Pelican Bay, Oregon 23 August 2012

Family Reunion 2012

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Point Comfort sits on a grassy promotory over Pelican Bay, the northwest corner of Upper Klamath Lake. Nine bedrooms and two cabins were just enough to accommodate our growing mispuchah.

On our first full day, we played on the lake with canoes and the paddle boat that steered. We had to paddle the canoes home from Rocky Point Resort and then back again, but the canoeing was easy. The water of the lake is unbelievably clear, green, and abundantly endowed with bird life.

Vanessa tried her hand at fishing -- we could see hundreds of big gorgeous native trout -- but our dinner was brought to us by a couple of fishermen who happened to have an extra "little one," a mere six pounder.

Canoe dog Pippin wasn't sure about being in a boat at first, but he soon figured that moving around made the canoe unstable. He was happy to get back to terra firma, where he was able to renew his favorite acquaintance with water: swimming after a stick.

Damiana, Dash, and Rich were in the other canoe. Dash promptly went to sleep in the bottom of the boat while Rich and Damiana explored. 

Point Comfort, the lodge, was built by three San Francisco hunting buddies shortly after the train to Klamath Falls was completed. One of the buddies, Fleishhacker, was well connected with the Harriman family, the principle owners of the Central (then Southern) Pacific, and Upper Klamath Lake, and particularly Pelican Bay, was identified as a superb getwaway destination. It still is.

From the water (as seen below) you can see that almost every room has a lake view. Built in 1912, electricity was not as important, and so the lodge has few outlets and no air con, but while we were there a breeze kept us comfortable. The lake is too cold to be inviting to anyone of us but Pippin, but it provides a constantly changing, wildlife-rich eastern horizon.