Discovering Central Oregon in Winter

On the third night of our trip we arrived in Crescent City, California. San Francisco was still 365 miles away, and we were out of time. We’d have to turn around and start heading north again in the morning, which was a shame since we were so close to Redwoods National Park. We had done zero research and had zero expectations of Crescent City. Although it was clear that its best economic days were behind it, we really enjoyed exploring its waterfront. It had a long jetty, a fishing pier, and a historic lighthouse on an island a stone’s throw from shore, called the Battery Point Light. We could have walked to it, but it was getting dark and was still quite blustery, so we opted to try the next day.

Our hotel that night was awful, and I got the worst night’s sleep of the trip. On the other hand, the local Thai food was amazing. In the morning we tried to walk out to Battery Point, noting that its museum was scheduled to be open. One look though and we knew it wouldn’t happen – the tide had come up, making it impassable except by boat. We decided to explore down by the commercial fishing boats. They are serious about crabbing down there. They had two large sheds which must have stored more than a thousand of the big commercial-sized crab pots. Nearby were several big beefy crab boats, their decks stacked high with more crab pots. These were the cleanest commercial fishing boats I’d ever seen, like they had just come out the yards with a fresh coat of paint. A sign told us that back in the 80s the local fishing fleet was more than 500 boats, and is now down to about 100. It’s still the largest fleet in northern California.

Although you can’t see it from town, there is another lighthouse nearby, the St. George Reef Light. That one is actually quite remote – it’s on a rock six miles out from shore. Its location made it the most expensive lighthouse ever built in the US. It has a fascinating but tragic history. It was built on its improbable location because in 1865, just a few months after the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, a ship called the Brother Jonathan crashed on that reef in a storm, with 225 lives lost. The lighthouse was finally completed in 1892, and operated until 1975.

For the first time in days, we turned off US 101 and onto US 199. As far as I knew it was just the most direct route to Grants Pass. A short distance off the 101, though, we were abruptly plunged into a place of incredible beauty. It’s called Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park. In the dense forest, civilization suddenly felt a thousand miles away. We wound along the rushing Smith River for many miles. Much of the landscape was scorched from the Smith River Complex Fire, which happened in 2023. It made it no less beautiful though, just different.

When we hit the Oregon state line the scenery got noticeably more mundane. Two hours after we left Crescent City, we caught up with the I-5 in Grants Pass. I had originally hoped to get a glimpse of Crater Lake, which I’ve never been to. Normally the southern entrance is open in the winter, allowing you to drive up to the rim for a peek. However, this winter the whole park is just closed. So, we decided to drive the Rogue River portion of the Rogue-Umpqua Scenic Byway. It took a few miles before it really started to get scenic, but after Lost Creek Lake we found ourselves in a vast Ponderosa Pine forest covered in snow, with the Rogue never far away. We climbed steadily and somewhat gently toward the Cascades, but never over a big steep pass like Stevens or Snoqualmie. The road passes to the north of Crater Lake and eventually gives you the option to turn towards Roseburg along the scenic Umpqua River. Instead, we continued east towards Bend.

East of the mountains we caught US 97, the main north-south highway along the east side of the cascades. I really think this portion of the trip is more interesting in winter. We were on an endless high plain covered in snow. As we slowly descended, we passed snow-covered farms, tractor dealerships, livestock auctions, and the world of agriculture. By the time we got to Redmond the sun had fallen, and we turned in for the night.

By then the Ponderosa pines had given way to high desert junipers, and we had descended out of the snow zone. We had originally planned to take Oregon 26 to Portland via the pass at Government Camp. However, it was snowing in the pass that day so we opted for the Columbia River Gorge. As we drove north on US 97, we were expecting a boring drive. We were wrong. 97 became increasingly interesting as we drove north into the rolling hills. We then turned onto US 197 towards The Dalles, which initially appeared to be a forlorn highway. We were surprised how sunny it was, considering the winter storm warning.

As we climbed into the high plains and rolling hills, we were soon surprised to find the landscape covered in thin snow, including the little-traveled asphalt, which had not been plowed. I downshifted and kept it in low gear the whole time. Some of the grades were pretty steep, and the turns pretty sharp. Our reward was a view of round-topped hills to the north, all covered in snow, with a layer of fog clinging to its front side. We eventually came upon the village of Maupin, in the middle of nowhere and perched on the steep ledges above the raging Deschutes River Gorge. It seemed to me if you stumbled around town drunk at night, you might accidentally fall into the canyon. The scenery was unexpectedly amazing, and we were very glad we had come this way.

Finally we came into The Dalles. I had never been there before, and I was pleased to find another authentic American city with a well-preserved historic downtown. We caught the I-84 and headed west towards Portland. Around Hood River, the anticipated winter storm finally hit us in the face with a “splat”. At least it was just heavy rain and not snow. We stopped at Multnomah Falls despite the rain. I was glad for the chance to show this beautiful place to my wife in the time of year when you can actually get a parking spot. From there we drove up to the old Vista House, a gorgeous art deco style building built in 1918 for travelers coming out from Portland in their Ford Model Ts along the historic Highway 30. We had planned to spend a night in Portland, but decided to come home late that night because of my inability to sleep well on hotel beds with my back issues. We did take the time for a little sightseeing, including a slow walk along the Willamette River, and we had a nice dinner.

I for one learned a lot about Oregon on this trip. I hadn’t been south of Newport on the coast since I was in the Navy, and I had never been to the Rogue River or The Dalles. Now I have a greater appreciation for it, and a list of places to come back to when we have more time. I also think that even though traveling in winter has its challenges, it also has its rewards. Although it’s sad that we got only a five-day trip instead of 10, it was better than nothing. I’m really glad we squeezed what we could from our time.