Oregon:
- A labmate suggested the Oregon Dunes National Rec Area
- Powells

Washington:
- Me!!!
- Leavenworth (In Washington, it’s not a prison. Instead, it’s a town that’s done up like a Bavarian village.)
- The Ginkgo Petrified Forest State Park is worth about a 1 hour stop – it’s apparently not as good as the Petrified Forest in AZ.
- At random points along I-90 there are Oregon Trail Museums, which are kind of neat

Utah:
- Arches National Park
- Bryce Canyon National Park
- The same labmate as above suggested Goblin Valley National Park

I’ve only spent one night there, but Crater Lake is one of my favorite places in the US. I’ll be back up in the area again in August, (I’m pretty sure I’m going to the Shakespeare festival in Ashland), so that is probably the better season to spend a bunch of time there.

Speaking of the Shakespeare festival, Professor Groves is lecturing there this year. Are you going? I’m trying to figure out if I can go with the alumni group, but without paying for the accommodations.

And you definitely shouldn’t skip Crater Lake, especially if you’ve never been there before. I particularly recommend hiking up Mt. Scott on the east side of the crater. It’s about 2.5 one-way, so not too long, and the view from the top is really neat! I recommend hiking it in the morning, if possible, because you can get pictures of yourself and the lake. Last time I did it in the afternoon, and the sun’s just in a really bad place. Oh, wait, I just remembered, they probably have the east rim closed until July because of snow, which will make Mt. Scott inaccessible until then. But you should still stop at Crater Lake. :-)