If you’re like me, your summer has flown by and you wonder where it’s gone. The editorial team has just wrapped up the September issue of Global Traveler, and just the other day I saw a huge display of Halloween costumes at our local Costco. Thankfully, my husband and I took a welcome five-day break a few weeks ago that involved no flights or detailed planning and was blessedly unstructured. With projects around the house, plenty of company and, yes, work up until then, we were happy to make a quick and easy getaway and just chill.

Our destination was the Running Y Ranch Resort outside of Klamath Falls, Oregon, less than a 90-minute drive from our house. The resort was developed in 1994 on some 3,600 acres of land (some reclaimed marshland from Klamath Lake) that had supported a cattle ranch and grew crops from bent grass seed (for golf courses) to other grasses and seeds and sugar beets. The 18-hole course, designed by Arnold Palmer (the only one in Oregon to make that claim), opened in 1995 and sits at the heart of the resort. In addition to private homes (the area has been platted with nearly 1,000 lots, but less than half of those have been built on) that sit amid towering pines and firs and hillsides dotted with sage, vacation condo rentals (owned by WorldMark by Wyndham), townhomes and chalets lie not far from the 82-room lodge. With 7,000 square feet of meeting space, two on-site restaurants, an indoor pool, fitness center and spa, the resort is popular with convention planners and vacationers alike.

Sitting along the western shore of Klamath Lake, the property offers year-round appeal for those who enjoy a wide range of outdoor activities. Aside from golf, visitors may enjoy hiking, walking or biking the miles of trails that run around and through the site; snowshoeing or cross-country skiing in the winter; horseback riding; and fishing in the lake or nearby rivers and streams. Tennis, basketball and pickleball courts sit near the sports center (where one may rent bikes or other equipment), along with a sand volleyball court and children’s playground, and there’s even an ice arena for ice skating in the winter. The Klamath Basin lies along one of the continent’s great flyways, and birders come from all over the world to add to their life lists.

Located on the eastern slopes of the Cascade Mountains, the resort enjoys relatively dry weather during four distinct seasons. Summer temperatures may climb into the low 90s, but humidity is generally low, and nighttime temperatures cool into the low 60s and 50s, making for comfortable sleeping. Snow can be expected in the winter, but heavy one-time accumulations are rare.

We arrived on a sunny Monday afternoon and quickly settled in to our two-bed, two-bath condo overlooking the 10th and 17th fairways and some of the ponds on the course.   As the sun lowered, sending golden light over the landscape   and filling the sky with rosy colors,

Sunset

we heaved contented sighs and prepared for four days of peaceful relaxation.

— Patty Vanikiotis, associate editor/copy editor