The Alvord Desert

Read Part 1 — Christmas Valley

Read Part 2 — Steens Mountain

With Steens Mountain loop behind us, we headed south on route 205 towards the tiny outpost of Fields Oregon. This stretch of road was perhaps the emptiest we had encountered yet, and for the first time in my life, the thrill of driving quickly began to fade. We hit the speed limiter on the truck several times, but without anything on the side of the road to provide a reference point, and no fuss from the engine, it wasn't exactly adrenaline inducing. Even so, the terrain around us was still beautiful, and we were far from bored.

Borax Lake

Eventually we rounded the southern tip of Steens Mountain and took a left at the intersection of route 205 and Fields-Denio road, before immediately taking a right at a power substation onto Borax Lake Road. This sandy and undulating stretch proved to be a lot of fun, a true Oregon rollercoaster. A few miles in we turned left towards the Borax Lake trailhead. This would be our plan b hike after we decided against hiking to Wildhorse Lake for safety reasons.

Parking for Borax Lake is at a barbed wire gate that has seen better days. Signage at the gate very clearly explained that the hot springs around the Lake are not swimmable due to their chemical content and extreme heat.

Everywhere we turned was another photo opportunity. For being so sparse the landscape was breathtaking.

Apparently this area used to be mined for borax, with two rusty iron troughs serving as reminders to the long gone business venture. For photographers these provide a nice foreground to contrast with the mountains in the distance.

We found a few colorful pools. Not quite Yellowstone, but still cool to find in Oregon.

Fields Station

After our hike to Borax Lake we headed into Fields Station for burgers and milkshakes. I had heard that this place closes unusually early (around 5pm) so we had to make it there in time, or face a dinner composed of backpacking meals. I wish we had grabbed pictures at Fields Station, but our growing hunger was making it difficult to think clearly.

Fields is well known for being the only show in town near the Alvord Desert. This little oasis includes a gas station, general store, diner, and a small motel. When we arrived the place was occupied almost entirely by hunters, with trophies in their truck beds. As was recommended online, we ordered bacon cheeseburgers and milkshakes (the diner has an extensive menu of original and unorthodox milkshakes), then sat outside to enjoy the afternoon sun. While we waited for our food the hunters in the parking lot went about their business... field dressing their deer. Tessa was a little put off by the sound of snapping bones, but at least it gave us something to watch in the meantime.

The burgers were delicious and didn't last long. The milkshakes were nice and thick, but I would personally suggest avoiding the weird ones in favor of a more traditional flavor, since my chocolate, espresso, caramel shake didn't really pan out as expected. The bill was hard to swallow as well, coming in at around $50 after tip for two meals, but I guess that is to be expected in the middle of nowhere. Even at that price I would go back, since the service was friendly and the hot meal was worth it. I'd also point out that Field's Station sells liquor, at state controlled (read reasonable) prices. If you need a whiskey resupply while camping in the Alvord this is the place to go.

With our stomachs full it was time for the main event. We headed towards the seemingly endless patch of sand colored earth to the north. I wasn't exactly sure where the access roads to the desert would be, so we kept our eyes peeled closely as we drove by. Eventually we found a deeply rutted stretch of road leading over. I knew there had to be better maintained routes since I had seen pictures of RVs in the desert, but this one would do for the truck.

The Alvord Desert has a way of turning fully grown men into teenagers behind the wheel. At first it felt a little wrong driving on the dry lake bed known as the Playa, almost like a form of vandalism. After looking around though it was clear that there were tire tracks everywhere, and through our research we could not find a hint of any rules regarding speed or behavior in the Alvord. With my brief reluctance out of the way, I engaged the Tundra's "sport mode" and hit the gas pedal.

Holy shit driving on the Playa is fun! The truck almost felt like it was floating on the soft dry dirt as we made massive swooping turns at 90 mph. The dust cloud generated by the Tundra was a sight to behold, stretching for miles behind us. After burning a couple gallons of gas with our shenanigans we went to work finding a spot to camp.

The Alvord is roughly 5 miles wide by 15 miles long. Camping in the middle of it means having no cover or privacy what so ever. You can see your neighbors in the distance, but the vastness of the landscape means that the closest camp to ours was still at least a mile away. We did our best to find a "secluded" patch of earth and went to work setting up camp.

It took us a few minutes to absorb the vastness of our surroundings, and the utter stillness of the place.

This trip was basically a Toyota commercial at every turn.

Thankfully fire season had come to an end before our trip. Despite the complete lack of burnable material on the Playa, the BLM and (rumor has it) the owners of the Alvord Hot Springs still patrol for unauthorized campfires when restrictions are in place. If you have a portable fire ring I would suggest bringing it, otherwise a shovel will get the job done to make your own. It should also go without saying that if you want to have a fire here you will have to import your own wood.

The sky was a real treat as we settled around the campfire that night. We couldn't have asked for a better place to spend an evening, and even though the night wasn't over yet, we were already scheming for our next trip to the Playa.

Once the sun set the temperature dropped rapidly and the wind began to pick up. We positioned the truck so that the cab would break the wind for us, but that didn't really help much. After about 20 minutes of trying to sleep through the howling of the wind, and the rattling of something under the truck, we gave up and moved our bags into the cab. Sleeping with the front seats reclined was surprisingly comfortable, and we would do it again in a pinch. Tent camping in the Alvord is doable, but from our experience a camper van or a sleeping platform in an SUV would be the best way to spend a night out there.

In the morning we woke up to a glourious sunrise casting shades of pink on Steens Mountain.

Easily one of my favorite pictures of Tessa, and the Tundra.

It was really hard to leave this place. Fortunately Tessa had a little extra motivation to hurry up since I had suggested that she take a spin behind the wheel before we left the desert. She loved it, and was naturally reluctant to hand the keys back to me. In hindsight I should have let her take the next leg of the trip.

Our spirits were quite high as we worked our way onto the gravel road heading north to Burns Oregon. At least they were for the first few miles...

Disaster struck at about 70 mph on a road that is notorious for claiming tires. I learned my lesson the hard way that just because a vehicle's suspension can handle a rough road at high speeds, doesn't mean that the tires can too. Oops, looks like I'll be adding 3 ply tires to my upgrades list.

This was our first time changing a tire, and we would have been hard pressed to find a more remote location to do it. No cell reception, the nearest town with a tire shop was three hours away, and for half an hour not a single car drove by. We were well on our way to getting the job done when a tiny old Honda drove by and rolled down their window. "Dude, that's like my nightmare" you don't say? The irony of a full sized truck being passed by a low ground clearance compact was somewhat painful, but we got over it and finished swapping the tire. With the job done we limped home across most of the state going no faster than the speed limit. Ultimately the flat tire incident just added to the adventure of the trip.

Conclusion

Our three day tour felt more like a week and proved to be one of the most significant experiences that Tessa and I have had since we have been together. We can't say enough about Eastern Oregon, and the beauty of its desolation.