July 2020 Road Trip to Oregon: Tamolitch Falls (Blue Pool)

 Thursday, July 23, 2020, we hiked to Tamolitch Falls, also known as Blue Pool. 

The regular Starburst trail treat (generally distributed at each sign):

The trail went through some interesting volcanic rock.

The pool was, indeed, very blue. 

We came to the pool from the top and had to figure out how to scramble down to the water. 

It was so clear.

Jim took a very brief dip. He gave me a hard time about not living by my motto, "Swim in every body of water." I didn't have a swimsuit and thought I'd probably die from the cold if I got in. It was very, very cold. We had no towel, so getting out was particularly unpleasant. 

He lived to tell the tale, though.

After Tamolitch, we went to the lookouts for Koosah and Sahalie Falls. 

Tiny took the steps in a very slow and bizarre manner.

The place we went for lunch was playing music, so I started dancing. Ever got embarrassed, so Jim started dancing. The girls tried desperately to restrain him.

It was all fun and games until a little girl walked by on her way to the bathroom and looked at us as she went by. Ever became hysterical (not an exaggeration) because she was so embarrassed. She completely lost her mind. She was inconsolable. It turned into a huge thing. I tried to tell her the girl was probably just jealous that we were having so much fun. I told her she'd never see that girl again. I told her that it doesn't matter what people think of us. She was not having it. Somehow she eventually calmed down, but it took a long time. It was a whole big, awful thing.

We headed to Eugene, where my old friend from L.A., Chris Bennion, had offered to put us up for the night. (We saw them in April 2019 on our previous trip to Oregon, too.) We hit a Crumbl (cookie place) and got a huge number of really expensive cookies to take to the Bennions. We ate some at Crumbl and then took a giant box with us. (It turned out that one cookie is about four servings, and we really only needed a fraction of the cookies we got. Not a good use of our money.) Anyway, we dropped by their house, cleaned up, and started some laundry. (Tiny had had an accident, so Chris's offer of laundry was much appreciated.) Chris told us about a little animal rescue place, so we hit that before it closed. It was small but fun, and we enjoyed the bald eagles. 

In the car, little Tiny fell asleep while holding a leaf bouquet. 

We hung out at the Bennions' that night and chatted. Jon picked up takeout on his way home from work from a fish place. I had a salmon plate, and Jim had a fish sandwich he loved. When we visited the Bennions in 2019, we didn't have a lot of time; this time, since we were staying the night, we enjoyed a more leisurely visit. They are incredibly gracious hosts. They had a guest room for Jim and me, and the girls got to sleep in a big playroom upstairs near us.  

July 2020 Trip to Oregon: Toketee, Watson, and Tumalo Falls + a Splinter

Wednesday, July 22, 2020, we got another early start at Toketee Falls and Watson Falls in Umpqua National Forest. Jim was interested in this giant, leaking pipe near the parking lot:

I believe at the very beginning of the easy, short hike to Toketee, Tiny ran her hand along a wooden railing and got splinters and threw a big fit and it was awful and Jim lost it and the day was nearly ruined. After much ado, we were able to continue, and it was beautiful.

To get a full view of the falls from the front, one must hop a fence and descend illegally with a rope. So Jim did that.

Balance beam practice:

Ever observed (and encouraged) Tiny's dirt play.

We drove to the Watson Falls trailhead and did a short hike up. We off-roaded to the base of the fall, where we got misted on.

After Watson, we drove toward Bend and made a quick stop at the Tumalo Falls lookout in Deschutes National Forest. We nixed any additional hiking, and the girls and I actually just stayed in the car while Jim ran out and took this pic:

We lunched in Bend and then went on to someplace in the middle of nowhere. We stayed for the night.at this really nice place that featured a pool fed by hot springs. The pool is really hot. They pipe in cold water to make it tolerable. The girls weren't really into swimming, though, and we didn't stay long.

After swimming, we went for a short walk, crossing a bridge over the river that runs by the lodge and exploring a little in either direction. There was a sign about a recent mountain lion sighting, so that was exciting. We saw where some of the hot water comes up. The grounds were really pretty, with colorful flowers, etc. I didn't capture it in photos. 

There weren't really any dinner options, so we got some microwavable food from the store there at the lodge and made do. 

Back at our room, we discovered that Wren had a splinter in her finger, and her finger was all red and not looking good. We were really displeased that our children continued to run their hands over wood and get splinters. We tried to convince Wren to let us get it out. We patiently pleaded. We tried everything. Jim told her it could get infected, we could have to take her to the hospital, and she could lose her finger. All the scare tactics were employed, but she would not cooperate. She was freaking out, crying, completely irrational. Out of patience, Jim decided we'd just have to pin her down so he could work on it. Wren went insane, screaming as if we were sawing her arm off. Ever, in turn, went full-on Mama Bear, screaming and physically attacking Jim and me to make us stop. It was one of the craziest things I've ever experienced with our children. I thought we'd get reported by fellow guests because it sounded as if we were torturing our kids. Afterward Jim gave Ever props for defending her sister. This Mama Bear thing is something she does (the splinter incident was not a one-off), and it sort of enrages me because I feel as if she's not respecting us and letting us decide how to handle things, although I do appreciate the sentiment of wanting to protect her sisters. Anyway, when Ever attacked and all heck broke loose, we reopened negotiations. Oddly enough, Wren agreed to let Ever get the splinter out, and Ever did.