Lilly attended an array of week-long summer performance camps for a solid month after kindergarten ended: musical theater, acrobat, acting, artcetera. Feeling envious by mid-July, we joined her on a traveling camp through Oregon's hippy roots.
To start, Bunny booked us into a teepee village retreat in the Santiam foothills outside of Eugene. An idyllic setting for a family getaway into nature topped off by two lovely semi-retired owners who whip up massive plates of paella and clay-oven pizzas on summer nights in their outdoor kitchen. Our first teepee experience was more akin to luxury than primitive camping.
The Chief Seattle teepee sits on the banks of a bubbling creek, and within minutes of arriving, Lilly discovered a rusted yet ornate old relic from the upstream mining ghost town of Wendling. After waking from a refreshing night in the teepee, we headed to the annual Oregon Country Fair on the opposite side of Eugene despite an uncommon morning thunderstorm and resulting downpour.
Established 40 years ago on the land of Merry Prankster Hall-of-Famer Ken Kesey, this family-friendly Fair much more resembles a Fairy world than the typical 4-H County aFFair. Vaudeville acts, circuses, musicians, estranged entertainers and hand-crafted artisans are tucked away into an enchanting oak forest where Lilly's been letting her imagination run wild for the past four years.From Eugene, we headed up the storied McKenzie River to Breitenbush Hot Springs for a little R&R. While the Oregon Country Fair relives the summer of '69 for a single weekend every year, the folks at Breitenbush have been rocking it steady 24/7 since the '70s.
We typically visit these hot springs in Spring or Autumn, but Bunny had a hankering for a midsummer visit. The timing was perfect as a handful of families leaving the Country Fair had the same bright idea. Lilly befriended a few new pals including another Lilly (short for Lillian), and on our last steamy hot summer day, Lillian joined us for a hike up to the volcanic views atop Triangulation Peak. In concordance with their namesake, we passed no less than five species of blooming lillies along the way: Beargrass, Rhododendron, Trillium, Cascade and an intoxicating, fragrant patch of never-before-seen-by-our-eyes traditional lillies smack dab on top of the summit!
Later that night, I got lost in the Milky Way galaxy and healing waters of the Breitenbush Silence pool as the moon rose on the horizon. Maybe it was something in the water, but I think the stars aligned as revelations flowed from the midnight sky.
By the time we returned to Portland, Wubby had acquired three mini-dreadlocks, and we were all long overdue for a heavy duty shower. Cheers to a legacy of Peace & Love!
