Saturday, June 4, 2016

Emigrant Lake Park, Ashland, Oregon

 

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We are spending a week here in lovely Ashland, Oregon, our first time in the area. There are not many options for places to camp, other than a few RV parks, but luckily Jackson County has numerous parks and campgrounds, with Emigrant Lake being just 6 miles from downtown Ashland. We’re staying in the full hookup Point RV Campground, a really nice location, and just about all of the sites have great views of the lake.

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The RV campground from across the lake.

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These cute coyote pups showed up in the campground the other night with no mother in sight. We later heard that wildlife rescue picked one up by the boat ramp because someone reported it as a baby fox. Not sure what happened to the other. We were hoping they just wandered away from mom and they were reunited, but don’t think there was a happy ending.

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Although we have not met, I remembered that Raven and Chickadee Eric and Laurel are from Ashland, so I contacted Laurel for some advise on things to see and do. She emailed back with a nice list, which we are working our way through. One day we took a walk in Lithia Park, adjacent to downtown.

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What a beautiful trail that runs right along the creek.

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While we were there we saw people just leaving the tennis courts with pickleball paddles, so we talked with them about what days they play, and joined them yesterday morning for a couple hours. Even though we hadn’t played in almost six weeks, it all came back to us and we did better than expected. It is such a fun sport, and the group made us feel very welcome in joining in. We’ll go back for more on Monday morning.

After our walk we wandered the streets of downtown where Jim bought a new hat, then we had lunch at Louie’s, a nice restaurant with pleasant outdoor seating along the creek.

The extreme heat in the west has not missed Oregon, so temperatures are 10-20 degrees above average this week, which means mid to upper 90s. Luckily you don’t have to drive too far from Ashland to get up into the mountains, where we hiked to Grizzly Peak, at 5,922’.

Jim wearing his new hat that he bought the day before. The old one went in the dumpster.

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We headed 1.2 miles up the trail which then intersects the 3 mile loop trail. We went counterclockwise to the summit, then continued around the loop.

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Here I am taking a photo of the view from the top of Grizzly Peak.

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This is it, not much to see, but the better views come later in the loop.

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Unfortunately it was so hazy from the heat the views left a bit to be desired. Still a nice moderate 5.2 mile hike, with temperatures only in the upper 60s, which made it really pleasant. Part of the trail goes through a burned area from a fire back in 2002.

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Mt. Shasta and Emigrant Lake through the haze.

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Quite a few wildflowers were blooming, but it was a bit early for others. Trillium at the top, not sure about the other two.

Ashland, OR, Emigrant Lake

We’ve gone to town several times, last night for the First Friday Art Walk, where shops and galleries stay open late and have live music and refreshments. It was hot but there were quite a few people and we saw some nice artwork that we have no place for. We also had a bite to eat and a couple of tasty beers at Standing Stone Brewing Co. This morning we went back downtown for the Saturday farmers market, where we got some good bread, kale and a cucumber. We had been shopping at the excellent Co-op and a couple other grocery stores a few days ago so didn’t need a lot, but they had some good looking produce, breads and pastries.

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We really like what we’ve seen of Ashland, with its green rolling hills, tree-lined streets with deer roaming around, and a vibrant downtown that always seems to be full of people. Within 25 miles or less you can be up in the higher mountains to escape the summer heat, or to ski in the winter. Tomorrow we’re planning a hike on Mt. Ashland. With temperatures nearing 100 in town I have a feeling we won’t be the only ones up there.

19 comments:

  1. Yep Oregon is full of really nice countryside. I really enjoyed my visits there.

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  2. We like Ashland a lot. Are you going to see any plays while you are there?

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    1. No, nothing playing that sounded that good to us for the price of tickets.

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  3. Looks like you two are enjoying many of the same sights and activities that we did while in Ashland. It is a nice little city, isn't it?

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  4. I like Jim's new hat! John got one very similar. He decided he needed more sun protection while hiking.

    Thanks goodness for elevation when it is so warm below. It is amazing how fast the temp drops as you rise. We hiked at over 7000 ft today and tomorrow we are headed to 8200 ft. Casper hasn't been too hot with the high temps, thank goodness. Your site along the lake is great. Mt Shasta looks like it is floating in the distance. Hope it cools off for you:)

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  5. Perhaps it's not too late...to try Mad River Brewing Co's Steelhead Extra Stout. I forgot to mention it when you were further south. The brewery is in Blue Lake, CA, northeast of Eureka. The proprietress at Bless My Soul (Creole restaurant) in Eureka suggested it.

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  6. How fun to see your adventures in our hometown! I'm so glad you're enjoying your time there, despite the heat wave. If you're still in the Pacific Northwest in the fall, swing back by—we'll be in Ashland late September through October. The weather will be perfect and the fall colors are gorgeous. There's lots more to explore in the area and we would love to show you around—although it seems like you're doing a good job on your own—even making friends on the pickleball court! :-)

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  7. Jim looks sporting in his new hat. Recent high temps on the NR make me appreciate my Ranger hat more. SW OR is so full of diversity. I loved living, playing, working and hiking in the Siskiyous. If it gets too hot consider floating the Rogue River.

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  8. That RV park looks like it has roomy sites. Enjoy the area.

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    1. Yes, most sites are well spaced and long enough for any size RV. Many of them are not very level, though.

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  9. We love Ashland and Emigrant Lake...have only stayed there in the fall though, when the lake level is very low. I love Shop'N Kart over the pricier Co-Op. I could easily live in Ashland, but we find the home prices to be quite high.

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    1. We've been to Shop N Kart twice already. Best beer prices in town, and lots of other good stuff. Just a bit hard to find things as it's kind of a strange store.

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  10. It's 80 degrees here in Lovely Ouray today... had to go out early!
    You found a great spot to camp... and Ashland is a vibrant town. Cool off with a few cold ones.
    Box Canyon

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  11. Hi guys. You are not too far from our trail through OR. We spent week before last at Panther Flats FS CG on 199 heading from Medford to Crescent City. Now in Coos Bay with beautiful temps in the 60's. Lovely area around Ashville. Makes you start to think of a place to settle down. Spending the summer on the coast all the way up to Astoria. Maybe we will cross paths.

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    1. Unless we change our minds, we are not planning to spend any time on the coast this summer. We did that in 2014, so this time around we intend to go to Idaho when we're done with Oregon.
      Enjoy the coast. At least you don't have to worry about it getting too hot!

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  12. Love those sites along the water! Have only driven through Ashland on the Interstate, but it has always been somewhere I wanted to get back to. Hope that heat wave breaks up over the Rockies....we're warm enough already in southern CO!

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  13. I love your spot on Emigrant Lake!

    Boy were you in the right place at the right time to get a photo of those coyote pups. They are so dang cute.

    Jim looks like the real explorer in his new hat.

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  14. Glad we read your post since we are headed that way soon and will check out some of those sites.

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