{Day Off} Toketee Falls

Alternate post title: The day I went crazy and drove for 9 hours to get a puppy with a mouth full of dagger teeth.

I have been meaning to write this up for a couple months now, since I took this trip back in October but... life gets in the way sometimes you know?? The route that Sammy and I took to get to Roseburg from Bend took us past Crater Lake, Oregon's only National Park, and along the North Umpqua River. I've only been to the North Umpqua once before, to ride bikes with James on the North Umpqua Trail, more specifically the section known as Dread and Terror. Yep. You can imagine what it was like.


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As you can see, the route took us straight through the Umpqua National Forest. The scenery of the area is absolutely spectacular, and in my humble opinion, is the most beautiful and scenic river in Oregon.

So on this day, on our way to Roseburg, Sammy and I decided to stop at the legendary Toketee Falls. Since getting engaged, I've been trying to get my fitness on regularly, so I figured we could run the trail.

It was a spectacular Fall day, we enjoyed the scenery immensely. Double bonus, only one other car was there, so Sammy got to  be off leash. He loves that.

 

The trail is probably 2/3rds of a mile, so it was pretty short and sweet, but the falls at the end is so rewarding!! 

The river plunges over a sheer basalt cliff (those rock columns are a distinctive feature of basalt), before continuing on merrily downstream. If you look closely, in the bottom left of the photo you will see a sweet riverside dwelling...

Here is a closer look.

 

I don't know how someone got down there to build the hut from driftwood, but its sweet for sure!! The river is in a basin surrounded by sheer cliffs here, the viewing platform is actually suspended from trees!! That's a real piece of work. 

The light was spectacular filtering through the trees on this afternoon, and the moss covered trees and rocks reminded me of why I love Oregon so much. The natural wonders in this state and the opportunities to get outside are endless. It is truly magical.

Now, back to your regularly scheduled Christmas Mania!!

Want to see what else I've done on my days off? Explore Tumalo Falls and Mt. Hood with us!