[raising3hikers]

With iffy weather in Washington last weekend, I decided to take a road trip with Ryan, Sahale and wife to the Bend area in Oregon. Jayden had other things going on, so he didn't join. We started the drive Friday afternoon and reached Bend before dark. Depending on weather, I had some nice and easy family friendly hikes to do in the area. Saturday morning, I managed to motivate everyone to get up and start driving to the Newberry Volcano for a hike up Paulina Pk. Blue skies and cool temps as we started from the TH. Btw, a road goes to the top but we were here to hike! Sahale wasn't in the mood for it for the 1st mile until she got her first glimpse of the 2 lakes in the middle of the ancient volcano.

the spot where Sahale went from not wanting to hike, to thinking this was great

2 lakes in the old volcano

Ryan took off way ahead of us to the top, I stayed with Sahale and watched her impression of the hike improve with each new view. We ran into snow a little over 7k in the shady forest. It was another surprise for Sahale to be able to throw snowballs in June. The wind was cold and we found Ryan sitting at the summit taking in the views.

Ryan and Sahale at Paulina Pk

We walked around a bit looking down at the lakes down below before heading back down the trail.

the family enjoying the hike

After getting back to the TH, I had another peak nearby that I wanted to climb while having an educational hike for the kids to do. They dropped me off so I could hike up the center Pk of the caldera (Central Pumice Cone) while I sent them to explore the Obsidian flow trail. It was a quick hike for me to bag another peak and I walked the road to meet them in the parking lot of the Obsidian trail. They all loved and learned about the volcano on this easy trail.

Obsidian Flow

After that visit, I asked Ryan to look up a lava tunnel in the area we could easily visit. He found one right off the highway back to Bend, so we went there. After seeing the entrance of Lava River Cave, I realized I had been there as a kid. The kids thought it was kind of cool that they were in a spot that I was many years ago. Ryan and Sahale went deep into the cave and it was their highlight of the trip.

Sahale and Ryan getting ready for the lava cave

It was a mellow day but we saw some good stuff. I also had Bachelor Pk on my mind while in the area. I offered up the idea of every heading up towards the Mtn to enjoy the scenery while I climb it but it was denied. Instead, swimming at the hotel pool was favored. Early Sunday morning, I woke and set off for Bachelor while the family slept. I parked at the Tumalo TH in the frozen morning. Crampons up the ski slopes and good views of the Sisters Range before they got engulfed in clouds. It was a quick trip but a nice one to tuck in before heading back home.

Sister's Range

The Bend area has some more potential peak bagging ideas for my future. Cant wait to go back, but most importantly, the kids had fun!

[Cascader]

Next time we are in the area maybe i can snag Bachelor!

[Fletcher]

Nice! I love it down there. Really good idea when the weather isn’t ideal in the backyard.

[Brushbuffalo]

[Midnight Slogger]

Love it! So many fun day trips in that area. I'm a sucker for the educational placards on those nature walks.