Silver Falls State Park

(+5 insets) Unbelievable Silver Falls State Park Leaving Beverly Beach was only ok because we'd gotten a full two weeks there--it was such a gorgeous place! However, both of us were totally excited because we were now off to stay at one of Oregon's most popular state parks, yes! Somehow, Steve managed to book two full weeks and we were over the moon because we'd tried for the past two years without luck. The Prettiest Park Yet There are no words to describe how incredibly beautiful this park is. Beverly Beach was amazing but this park's lush greenery and glowing forest was on a totally different level. The trail which looped around the park was staggering in its beauty. Steve and I stumbled along the trail on the first day just stunned! Ferns everywhere, vibrant plants, looming trees above, moss simply everywhere. Trickling streams, marshy areas…it was just incredible. What a sight. Sorry, No Dump Station Staying there had a unique problem though. We'd be forced to use the bathrooms because not only would there be no luxurious full-hookup available, this park's dump station was out of order! We didn’t know this when we arrived, though. Steve went to investigate where the dump station was and found it down a long, bumpy road and at the end was a sign at the station saying it had been out of order for the past year! We were less than impressed to learn this after we'd arrived but in the end it worked out fine. A two-minute walk through the forest on lovely paths was a delight that we both had no problem with! Today's Picture This park is named for not just one waterfall, but the Trail of Ten Falls, which leads hikers past an unbelievable array of gorgeous falls of all types. Most notable were the ones that had trails leading behind them. This image shows the first--and most popular--which is called South Falls. (Here's a link to show the trail and names of waterfalls along the way) And this is a really nice description of the hike with pictures of all the waterfalls . Today's Insets Inset #1: The light streaming through the trees was marvelous and had me stopping constantly to take pictures! Inset #2: The glowing greenery was staggering and this picture shows a glimpse of what some of the plant life was like close up. So beautiful! Inset #3: There's a marshy area that has a wooden platform and hide, complete with little square windows for folks to peek through in hopes to see birds going about their business. I was surprised when I saw someone had carved J and S in a heart on one board…I don't like the vandalism but couldn't resist the picture and I spiced it up into a creative artwork! Inset #4: The park has many creeks and streams around it, often with fallen trees crossing over. Inset #5: This is a view from the path that shows the glowing greenery that assaults the senses everywhere in the park. Have a Wonderful Weekend! Thanks for stopping by and leaving comments or gold stars! Your visits mean the world to me. I apologize for not coming around! Missing you all so much. Explored on 2/25/22; highest placement #1.

(+5 insets) Rain, Rain, Go Away! *cry* How would you feel if you got to stay for an entire two weeks at an incredibly gorgeous state park when there was also a two-week-long rain storm? Unfortunately, that's what happened for us at Silver Falls. The afternoon we arrived it was sunny but the clouds were rolling in. We had a lovely walk around the park's incredible nature trail with no idea that we'd only walk this trail together a few times the entire two weeks. That night it started to rain. Pounding deluges of water dumped onto the area for the next TWO WEEKS! At the very least it was sprinkling but most of the time it was raining hard enough that going outside wasn't an option without an umbrella, rain gear and perhaps a boat and paddle. We were stuck inside for most of our stay and it was such a total bummer because we'd planned to go hiking and biking every day! I did manage to sneak out in the morning when the rains sometimes dwindled to a sprinkle and marched quickly around the 1.1-mile trail, usually making it back before it started to pour again. We kept an eagle-eye on the weather reports and looked to see if there was a pause in the rain, but it seemed the storm had booked the same reservation we did. However, there were exactly TWO days when the sun came out and we were READY! One day we went on the Trail of Ten Falls, and the other day we hopped on our bikes and rode on an unbelievably stunning ride which took us on a challenging but wonderful ride…we commented that we needed sunglasses to cut down on all of the brilliant, glowing greenery everywhere! So, in the end we were really sad that our plans for exploring this wonderful park were thwarted by the heavy downpours, but we counted our lucky stars for the opportunities that we did get to enjoy this lovely park. Today's Picture There was a wonderful little footbridge that crossed over the south fork of Silver Creek and it was so nice to just stand and enjoy the view. The light dancing on the water, the logs criss-crossing, the glowing greenery…oh what a pretty spot! Today's Insets Inset #1: What a perfect picture for HFF!! This view stopped me in my tracks every time I got to this part of the park's looping nature trail. You can certainly see why this trail was so popular! (Although this trail is listed as one of Oregon's most beautiful, I rarely ran into anyone because of the rain, thank goodness.) Inset #2: Walking through the campground, this marvelous tree took my breath away with its vibrating greens and lovely shape. Inset #3: And yet ANOTHER perfect picture for HFF! This was taken on the day we rode our bikes on the lovely group of trails which included this spot, which is also Silver Creek but about a mile away from the main picture's location. The bridge linked two huge meadows adorned with picnic tables for happy visitors. Inset #4: Every time I walked to the campground bathroom, I saw this wonderful tree and waited for the chance when I could take a picture to share. To me it looks like a happy old couple, arm in arm, who get to look at the playground they face that's often filled with squealing, happy children! Inset #5: I noticed this funny face in the puddles on the path to the bathroom and kept an eye out for a break in the rain to get this picture to share! I loved the goofy expression! Please Take Care Hope all is well with you…I am horrified at what's going on with Ukraine invasion. How does anything like this happen in this day and age? It's so awful that I cannot stand to see more than headlines. In any event, I hope you are all safe with family away from this terrible situation. My heart goes out to Kyiv and the Ukraine. Explored on 3/1/22; highest placement #15.