90th birthday: Lava Beds National Monument

Mom and the Chimneys

Lava Beds has been a favorite of the kids and I…Mom endures it. We drove from Crater Lake to Lava Beds, lunched at the chimneys, and began our explorations of caves. Of course three of us had to re-enter the tiny hole of Painted Cave to get a picture. Time and population have degraded the ice. Fifteen years ago we clamored around pristine ice, careful not to touch the ice lake, then holding the flashlight so to aim the camera…a picture of the girls in an ice cave. Today the ice lake is strewn with dirt and rocks from the curiosity of visitors; “Gee, I wonder if I can break this 100,000 year-old ice?” We located pictographs at Symbol Bridge, disturbed a bat, photographed wild flowers and with one, small, LED flashlight the three of us negotiated the stairways to the bottom of Skull Cave. The ice of Skull Cave has also been barred from the public’s prying eyes…too much damage. Lynn joined us for our visit to Mushroom Cave and Valentine Cave. Our day was ending and we had to make our way across the Cascades to our final B&B in McCloud.