| Up bright and early at 5am. Realized a little too late that I forgot to pack any pillows. A little too worried about some farmer coming by with a shotgun to sleep in too late. Nothing like getting an early start to the day. Stopped off at a truck stop called "Martha's Pantry" for breakfast and then set off for Mount St. Helens. | |
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Not much to see at Mount St. Helens unfortunately. Got to pass a whole bunch of crazy bikers racing up the mountain, but it was so foggy that after a while I could barely see the road in front of me let alone any views. So I turned back and continued on with my day, heading south into Oregon. |
| I got tired of the interstate pretty quick so after Salem, I turned eastwards towards Bend, which would eventually link up with Crater Lake Park. On the way I noticed a sign saying "Silver Falls Park". Never wanting to miss an opportunity to see a nice waterfall, I turned off the main road in search of it. I was immediately annoyed because the next sign said it was 15-20 miles out of my way. Still, I had a little time to spare since I missed out on Mount St. Helens so I continued on. Very glad that I did. The park was definitely one of the highlights of the trip. |  |
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Instead of just a single waterfall, there are actually 10 waterfalls in the area, all linked up by hiking trails. What is really impressive about several of the falls is that you can actually walk behind them, seeing the falls from every possible angle. From some views it looks like the water is simply pouring down from the sky. There is also a wonderful (though very popular) picnic park and I was able to go for a nice cool swim there. Very nice. |
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