The World as We See It

Back to Bend

September 19, 2019 in photography, RV, Travel | Tags: outdoors, photography, Photos, RV, Travel | 1 comment

After our short but beautiful trip to Crater Lake, we headed back up to Bend. We stayed at the Expo Fairgrounds, which proved to be a nice base to continue to explore the area. The first place we went was Smith Rock State Park, a crazy pretty small park just up the street that is very popular with climbers. We can see why. While there we saw several different parties climbing the face and one group training/teaching. A real gem near Redmond, OR. I spoke with a local photographer who tipped me off as to where to set up for a great sunset photo. Maybe next time.

We also drove up into the mountains to the Dee Wright Observatory at the summit of McKenzie Pass. This place is smack in the middle of a desolate lava field and is just surreal. It seems like we’ve been surrounded by lava and other signs of volcanic activity for weeks. Probably because we have been.

Barrel racing at the Expo one night was fun to stumble across. I’d never seen this live before and it was a lot of fun. Lots of families watching their daughters ride. It was just like soccer, little league, hockey league, etc…except with horses. And more expensive. I loved it.

We really liked the Bend area and could have spent more time there. This refrain has been repeated several times in our travels so far and I’ll say it again: we’ll be back. Sorry, Arnold.

Smith Rock State Park. 8/21/19

Climbing the wall. Smith Rock State Park. 8/21/19

Practice, practice, practice. Smith Rock State Park. 8/21/19

Horses! Barrels! Fun! Deschutes Fairgrounds. 8/22/19

Dee Wright Observatory 8/23/19

The view of the Sisters from McKenzie Pass. 8/23/19

View over the city of Bend 8/24/19

Crater Lake

September 11, 2019 in Uncategorized | 2 comments

After a too short stay near Sisters, OR. we headed on down the road to an interesting RV park just north of Klamath Falls. (Interesting side note: there are no falls in or near Klamath Falls. The lady at the park had no idea how the name came about.) The park is located in the middle of a working ranch which, in turn, is essentially in the middle of nowhere, as ranches are prone to be. It was a lovely short stay. We didn’t see the coyotes, but we saw a lot of cattle and a bald eagle.

We also saw Crater Lake. Twice. Holy crap, is it pretty. We took a 2 hour ranger-led trolley tour that was well worth the time and expense. Took lots of pictures, a couple of nice walks. and had a nice lunch at the lodge. This was the reason we slid on down here and we are so glad we did. Nice place.

Wizard Island, Crater Lake National Park 8/16/19

Crater Lake National Park 8/16/19

Wizard Island, Crater Lake National Park 8/16/19

Crater Lake National Park 8/16/19

The view SE from Crater Lake National Park 8/16/19

Crater Lake National Park 8/16/19

The Pinnacles, Crater Lake National Park 8/16/19

Phantom Ship Island, Crater Lake National Park 8/16/19

A ferocious local. Crater Lake National Park 8/16/19

Welcome to Oregon

August 31, 2019 in photography, RV, Travel | Tags: outdoors, photography, Photos, RV, Travel | 1 comment

The Malheur National Wildlife Refuge 8/5/19

I’ve never been to Oregon, although from what I’ve heard, read and seen in movies/TV I’d always thought that I’d like it. My impression was one of lush, green mountainsides with running water, decaying huge trees and wildlife running around everywhere. What we got was either flattish desert or dry high country with beautiful canyon drives and walks through huge ponderosa pines.

We stayed a week in Burns, which is about the midway point between Boise and Bend. It’s really the only point between those locations and a week was a bit much, even for slow movers like us. We explored south into the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge and north into the Malheur National Forest. Walked through the woods, looked at more lava fields, even took a nice soak in some hot springs. Mostly we took it easy (hey, it’s allowed) and then moved on to Bend.

We had a busy four days in Bend. The two big things of interest were our visit to Tumalo Falls and our drive on the Cascade Lake Scenic Byway. The drive was very nice. We took the ski lift to the top of Mt. Bachelor, drove as far as Elk Lake (after receiving assurances from a nice ranger that we would see the prettiest spots if we drove that far), and took a beautiful walk circumnavigating Todd Lake. While on that walk we built up our karma by finding car keys in the grass on the far side of the lake. We rescued them and pretty easily found the owner. She would have had serious issues if they hadn’t been found as there was no cell signal and we were a long way from anywhere. Our good deed of the day.

We really liked the Bend area. Which is a good thing, since we’ll be back for a week’s stay.

PS: On the drive from Burns to Bend we picked up four chips in our windshield from flying stones. I mentioned this to a random guy in a rest stop and he told me he picked one up too. He was pissed. He’d had his windshield replaced a week earlier. So it goes.

This fellow said good morning to me on my morning walks. Burns, OR 8/5/19

Tumalo Falls 8/12/19

The South Sister with the Middle and North Sisters in the background. They are known as The Sisters or The Three Sisters. 8/13/19

View from Mt. Bachelor 8/13/19

Mt. Bachelor and Todd Lake. This is just about where we found the keys. 8/13/19

Broken Top Mountain 8/13/19

Boise!

August 21, 2019 in photography, RV, Travel | Leave a comment

As it turns out, Boise, ID is a perfect example of why we are doing what we’re doing. If we were just traveling from point A to point B on a vacation schedule we might, at best, stop in Boise for an overnight rest before moving on. Since we can take our time, we stayed for a week, although we could have spent more time. Boise was an interesting stop.

What did we do? Learned about the Basque influence, and it was large, on Boise. Saw the World Center for Birds of Prey and had a great chat with one of the volunteers there. Took an awesome drive through the Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area, although the only birds we saw were, unexpectedly, chickens on top of a butte. Had a private tour through a field of pictographs, few of which we would have noticed ourselves. Visited a few wineries/vineyards and saw many more. Bought a couple of bottles, too.

None of which would have happened if we had been cruising through on vacation. We would have had a hurried stop at best as we rushed on to our next “must see” destination. Instead we got to know this area of the world a little better. And had some great paella on the way.

Look at the claws on this guy! World Center For Birds of Prey. 7/30/19

Lunch in the Basque section of Boise. Paella! Boise, ID 7/31/19

Future wine. 8/1/19

More future wine. 8/1/19

Idaho’s Initial Point. This is the benchmark for all surveying in Idaho. 8/2/19

The only fowl sighting at the Birds of Prey Conservation Area. This was on top of the Initial Point Butte which was, in turn, far from anywhere. 8/2/19

The Snake River in the Birds of Prey Conservation Area 8/2/19

Pictographs. Birds of Prey Conservation Area 8/2/19

Field of boulders with pictographs on them. Birds of Prey Conservation Area 8/2/19

Atomic!

August 8, 2019 in photography, RV, Travel | Tags: photography, Photos, RV, Travel | 1 comment

From Ennis we drove out of the lush Madison Valley and into the quite different landscape of the Idaho high desert to Arco. This area has two claims to fame, one natural and one very definitely manmade. The natural one is the surreal and starkly beautiful landscape that makes up the Craters of the Moon National Monument. Summer had finally arrived in full force which limited the time we were comfortable wandering around this crazy landscape but we returned several times in order to fully appreciate the forces that created this harsh environment. It really is other-worldly. Lava tubes, cinder cones, spatter cones; we learned about and saw them all. We walked/crawled through a lava tube “cave” and climbed to the top of a huge cinder cone. This place is unlike any other we’ve been to. Well worth the trip (and a strong NASA connection, too).

Rising from the desert, a conning tower. Arco, ID 7/24/19

The second claim to fame in the area is atomic power. The large, and frankly mysterious, Idaho National Lab is just down the road. While it’s not exactly in the middle of nowhere, you can see it from there. Among other things, this is where the world’s first breeder reactor was brought on-line. Arco, Idaho is the first town to be totally powered by atomic energy. And this is where the technology, processes, and procedures were created to power the Navy’s submarines with nuclear reactors, thus explaining the conning tower rising out of the ground as you enter town. It’s more than a little strange.

We took some nice drives, toured the Experimental Breeder Reactor 1 (EHB-1), ate some good ribs and smoked baked potatoes, and generally enjoyed our time in Arco. Especially when Patti was able to enjoy horses right outside our window. Simple pleasures.

The view out our window. Arco, ID 7/22/19

The Big Southern Butte viewed from the Experimental Breeder Reactor-1 (EHB-1) 7/24/19

Simulated spent nuclear rods art the EHB-1. I was surprised at how small they were. 7/27/19

The moon peaking over the lip of a lava tube. Craters of the Moon National Monument 7/25/19

A cinder cone across a desolate landscape of lava. Craters of the Moon National Monument 7/25/19

More desolation with the Big Southern Butte in the distance. Craters of the Moon National Monument 7/25/19

The huge cinder cone. Craters of the Moon National Monument 7/23/19

View from the top of the cone. Craters of the Moon National Monument 7/25/19

Nature. Just…nature. Craters of the Moon National Monument 7/25/19

Snow in the bottom of a splatter cone, creating some needed coolness. Craters of the Moon National Monument 7/23/19

The Madison River Valley

August 3, 2019 in photography, RV, Travel | Tags: photography, Photos, RV, Travel | 2 comments

We eased our way out of Montana with a stay in Ennis, located in the heart of the Madison River Valley and, apparently, Mecca for fly fisherman. If you could see the river the odds were good that you could also see fishermen. We’re not into fishing, but we had no trouble keeping busy in this gorgeous place. Among other things, we toured a lake created by an earthquake in 1959 (this story should be made into a movie…check it out here), visited the touristy “ghost town” of Virginia City, took a lengthy and very interesting tour of the region with our nephew, drove up a canyon to see a “real” ghost town, hung out in a hot spring, and sat in the front of the coach and watched the colors change on the Madison Mountains.

We had a good time. Here are lots of pictures.

The rock slide on the opposite face cut across the valley and more than 400′ up the other side. It blocked the Madison and created Earthquake Lake. 7/16/19

This boulder surfed down the mountain, across the valley, and up the other side. Without rolling. Earthquake Lake 7/16/19

A drowned cabin. Earthquake Lake 7/19/19

Structures at the “Smugglersville” ghost town. 7/18/19

The mine in “Smugglersville” 7/18/19

The Explosives Shed in “Smugglersville” 7/18/19

Ennis Lake 7/20/19

The Madison River Valley 7/20/19

Bozeman!

July 26, 2019 in photography, RV, Travel | 4 comments

Ever since we decided to full time RV we knew we would be visiting Bozeman, Montana our first year out. We have close family that lives here and we knew the area was beautiful with lots to do so that was an easy decision. We ended up spending 3 weeks here. What a great time.

While here we enjoyed several state parks with our personal tour guides, did several hikes that stretched our flatlander legs, ate some exotic and delicious meats (at least John did…Patti not so much), did some shopping that can only be done in towns of a certain size, and, most importantly, spent quality time with those we love. Plus we enjoyed just wandering the historic downtown. Any town that has trails that start just off Main Street and run into the mountains is alright by me.

We will be returning next spring for a wedding. We can’t wait.

View from the Triple Tree Trail outside Bozeman, MT 6/28/19

Alongside the Triple Tree Trail outside Bozeman, MT 6/28/19

Overlooking Bozeman, MT. I walked up here most every day. 7/2/19

Overlooking Bozeman, MT. The wildflowers just got better every day. 7/2/19

Missouri Headwaters SP 6/30/19

View at Buffalo Jump SP 6/30/19

The Native Americans would drive buffalo off this cliff. Buffalo Jump SP 6/30/19

Inside the cave at Lewis and Clark Caverns SP 7/11/19

Lewis and Clark Caverns SP 7/11/19

One More Yellowstone Post: Scenery

July 19, 2019 in Uncategorized | 2 comments

Lamar Valley, Yellowstone NP 6/20/19

OK, this is my last dedicated Yellowstone post, at least until next time. As to be expected, there are a multitude of beautiful sights to be seen throughout the park. Wide valleys, towering mountains, winding creeks and rivers. The light changes the view from moment to moment, requiring repeated visits to savor everything there is to offer. Below are a handful of these wonderful sights.

Lamar Valley, Yellowstone NP 6/20/19

Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, Yellowstone NP 6/19/19

Yellowstone Lower Falls, Yellowstone NP, 6/19/19

Tower Falls, Yellowstone NP 6/19/19

Yellowstone Part 2: Critters

July 14, 2019 in critters, photography, RV, Travel | Tags: animals, Full Time, photography, Photos, RV, Travel | 4 comments

This post will be short on words, long on pictures. We saw a bunch of animals while in the park which is as expected. With only a 200mm lens I didn’t have the reach to even get a shot at many of them (I’m looking at you, wolf) and many that I did get from extreme distance don’t make for compelling photos (mama and baby bighorns, several bears, etc.). Others I got so many excellent shots that it’s hard to whittle them down. I captured so many of the coyote that virtually walked right up to me that it is truly difficult to choose. I should always have such problems.

This elk was just hanging out to welcome me on my first morning walk into the park. Yellowstone NP 6/17/19

And this elk stopped by for dinner. Taken from the front seat of the RV. Gardiner, MT 6/21/19

Mama and baby Griz. I could have used a longer lens since this was about as close as this city boy was going to get. Yellowstone NP 6/20/19

Fun fact: both male and female bison have horns. Yellowstone NP 6/20/19

Fun fact #2: the baby bison are called “Red Dogs”. Yellowstone NP 6/20/19

Getting side eye from a bison was a new experience. Yellowstone NP 6/20/19

This was NOT taken with a long lens. I thought I was going to get up close and personal with this coyote. Yellowstone NP 6/20/19

Looking for lunch. Yellowstone NP 6/20/19

A Target Rich Environment

July 8, 2019 in photography, RV, Travel | Tags: nature, photography, Photos, RV, Travel | 2 comments

The title of this post is a phrase I use when I’m in an area that is just so beautiful and/or interesting that anywhere I point my camera there is a potential “keeper” photograph. Yellowstone National Park falls well into this category. We had briefly visited the park on a couple of occasions in the past, but this was to be our first extended stay. We were parked just outside the north entrance in Gardiner and were close enough that my morning walks took me from the RV through town and into the park. Nice.

We saw way too much to cover in one post. This one focuses on the geothermal delights to be found in virtually every corner of the park and even many nooks and crannies outside it. It’s odd to be driving down the road and see steam and/or bubbling “water” coming out of the ground. It’s even odder when you just start taking it for granted. One thing we didn’t take for granted was just how pretty these things are. The colors can be spectacular. The bottom line, though, is that things can look pretty damn primal and dangerous. It’s not nice to fool with Mother Nature, especially when she has very hot, very acidic liquids flying around.