My husband and I planned a 10 day road trip up the PNW, which will be my second time exploring Oregon and Washington. Our first stop heading north was the Rogue River Gorge. We decided to walk the trail all the way to the natural bridge, which was definitely the coolest part of the trek! The scenery was nice and there were several spots along the way where you could take a dip in the water and make a day of relaxing and swimming.
Only minutes into the trail and already we’ve got some gorgeous shots of the river.
Towards the end, the path became a little unclear, so we forged our own.
3.5 miles later, we reached the natural bridge. I wasn’t sure what they meant by “natural bridge”, but it’s literally a spot in the river where the water travels underground, creating a natural walkway for you to cross. It was kind of crazy to see this rushing river disappear beneath your feet!
The river then comes back up on the other side and rushes through some “caves” that are actually collapsed lava tunnels.
View from the walkway leading back to the trailhead. We were too lazy to backtrack along the trail, so we decided to walk the highway which took only a third of the time!
The Nitty Gritty: The Rogue Gorge trailhead can be found right off Highway 62 (Crater Lake Hwy) across the street from the Union Creek Resort. The trail was 3.5 miles south to natural bridge. It was a very easy, flat trail that bordered the river the entire way. If you want to make a day of it, pack a picnic and find a good spot along the river where the water is calm and you can swim!
DriftBound 
