Hiking the Rogue River
Part Three

Day 3: Marial Lodge to Paradise Lodge
( 4 miles, 3 hours)

Leaving Marial Lodge after another delicious breakfast, we continued to the end of the road where the trail resumes. Downstream of Marial, the river passes through Mule Creek Canyon, a spectacular rocky gorge that must be very exciting to raft through.

Since we only had about 4 miles to do today, we went slowly, enjoying the views of the river, and the easy trail. Despite our leisurely pace, we still arrived at Paradise Lodge before lunch. We sat outside at a picnic table near our cabin and enjoyed the lunch that Marial Lodge had prepared for us.

Here at Paradise Lodge our group had its own 4 bedroom cabin, well appointed, with lots of space. In our room, Helen and I had a queen-sized bed, two large couches, a large round table with chairs and a set of bunk beds. We had room for about 8 people! We enjoyed the luxury of the space, again showered off the trail grime, took naps and read books until hors douvres time in the main lodge building.

Paradise Lodge has a bar, so we bought a bottle of local chardonnay, and the lodge provided dip and crackers. They also provided complementary wine with dinner, which was a welcome surprise. This time we were the only guests, so during dinner were able to talk at length with the proprietors about their lives running a lodge in the wilderness.

Since Paradise Lodge has no road access, all supplies are brought in by boat, and all guests must arrive by boat, hike in, or land their airplane there. Paradise has its own grassy field used as an airport, complete with runway markers and a wind sock. Despite having napped in the afternoon, we were able to read in bed for only a short time before dropping off to sleep for the night.

Day 4: Paradise Lodge to Clay Hill Lodge
( 6 miles, 4 hours)

Since we had had a short hike the previous day, we weren't quite so hungry for breakfast, even though the food was especially well prepared. I still couldn't resist two slices of home-made bread along with my ham and eggs. The lodge provided a bag lunch for each of us, presented at check-out time.

Off on the trail, we could take our time again, with only six miles to go. We enjoyed seeing the rapids in Huggins Canyon and Brushy Bar. Today, we saw only a few rafters going by. Since we were moving much more slowly than the river, the rafters pass us by and complete the whole trip in two or three days to our five.

We stopped for lunch at one of the camps by the river, and sat right on the rocky shore as several jet boats roared by. They got us a little wet, but I didn't mind the splashes of cold water. It was still hot; getting up into the 90s every afternoon.

We arrived at Clay Hill Lodge at about 2 p.m., and were shown to rooms upstairs in the main lodge building. We felt good enough to actually take some optional walks in the afternoon. Down to the river to admire the "dinosaur tree," and up slope behind the lodge to the vegetable and fruit growing areas. Dinner was again a delightful experience, featuring a chicken casserole, and preceeded by a happy hour with wine we had carried with us.

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