Fall Foilage sights around Oregon October 30th

Riding along Highway 97 the other morning, I couldn’t help but thinking how very lucky I am to live in Oregon, and to work among the varying regions of this state. At the southern end of my territory I work in Klamath Falls, just about 15 miles from the California border. Sitting at about 4,200’ elevation, Klamath Falls has a topography that is unique to many other areas in Oregon. The land is dry and dusty, surrounded by mostly bare hills that tower over town, reaching across the horizon and playing wonderful tricks with the suns’ light. As the day fades into evening, the rays race across the hills and alight them with yellow and gold. The hills themselves, which are upwards of 6,000' in elevation, are laden with low grass and copious amounts of lava rock, peaking through here and there creating a patchwork of black spots among the fields of grass .The air is usually very dry as this is the high desert, and the mornings even in the summer can bring fog and low clouds that burn off just as quickly as they have formed. The majestic Mt. Shasta can be viewed on the southern horizon, reminding you once again that you are indeed in a highly volcanic region.

Traveling north on Highway 97, the mix of Ponderosa, Lodgepole, and Aspen trees provided a diverse mix of greens and yellows. The trunks of the Ponderosa Pine, after reaching maturity, develop a beautiful reddish-orange tint that added another hue to the already diverse mix of sights. The Aspens grow in tight clusters of 10-30 trees that provide small islands of yellow among the green backdrop.

Turning onto Highway 58 the landscape quickly changes from dry, high desert to a wetter, denser forest. The Lodgepole Pines and their counterparts give way to Oregon’s state tree, the Douglas Fir. It is estimated that out of all the trees in Oregon, 80 percent of them are Douglas Fir. It is an easy fact to understand as we head over Willamette Pass, diving down from about 5,000’ toward our destination for the day, Eugene., which rests at 800’. The densely packed firs are accompanied by an assortment of low-growing plants, ranging from ferns such as Sword, Maidenhair, and Brackenfern to bushier plants such as Vine Maple and the beautiful Rhododendron. The Vine Maple from the top of the summit all the way into the foothills right now is typically a gorgeous shade of red, and the Brakenfern have taken on a yellowish-brown as they fades into the soil.

As we drove, I took note of the diversity that was being displayed to us. Fall is definitely a wonderful time of year in any part of the country, but I would wager in Oregon, it’s a little nicer than most.