Adventures at Tamolitch Falls and Blue Pool on the McKenzie River Trail

This has been on my Oregon adventure bucket list for far too long, and I finally got the chance to experience it!
A much needed day in the beauty of Oregon's Willamette National Forest.  Come along and enjoy these glimpses.

Tamolitch Falls

The now seasonal Tamolitch Falls cascade down during peak river flow into the Blue Pool below. This hidden blue gem is on the McKenzie River Trail deep in the Cascade mountain range.  Fun side note, did you know one of my two middle names is McKenzie?  Of course I was destined for this adventure!

During the rest of the year, an underground lava flow from Belknap Crater resurfaces in the pool at the base of the falls and can be seen sending gentle ripples out into the water of the Tamolitch Blue Pool.  

Tamolitch means “tub” or “bucket” in the native Chinook language, and this crystal clear pool captures those spring waters in the most beautiful way.

Keep reading to enjoy the crown jewel at the finale!  

The Routes

Good news!  There are two routes depending on your level of hiking skill.  I will leave it to the experts on your web searching for all of the maps and routes, but we opted for the gentle lower trail that boasted 2.2 miles in and the same path on the return (it was pretty scientific, it was written in Sharpie on the trailhead sign but we clocked it as the same on our app). 

Wildflowers

We so enjoyed the wildflowers in bloom as we hiked through the forest and even up into the lava flows as the elevation rose.  Though we were past the Trilliums blooming but saw Dogwoods with white blooms and enjoyed Oregon Wild Iris, a white and yellow variety that I don't think I had seen before.  

I will offer bonus extra credit it anyone can tell me the name of these tiny yellow flowers we found with the even tinier red hearts on their bottom petals...

Okay, what did I learn on this hike that I would share to ensure that you are prepared?


My Quick Tips

  • Head out early on a weekday to get the best parking near the trailhead, take advantage of cooler weather depending on the season, and to make sure that you allow yourself up to four hours to go in and back.  You also want full sun on the pool so you can appreciate its colors.

  • Wear hiking boots/shoes.  The trail can be very muddy if there has been recent rain and there are lots of rocks to walk on as you climb into the lava flow higher elevation.  Ankle support is recommended and thick soles to make sure the craggy rocks don't hurt your feet.

  • Hiking 101 basics - hydration, refueling, be safe, and have fun!

  • Natural recovery protocols in case ~4.4 miles is more than you are normally doing, you know I have you covered friend :)

  • For blisters add some Lavender essential oil to Animal Scents Ointment, gently rub in, and cover overnight with a light sock. Sore muscles, either Deep Relief Roll-On or Cool Azul Pain Relief Cream!

 

Bonus Adventure

If like me, you come in from HWY 20 to the northwest, check out the restored Weddle Covered Bridge in downtown Sweet Home!  There are some 54 wooded covered bridges in Oregon, let's plan a road trip to see them all soon...



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Information courtesy of Echo Schneider

2 Comments

  1. Lacie Dalrymple  05/27/2020 09:47 AM Central
    Nice job! This is wonderful!
  2. Shawn Schneider  05/27/2020 12:06 AM Central
    The weather was beautiful, the water was beautiful and those flowers were really a surprise. Thanks for initiating the hike. Let's do another soon.

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Meet Echo Schneider, Chief Adventure Officer

 
Overworked, burned out, and with waning loyalty to an industry that had lost its way and was no longer true to itself.  Of course, career burnout was at an all-time high in my sector and amongst the worst in any field.  It wasn’t all even just about work, though my perfectionism often got the best of me there more than other parts of my life.  I look back and see that I was overwhelmed and questioning so many areas of my life.  Was I doing the right things? From diet to products I bought, from how I was involved in the community to time I was spending with family, and from how I was walking out my faith and showing up in a meaningful way to my world. In this craziness is where I found myself.
 
Healthcare (watch my fingers make air quotes as I say that word and use the term loosely at best) in the US had long been bought and paid for and was no longer masking their symptom management and disease maintenance focus.  It had lost its focus on health; they could give you a pill or cut you open.  But to nurture your health and foster your body’s God-given ability to heal itself, they no longer knew how to do that.  Or worse, no longer desired to be in the business of prevention and healing.
 
As so many professional people were doing in the modern economy, we, as healthcare professionals, we’re doing more with less.  Mandatory overtime, poor ergonomics, and complete lack of an environment to practice self-care were the norm.  And to make it worse?  Because of our specific industry, we added in a loss of our medical freedoms just to stay and do our jobs.  The days of job security were long gone, and I watched in fear as friends and colleagues in sectors across the board were being laid off just to help top leaders move the stock up for shareholders.  How terrifying that this could be the reward for lifelong dedication and hard work!
 
At home, it didn't feel much better.  I fought to find a non-existent work-life balance and to be present while feeling exhausted (have you ever come home from work to fall asleep on the couch and finally be awoken when your Mom calls? Tell me this isn’t just me!).  I was disappointed in myself seeing my self-care fall away, time with friends and family slipping by, and I wasn’t spending the time I wanted serving with my church family or in my community.  
 
Add to that the confusion and frustration of what should have been simple daily choices.  What foods should I be eating? Is this trendy thing something I should try?  Wait, is the product good or bad, I paid more for it, but I feel like I saw an article on them that there was a recall or they were green-washing.  So frustrating and such a time-suck trying to keep up and have the health and abundance our family deserved!  I felt like at every turn that I was running to keep up and felt like I ultimately just found more of the same lies in the name of profits, and more ways my health was ultimately paying the price, yet again.
 
How could anyone thrive in this culture when even those who were well educated and seeking out something better faced with such daunting challenges?  I know, first-world problems, but I longed to create something more, a legacy for myself and others.  To break generational chains and I knew I wouldn’t be able to do it stuck in this rat-race.
 
Set the stage for that something.  I have, for so much of my life, been interested in learning, growing, and being a student of personal development.  From an investment with top leadership development companies through their programs for years to Law of Attraction to Conscious Language and so many others, I was finding the mentorship and teaching I needed to make the changes I so desperately desired.  
 
There wasn’t an overnight shift or an immediate awareness to change, but I began to find my path slowly and as a result, was investing myself in new ways.  I was raised by a wise and visionary Mother who had shown me what it was to be an entrepreneur.  I always admired that title and was drawn to it in many ways.  As I dabbled in businesses from my youth through college and beyond, I was picking up pieces of freedom and a stage where I could work for myself to create something new.  
 
As the years went on, I kept pushing myself in that path.  I was helping others, and I was welcoming a team of like-minded friends and family to come with me.  This was possible; we were doing it!  It wasn’t easy, we were doing a side-hustle while still being full-time professionals and wives and Mothers, but we were doing it none the less.

I'm so excited to have found a platform to speak truth. To show up for others in "true health" in ways that I didn’t know could exist when I started down this path.  But I know now that we don't have to settle any longer.  Any of us, friends!  It's time to live the great adventure that you were made for.
 
Now it’s time to move beyond business beyond vocation.  Now we are building a blessing.  That has so many meanings, one being the definition of “a herd of unicorns,” in case you didn’t know.  I was given the title of ‘unicorn’ from a dear friend when she came to know me and saw what I was capable of achieving.  And now it’s my turn to see that light in you.  Join me, and together, we can create a community and movement with a vision to change it all.
 
I don't care what your background is.  What education you received growing up in business, finances, or medicine.  Those things don't matter.  We are walking a new path to freedom in all areas of our lives.
 
I'm writing a new future and destiny for myself and my family, and I won't journey alone.  A mentor taught me to carry the confidence that God has called me to rise, but I will not rise alone.
 
I'm reaching out my hand to you (don't worry, I recently used a plant-based hand sanitizer) so that you are not alone; we will do this together!  
 
You are so worthy.  
 
Your family and your dreams are worth it.  
 
Together we can do this, but you must take the first step. ðŸ‘Š

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