Contributed by trip leader CHarlie Cornish

An then there were two. 

The attrition rate for participating on the hike up Lave Butte was high due to illness and the weather.

At the trailhead at the Lava Lands Visitor Center Jim and I made an executive decision:  Given the conditions on Lava Butte - snowy, windy, cloudy, icy, slippery -- we decided to descend to the Deschutes River and hike to Benham Falls.

Here we are at the parking lot for the Benham Falls trail 

Above the falls, the river was tranquil.
 


Benham Falls was a raging torrent.  
 


Below the falls the river was filled with forest debris swept down by the current.  On the other bank is the Lava Bed that extends up to the summit of Lava Butte.
 


Big logs from fallen Ponderosa were stranded in the current.  The snow and the low clouds cast a muted look on the landscape.  It was if one was walking through a black-and-white world with slight shades of color.
 



At the turn around point in the parking lot was standard issue Forest Service outhouse:  faux-wood imprint on cast concrete, unisex.
 


However, at the trail head was a very unique facility.  An architectural gem with volcanic rock waistcoat and a portico entrance.
 


Closer up photo:  this facility is not uni-sex.  A door for the ladies and a door for the gents.
 


After the hike, one of us (Charlie) drove slipping and sliding around the roundabouts of Sunriver to attend John's winter recreation safety talk.