What Oregon Taught Me About Wildfires

My Midwestern upbringing prepared me for a lot of things: a killer snowstorm that drops 12" of snow on top of 2" of ice? No problem. A tornado in the unbearably hot, humid days of summer? I get it, hideaway in the basement until it's gone. But wildfires? I'm a rookie. 

I should clarify, I'm not in immediate danger by any means (lest you all forget, my Mom is one of my biggest fans/readers: Mom, I'm totally safe)! 

That said, when the end of summer nears and certain parts of Oregon are dryer than normal, conditions are ripe for some mean wildfires. Lightening hits just one tree and it's like igniting a dry stack of hay. There are scars of past fires across state, especially as one travels outward from the typically damp area of the Willamette Valley. Unfortunately however, being a valley means when fires are raging, ash tends to settle smack dab in Rainy City, USA (a.k.a. Eugene). 

I'll never forget my first experience with this. It was a few days after I moved into my apartment in September 2009. I woke up thinking, "Weird, I wonder if my downstairs neighbor burned toast his morning?" Alas, I figured it out when I turned on the local news. That smell was the timber-rich smoke and ash that was settling in the valley, leaving a thin film over everything and shrouding the sky in a grayish-pink curtain. Aside from the thousands of acres full of burning trees, respiratory dangers smoke and ash can cause and the countless other negative circumstances, it was kind of intriguing.

Wildfire season is in full force again this year, check the ash on my car: 

Ok, the ash is hard to see in this one, but I thought the reflection turned out cool. 

A slight haze on the horizon.

I'm heading up to Hood River this weekend to visit a friend. We had tentatively planned on going for a few hikes and a long ride near Mt. Hood, but we'll have to see what happens. There's a pretty big fire in the High Cascades.

I never thought I'd say this in Oregon, but how about some rain!?

More info on current Oregon forest fires: http://www.nwccweb.us/information/fire_info.asp

Crater Lake: Hilariously Bad Weather

Well folks, I can 100%, without-a-doubt say that it is possible to visit Crater Lake National Park and not actually see the lake.

Yes, the deepest lake in the United States (1,943 feet). The lake with a 33 mile circumference, completely lost to the human eye this weekend. Thank you Oregon weather.

So instead of this:

(www.nps.gov)

We saw this:

(The lake is literally directly behind us in this photo).

Needless to say, we spent our time at the Crater Lake Lodge reading in front of the fireplace and playing Scattergories with newfound friends. It was fun, but definitely not the scenic hikes we had planned.

Even better, when we came to leave this morning it wasn't just raining, it was sleeting. Lord, thank you for Subarus and all-wheel drive. 

(Crater Lake ladies and gents)!

(Once again, the lake is behind us).

The National Park pass is good for another 10 days, so we're debating going back next weekend. Don't worry, the weather looks much more promising! 

My Exciting Purchase

It's no secret, I come from a long, elite line of bag lovers. Tote bags, backpacks, leather purses, you name it- the women in my family always have a justification for investing in a new bag.

I've had my eye on a new commuting bag for a while now. Unfortunately, my tote bag isn't large enough to lug my collection of textbooks and my backpack isn't 100% weatherproof. I've gotten away with the semi-waterproof backpack for years now (I bought it seven years ago and most definitely have used the lifetime warrantee to have it mended a few times). With the impending damp, dreary, rainy, foggy climate associated with Oregon winters this bag will be a lifesaver:

Clearly, this is pretty exciting for me to warrant a blog post. Sorry if you don't share my love for bags; I am quite pumped about it!

Adjusting to it All

The eve of school is approaching and ironically, I'm not too stressed. Reality is, it'll hit me once I get my syllabi, so I'm enjoying my last few days of aimless exploring, running errands and catching up on the last of my summer reading. I've also had plenty of time to relax and think about the certain things I'm really having to adjust to: (in no particular order)

• Transitioning from a semester to a trimester schedule. This change has me antsy, it's nearly the first of October and classes are just about to begin. Back at the UW, I'm sure the first wave of midterms and papers are starting!
• Living alone. It is quite an adjustment to come home to an empty apartment, especially when I've been so fortunate to have such wonderful past roommates.
• Being 2,000 miles away from home. Words cannot express how hard it is to be away from my family and friends, especially in my current circumstances. The positive twist on this: being acutely aware of how much I'm loved.
• The terrain. I'm lucky enough to live in a state which has so much to offer in this department. I'm looking forward to exploring the hiking trails and more of the coast.
• Not pumping my own gas! In the grand scheme of things, this is minor. It still weirds me out to have a complete stranger fill up my gas tank.
• The weather/climate. Currently, due to the unseasonably warm, dry weather there are two rather large wildfires burning. Earlier this week, the smoke from the fires traveled (and settled ) in the Willamette Valley, leaving air quality quite poor (and a sprinkling of ash on my car). It's definitely the first time I've awoke to a smell of campfire and seen such an odd colored sunrise. As a complete side note, I am intrigued to experience "winter" here. There are specific instructions in my lease to make sure if the temperature drops below freezing for three straight days to run hot water to ensure my water pipes don't freeze...
• No sales tax!
• Remembering I'm two hours behind everyone back home. I apologize in advance if I accidentally call you at a late hour!

So those are just a few examples of things I'm acclimating to. The list could go on and on, and I'm sure it'll continue to grow!

**To follow up on my last post, I did get into the Managing Non-Profits class (luckily without having to jump through any logistical hoops).