The Cove Palisades was just fantastic and something I looked forward to each morning. It took me down to the lake and along its edge, past the day-use picnic areas and along its meandering trails that overlook the lake and park. What a fantastic way to take in the views and enjoy all of its finest details! On my way back I walked around another campground loop and enjoyed plenty of camping family vignettes too. What a joy. By the time I got back to the trailer the day was already warming up but I'd gotten out and had a super time before it got too hot! Today's Pictures The main picture today shows magnificent Billy Chinook Lake and the awesome Cove Palisades canyon. It was taken at the top of the area's well-known Tamalau Trail, infamously hot and dangerous for those who don't pack plenty of water. We went on a surprisingly comfortable day and enjoyed the incredible views along the 7-mile trek. Today's Insets Inset One: this is a dramatic view of one of the two bridges that crosses the lake from the outer to inner canyon. Inset Two: This panorama shows a patch of irrigated farmland surrounded by harsh desert and scrub brush which sit at the edge of The Cove Palisades. Although you can't see the winding road down into the canyon, you can follow it along to where it crosses over the bridge on the far right side. (The road on the right foreground heads to--and past--the campground we stayed at. You can also see the boats enjoying the lovely day too--no wonder it's such a popular destination for water-loving fans! Inset Three: Walking along the edge of the canyon overlooking the water, Steve and I heard the sound of motorcycles and were able to follow the travels of this group of touring riders as the headed into the canyon and along the road which hugs the lake. They got stuck behind a car which, typically, did not pull over to let them pass. It's amazing how rude, selfish, and/or oblivious so many drivers are! Inset Four: When Steve and were here in 2019, I was tickled that my Sony's 600mm lens was able to capture our truck and trailer in camp. I found our truck and trailer this time too, and though it was trying to hide, I got a picture to share! Thank You! I appreciate all of your visits and comments and hope everyone is doing well these days. It's so nice to be fully vaccinated and I hope all of you are as well. What a relief not to worry about our safety--even though it's not 100%--now Steve and I can encounter people, go shopping, and enjoy life almost the same as before! Take care and enjoy your summer days! I'll be posting again in a couple of days, hopefully! Explored on 7/06/21; highest placement #1.