Paradise...

That's where we spent the first week of fall, and it was refreshing and reaffirming.  We had such a good time on our road trip!  We spent each night in a different location and checked out so many different campgrounds, rivers, lakes and restaurants that it's hard to keep them all straight.  :)  Alright, some of that may be age-related, but still...

These first few shots are from Odell Campground.  Such a beautiful place.  We were at the confluence of this rushing creek with the McKenzie River, and the rushing water was incredible.  The weather was perfect, people were scare and we loved every minute of it.  

The day before we left, my hubs had an issue with his back and he suffered with it the entire trip.  Major bummer!  But at least he didn't have to go to work, and could just relax and rest, which is what he did.  We took a few short walks together and made good use of the hot springs.  As the week wore on, he felt a little better every day.  

our campsite #1

I went down these rapids!

We took walks, explored the woods and waterways, had a couple of naps, read, played games, sat by the camp fire, soaked in natural hot springs and ate way more than we should have.  It was wonderful!!  And yes, I went whitewater rafting!!!  Oh my gosh - why did I wait so long to do this!!??  I had a blast and cannot wait to do it again!!!  Poor hubs absolutely could not go.  At this point he could barely walk, so it would have been foolish to even attempt it.  I almost didn't go, but then I thought, what the heck - I'm going!  So much fun!!!  The beautiful and wild McKenzie is a perfect rafting river, and I will be returning...

I'm ordering a CD of the trip so soon I'll post a few shots of my adventure.  :)  We got a credit for hubs since he had a medical reason for not going, so next time we only have to pay for one.  Perfect reason to go back.

my beautiful, Annie

Ruby giving sugar

my reading buddy

The second night we stayed in Paradise Campground and that portion of the river was below where we put our raft in.  There was a thunder and lightning storm that night, with a few sprinkles, but the morning dawned sunny and warm again.

Then we headed to Belknap Springs Resort where we met up with the rafting guides, spent most of the day on the river and when we returned, had a nice, long soak in the Belknap hot springs pool...heaven.  The hot, mineral waters helped my hubby's back, a lot.  We showered, dressed and headed for our next destination...Cougar Reservoir.  

This is taken from on top of the dam, looking at the reservoir, and that's some sort of fish dispersal place on the right.  The photo below is looking down below the dam, at the fish hatchery and the road we drove up runs alongside the mountain edge just to the left.  I was a bit sick on that road, but thankfully the visual of the hole below us, was brief.  *whew*.  Have I mentioned that I hate heights???  

Very pretty isn't it?  We followed the south fork of the McKenzie to this reservoir.  

Of course, the dogs would have spent their entire time in the water, had I allowed it.  Labs!!

And yes, the water really is that color.  I don't know how to edit my pictures so they're always straight out of my camera.  One of these days, I'd really enjoy learning one of those editing softwares for photography...what fun!

And this is our little campsite at Cougar Crossing.  The following morning we took the short hike into Cougar Hot Springs.  6 beautiful, natural pools stair-stepped down the mountain.  It really is a beautiful place, located in old growth timber and lots of ferns.  It felt absolutely wonderful, especially for my hubby's back.  However, my body temp got a wee bit high, and after getting out, I had to recline for a while, and dump cold water on my face and head.  For a while I thought I was either going to pass out, puke, or both.  But it passed and I felt revitalized once again!  After having heat stroke twice now, I apparently cannot allow my body temperature to get overly high.  There were only a few other people there, some of which were nude and another couple who (like us), were not.  I don't mind people going in without clothing on, but why oh why does it always have to be skinny, pasty white people who enjoy getting in, getting out and showing off their "junk" to everybody else!?  *sigh*  I would appreciate a little modesty in such places...I really must be getting old.  And I forgot to take my camera, so I didn't get any pictures to share with you!  I know - you're crushed, right?  :)

I know this post has gotten quite picture heavy, so I think I'll quit for now.  This was only Tuesday I think, so we had lots of adventures ahead.  We really did enjoy ourselves, and I took so many pictures it was crazy.  I need to go through them all and delete about half of them.  I took both cameras with me because I wasn't sure if we'd have access to power for charging.  And yes, I used both of them up.  When you're surrounded by such beauty in nature, a girl can get a little camera-happy!  

I'm so thankful that we got to go, and get away from all our responsibilities for a little while.  Rejuvenation is certainly good for the soul.  Hannah took excellent care of our horses and cats while we were away, and had no problems to report.  I'm always thankful for that.  I did miss our horses though, a lot!  The first thing I did after getting home, was head out and say hello to them all.  They sure are getting fuzzy already!  I don't blame them one bit, autumn has certainly arrived, lots of color and much cooler nights.  I'm sure it won't be long before we have fires in the wood stove again.  Sounds good huh?  

Today is a beautiful, sunny day.  Our daytime temps are in the lower 70's and that's just about perfect for me.  This weekend we're getting some firewood, taking the pool down and storing it for winter, hopefully do our fall burning and maybe, if we have time and energy left, go apple picking!  

Vacations are wonderful, but it sure feels good to be home!  

Feeling blessed...