Deschutes National Forest

Taken at second viewpoint after you start up the Tumalo trail. Taken after first light but before dawn.

With a sheer plunge of 89 feet, Tumalo Falls is both the tallest and most impressive waterfall along Tumalo Creek - as well as one of the most popular outdoor destinations in the vicinity of Bend. The area around the falls was burnt in a 1979 forest fire, though like the landscape surrounding Mount St. Helens after it's devastating 1980 eruption, the forest is quickly healing. A few snags still line the hillsides along the valley but the area is green again, covered with small fir trees and not at all detracting from the splendor of the falls. A nice set of viewpoints both at the top and near the base of the falls make viewing the falls possible for nearly everyone.

Got really lucky that the morning was so calm and the water was still, except for the occasional duck. On the left is the South Sister and on the right is Broken Top.

Located in the heart of Central Oregon just 25 miles west of Bend, Sparks Lake is a large, shallow lake. Situated near the northwest edge of Mount Bachelor, the lake boasts spectacular views of Broken Top and South Sister in addition to Mount Bachelor. Sparks Lake was formed by volcanic activity in the area over 10,000 years ago. Pristine alpine streams flow into this beautiful lake.

Sparks Lake is a natural body of water near the crest of the central Cascade Range in Deschutes County.

• Heraclitus.

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On our first trip to Oregon, we spend most of our time exploring the wonderful Oregon coast and Columbia river gorge, but as we started our journey back, I had a couple of spots n mind for a quick visit. One such location was the lower proxy falls, a massive waterfall near Bend, Oregon. The drive to the falls trailhead was long but beautiful. Inline with most aspen landscapes, we were driving on the road snaking through a dense pine forest for the most part.

Then suddenly, the landscape changed. Instead of the lush green forest, the area opened up and drove through a massive lava field. I have never seen anything like that before, and when we saw what appeared to be some building with a parking lot, we decided to stop and learn a bit about this stark but gorgeous landscape. The building we saw turned out to be the Dee Wright Observatory, an observation structure at McKenzie Pass's summit in the Cascade Mountains of Oregon. The facility is an open shelter constructed with lava stone. It is located amid a large lava flow and offers an exceptional view of numerous Cascade peaks.

I saw this scene just outside the observatory. It shows the distant peaks of the middle and north sister mountains and the direction of the ancient lava flow. What interested me the most was how nature was reclaiming the rough rocky terrain. As we went on one of the many trails that start from these locations, you could see more signs of greenery returning with little plants and flowers all over the place.

• Zhuangzi.

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One of the surprise locations of our Oregon trip was the stunningly beautiful Sparks Lake near the cozy little town of Bend. It was not really part of my original trip itinerary but I added it based on a photo I saw n a Bend travel brochure. I was a bit unsure about the location until we drove into Bend and saw huge panoramic shots of Sparks lake on a huge billboard.

This is not a particularly hard location to shoot as pretty much anywhere you look you have stunning vistas. The challenge is to take pics which convey the grandness of scene. I wanted to take a panorama shot, the moment I saw this scene and once the rising sun obliged with morning light that streamed over the mountain peaks. Hope you all like it.

• Alfred Lord Tennyson.

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The main reason why Bend Oregon, is one of our favorite towns to visit on the west coast is due to the diversity of its landscape. A short drive to the west will get you into alpine lakes, active volcanos, and coniferous forests while a trip to the east will get you to the deserted part of the state. There are amazing formations like gigantic lava bubbles that burst to form rocky fort formations and rolling hills that got covered in multi-colored ashes during the various volcanic eruptions caused by the cascade mountain range.

We found our favorite location near Bend only on our second trip, and it’s the beautiful sparks lake. If you would have asked me to sketch the perfect alpine landscape scene, I am pretty sure that the sketch will match the view from the shores of Sparks Lake. No wonder that it’s the poster child for Bend’s tourism board. This photo is from our first visit to the beautiful lake, we drove here for sunrise, but I had no particular locations in mind for sunrise shots. My wife was not feeling well, so we decided that she would rest in the car, so I was on my own for the day. The nearest spot I found was lovely, but after taking some shots there, I got bored of the location, so I moved on, after a short hike, I found a ledge from which I could see the view of a rock outcropping with a tine tree hanging on for dear life. I decided to make the tiny tree my foreground element that will provide the depth required to anchor the whole scene.

October color along the river.

The Metolius River flows 28.6 miles (46.0 km) from Metolius Springs through the Deschutes National Forest, emptying into Lake Billy Chinook and ultimately the Deschutes River. The upper 11.5 miles (18.5 km) of the river are popular for catch-and-release fishing, whitewater rafting, picnicking, and camping. The lower 17 miles (27 km) are on the boundary of the Warm Springs Indian Reservation, and flow by "a primitive area where motorized vehicles are not allowed."

The Metolius River was officially designated a National Wild and Scenic River in 1988.

The Cascades received a nice spring snow this past week. Of course, no one can go skiing, but cross country is still okay. A lot of these little lakes are virtually untouched right now.

If you are looking for an idyllic lake for swimming in Central Oregon, there really is no better option than the scenic Scout Lake located in the Deschutes National Forest.

Located south of Suttle Lake in a mixed conifer forest, Scout Lake sits at an elevation 3,700 feet. The deep flowing waters coupled with its sandy shores, make this small pristine lake ideal for swimming as the weather heats up.

The lake features a picturesque shoreline, clear water of aquamarine color surrounded by thin forest of green fir trees that survived in the largest fire in Deschutes Forest history and burned stands of once alive trees. The lake has shallow and deep zone. The shallow water near the sandy beach is perfect for kids wading or splashing.

That is Mt. Jefferson in the background, and the west end of Lake Billy Chinook.

The Central Oregon region covers approximately 7,833 square miles (20,290 km2), and sits at the convergence of the Basin and Range, Cascades, Blue Mountains, and Columbia River Plateau geologic regions. Because it is part of a historically volcanic region, volcanic rock formations are a common sight, including lava beds, volcanic buttes, crater lakes, volcanic plugs, and lava tubes.[3] Consequently, Deschutes is the most cave-rich county in Oregon with over 500 lava tubes.

The primary river flowing through Central Oregon is the Deschutes River. Its source is Little Lava Lake in the Cascade Mountains, northwest of LaPine. The Deschutes runs south to north, eventually flowing into the Columbia River. Along its way, dams control its flow creating Crane Prairie Reservoir and Wickiup Reservoir. The river runs alongside the resort community of Sunriver and through the city of Bend.

Panorama of South Sister and Broken Top mountains across Sparks Lake during Sunrise, Deschutes National Forest, Oregon, USA.

I don't know how good,...

Running up and down the trail around the lake trying to decide where the best sunrise shot might occur. Tripping over my own tripod, just another day of photography in my life.

Located in the heart of Central Oregon just 25 miles west of Bend, Sparks Lake is a large, shallow lake. Situated near the northwest edge of Mount Bachelor, the lake boasts spectacular views of Broken Top and South Sister in addition to Mount Bachelor. Sparks Lake was formed by volcanic activity in the area over 10,000 years ago. Pristine alpine streams flow into this beautiful lake.

I see that Flickr decided to name this Elk Lake on the map. Nope, it's Sparks Lake!

At the McKenzie Pass in the Willamette National Forest.

Love prefers twilight to daylight...

• Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

One of the best things I like about Oregon is how unassuming some of the most stunning locations are. The first time we visited Oregon, we spend a couple of days in Bend but completely missed the stunning Sparks lake. On our second visit, luckily I saw a billboard for Oregon tourism with sparks lake as the main attraction but in true Oregon fashion, they didn't name the location. Thankfully my google tracking skills were on point and I managed to find this lovely location and we spend a brilliant sunrise there.

This happened with Abiqua Falls as well and we in fact turned back about a mile away from one of the most famous waterfalls in the state because we couldn't figure out the turn to the parking lot. Yup, there was not a single sign, I figured it out a year later and returned to get my pics and was kicking myself for turning around while I was so close. While it was frustrating at the moment, as I look back I really appreciate how these spots still maintain their wildness by not being tourist traps.

• Antoine Rivarol.

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This shot was taken at the beautiful Sparks lake during our second road trip of Oregon. The first time we visited, I didn’t even know that this place existed and spend a couple of days in Bend visiting other more famous attractions around the area. On the last day we were leaving I noticed this Bend tourism poster with a beautiful lake on it and recognized the broken top mountain. I asked around and surprisingly few people knew about it. Finally, I met a fellow photographer who gave me the name of the lake and I made a point to include it as a must-have spot the next time we visited Oregon.

And three years later we were at the beautiful lakeshore of the stunning Sparks Lake. Unfortunately, my wife fell ill the day before and had a miserable morning at the park. I had to frantically look for a good spot while she rested up in the car. I found this spot which was a short stroll from the parking lot and took this panorama stitch image of warm morning light slowly filling on the mountainside. The water was perfectly still that morning and I got the almost perfect reflection.

Three Fingered Jack in the background.

Jack Lake is a small lake that sits at the trailhead for the Canyon Creek Meadows trail which leads to the base of Three Fingered Jack. Jack Lake is in the Jefferson Wilderness near Santiam Pass and is about a 30 minute drive from Sisters, Oregon. The lake is at the end of a long and bumpy dirt road that does not require 4×4 but would be helpful. The lake is at an elevation of 5150ft.

Three Fingered Jack lies in Linn and Jefferson counties. It has a volume of 2.4 cubic miles (10 km3) and a summit elevation of 7,844 feet (2,391 m), with a proximal topographic relief of 1,300 feet (400 m) and a draping relief of 4,600 feet (1,400 m). Its jagged edifice rises between Mount Jefferson and the Three Sisters volcanic complex. Three Fingered Jack lies within the Mount Jefferson Wilderness and is not accessible by paved road, but can be approached by the Pacific Crest Trail. Located about 20 miles (32 km) northwest of the city of Sisters, it acts as a prominent landmark in the area.

In the background from left to right are South Sister, Broken Top and hidden behind the trees is Mt Bachelor.

Lava Lake lies in the Cascade Range about 25 miles (40 km) west-southwest of Bend in Oregon. It is a close neighbor of Little Lava Lake, from which it is separated by solidified lava. Lava Lake is at an elevation of 4,740 feet (1,440 m) in the Deschutes National Forest. The lake covers 368 acres (149 ha) to an average depth of 20 feet (6.1 m).

Lava Lake, Little Lava Lake, and other nearby lakes were formed after lava flows from Mount Bachelor altered drainage patterns in the area. Solidified lava flows are visible along the shorelines of both lakes, and the volcanic peaks Broken Top and South Sister can be seen to the north.

• Virgil.

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On our second trip to Oregon, we got a chance to visit some fantastic spots in the green state of Oregon. One of the amazing towns that we stayed over was called Bend. The name really attracted us on the map plus it was good base camp for our exploration of various central Oregon attractions. On our second day there I noticed a huge billboard outside our motel that advertised about various tourist attractions accessible from Bend and it had an otherworldly picture of a lake with majestic mountains and some spectacular clouds. I tried figuring out where that location was but between the spotty internet connection and our crazy schedule had not much luck.

Once back in LA, I still remembered the place and launched a lot of internet searches until I finally landed on the image. That image was taken at Sparks lake and the mountains visible were South Sister and Broken top. Therefore, on our next trip we spend a beautiful morning there shooting the mountains and the calm lake reflections. We didn’t have any cloud cover on that day, so I was a bit disappointed that I didn’t get the full potential image. So, when our trip to Washington ran into some unforeseen snow storm on the mountains, we decided to reroute the trip to Bend and try our luck at sunset. We reached just before sunset after driving all day and found the day to be extremely cloudy and windy. My wife didn’t have high hopes, but I knew the wind was a game changer. As sunset neared the wind intensified and started to warp the cloud cover into a lenticular cloud. It was cold and windy, but we were in place waiting for the cloud to get perfect, but it was too dark by the time the wind died down and the cloud cover tuned into a perfect lenticular. In the meantime, I took this shot of the beautiful scene while there was still come color in the sky.

As seen from the viewpoint right next to parking lot. Taken after first light.

With a sheer plunge of 89 feet, Tumalo Falls is both the tallest and most impressive waterfall along Tumalo Creek - as well as one of the most popular outdoor destinations in the vicinity of Bend. The area around the falls was burnt in a 1979 forest fire, though like the landscape surrounding Mount St. Helens after it's devastating 1980 eruption, the forest is quickly healing. A few snags still line the hillsides along the valley but the area is green again, covered with small fir trees and not at all detracting from the splendor of the falls. A nice set of viewpoints both at the top and near the base of the falls make viewing the falls possible for nearly everyone.

• Jean de La Fontaine.

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This shot was taken near Bend Oregon at the stunning Sparks Lake. This Lakes location just so stunning that there are about a million different viewpoints here. Also, the trail covering some of the best views of the lake and the surrounding peaks of the Cascade range is named in memory of the famous photographer Ray Atkeson (more details about his work can be found here www.rayatkeson.com/).

I have a bit of history with this spot as the last time we were there we had witnessed a stunning sunrise and in my haste, I focused most on the light at the top of the peak of South Sister. That resulted in the poor framing of the tree that was growing out of the rocky shoreline as I placed it below the horizon making it lost in the shadows. For some reason that irked me a lot about that shot and when we went back to the lake during this year’s road trip, I wanted to rectify that little oversight. This time though we had some excellent colors and truly unique cloud cover completely engulfing the peak of the mountain. So I used my Lee Big Stopper and slowed the exposure times a bit.

• Francis of Assisi.

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This shot of the incomparable Sparks Lake is arguably my favorite shot from our summer road trip to Oregon. When you compare all the little spots in the US which we have explored Bend, OR has to be right up there on the top of the list as one of the most interesting little towns for a photographer. A short drive to the west will find you in the foothills of the Cascade Range and within hiking distances of many Alpine lakes while a drive east will provide access to desert wonders like Fort Rock and painted hills.

I made this shot at the beautiful Sparks Lake, which is an easily accessible lake with camping facilities and all around stunning view of the South Sister (visible in this image) along with Broken Top and Mt Bachelor. This shot was taken about 30 minutes after sunrise when the warm morning light started to filter in through the caved part of Broken Top. I was really glad I stuck around for this shot.

This pretty waterfall splashes about 23 feet into a small gorge just downstream from a rather dusty campground, it's located at an elevation of about 4750 feet. Upstream of the falls, Paulina Creek flows through pretty grassy meadows - more scenery well worth the attention of your camera.

Paulina Creek is undersized for the features found along the channel, it’s average annual discharge is 18 cubic feet per second. Between 2000 and 4000 years ago a small waterfall reached Paulina Lake and dropped the lake’s level by about 8 feet. This resulted in a flood with an estimated discharge rate of about 7000 cubic feet per second (almost 400 times the annual rate). The flood lasted no more than two days. This flood formed the many large scale features found along Paulina Creek. Here at McKay Crossing Falls during the flood there was a falls almost 100 feet wide.

Getting to this lake takes some determination and a nice 4 wheel drive vehicle.

However, the view will be divine. Indeed, it is because of this view, this incredible location, that Summit Lake Campground is an absolute gem in spite of itself. The lake rewards every effort, and the campground provides some of the more open camping areas around the lake. To be sure, there are plenty of pullouts along the primitive roads that follow the north and west shores, but most are in the dense lodgepole and ponderosa growth and miss the sun.