TWO MORE FALLS

It was drizzling and 59 degrees this morning. Good thing they went for the boat ride yesterday because today the lake was choppy and looked very cold. What to do today? Jim wanted to go for a bike ride and Kathe wanted to go for a hike to a waterfall. Jim said they could probably do both. Me, I stayed home watching the chipmunks prepare for winter. From the looks of things, I think it's going to be a cold one.

First up was Watson Falls, which is about 17 miles from Diamond Lake. Watson Falls is a 272 foot waterfall on Watson Creek, a tributary of the Clearwater Lake. The trail was a little over 1/2 mile out and back, but it was a very steep uphill climb. Watson Falls is the 3rd highest waterfall in Oregon, and it drops over a wall of basalt, crashing into a slope of moss and vine maples.

Next it was a trip to Toketee Lake and the hike up to Toketee Falls. It's one of the most famous waterfalls in Oregon, and there were a lot of hikers on the 0.8 mile trail. The sign said the

trail was strenuous, with 97 stair steps up and 125 down. What it didn't say was that all of those steps, up and down were just to see the falls. Then, to get back down you had to climb the stairs up and down again. The view was breathless, in more ways than one! The falls are two tiered, a 28 foot upper tier plunges into a pool, followed by an 85 foot plunge into a larger pool. Beautiful!

Oh, and when they got back after all this hiking, Jim went for an 11 mile bike ride around the lake. Now, he's wondering why he's so tired?

This is our last night here in quiet Diamond Lake.  We really enjoyed it here. Tomorrow we head for Canyonville, Oregon for 4 days before starting home to California.