Waldo Lake

I'm starting with Waldo Lake since that's the first place we floated our boats. If you haven't been to Waldo I have to tell you it's well worth the trip. It's out Hwy 58 past Oakridge, Oregon about 30 miles and then on up the mountain. The elevation is 5,414 feet so don't plan on going in the winter. They don't plow the roads up there so when it's closed for snow, it's really closed. It's a huge lake and the blue-est blue you can imagine. I like to paddle out to where the water changes color from greenish blue to blue-blue and just float a while. It's my moment of zen!

Things you need to know about Waldo:

• The water is cold, cold, cold...don't fall in! =)
• Gas powered boats are not allowed at Waldo, so it's just us paddlers and a few sailboats out there...nice!
• Beware of the mosquitoes...they will eat you alive if you are not prepared. Be sure to bring bug repellent. Usually they aren't too bad out on the water, it's the put in and take out when they will get you. Also, mid-August they are mostly gone.
• Bring something for lunch, there's no place to buy a snack up there. We like to stop in Oakridge at the A&W and grab a burger and a root beer...just because it's fun! (It's also a good bathroom stop.)
• Sometimes we camp at Waldo, there are a couple forest service campgrounds up there. They are sort of primitive, but have decent pit toilets and running water. When we camp we usually stay at Shadow Bay but there is another campground further up the mountain.Be prepared for the cold at night, at that elevation it gets really chilly even in summer! 
• I'll say it again...the mosquitoes will eat you alive. We only camp up there mid-August or later! 

Enjoy!

Update for 7/9/2014
Another beautiful trip to Waldo for RnR and neighbor Barb. Beautiful blue lake, a little bit of wind but a great day on the lake. Today we explored the south end of the lake. The mosquitoes on and near shore were ferocious, but out on the lake they didn't bother us.

Rich did a little bit of exploring on one of the beaches and found deer tracks AND cougar tracks in the sand. We've never seen any big predators around there but I guess they might be there! 

On the way home we stopped in Oakridge at Brewer's Local 180 brew pub. We each found a  cold beverage to enjoy.The people were friendly and the music was music that I knew the words to. Bring you growler

Our perfect day took a turn for the worse on the trip home. There was a horrible accident that blocked traffic for several hours. Sooooo.....our little trip turned into an adventure. It was recommended that we turn around and go home by way of Bend. Not a short trip, we stopped in Bend and fortified ourselves with some coffee and hit the long, long road home. All is well that ends well, our "day trip" ended at 11:30 at night. Wow, what a day! 435 miles roundtrip.

The drive home was long, but beautiful! Sunset over the Sisters...pretty nice, eh?