Backroads of Oregon II - Day 8

Saturday, August 11, 2012 - I packed up the car and reluctantly left the Lake Selmac Resort and the scenic lake.

I headed west to Hwy 199 and the north.  After much searching I found the cache (GC15V53) at the Wilderville Post Office.   The Post Office was established in May 1858 in what was then called Slate Creek.  The name was not officially changed to Wilderville Post Office until 1878.  I found another cache ("The Guardian" - GC390GB) about a half mile away.

I found two Virtuals, two Earthcaches, six Traditional Caches, and two DNFs today.  I found caches/virtuals on DELORME pages: 67, 61,  and 69.

I drove a narrow one lane road along the Rogue River to find and photograph the approximately 35 to 38 ft. high and 360 ft. long Gold Ray Dam (1904).  Imagine my surprise to discover the dam had been removed the Summer of 2010.  For the first time in over 100 years the Rogue River runs free from the Cascades to the Pacific Ocean.

I purchased a tender crisp sandwich for late lunch at Burger King in Central Point.  I turned off onto Hwy 66 at Ashland.  I stopped at Tub Springs to complete an Earthcache and a Virtual.  People were stopping to fill up 5 gallon jars and 5 gallon plastic buckets with the cold fresh spring water.  Tub Springs is high in the Siskiyou Mountains at approximately 4280 ft. elevation.

Marker Text: The first emigrant train over the "Southern Route" including more than fifty wagons under the leadership of Captain Levi Scott and David Goff, left the Oregon Trail at Fall Creek or Raft River on the Snake River, August 10, 1846. The Klamath River was crossed eight miles upstream from this sign on October 4, 1846. This trail, roughly 680 miles, took fifty-six days of travel. Captain Scott, leading the second emigrant train, found a new Klamath River crossing one-half mile north of this sign, Oct. 11, 1847. This remained the chief ford of the area until Brown's Ferry was established here in 1868.

I had a good chuckle at the next cache - Open Range (GC1P8DF).   I stayed the night at Klamath Falls at Comfort Inn and Suites.  I ate dinner at nearby Sizzler Restaurant.  The photo is the view from my room.