The Descent: NOT The Movie

Enjoyed my stay at the Days Inn in Klamath Falls, OR last night. Most impressive...at least to me...the big refrigerator in my room! The refrigerator section was roomy, but the freezer on top was huge, too! Anytime I can freeze FOUR water bottles at one time is a big plus! Oh, and the bed was nice and comfy. The only irritant was a dog barking briefly sometime in the early morning. After I got up, I went outside to load up my Blazer, and found out the noisy dog had spent the night in a pickup belonging to a lady in the room next to mine. I didn't say anything, although the dog started barking while she prepared to leave. No matter there might still be other people still sleeping at 7:30 am!

I made the drive south, crossing into California...no agriculture inspection on the county road I was on, not that I had any fruit anyway. My first stop was Petroglyph Point, officially part of Lava Beds National Volcanic Monument, but outside the main park boundaries. I took photos of the rock art, which didn't appear to have a lot of human or animal images. It was still pretty cool, and there was no one around at the remote site...I had it all to myself.

The main focus of my visit to Lava Beds was exploring some of the lava tubes, which it is most famous for. I had purchased a stylish but inexpensive helmet and a headlamp for the lava tubes. Since time was of the essence, coupled with the fact that I was alone, I wasn't too keen on going TOO deep inside the caves. I chose some of the short and easy caves, which still gave me a taste of cave exploration. Although the temperatures were hovering around 80 degrees, it was cool...almost cold...inside the caves. A couple of them were supposed to have some ice, but I didn't see much in the near darkness.

It was a bit creepy walking through the caves with just my headlamp and a small, but bright flashlight. I kept thinking about the movie The Descent about a group of female spelunkers trapped inside a cave inhabited by killer mutant people. I didn't take many photos while inside the caves because they don't come out anyway...too dark!

Before leaving the park, I took a look at Mammoth Crater...it really WAS a mammoth crater...then headed south on a gravel road. I was thinking I would quickly reach a paved road, but it didn't happen. The gravel soon turned into more or less a dirt and rock road. Needless to say, I was a bit concerned! My GPS kind of warned me about this, but I naturally assumed it was talking about the gravel park road I was on. With about ten miles to go before the next junction, I was praying I wouldn't suffer some sort of mechanical problem. I wasn't concerned about the capabilities of my trusty Blazer...it's a REAL truck, not one of the new wannabe SUVs...but it IS eleven years old and pushing 200,000 miles. After about three miles of slow going...MIRACLE! The dirt road turned to pavement...almost a fantasy road. It was so beautifully paved, it was almost unreal...kind of a dream road. A Twilight Zone road. When I reached the junction, I finally turned onto another paved road...thank goodness...with LINES! I was off the hook. I learned a valuable lesson today. Don't rely totally on the GPS and do research on my roads...the fastest route may not be the best route!