This slideshow requires JavaScript.
Got up this morning and watched the cats watching the deer who were completely disinterested in looking at anything but food. 
Decided we were too antsy to just do what we “should be” doing, and so we grabbed the backpacks and headed south on 97 to Lava Butte. We’d driven to the top about a million years ago, but neither one of us could really remember what the heck it looked like up there, so it was definitely time for a refresher course. Sure, we could drive, but where’s the challenge in that? So we hiked up from the parking lot, and it was beautiful. Just a bit of a breeze, perfect clear skies, awesome views.
Looking across the crater towards the Three Sisters
Lava Butte Lookout
We had a vague plan to hike the lava trails, head in to Benham Falls, then maybe back to Bend and check out the Des Chutes Museum, but instead decided to head up to Paulina and hike around the lake.
First Mike drove us up to the top of the caldera for a beautiful panorama of the entire area. Even though the gravel road is quite washboarded, it’s totally worth the drive.
Looking down into Newberry crater and Paulina Lake
Miles of cinder cones as far as the eye can see
Incredibly massive lava flow has such beautiful swirls and whorls it looks like a giant Van Gogh painting.
Back down the mountain, we got parked and stuck our trusty NW Forest pass in the window and headed off down the trail.
I think we made a great choice, but I don’t recommend doing it on an empty stomach, I hadn’t packed for an all-day hike, so by the time we were halfway around the lake I was starving! Okay, it’s not like my body doesn’t have any reserves to work on, but still, I was pretty shaky. Good thing it was such an interesting hike with varied terrain and beautiful views.
Rustic depression-era Oddfellows Cabins were nearly destroyed by the Forest Service in the 1980's.
Built by volunteers from the Bend Oddfellows club in the 1930's, these will hopefully be restored and ready to rent soon.
Some views look more like a rugged coastline than lakefront.
Double crested Cormorant pair hang out looking for fish
Natural Bonsai cling to sharp and shiny black obsidian.
Looking across the water to the peak we'd been on just a few hours before.
One section raises above and behind a rockslide, for a broader vantage point.
Back at the boat dock, 7 1/2 moderately tough hiking miles later, I'm tired and really ready for some dinner!
There are some low-lying areas of the trail that were surprisingly mucky considering the lake was low and it’s been weeks since we’ve seen any rain. I can imagine this trail could be a real muddy mess early in the season.
Another issue here are the flies and in spring/early summer, the mosquitoes. Walking through the swampy sections would raise clouds of blackflies, nothing bit us, but it’s still a bit yukky and doesn’t lend itself to dawdling along the path in these sections. For this reason, I’d definitely recommend waiting until late in the season to hike this trail.
Being a weekday it was amazingly quiet and peaceful here, we only met 5 other hikers the entire time, and saw a couple of small fishing boats with trolling motors when we first arrived, then a solitary kayaker quietly paddling along the shoreline as the shadows lengthened and the winds calmed down later in the afternoon.
A very pretty hike, but next time I’m eating lunch before we head out!
