Crater Lake/Redwood National Forest Trip

My husband, two sons, and daughter in law are planning to travel to Crater Lake on June 4th. I know this is not a great time of year to visit and that roads may be closed, but we will do something else in the area if that doesn%26#39;t work out. We have about 4 or 5 days that we could spend in the area. We know that we want to travel to the Redwood National Forest. I have heard that there are lots of interesting things to do in Bend. One of my sons lives in Gresham, OR. I belive it is about a 5 hour drive to the Crater Lake area. We plan to drive along the OR coast and make a day of the travel there. My questions are:

1. How long should we allow for Crater Lake (day, half day)?

2. Would you recommend spending time in Bend? Medford? Ashland? Sunriver? If so, what are some sites, etc. that would be good?

3. How long would you allow for Redwood National Forest?

4. Could you recommend hotels?

Thank you in advance!!!!

Crater Lake/Redwood National Forest Trip

Would you clarify your comment about 5 days in the area? Do you mean Crater Lake and Bend or the whole trip? Just to be sure...

Where would they be starting and ending their trip? Would you or they provide more details?

Then we can help plot a good and scenic route. They probably want a good route and we%26#39;d be glad to be specific.

Answering your specific question, I%26#39;d spend at least a full day in the Bend area, try to see plays in Ashland (or tour the theaters), but I%26#39;d skip Sunriver and Medford.

If you mean Redwoods National Park, a full day should do it if they have only five days.

Oregon Coast: fantastic, two overnights, but unsure of their interests (hiking, galleries, small towns, vistas).

Some specific sights would include, of course, Portland itself; Columbia River Gorge (near Gresham).

Here are some websites to help you plan...

Oregon, Central/Bend Area

http://www.visitbend.com/

Oregon Coast

http://www.oregoncoasttravel.net/

Newport, OR

http://discovernewport.com/

www.aquarium.org

Yachats/Cape Perpetua fs.fed.us/r6/鈥?/a>

Crater Lake National Park

http://www.nps.gov/crla/

Redwoods National Park http://www.nps.gov/redw/

Redwoods National Park shannontech.com/ParkVision/鈥edwood.html

Avenue of the Giants between Eureka and SF www.avenueofthegiants.net

Crater Lake/Redwood National Forest Trip

I%26#39;m a bit confused. Are you starting in the Portland area?

You%26#39;ll need to go at least to Crescent City, CA for redwoods. The trees stretch for about 50 miles south of there, then there is another pocket farther south called the Avenue of the Giants.

The north entrance to Crater Lake will probably be closed, so the only way to get there would be to go up Hwy 62 from Grants Pass/Medford area on I-5. Then to get to Bend, you%26#39;d need to go south almost to Klamath Falls and back up north on Hwy 97.

And do you have only 4 or 5 days for your whole journey?

Sorry about the lack of information! There will be 5 of us traveling from my son%26#39;s home in Gresham. We will be returning to Gresham as well. The plans were to leave Gresham on the morning of June 4. I thought we would travel along the coast. We will need to return the evening on June 8. So basically we will have 5 days and 4 nights. We like hiking, scenic areas, quaint towns, galleries, etc. I would appreciate suggestions on how to arrange that time. The two things that we really want to do is Crater Lake and Redwood National Forest. I would also appreciate hotel suggestions, restaurants, scenic routes, etc.

In my opinion, you are being too ambitious.

Five days, four nights to see everything you want to see will mean getting to a spot, saying ';I saw it.'; and getting back in your car.

Why not spend all four nights in Southern Oregon, or three nights at the coast...or three nights in Bend?

Okay, it can be done in 5 days/4 nights.

Day 1- Drive from Gresham to Bandon, about 4.5 hours. South on I-5 to just south of Cottage Grove. Take Hwy 99 to Hwy 38 toward Reedsport. Then south on Hwy 101 to Bandon.

Day 2/3 - Drive south on Hwy 101 to Crescent City, CA, less than 2 hours. Two nights there. Drive 1 hour south to Orick, see big elk herd @ Stone Lagoon, drive home via Newton Drury scenic route. Drive Howland Hill Road.Visit lighthouse, historic cemetery.

Day 4 - Drive Hwy 199 Crescent City to Crater Lake, about 4 hours. Overnight at Lodge ($$$) or Mazama Motel.

Day 5 - Drive south on Hwy 62 to reach Hwy 97, then north, through Bend/Madras, then Hwy 26 back to Gresham. This will be about 4.5-5 hours driving.

It%26#39;s a lot of driving in a short time, but you will see both redwoods and Crater Lake, plus have a little time to do short hikes and see a few things.

This sounds like a good possibility. Would you recommend making hotel reservations in advance. We often like to travel and ';play it by ear.'; We did this on a previous trip out west. We did what we wanted and then stopped for the night. Luckily, we didn%26#39;t have trouble finding a hotel. Would this work? Will there be plenty of hotels from which to choose?

Please recommend hotels, restaurants,etc. on this route.

Thank you!!!

Crater Lake - absolutely book ahead ASAP and in fact you may be too late! If there is no lodging available you%26#39;ll need to adjust your plans. There are some small towns not too far away.

Bandon / Crescent City - If you have your heart set on deluxe oceanfront lodging, then you should book now. If you don%26#39;t mind smaller, older motels that may/may not have an ocean view, or may be in town, you probably will be okay without prior reservations.

I like half-Brit%26#39;s general itinerary, but suggest you consider a few changes.

The drive along the Umqua River to the coast is beautiful, but it puts you on the coast at Reedsport, which is south of one of the most scenic sections. And hwy 101 from Reedsport to Bandon is mostly inland; you%26#39;ll have to detour for any ocean views. So, I%26#39;d suggest beginning your coastal drive south at Newport (taking hwys 34/20 from I-5) or Lincoln City (hwys 99W/18 from I-5).

I also wonder why two nights in Crescent City, but only one on the Oregon coast. Guess it depends on your interests: the coast vs. redwoods. But, hwy 199 passes through Jedediah Smith Redwood State Park, just outside of Crescent City, so you%26#39;ll see redwoods there in any case. And you can stop and take a short hike if you%26#39;d like. My preference would be two - three nights on the Oregon coast, and one or none in Crescent City.

I also agree that you just can%26#39;t wing it at Crater Lake, since there are only two lodgings inside the park, and it%26#39;s not unusual that they book up months in advance. If neither the Lodge nor Mazama Village Motor Inn is available, consider the Prospect Hotel: http://www.prospecthotel.com/ . Either way, I%26#39;d make reservations ASAP.

%26gt;%26gt;But, hwy 199 passes through Jedediah Smith Redwood State Park, just outside of Crescent City, so you%26#39;ll see redwoods there in any case.%26lt;%26lt;

Ah, but not very many along the main road :-(

I had remembered this road as passing through a bunch of redwoods, mistletoe, but when we were there a few months ago (driving 199 from Grants Pass), I paid special attention to see just how much of the highway was flanked by redwoods. The answer is - not a whole lot. Lots of trees, yes, but few big redwoods right alongside the road.

You need to turn off of Hwy 199 and into the day use park a couple of miles east on Hwy 199. Which is fine, of course, but allow at least 30 minutes for this stop, as the parking lot is a couple of miles from the highway, and the road is slow.

For the Crater Lake overnight, Ashland (south) or Bend (north) might be your best bet. Both of these are pleasant towns with excellent lodging and restaurants. Each have good sized, pretty parka in which to take a leisurely stroll. Which to choose depends you the direction you are heading.