To see what's there

Jeff took off early today and we chose to go exploring in a park we'd never visited before. McDowell Creek Falls County Park is out just east of Lebanon and it was surprisingly remote, lush, and picturesque.



This, to me, feels like a very NW Oregon hiking scene - a trail along the mountain face with enough elevation to send your gaze out to the mid-point of Douglas Fir trunks, moss, overall green.



The lovely vine maples... responsible for so much of the dappling in these woods.



The trail we hiked followed the creek upstream, climbing a long, steep flight of stone steps up the flank of a 119 ft. high terraced waterfall. The elevation gain was unexpected, but it felt good to do the work. It was gorgeous up there.



And the creek had so many enticing, rock lined pools... on a hotter day...



Jeff fit right in with the giant clover-like leaves of the oxalis.



Mr. Mister wasn't loving the uphill trail sections, though he did climb the entire staircase on his own, and he was quick to pick up some trail tips we wanted him to learn.

This is a great place that I'm certain we'll return to again soon. The drive there and back gave me time to read aloud from a new chicken-related book that's quite good. Still Life with Chickens is definitely not just for the pet poultry inclined. It's an inspiring, enjoyable story, and I just might be able to convince Jeff to let me pick up the read-along again before we head to bed.