Traveling North Again

Just north of where I live is part of the Umatilla National Forest; roads wander here and there, crossing county lines.  Recently, my husband and I took a drive which was essentially a "loop" into some territory I hadn't seen before.  (I've lived here almost 45 years, but there are still places I haven't been.) Although the temperatures have cooled considerably, it is still very dry.  But there is something special about being able to drive "into the woods."

                               

This canyon must have a name, but I couldn't find it on the map.  It's fairly deep. 

I love the look of young Tamarack (Western Larch) trees; they are bright green in the fall landscape. Soon, they will turn yellow and drop their needles, unlike any other conifer. 

The road looks smooth...but it's gravel and and it's rough in many places. 

A terrific view to the south: Mt. Harris (5000+ feet) on the left, Mt. Emily (6000+ feet) on the right, and Pumpkin Ridge in the right center.  This land formation separates Indian Valley, where I live, 

from the huge Grande Ronde Valley to the south. 

Lookingglass Creek is the home of the Lookingglass Fish Hatchery

 The Grande Ronde River, which is very low at this time of year. 

From the river to Cricket Flat is a gradual climb.

Hot and Dry...Sunflowers are Blooming

I don't remember exactly when our last measurable rain was, but it was long ago!  We had a cold, wet spring , a late snow, and then it ended.  Area rivers are historically low, most likely caused by spring rains that melted mountain snows early.  And now it's dry...hot and dry.  Like much of Oregon, we're having days of temperatures in the 90's and even 100 degrees.  Photography is a challenge, but I keep trying to find something to capture.  To keep this blog active, I'm featuring what I saw on a recent evening in the Grande Ronde Valley next door.  (Notice:  I'm obsessed with sunflowers this time of year; the flower is grown for its seed, and this year there are huge fields on the east side of the valley.)

    Sunflower field under smoke-filled skies....fortunately, the fires aren't in our area this year, yet!

    Gray's Corner Road runs north-south on the east side of the Grande Ronde Valley.

    Basalt formations near Mt. Harris

                                        

My Best Shot

Every so often, I take a photo that makes me proud. This is that one for maybe this entire year.  (The cowboy suffered a broken nose...his hand got hung up in the rigging and he was bouncing around on the side of the horse for awhile...and he must have had bruises, but nothing obviously serious.  Just another day in a bareback bronc rider's life!)   The action is related in the photos series below.  The above action happened third from the end.   The previous blog post contains other rodeo photos.

Rodeo Time

The second full weekend of July means it's Elgin Stampede time.  Four nights of activities include a kids' evening, a bull-riding evening, a Tough Enough to Wear Pink rodeo evening, and another rodeo evening.  I am well aware that I need a better lens to capture low-light action, but I can't bring myself to fork over $1500 for one week a year.  These are my favorites for 2018, some edited to make up for "soft" images. (There is no rhyme or reason to these images; Blogger is not very "user-friendly" when photos need to be rearranged.)