July 2020 Trip to Oregon: Kentucky Falls

On Friday, July 24, 2020, we ate breakfast at the Bennions', packed up some snacks and stuff, and caravanned out with Chris and her boys to Kentucky Falls in Siuslaw National Forest. (Jon had to work.) This is the hike we tried to do in April 2019, when we parked in the parking lot by the Kentucky Falls sign and then wandered around for at least an hour trying to find the trail. We were determined to get it done this time. We were still in the parking lot getting organized when we heard a girl calling for help. She followed our voices and came to us, thrilled that she had found us and been saved from near-certain death. She said she had been wandering around lost for hours trying to find the trailhead, and she was really freaked out. It was pretty funny in light of our prior experience. We set out together to find the trail. Somehow we ended up crossing the street and finding a little sign and the trailhead on the other side. So weird that the parking lot and sign are across the street and give no indication of how to find the trail. 

The girls actually interacted with the Bennion boys on the hike (I think the youngers made a game out of running away from Sammy, the oldest), and it made it easier and more fun for them. No kid complaints. Our interactions with the lost girl were a little awkward. I tried to talk to her some, but she didn't seem to expect to be fully integrated into our group and possibly wanted to hike alone once we got her on the trail. Eventually we parted ways when she decided she didn't have time to continue and had to head back. I think she may not quite have made it to the falls, but the awkward hiking-together-but-not-totally-hiking-together thing lasted a long time. Anyway, this is Chris and two of her boys bringing up the rear:

A little waterfall we passed on the way down:

At the bottom are two different waterfalls.

We scrambled up to the first one with the girls.

I don't remember, but I have to assume the littles asked us to take these pictures of them in front of the waterfall:

The Bennions weren't interested, but Jim and I had to scramble over to explore the other waterfall before we left.

Kringel girls and Bennion boys:

It was a pretty hike, and we were glad we succeeded this time. Chris had never done it, and it was fun that she could go with us.  

We said goodbye to the Bennions in the parking lot. They drove home, and we headed to Florence. The drive through the forest was beautiful. My car pictures don't do it justice. 

We contacted Becky Holbrook (Jeremy Wilson's sister), who lives in Florence, and she tried to offer up a friend's place for us to stay in. I think the friend used to list it on AirBnb but now just lets friends and family stay in it or something. We didn't feel comfortable taking a favor like that, especially when we had given no notice, so we rented a motel room. We ate dinner in Florence's cute little downtown. Tiny loved on Jim (as Tiny is wont to do).

The girls enjoyed ice cream before bed. I'm pretty sure this is Ben & Jerry's Tonight Dough. 

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.