Take a trolley tour of Crater Lake

This stunningly blue, 1,949-feet-deep lake sits in the crater of a sleeping volcano that erupted some 7,700 years ago. Today, it’s a national park with a lodge, visitors center and campgrounds. The trolleys are back, ready to take you on a rim tour with narration by park rangers, with plenty of stops for selfies and views. And boat tours have returned as well, offering two-hour cruises around the lake and excursions to Wizard Island.

The boats dock down at Cleetwood Cove, which can only be reached via a steep, 2.2-mile round-trip hike. If that doesn’t appeal, go for the trolley tours, which pick up you up at Rim Village, near the Crater Lake Lodge.

Don’t miss >> There are eateries at Crater Lake, of course. But afterward, you’ll want to stop at Beckie’s Cafe, a 1926 alpine-style eatery famous for its pies, at the nearby Union Creek Resort.

Details >> Two-hour trolley and boat tours run daily through mid-September. Tickets for the trolley ($25-$36) and boat tours ($30-$44), are available via craterlaketrolley.net. Find information on Crater Lake National Park at www.nps.gov/crla. Beckie’s is open Wednesday-Sunday at 56484 Highway 62 in Prospect; www.unioncreekoregon.com.

3 Get the blues at Rogue Creamery

As you mosey south toward Medford, Ashland and Grants Pass, keep an eye out for stops along the Rogue Valley Food Trail, which includes more than 50 farm stands, farmers markets and other farm-to-table temptations. There are lavender farms, chocolate makers and distilleries — and the Rogue Creamery, which is an absolute must-stop. Legendary Sonoma cheesemaker Tom Vella, of Vella Cheese Co. fame, ran Rogue Creamery, too, for more than 60 of its 85 years.

Today, Rogue Creamery is best known for its blue cheeses — eight of them, including Crater Lake Blue, Caveman Blue and its celebrated, seasonal Rogue River Blue. There is a waiting list for this cheese, people. It’s wrapped in pear liqueur-soaked syrah grape leaves and released each year on the vernal equinox — and was named the best cheese in the world at the 2019 World Cheese Awards in Bergamo, Italy.

Both the dairy and farm stand in Grants Pass and the shop in Central Point stock the creamery’s cheddars and blue cheeses and tasty things to go with them — crackers, honey, jams. And they do … wait for it … grilled cheese sandwiches. Order at the counter, then enjoy that sandwich ($6-$7) and some creamy tomato soup ($4) at a picnic table outside. (Tips: That soup is even better with a sprinkling of Oregonzola cheese curds — $1 more — melting on top.)

Don’t miss >> Time your dairy visit right — 10 a.m. or 2 p.m. Wednesday-Sunday — and you can tour the farm, meet the moos and check out Charlie and Matilda, the milking robots, which allow the cows to milk on demand.

Details >> The Rogue Creamery Dairy and Farm Stand are open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday-Sunday at 6531 Lower River Road in Grants Pass. The Cheese Shop is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily at 311 N. Front St. in Central Point, just north of Medford; roguecreamery.com.

Get jammy at Pennington Farms

Another must-see on that food trail is this farm and bakery in the bucolic Applegate Valley just south of Grants Pass. Inside the big Pennington Farms barn, you’ll find sweet and savory pies, pastries, jams, marmalades, syrups and more. It’s such a find, we went twice, all the better to stock up on breakfast pastries and hand pies — and make difficult jam decisions.

Those shelves of colorful preserves offer 27 fruit choices, everything from tayberry and Razzle Dazzle jams ($6 each) to marionberry syrup ($7) and lilikoi marmalade ($6), a citrus marmalade with just a hint of passion fruit. There were berries we’d never even heard of, including lusterberry, a boysenberry-blackberry cross that Sam and Cathy Pennington propagate and grow on their 90-acre farm.

If you’re wondering how many different jams one person actually needs, turns out the answer is: All. Of. Them. (Fortunately, Pennington Farms ships those treats, too.)

Don’t miss >> The swoon-worthy chile relleno hand pies ($4) — poblanos, cheese, rice and green sauce enveloped in flaky pastry.

Details >> Open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays at 11341 Highway 238 in Grants Pass; pennington.farm.

Jaunt to Jacksonville

This historic Gold Rush town near Medford is all kinds of adorable — and the best way to experience it is on foot, strolling the streets of what Frommer’s dubbed “one of America’s top 10 coolest small towns,” popping into shops and checking out the cafes and eateries.

Grab a latte and avocado toast ($10.50) or a bagel breakfast sandwich ($9) at The Good Bean, a cozy wood-paneled coffeehouse that roasts its own beans. Slurp a float, a cone or a sundae at Violets & Cream, which offers 28 flavors of premium, small-batch ice cream. The Jacksonville Gold Rush ($7), for example, tops salted waffle ice cream with caramel sauce, whipped cream, butternut pecans and butterscotch caramel gold dust.

There are wineries on the outskirts of town — Dancin Vineyards is especially lovely — plus a lavender farm that opens to the public in June and July of each year, and boutique hotels and inns to tempt you to stay awhile.

Don’t miss >> If you plan your vacations around live music and other shows, check out Jacksonville’s Britt Music & Arts Festival. It’s held on the hillside estate of Gold Rush pioneer Peter Britt every summer. This year’s lineup ranges from the Gipsy Kings and Bonnie Raitt to Jim Gaffigan.

Details >> The Good Bean opens at 6 a.m. Monday-Saturday and 7:30 a.m. Sundays at 165 S. Oregon St. in Jacksonville; www.goodbean.com. There’s a Medford location, as well. Violets & Cream opens at 11:30 a.m. daily at 150 S. Oregon St. in Jacksonville; violetsandcream.com. Find details on the Britt Festival, which runs through Sept. 11, at www.brittfest.org.

And in Ashland …

We’ve given you five non-Shakespeare suggestions, but we can’t ignore the Caliban in the room. This year’s Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland includes a production of “The Tempest” that runs through Oct. 15, as well as contemporary works, such as the West Coast premiere of Dominique Morisseau’s “Confederates,” which opens Aug. 23.

Find the full lineup and ticket information at www. osfashland.org.

And if you’re looking for somewhere to grab a bite for brunch, lunch or dinner, here are two Ashland hot spots run by San Francisco ex-pats Corrie and Wesley Reimer. She was the general manager at chef Melissa Perello’s Frances restaurant; he worked on the dessert program at Perello’s Octavia.

Get your tartine, burger and fried chicken sandwich fix at Hither, a casual brunch/lunch spot with outdoor seating at 375 E. Main St., just a few blocks from the Shakespeare action. (The $15 avocado toast, with za’atar and Meyer lemon, is just lovely.)

Or head for their new Bar Juillet — a reference to July, not Romeo’s betrothed — for dinner or drinks. It opened this spring, and it’s even closer to the theaters at 47 N. Main St. We think Prospero would approve.