When sitting atop Union Peak, it’s hard to imagine it was used as a lookout.

CRATER LAKE – Sometimes a hike seems so obvious that it’s not taken.

SKY LAKES WILDERNESS AREA – After studying the map, it seemed like a good idea.

TULE LAKE NATIONAL MONUMENT – People wanting to learn more about the complex story of the “prison within a prison” at the Tule Lake National Monument can do so through ranger-led tours.

Our timing was perfect. Just as we worked our way up a steep, tree blanketed route up, an opening suddenly revealed rocky, reach-for-the sky crags on the flanks of the towering prominence. Then, within seconds, large birds swooped overhead, gliding and soaring in the thermals.

Klamath Falls is one of the rare places in Oregon that experiences four, distinct seasons. We begin with a long winter, enjoy a brief spring, a hot and smoky summer and then the real reason people live here: Klamath falls.

Some places generate a sense of awe, sublime secrecy, even a hint of the unknown.

“Ok, gear it down to low, give it plenty of gas and lean forward standing up when you reach the top of the bank,” my friend John Paulson calmly yelled out, when he saw my predicament in the stream. I was trying to make my fifth crossing of Kiger Creek on a all-terrain vehicle when I spun out…

MOUNT ASHLAND – We had just started hiking when we met up with the first long-distance backpacker. Minutes later another passed by and, within a half-hour, several more.