This was a trip we made at the start of July 2014. The planning process from the trip benefited a lot from Internet search, reviews and travelogues by others who had been there. So I feel obliged to reciprocate and share our marvelous experience and pictures. So, here goes.
The idea for this trip originated from the desire to take an Amtrak train journey (Coastal Starlight) out of Davis - travel by train and escape the summer heat. I had in mind a place called Klamath Falls - which is a town in Southern Oregon, close to the border with California. Our kids hate driving - especially the two younger ones, with Utsav gone off to Interlochen Arts camp in Michigan for the summer. For Pranav and Mallika, even a 10-15 minute drive is too much, and longer trips - which naturally require the van, because the electric car can only go so far - are complete Uugghhs. So, the train journey idea had been there for quite some time. And Klamath Falls is a convenient train journey because the train leaves Davis at 11 pm, and gets to Klamath Falls about 6 am the next morning.
Klamath Falls - the name alone makes it sound like an interesting place to visit with natural beauty - falls. After a lot of research I could not find any "falls" among the things to do and see in that area! But Klamath Falls also happens to be a launch pad for Crater Lake - which is a well-known and major destination. I have seen it from the plane, on the ride from Sacramento to Seattle. It is a very prominent landmark because it is a large circular lake, sitting on top of a 10,000 ft mountain. Created when the (originally 12-13,000 ft) mountain blew its top during a volcanic eruption, but with the sides (the rim) completely preserved all around. Over time the middle - the crater - filled up with snow-melt and water. There are no inflows into the lake and no outflows, and the water is considered the most pristine and blue in the world. Klamath Falls is also close to other sights and scenery, with abundant lakes and mountains all around. The other main destination I identified was Lava Beds National Monument - which is a National Park in Northern California (see http://www.nps.gov/labe/index.htm), and 1-hour Southeast of Klamath Falls, whereas Crater Lake is (also a National Park, http://www.nps.gov/crla/index.htm) in Southern Oregon and 1-hour North of Klamath Falls. Apart from these two, there are two huge lakes, Upper Klamath and Lower Klamath.
As I began planning the trip, other logistical challenges came up.
Spending the night in the train - sitting - is not great, and also
somewhat tiring. Sleepers are possible - but a) extremely
expensive, b) mostly sold out (I was looking only 2-3 days ahead), and c) the only
thing we could get would be two separate 2-berth sleeper rooms. Then, getting there at 6 am and leaving (after 1 or 2 days) by the return 10
pm train - presents a challenge for hotel stay. Because most hotels have
a 3pm check-in and 11 am checkout. Finally,
once we got to Klamath Falls we'd need a car anyway - which would mean hauling our bags and gear from home to car to platform to train to platform to car ... you get the picture. Traveling by car (van) instead would
avoid all these issues. We could dump all the things we wanted to take -
and possibly needed - into the van. In fact, we could even take 2-3 bicycles in the back of the van. It would also free us on when to
make the trip - a spur of the moment trip was possible, and we could
start in the morning rather than night. The drive to Klamath is
just about 4 hours (not 8 as for train).
So, van it would be. On July 1 we decided we'd leave by van the next morning. More about this in the next post.
The idea for this trip originated from the desire to take an Amtrak train journey (Coastal Starlight) out of Davis - travel by train and escape the summer heat. I had in mind a place called Klamath Falls - which is a town in Southern Oregon, close to the border with California. Our kids hate driving - especially the two younger ones, with Utsav gone off to Interlochen Arts camp in Michigan for the summer. For Pranav and Mallika, even a 10-15 minute drive is too much, and longer trips - which naturally require the van, because the electric car can only go so far - are complete Uugghhs. So, the train journey idea had been there for quite some time. And Klamath Falls is a convenient train journey because the train leaves Davis at 11 pm, and gets to Klamath Falls about 6 am the next morning.
Klamath Falls - the name alone makes it sound like an interesting place to visit with natural beauty - falls. After a lot of research I could not find any "falls" among the things to do and see in that area! But Klamath Falls also happens to be a launch pad for Crater Lake - which is a well-known and major destination. I have seen it from the plane, on the ride from Sacramento to Seattle. It is a very prominent landmark because it is a large circular lake, sitting on top of a 10,000 ft mountain. Created when the (originally 12-13,000 ft) mountain blew its top during a volcanic eruption, but with the sides (the rim) completely preserved all around. Over time the middle - the crater - filled up with snow-melt and water. There are no inflows into the lake and no outflows, and the water is considered the most pristine and blue in the world. Klamath Falls is also close to other sights and scenery, with abundant lakes and mountains all around. The other main destination I identified was Lava Beds National Monument - which is a National Park in Northern California (see http://www.nps.gov/labe/index.htm), and 1-hour Southeast of Klamath Falls, whereas Crater Lake is (also a National Park, http://www.nps.gov/crla/index.htm) in Southern Oregon and 1-hour North of Klamath Falls. Apart from these two, there are two huge lakes, Upper Klamath and Lower Klamath.
As I began planning the trip, other logistical challenges came up.
Spending the night in the train - sitting - is not great, and also
somewhat tiring. Sleepers are possible - but a) extremely
expensive, b) mostly sold out (I was looking only 2-3 days ahead), and c) the only
thing we could get would be two separate 2-berth sleeper rooms. Then, getting there at 6 am and leaving (after 1 or 2 days) by the return 10
pm train - presents a challenge for hotel stay. Because most hotels have
a 3pm check-in and 11 am checkout. Finally,
once we got to Klamath Falls we'd need a car anyway - which would mean hauling our bags and gear from home to car to platform to train to platform to car ... you get the picture. Traveling by car (van) instead would
avoid all these issues. We could dump all the things we wanted to take -
and possibly needed - into the van. In fact, we could even take 2-3 bicycles in the back of the van. It would also free us on when to
make the trip - a spur of the moment trip was possible, and we could
start in the morning rather than night. The drive to Klamath is
just about 4 hours (not 8 as for train).So, van it would be. On July 1 we decided we'd leave by van the next morning. More about this in the next post.
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