Southern Oregon – Exploring Oregon

5 Oregon City That Are Worth Visiting

Oregon is a state full of many cities and towns. In this final blog post of ours, we will highlight just a few of the cities you can visit in Oregon and what they have to offer. These cities are Medford, Salem, Portland, Eugene, and of course Ashland. So come on and read this article to learn more about these lovely Oregon cities.

The first city we are going to is Medford, Oregon. Founded in 1883, Medford is perhaps Southern Oregon’s most famous city. Having a population of 85,824 people according to the 2020 census. Medford is known for being a city that is surrounded by nature, there are various parks and trails around the city for you to visit. Downtown, Medford is full of fun things to do such as restaurants to visit, bars to drink at on weekend nights, there are even places like Astral Games where you can play board games and videos at. There is also the Craterian theater, which is one of the largest theaters for plays in Southern Oregon. For those interested in movies instead, there is also Tinseltown, a movie theater owned by Cinemark and is easily the best movie theater in all of Southern Oregon. We also have the rogue valley, a shopping mall that has been around for many years and despite the decline of American shopping malls, the rogue valley mall is still standing strong to this very day. Medford is a fun city that is worth visiting if you are ever in Southern Oregon.

Image of Ashland taken from the Ashland Springs Hotel website.

Our next stop is Ashland, Oregon. Having a population of 21,360 people according to the 2020 census. Ashland is by far, the smallest city we are highlighting today, but that doesn’t mean it’s bad or anything. Ashland, especially compared to Medford which is only a dozen or so miles away, is certainly a small town. But to Ashland’s benefit, there is this nice sense of community that the city has that none of the other cities mentioned in this article have. Ashland’s streets are much cleaner compared to say Medford’s streets and there is noticeably less crime that happens in Ashland compared to Medford. Ashland also has a lot fewer big businesses compared to Medford. While they are there for say grocery shopping with places like Safeway and Bi-Mart and some fast-food restaurants like Wendy’s, McDonald’s, and Taco Bell. Small locally owned businesses are the lifeblood of Ashland, they are the only places you can find in downtown Ashland in fact. There are certainly more bars and restaurants that are locally owned in Ashland compared to Ashland and there are even a couple of locally owned grocery stores like the Ashland food co-op. Then there is the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, the biggest theater for plays in all of Oregon. OSF is easily the most attractive destination for tourists coming to Southern Oregon to visit and has been a landmark of Ashland’s for decades.

Image of Eugene Oregon taken from Best Western Zone

Next up is Eugene, Oregon. With a population of 176,654 people according to the 2020 census. Eugene is one of Oregon’s most famous cities, perhaps third only to Salem and Portland for Oregon’s biggest city. Best known for being home to the University of Oregon. Eugene is the definition of a college town. UofO is basically the center of the city and since it’s a college known for its sporting program, the city in turn ended up with lots of sporting events to go to especially for college football. Eugene is also sort of a mix of Ashland and Medford, you have an atmosphere that is kind of similar to Ashland, but you also have a lot of the big city elements compared to Medford. There are various local businesses including arcades which don’t even exist in Medford and Ashland. There are also plenty of big businesses in Eugene including two different shopping malls and even an Imax movie theater inside one of them. Eugene is a great place to just spend a weekend, relax and have fun there.

For the penultimate stop, we have Salem, Oregon. According to the 2020 census, there are 175,535 people living in the city making Oregon’s second-largest city. Salem is the capital of Oregon and intern is perhaps the most important city in all of Oregon. The state’s capital is an area worth visiting, an area filled with artwork where you can sit beside some fountains and admire. You also have museums to visit such as the Hallie ford museum of art, the Deepwood museum, the Gilbert House Children’s Museum, and of course the OSH Art museum. Similar to Eugene and Ashland, Salem is also a university town, with lots of things geared towards students from a lively downtown area on weekend nights to various social scenes for students. For families and children, there are also some fun activities like the Salem Riverfront carousel and the Enchanted Forest Theme Park. Salem, Oregon all in all is a lovely town that is worth stopping by.

Now our final stop is Portland, Oregon. Portland is the biggest city in all of Oregon containing over half of the population of the state. Portland is a massive city that is full of many things to do including lots of the same things as the city’s above. Visiting just downtown Portland gives you many things to do such as restaurants, bars, arcades, You also have various interesting one-of-a-kind locations to visit such as the Portland Japanese Garden, a park that heavily resembles the ones you would see in Japan. You also have the Lan Su Chinese Garden, which is also an Asia theme garden. Then there is the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, something that is fun for kids and very knowledgeable for anyone who wants to learn more about science and technology. Portland is a massive city, that it would certainly take us way too long to go over, but it is a city worth visiting.

Well, these five cities of Oregon all have various things going on. You have the small-town feel and the theater community of Ashland, the big city vibes of Salem and Portland, and the city’s in the middle like Medford and Eugene. Of course, those aren’t the only cities in Oregon, you do have cities like Roseberg, Bend, Oregon City, Beaverton, Springfield, and Corvallis. Oregon is a big place with lots of things to do and we hope you use not only this article but all of ours in order to find something to do here.

The Marble Halls of Oregon: Oregon’s Caves

In southwest Oregon, just outside the city of Cave Junction. There is the Siskiyou mountains. A part of these mountains contains the Oregon caves often call the marbles halls of Oregon. Officially these caves are called Oregon Caves National Monument. Oregon’s national park services have designated the caves as a national park and the general public is allowed to visit these parks and go on tours.

While the caves have existed for many centuries, they weren’t established as Oregon’s cave national monument until 1909. Before then these were regularly old caves that not even natives used. Before 1909, the first use of these caves was when Walter C. Burch had heard about from family and in a desire to make money viva giving tours to these caves. But Walter was unable to obtain the rights to the land and abandon the idea. in 1903, President Teddy Roosevelt had taken away millions of acres of land from the public domain to create national parks. This area also included the southwest area of Oregon that included the national caves. Three years later, Congress had passed the antiquities act which allowed presidents use unused land to establish national monuments. In 1909, president Taft had officially establish the Oregon Caves National monument at the land.

The Oregon Caves are typically open from March to end of September. But as of right now due to covid the 2021 season for tourist as closed with plans to hopefully get the caves back up and running in March. Though once open you are able to book visits to the park and go on tours.

The park services offer four kinds of tours, that tourist can go on. First one is the discovery cave tour these tours have you explore the dark depths of the caves with a tour guide. Lasting 90 minutes and limited to 15 people you will make various stops during the visit such as an huge room that is 220 feet below the surface.

The candlelight tour lets you explore the caves in the same way that first who set foot exploring the cave did. By going through pitch darkness with candle as you’re only source of light. Held at the end of the day, these tours are 60 minutes and limited to 12 people and children younger then 10 aren’t allowed to explore, as long you stick with the guide you should be safe though.

Off-trail caving touring is perhaps the most interesting one for those looking for a thrill. This three hour experience takes seven people through the more cramp areas of the cave, teaching them to get out off dangerous paths such as having to crawl through tight spaces such as boulders. These caves are considered both emotional and physically draining and need to be 15 or older to be allowed to take the tour. The last kind of tour is one for family’s,

The kids and family Cave Tour is a safe tour through the caves where the caves are suppose to be family friendly and safe to go through. However though children under the age of 13 must be at least 42 inches tall and parents are not allowed to hold their small children, therefore forbidding small kids from entering.

Areas outside of the caves are allowed for visitors to camp the night there. For 10 dollars a night, you will be able to camp in a forest besides Cave Creek which is just four miles away from the Cave’s entrance. There are 17 sites for camping within the campsite and its a first come first serve bases. There is also a lodge for visitors to stay the night if they prefer a more indoor environment. Having 23 bedrooms in the lodge, its a big place for those looking for a more comfy option to staying the night. There is a dining room located within the lodge that serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner to those that are staying. However, the lodge is currently being remodeled and is closed for the time being with an reopen date unknown. There is also a coffee shop called The Caves Cafe and a restaurant called Chateau Dining Room, but much like the lodge both of them are ongoing remodeling and its suggested you bring you’re own food for a picnic.

As for the wildlife, the place is full of birds, mammals, and amphibians. There are various birds that can be found outside of the caves such as owls, ravens, stellar jay’s, and sooty grouses. For amphibians, there are the typical ones you can usual find in places like these such as frogs and lizards. Now as for the mammals, you obviously have dear and squirrels, but there are also both couag’s and black bears. While both of those can be considered to be dangerous its animals, they tend to leave humans alone and its in you’re best interest as a whole to avoid making contact or interacting with either of them.

Oregon’s caves are a fun and interesting place. The park offers a nice variety tours for those looking to go on some kind of adventure. This is also an fun place just to stay the night regardless if its just camping a few miles away from the caves or just spending the night at the lodge. Though due to remodeling and covid, none of those things can be done right now. But once everything has fully reopen, make sure to book you’re trip because they might end up filling up fast.

Crater Lake: Oregon’s Only Natural Park is a Must Visit

Being one of the 7 wonders of Oregon. Carter Lake is perhaps Southern Oregon’s most famous location as its Oregon’s only national park. Known for its blue-looking and yet very clean water. The park is compromised of 183,224 acres that span mountain, forests, and of course its signature lake.

Crater Lake is known to be the deepest lake in America, and the seventh deepest lake in the world. It is approximately 1,943 feet deep. It consists of getting its water purely from rain and snow because of its no outlet structure. The water sits in a bowl land shape structure that has water level change periodically. The precipitation rate is a lot higher than the evaporation rate which doesn’t help explain where the rest of the water goes when the water level drops. This is what makes Crater Lake very unique, it is one of America’s greatest mysteries and a great place for scientists to be involved in solving this mystery.

Illustration of a cross section of Mount Mazama with present day Crater Lake, Oregon, USA. Mount Mazama’s summit collapsed during an eruption which formed Crater Lake.

Crater Lake was initially formed from the fall of a volcano 7,700 years ago. The volcano was Mount Mazama that was 12,000 feet tall. You can see on the image above, the volcano stood on top of what’s now called Crater Lake. The fall of Mount Mazama was a symbol to the Makalak natives who would explain the origins of it’s fall. It consisted of two spirits getting into a brutal battle which then the destruction of it all signified the end of the battle. The spirits were Chief of the Above World (Skell), spirit of the sky and Chief of the Below World (Llao), spirit of the mountain.

The park is also home to various wildlife most common of which are known mammals such as squirrels, dear, bats, and even bears. There are a total of 41 bears in the park and while there are more female bears than male bears, the male bears are known for traveling outside the park, so try and be safe when adventuring in the area. American Pika also inhabit the park, these little guys are small creatures that can be around rock slopes and in the meadows throughout the summer and fall, but go into hibernation once the snow covers their den. Bat’s also can be found in the park, living in the various caves in the area obviously. Amphibians is another species that can be found in Carter Lake with the most common of which being Frogs and Lizards which are often seen around the lake.

Pika sitting on a boulder — Image of a Pika taken from natural park services website

For activities you can do at the lake there is obviously being able to go out on a hike. There are multiple trails throughout the park that can be walked such as the mount Scott trail, Garfield park trail, Plaikni Falls Trail, and Cleetwood Cove Trail just to name a few of these trails. They range from 2 to 4 miles and are fairly simple to walk. Cycling is another activity that is popular in the lake though bikes are not allowed on the trails, there is a single dirt road you can bring a mountain bike on. As for camping, there are two campsites at Crater Lake. The first campsite is the Mazama campgrounds, open through June to September the site provides 214 rentable sites areas for showering, laundry, and even internet connection as well as a store. The second lake is the Lost Greek Campground which has 16 sites to reserve and operates from June to Mid October. Lost Greek lacks a lot of the features compared to Mazama as it was built for a more traditional tent set up. For those looking to swim in the lake, an area within Greekwood Trail has been made safe for swimming and it opens mid-June and is open throughout the summer, but be warned the water in the lake is known to be very cold.

Crater Lake is a place full of wonder and mystery. As Oregon’s only national park, it has earned its reputation as one of Oregon’s seven wonders due to some of the strange things about the origins of the lake. As a national park, the government has made sure its safe for both visitors and the wildlife that live in the park. For those visiting the park, there are plenty of fun activities that can be done there such as camping, hiking, biking, and swimming. All of this has made Crater Lake perhaps Southern Oregon’s most interesting place to visit.

Emigrant Lake a Highlight of Southern Oregon

Emigrant Lake located just 5 miles southeast of Ashland is a popular spot during the summer. The area is a fun place to fish, ride a boat, or just take swim. The lake is at an elevation surface of 2,241’ and spans 806 acres of land. Open all year round, the lake is a fun area to spend a day at or even spend the night camping it.

Various wildlife live at the lake such as dear, birds, lizards, fish can be found throughout the lake. Some of the fish that the lake hosts include Bass, Sunfish, Crappie, and Bullheads. In the spring and fall you can even find rainbow trout in the lake. Though according to an article from Best Fishing in America on their post about Emegrant Lake, they said an health advising warning has been issued on eating too many fishes due to them having a high level of mercuy.

Chart provided by Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife

When it comes to camping the lake, there are spots reserve for campers who would like to stay overnight. For 10 dollars, spots for RV’s can reserve and you and up to 7 others can stay for upwards of 14 days. You can rerseve your camping spot at this page through Jackson county’s website. However though, due to the 2020 Almeda Fire which saw hundreds of homes in Southern Oregon destroyed, they are currently not taking reservations at this time.

Emigrant Lake Reservations — Taken from JacksonCountyor.org

A major attraction that Emigrant Lake is home to is their waterslide. This waterslide at the height of 280ft, is the largest one in Southern Oregon. Having twin slides that go down different paths gives incentive for visitors to ride it multiple times, the lines for the ride are long, but worth it. Costing 10 dollars for 90 minutes or 15 dollars for 3 hours, its well worth the price of admission for a fun and intense ride to the small pool at the very buttom. All of this makes the waterslide easily the most popular area of the lake and worth taking the trip there for it alone.

Emigrant Lake - Ashland | Southern Oregon - Oregon Discovery — Photo taken from Oregon Discovery.com

For those with children or are just a child reading this blog, an area worth visiting at the lake is the playground. The jungle gym there is a safe area for children full of swings and slides for kids to play on. So for those kids who might be old enough or comfortable enough to take a ride on the waterslide, you can always bring them to end this of the lake so they can have a fun time during your trip.

Emigrant Lake Play Area — Imagine provided by Camp Site Photos.Com

While the Lake is a great place to be at, it certainly has seen better days. Over the years the lake is now at a dangerous of drought due to the lack of rain water and snow that can melt in order for it to resupply its water. In spring of 2021, the lake was at 28% full as oppose to the 72% it was at the year prior. This happen during a time where Jackson county itself was experiencing an historic drought and it was declared to be a disaster. This impaced the lake severely as it now lacks most of the water it once had and even resulted in the waterslide closing during the summer of 2021. Marking this the second year in the row with the waterslide being closed since back in 2020 it was closed during the summer for the first time in its existence due to covid-19, they have said though the waterslide will reopen in 2022.

Photo of the Lake from April of 2021 provided by Mailtribune

Emigrant Lake is a beautiful lake that certainly has seen better days. But hopefully with the recent snow storm in Jackson county and fingers cross for a decent amount of rain during the winter. The lake will begin to return to its forever glory. Over the years the lake has been the home to plenty of memories for its visitors and those who have been there have had a great experience there. So if in 2022, things can pick steam for the lake with it regain most of its lost water and the waterslide reopens, make sure you stop by and visit the lake. Go for a swim, ride the waterslide, catch some fish, and camp overnight as you will surely have a wonderful time.