This area contains many examples of the cataclysmic volcanic activity that occurred here. Our specific objective was labeled The Big Obsidian Flow. At 1300 years old, the flow is the youngest in Oregon, and originated in what is todays Paulina Peak. After driving north on US highway 97, through La Pine, and turning east, we came to the monument entrance, and then the trailhead leading to the lava flow, where we found that the trail was not dog friendly due to having been constructed from sharp, glass-like pieces of obsidian shards. In fact, signs warned against hiking without heavy hiking boots. Since the temp was in the mid nineties and we had our faithful canine companion with us, we had to pass. Doggoneit!
So, after a picnic lunch along the Deschutes River, we cruised back into La Pine and stopped at the drive up window of Central Perk for a Mango smoothie to sip on during the trip back to Crescent.
Today, Wednesday, June 24th, we left for points east. Following US 97 north toward Bend, Oregon, we were instructed by our GPS (Samantha) to turn off onto Knox Road, then onto Rickard Road so as to bypass downtown Bend and access US 20 east.
After 14 miles, this was what had become of the road:
Eventually we reached US 20, The Central Oregon Highway.
There was little to do along this stretch of road. One hundred fourty miles of high desert. Needing a bit of lunch, we resorted to entering one of the two rest stops along this road via the exit just for a little excitement! And, of course, we exited via the entrance. WooHoo!
The town of Burns, Oregon, eventually appeared, along with the Burns RV Park. This is one of the absolute nicest rv parks we’ve ever stayed in! Wide spaces, well groomed grass, and a huge grass area for Sasha to play ball. Outstanding! I just wish it wasn’t in the middle of nowhere!
We pulled in at about 2 pm, in plenty of time to do some laundry and play with the dog. While the weather was cloudy, it was warm. A perfect end to the day!
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