June 25, 2006
Day 6: Touring Newberry National Volcanic Monument
I got up early and hiked to the hot spring again for a long soak in the cool morning. I soaked alone for almost 2 hours, then hiked back to the campsite.
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Back at the campsite I discovered that my stove pump does work when the temperature is warm enough. I finally got to have hot tea with breakfast.
After the late breakfast I biked 3 mostly uphill miles to the Obsidian Flow. The Obsidian Flow hike is less than a mile but very steep in some places. The black obsidian covers a very large area and is the result of the most recent volcanic eruption.
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Then a few more miles on the bike to see Paulina Falls. It's less than a quarter mile off the main road just west of West Lake.
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Then I backtracked less than a mile to the Paulina Lake resort and waited a few minutes for the picnic lunch to be ready. Ribs, beans, potato salad and a drink for $10. The portions were small and I could have easily eaten two plates. But I made do with just one plate and sat around for a long time listening to two guitarists playing on the stage. It was nice to spend the hottest part of the day sitting in the shade.
The sun was blazing but the resort has many handy shade trees. I noticed it was cooler at the resort because the prevailing wind comes across the lake. My campground is hotter because the prevailing wind comes across land.
In the evening I made a shower, made dinner, then hiked to the hot spring for still another evening soak. Today was a non-travel day, but I hiked about as far as I biked. It was fun to leisurely see the sights of the area. I considered biking up to the summit of Paulina Peak, a 1400 foot climb on gravel. But laziness got the best of me.
It was another sunny day with a high of 90F. Fortunately with a steady breeze most of the time. The temperature drops rapidly in the evening due to the high elevation and low humidity.
Distance: 9.3 miles (14.9 km)
Climbing: 367 ft. climb (111 m)
Average Speed: 8.9 mph (14.2 km/h)
Maximum speed: 35 mph (56 km/h)
Hiking: 9 miles (14.4 km)
Today's ride: 9 miles (14 km)
Total: 243 miles (391 km)
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