I was fascinated to learn about fish ladders at this RV campground so I took a picture. They are active in the spring and fall so we only saw the structure without the water and fish.

7,700 years ago a volcano erupted and left this huge basin where the mountain peak used to be. Rain and snow filled the basin to form the deepest lake in the US. It is 6 miles wide and holds 4.9 trillion gallons of water. Crater lake does not get water from any source other than the rain and snowfall. 

We stopped to visit a lavender farm and to take pictures of some of the windmills in Oregon.

Cascade Lavender Farm – July 24, 2015
Lavender farm in Madras, Oregon. Organic farming and they have their own still/cold press to make their own oils, candles, tea and etc.

Why would Oregon towns (Umatilla, Irrigon, Arlington) with such a breathtakingly, beautiful river running through them seem as though time stands still and poverty is the norm?

We stopped at the Irrigon Marina Park and there was a foul odor in the air. Along parts of the Columbia River signs are posted warning against eating the fish in the water. One of the radioactive waste tanks in Hanford, Oregon along the Columbia River has been leaking about 640 gallons of waste per year into the ground. Agriculture waste, industrial waste and dams have also contributed to the pollution of the river. (I read this information from several sources.) The good news is that they are beginning to work on clean up.