Oregon 2017
Smith Rock State Park
Sunrise in Joseph, Oregon. We stayed here in hopes of photographing reflections on Wallowa Lake. No luck; water wasn't placid.
Still Creek drains from Mt. Hood, running west. We followed a dirt road and hiked into the forest to access the creek.
My favorite view along the many miles of Still Creek
A closer view of silky water slithering over, around, and through the rocky river channel
Perhaps you can see why this was my favorite spot along Still Creek
This is the Little Zig Zag River which also tumbles west from the Mt Hood watershed
Another place along the Little Zig Zag River
This is Benham Falls on the Deschutes River, located just outside of Bend
Todd Lake, our first stop when taking the Cascade Lakes Scenic Highway out of Bend
Sparks Lake was hands down our favorite place when following the 66-mile Cascade Lakes Scenic Highway
Another view of Sparks Lake
As we were hiking along the edge of Sparks Lake this kayaker slowly paddled by fully loaded from a week's outing
Rushing water from one of the many streams draining water from Mt. Bachelor outside of Bend
Attractive forest along the Cascade Lakes Scenic Highway
We spent a day following the McKenzie Scenic Highway. Our first stop was Black Butte in search of a spring which we never found but a hiker redirected us to this beautiful spring which flows out of a mountain into the Black Butte River.
Walking bridge in Black Butte
Along the McKenzie Highway we walked to beautiful Sahalie Falls. The lush setting with thick moss and a rainbow from the mist made this a favorite
We hiked along the McKenzie River with the sun streaming through the moss-covered pine trees
Note the amazing roots making their way to water
Another view of rushing water on the McKenzie River
I wanted to take a photo about every 10 feet that I walked as we observed the beautiful Mckenzie River
This is Proxy Falls. Most people view it from the top, but we scrambled over logs and debris to descend several hundred feet to bring you this perspective. See the young woman getting a really close-up view.
At the base of Proxy Falls. It's wet down here
This is the second Proxy Falls which also was a harrowing scramble to get to and not nearly as attractive as the first Proxy Falls
Sun setting over Bend, viewed from Pilot Butte, the dead volcano in the center of town
The peaks of central Oregon viewed from Pilot Butte
We were up before dawn for an hour drive to Smith Rock State Park. This is the view as we were entering the park. It pays to get up early
And this is Smith Rock with the Crooked River flowing around it
Smith Rock State Park is a popular place for world-class rock climbing
A flock of mergansers sit on a rock on the Crooked River
And what a magnificent scene to paint!
Another perspective of Smith Rock State Park
Oregon abounds with waterfalls as you can see from these photos. This fall is called Tumalo Falls and is about 30 minutes from Bend
Tumalo Falls through the trees and fireweed
And Tumalo Falls up close
We headed east from Bend to visit an area known as the Painted Hills.
It would have been best to photograph the Painted Hills late in the afternoon, but we were here in the early morning.
Another view of the Painted Hills
Oregon is rich in history of the Lewis and Clark Expedition and the settlers coming in their covered wagons along the Oregon Trail
After driving for several hours we find it relaxing to walk along a stream to enjoy the sounds of rippling water
While Oregon is known for its dramatic coastline and beautiful mountains, we found the rolling hills of eastern Oregon to have its own beauty
I like the architecture of these sturdy fences that climb to the sky
Our eastern most destination was the Oregon-Idaho border defined by the Snake River and an area called Hells Canyon.
We arrived at the southern end of Hells Canyon as the sun broke over the mountains onto the river
You can see why the canyon earned its name -- Hells Canyon
The Snake River flows north to empty into the Columbia River
We crossed over the Snake River to follow the dead end road on the Idaho side of the river