Wednesday, July 11, 2007

Hanging out in Oregon


Welcome to Oregon, faithful reader. Glad you could make it.

As this blog grows in popularity and finds readership around the globe (even in India, apparently), the expected fan mail has started to trickle in. I'd like to share one such note with my readers:


Dear Scott,

Love the blog. You are the love child of Mother Theresa and Babe Ruth, and your words bring me to a new plane of existence. Anyway, I'm tired of rollercoasters and need a new way to scare the crap out of myself. Any tips?

Sincerely,

Some Asshole in Delaware


Dear Asshole,

Thank you for your kind words! And yes, I do have a tip for scaring the urine prematurely out of your bladder!

First, forget about sleeping in a well lit, safe Walmart parking lot. Instead, drive your car into the Oregon woods at night in the middle of a lightning storm. Pull off the highway into an abandoned campground where fog drifts across the road. Park in a parking lot that is so dark you can barely see your hand in front of your face. Take no comfort in the pleasant sound of falling rain, for it will only serve to mask the sound of approaching footsteps.

Sleep tight!

Sincerely,

Scott


I drove to Crater Lake National Park today for the main reason of climbing Mt. Scott. It's not everyday you get to climb a mountain that bears your name, and I figured I should take advantage of it while here in Oregon.



Crater Lake, in the gaping hole left by the explosion of Mt. Mazama thousands of years ago, is the deepest lake in the United States and is fed solely by melting snow and rainfall, also making it one of the clearest. Unfortunately it was too overcast today to make it as spectacular as people have described it.

Mt. Scott is a satellite cone that lies just to the west of the crater rim. Its summit is just under 9,000 feet above sea level, but only a thousand or so feet above the lake.


After hiking the Grand Canyon, Mt. Scott seemed paltry at best. But it was still nice scenery and of course much cooler than the Southwest.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Your welcome to Oregon sign bares a striking resemblance to your "Hanging around in West Virginia" picture on your myspace...

the trip looks like a blast we're stopping at both the redwood national forest and Crater Lake on our trip next year I can't hardly wait to go!

Anonymous said...

More memories -- Kirsten and I climbed Mt. Scott when we were out there back in '02. Mom waited at the car. The Park Service classified the hike as "strenuous" but it wasn't that bad and Kirsten said it was easier than Katahdin. She still hasn't shown me the pictures she took from the top.

Hope you enjoy the Oregon coast - much different than NJ (no beachfront condos and even better, no beach tags) and maybe get to the Sylvia Beach Hotel in Newport.

Kirsten said...

And dogs are allowed on the beaches, at least the ones we visited. There seemed to be one Labrador Retriever for every two beach-goers. Have fun!

Anonymous said...

Mt Scott seems cool, but it's no Bergen. It's good that you were alone so there was no one to slow you down with a sprained ankle...

Scott @ I Thought They Said Rum said...

Alas, sometimes it is necessary to recycle material.

Kristin - I'm coming to your place like it or not. We'll do some more hiking. It'll be great.

Anonymous said...

You totally made my day! I mean come on...inexpensive micro brewery tours in which you get to keep the glass, two pubs within walking distance named Die Bruecke and von Trier, oh and the first Caltrava-designed building in the U.S.

Sleeping Baggers said...

Ok so I was watching Good Day Philadelphia (or good morning, I can't remember seeing as I never watched the show before) and this 24-year old guy sold all of his belongings and went across the country for an entire year. He's written a book which I'm sure is not nearly as eloquent as your future book will be. There's hope! When you get home, we'll discuss the PR process :).