In Oregon again. I thought another misty morning would be good for photographing the water but then, to my surprise, the sun came out.
Category Archives: road trip
These two Common Ravens greeted me when I got out of my car to walk the dogs. Well, one raven greeted me, the other one hung back. Clearly, the first raven was bossing around the second raven. I believe they had me confused with someone who had fed them in the past. And the gull was just hanging out.
Random scenes from the northern California coast.
female Northern Harrier
This plant was everywhere and vivid with its fall colors
This skunk was in the campground and was either injured or sick. It could only drag its back legs and tail on the ground. The thing it is trying to eat is a giant slug.
I love this fence
California ground squirrel
Point Cabrillo Light Station
Horizontal or vertical?
The girls and I recently returned from a roadtrip that took us through the middle of Oregon to northern California and then back up the coast.
Our first campsite was at Cottonwood Canyon on the John Day River in northern Oregon. To get there we drove through vast fields of dryland wheat dotted with hundreds (maybe thousands) of wind turbines and views of four of the Cascade Mountain volcanoes in the distance.
The highway follows a windy route into the steep canyon of the John Day River. It is a beautiful canyon carved by the river from volcanic basalt that spread out over eastern Oregon and Washington thousands of times over the centuries. The state park is pretty new and covers 8000 acres of valley bottom. I think most people go there for the fly fishing and river rafting. The girls and I enjoyed hiking along the wide trail that parallels the river on both sides. Being late October, there were few campers in the park and we had the trails mostly to ourselves, occasionally seeing an angler or two. The autumn light on the canyon walls was magnificent. I ought to mention that while it was sunny and beautiful, it was also cold. It got down to 13° Fahrenheit the first night and 16 the next night. Brrrr. Definitely two dog nights.
Layers of basalt
Rabbitbrush in full bloom
Wild clematis seedheads
Elderberries
I don’t know this interesting seedhead
Growing straight out of the rocks
Sagebrush flowers
I should know this…….
A huge amount of cockleburrs that would just jump out and stick in Luna’s fur.
Bighorn sheep live on top of those cliffs
Icicles on a wet seep
An old walnut tree. I wonder if someone homesteaded here?
Oh look, Sky found a stick.
Cliff Swallow nests
A Canyon Wren darted in and out of the rocks
Evening light
We’ve been home for over two weeks now and I’ve finally finished editing the 4000+ raw image files I brought back with me. The girls are still anxious to get in the car and go places. I thought maybe they would be tired of travel but no, anytime, anywhere, they are ready. They were great traveling dogs. They got along with everyone they saw on the trail and in the campgrounds and everyone that met them said they were well-behaved dogs and SOOO good looking. We all kept each other warm during the long cold nights, piled up under wool blankets and down comforter.
The car and the tent trailer worked well for over 4000 miles and I was happy to have a trouble-free trip. People worried about me traveling alone (what? dogs don’t count?) but we never had any problems along the way. No one ever stepped on a cactus or got bit by snakes. Good luck? Good karma? It all just felt right. And the endless sunny days and star-filled nights. Oh my.
My favorite part of the trip was all of the hiking in Utah. It was fabulous and really, I only just touched the surface of the places I visited. There is so much more to see.
I had intended to take selfies all along the way but I only managed one. It was at Fisher Towers.
And this is my last photo from Utah. Morning over Canyonlands.
My Everyday Photos 