Back to Back Favorites in Oregon

Waterfalls aren’t the only thing Oregon is well known for. The various hot springs throughout the state are also a major attention grabber, at least for me they are. After our hot spring extravaganzas in Colorado and Utah, I was on the hunt for more. Umpqua Hot Springs however were some that I had saved on my travel list for quite some time. When we got to the parking lot we misread a sign and got bummed out thinking the trail was 3.5 miles but deciding to go for it anyway, we were happily surprised when we arrived to the springs in roughly eight minutes (give or take some).

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The chain of hot pools here cascade over the cliff side, overlooking the Umpqua River. We hung out in one of the empty pools in a rock bowl for a little bit before heading down a rope to the river where there was another more private pool. This one was hotter than the upper ones and it went into a mini cave that was home to a few small bats. There’s also a pool at the very top that has a wood structure covering it. On top of the various pools the area is clothing optional! The $5 parking fee is definitely worth the short trip to these hot springs.

After hanging out in the pools we walked back to the parking area and decided to hang out more (literally) by the river. We tied up our hammock and ate a few snacks before driving out of the National Forest and into BLM land. Once again it was time to start looking for a spot to park for the night. We wanted to have a fire so we pulled off on to some windy dirt roads that were probably used as logging trails. After driving for a while we pulled off thinking we had found a spot. Although the sunset view over the mountains was nice, we decided to head back to an area we saw near the beginning of the road. This was definitely the spot too. It was down lower to the side of the road in a crater/bowl with no trees around. There were already the remains of a fire someone previously had as well. We spent the night having a couple drinks, sitting by the fire, and stargazing at the clear night sky.

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The next day we drove into Roseburg for some groceries and headed toward Eugene. In my last post I mentioned that Umpqua Hot Springs was one of my favorite places in Oregon, and this next stop is right up there with it. We made our way into Lane County where we hiked up Spencer Butte. I think the fact that this hike was in the middle of a town and not out isolated in the forest somewhere actually made it a bit more memorable and fun. There are two paths you can take to get to the top. We took the shorter and steeper route on our way up. This trail was only 0.7 miles on a dirt path through the woods, but with an almost 750 feet worth of elevation gain. As we got closer to the top we sort of lost the trail since it turned into rock, but eventually we made our way. The other route which we took on our way back down was an easier 1.5 mile paved walking path. The views from the top of the butte were amazing. You can see a full 360, overlooking the town and surrounding areas around you with mountains off in the distance. It’s one of those places where you can just sit in the same spot taking the same photo multiple times because it looks that picturesque. Next time we get up to (shockingly) more hot springs and more waterfalls, stay tuned!