Pictures for Pam, Day 168: Before the Sunrise at Upper Klamath Lake

(+1 inset) (please view large!)

Now that Steve and I have been home from Upper Klamath Lake for a day, we've been reflecting on the differences. Most notably, it was only just entering spring there, though the temperature was quite nice and cold only late at night.
Did you experience a long winter where you live? We did and I know that many places in Oregon had a very late winter too. Talking to the folks at Rocky Point Resort, we learned that they've only been open for business for a couple of weeks because their winter was about a month longer than normal--just like us. In fact, daffodils were just beginning to bloom there, whereas our daffodils peaked a month ago. Checking the elevation, I was surprised to find that Upper Klamath Lake sits at 4100 feet, whereas we are at 1500 feet. This all made sense to us when we thought about it and all of this explains why it didn't feel like spring hadn't arrived yet.

I've only stayed at a campground once, many years ago, and that was traditional tent camping so it this place was very interesting to me. Modern campgrounds in the United States have specific sites meant for RVs and other spots are just for tents or small camper vans. Some spots have no "hookups" and are just a place to pitch a tent or to "dry camp", which means that you have to provide water and electricity. Fancy spots, like the one we had, included "full hook-ups", which meant we had electricity, water AND a sewer. Sewer hookups are uncommon but most campgrounds offer water and electricity hookups. It was all new and fascinating to me.

Another interesting point is that sites are sorted by size of trailer. Many campsites, especially remote ones without the luxury of a lot of space cannot accept camper vehicles at all, only tents. Some can only accommodate camper vans or trailers up to 25 feet long or so. More often than not, campsites are only long enough for a trailer; the truck must be unhooked and parked beside the trailer. However, there are some campsites that have spots which will allow a very long RV AND a truck which doesn't even need to be unhooked! We're talking 80 feet or longer!! That's just astonishing to me! I really shouldn't be surprised because I've seen some unbelievably long combinations of truck + RV or huge motorhome + car towed behind. Still, I never really thought about it before!

Did you know that in most cases, you reserve your campsite online? In fact, there are many places that are so popular that you must reserve a spot an entire YEAR (or longer) before you want to go!! And then, there are lots of places that don't allow reservation at all!. How would you like to drive all day to get to a campsite without even knowing if there is a place to pull into?! What do you do if you can't get in? It's a whole new thing for us to learn about and it's lots of fun to figure it all out. I'll be writing about what we learn as we go whenever it's interesting enough to pass along. I expect it's probably fascinating to some of you who live in Europe and don't see anything larger than camper vans. The difference between European camping and US camping totally blows me away and I figure it's fun to read about! I'll do my best to be entertaining! :)

Today's picture was taken yesterday morning before sunrise when I stepped out of our RV and headed towards the dock. The colors in the sky behind the bare trees was just incredible. Part of me wanted to rush out to the dock because I didn't want to miss the sunrise but I simply couldn't miss this picture. I'm so glad I got it. :)

My inset was the picture I thought about posting yesterday for Happy Fence Friday. It shows the Rocky Point Lodge and the actual "rocky point" which is the namesake of this beautiful place. I am very happy with the way the picture turned out but I don't think it's got the "wow-factor" I am hoping for in a main shot. I hope you like it! This lodge is a restaurant but it's currently being remodeled and because of the long winter they are far behind on the renovations. Maybe we'll get the chance to eat there some day on a return trip!

Pam, I did a search for "lake" and came up with a picture that looks a bit like Upper Klamath, namely one of your pictures of Lake Arbuckle! :D Such a lovely view. Looks like a wonderful place for a picnic! By the way, thank you for your sweet comments about our trip…and I hope that your day has been a nice one! *BIG HUGS*

Explored on 4/27/19, highest placement, #2.