The previous night, we decided to head to Bend, OR via Highway 224, which runs through the Cascade Mountain Range. I'd read wonderful things about the road and the surrounding beauty.
The start of our journey was pleasant. We drove through the town of Molalla and saw the Skydive Oregon hangar and drop zone. We also passed dilapidated barns with wonderful character (classic red ones that you'd see in a coffee table book about barns) and spectacular farmland full of Christmas trees, grapevines, onions, and nurserys. We expect most of middle America to look this way.
Finally, we were in the mountains again, and we were excited to see the snow and to camp.
BAD IDEA!
We passed the town of Three Lynx, when we noticed packed snow on a road that wasn't plowed in the winter. We know, we know - "Dumbasses! Why did you go on a road full of snow that wasn't plowed in the winter!?!?"
Silly us - we didn't even stop at the Ranger Station to look at conditions, but we thought we would be fine because the first 3 miles were great. The road was really clear - even after the warning sign.
It wasn't until the 7th mile that we decided to turn back.
The car was doing fine, we even got a chance to test out our new chains, and the snow was fresh and powdery, so while the car was "dragging" in the middle - the snow was soft enough to not do any damage. This doesn't mean that there weren't any scary parts. We about crapped our pants a few times - believe me!
There were many times we told each other - we should turn around, but the other would say... "Well, let's just see how much further we could get."
Luckily, a SUV passed us up at the beginning of the road and cleared a nice path. We later spotted this SUV pulled on the side of the road and the two gentlemen were enjoying a soak in one of the many hot springs along the Clackamas River. We stopped to ask the guys for directions - and hopefully get clarification on distances so we could make the decision to head back the way we came or proceed. They were nice fellows, but not very helpful. We believe they were from Russia, so there was a significant language barrier. Guess this is a sign of how things will be in the Peace Corps - especially if we end up in Eastern Europe!
We decided to continue south for about 1/4 of mile - then the snowpack became ice - and this time our car WAS scraping bottom. We quickly decided to turn around - for fear of our lives, fear of the snow, and fear of pissing off Sally the Subaru. She had already been through 7 miles of snow with chains on - and constant jarring on the snow.
There was one really tough spot about 4 miles into our journey with huge ruts in the snow, making it nearly impossible to pass. In fact, we had to get out and shovel snow with our hands so Sally could make a smoother run. Good news though - there were 4 large pick-up trucks with trailers - which we assumed were some guys were riding snowmobiles to their hunting lodges. Turns out it was a search party for a couple who was trying to find the hot springs via foot.
Once we were off of the snowy roads, we had to stop and eat something. Jennifer sent us off with the curry leftovers, which we happily warmed on the camping stove and enjoyed on the side of highway 224 in the snow.We won't be stupid like that again!
After a stressful and exhausting day in the snow-filled mountains, we arrived in Woodburn around 6pm. Our bodies were exhausted from being tense all day long - so we just got a hotel near the interstate. Luckily, there was a heated pool - so we did a few laps and exercises, then hopped in the jacuzzi, then it was off to bed for some much-needed sleep.
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