How is it that we find ourselves on this dark, winding road following the Rogue River, at 4:30 in the morning?! As it happens, we are enroute to a dental appointment in Grant’s Pass, and must be there by 7:30 a.m. I had relatives who farmed, and arose everyday at this hour. Trips into town had to be well-planned in advance. I think we are beginning to understand this planning skill that is necessary for living in the wilderness.
With Tom’s tooth all fixed up, and the rest of the day and the next free, we opted to drive a few more miles down the road to Ashland, a college town known for having the oldest Shakespeare Festival in North America. Ashland is settled in a valley – people here have taken a lesson from nature concerning living on the edge. Neighborhoods built into steep, rocky slopes on one mountainside, have stunning views of the m
ountain range across the valley. Some cling at precarious angles, like the tenatious trees and plants on the caldera wall at Crater Lake. Ashland is rather like a west co
ast version of Eureka Springs, Arksansas. But in Arkansas, people are generally midwest conservatives; in Ashland Oregon, liberalism is the mainstay. Most of the businesses appear geared to 1) World Peace; 2) Vegetarianism; 3) Acupunture and massage; 4) “Artful” (?) living, 5) Candles and “Aromas;” 6) Inner Psyche Evaluations; and ………theater. Ashland is 
renowned for its Shakespeare Festival. We walked through the Elizabethan Theater, which was designed loosely on the Globe Theater in London, where William Shakespeare staged his plays. We opted to attend the play, “The Compleat Works of Wllm Shkspr (Abridged)” in which three actors attempted to perform Shakespeare’s entire works in just under two hours – with hilarious results. At one point the actors presented “Hamlet” in reverse –
“Yorick – poor, alas!”
“Be to not ......... or be to.”
After some walking around, a couple of garage sales, and a few errands, we left this quaint Oregon town, and returned home to our site in the woods. It was refreshing to leave the heat of the city (83°!) and the traffic, and the car lots and malls; the drive upstream along the Rogue River was a welcome sight.
As the moon waxes toward full, and the evening temperatures require a substantial jacket, we enjoy nightly walks to the amphitheater to hear the ranger programs. Tonight, Ranger David Grimes presented his topic, “The Wild Wild East.” It was an informative, creative “tour” of the East Rim Drive, which is experienced by fewer than 1/3 of the visitors to Crater Lake. His descriptions were right on; we have observed the wild beauty of this side of the lake from scenic viewpoints, on hikes, and from the boat.
Nature Note of the day: The white-bark pine tree can live 1300 years! Unlike other conifers, its cones do not open up. The propagation of this tree is entirely dependent on the Clark’s Nutcracker, a bird that drills the seeds out of the cones and buries them for winter meals. White-bark pine trees grow from the seeds that are not retrieved. They can be found at the highest elevation in the park; and the Clark’s Nutcracker is, fortunately, as ubiquitous as the ………………uh, the golden-mantled ground squirrel.
No comments:
Post a Comment