Pendelton, Oregon

This morning we said our farewells to Gaye and Lee who headed north to Osoyoos and home after five months down south. 

It was cloudy so we headed into Pendelton where we visited the Pendelton Mills factory where the famous Pendelton Blankets are made.  I was surprised to notice some very similar designs to the Hudson's Bay Blankets though they sell for far less than the Hudson's Bay ones do.  Far less perhaps but still outside what I would want to spend on a blanket.

We then took a drive out on a triangular route into the countryside and tried to photograph Northern Harriers of which there seem to be lots of around here!  The light was really bad so these are more documentary type shots than keepers unfortunately.

There were three adult male harriers hunting about as well.

A bit further on we came upon this old house.  By the lean it has, it's not long for the world I'm afraid.  The windmill is missing a few vanes and was no longer turning despite the strong winds.  If only those old boards could talk and tell the stories of the families who lived here.

We returned to our RV and had supper before venturing over to the casino.  Laura really is quite amusing when it comes to losing a dollar or two!  She was entertained- or was it me being entertained- trying to figure out how to get her money back out of those machines!  After conceeding that the machine would not give up her hard earned cash she sat beside me to 'manage' my endeavours.  Every time my winnings doubled the cash that 'The Machine' had sucked out of my hands she would hit the 'Cash Out' button and run to the cashier whereupon she would return and dole out a couple more one dollar bills for me to try again.  After turning $40 into $115 she generously gave me $15 to play with.  We left with $100 in cash and a big smile on Laura's face!

Mountain Home, Idaho Day 2

I took the truck into a local Ford dealer just down the street from the RV park.  Our service maintenance plan covered the oil change and tire rotation so it was nice to get this done and not have to pay anything for it.

Later we went to Bruneau Dunes State Park to look at the dunes but the light and season precluded anything of interest there.  We did see a Black-tailed Jackrabbit but it was moving way too fast to photograph.  Taking another route back to Mountain Home we came across a small flock of American White Pelicans in breeding plumage in the Snake River.  Note the bill crest that the males get during breeding season.

Heading home we took a side road to look for Pronghorns and Laura spotted a small herd high on a ridge.  We went down an adjacent gravel road- so much for the nice truck wash that the Ford dealership did this morning- and found more Pronghorns even closer to the road.  An interesting note is that Pronghorns are the fastest land animal in North America!

We're off to Pendleton, Oregon tomorrow barring any major snows in the high portion of the trip.  The temperatures in Pendleton are supposed to be around 20C so that will be nice!

Mountain Home, Idaho

We left Ely, Nevada with a skim of snow on the ground and headed north to Idaho.  It was mostly a traveling day but the scenery in some places was awesome.  The fresh snow on the mountains that we were paralleling made for some pretty scenes that Laura photographed from the truck.  We call that kind of shooting 'Drive-By'.  The highways we were on have very low, gravel shoulders and you don't want to pull a rig over onto that because you may not be able to get it back on the road again.

Unfortunately it also meant we couldn't stop to take any pictures of the two Golden Eagles we saw, one of which was right on the side of the road eating road kill.  Nor could we stop to take pictures of the Pronghorn Antelope herd we passed...or the Coyote...   Dang!

We did however, stop in Jackpot, Nevada which is right on the Nevada/Idaho border.  There is a good, little liquor outlet there that has great prices.  A large bottle of Carolyn's Irish Creme- $15, a 1.75 Liter bottle of Bacardi Gold Rum- $24.

The campsite in Mountain Home is quite fancy, paved roads and RV sites with lawn.  Nice and clean!  We're fairly close to Boise so we'll be heading in there to visit Cabellas as well as the outlet mall with a late lunch at the Golden Corral Buffet, yummmmm!

Ely, Nevada...again!

Well, we're headed north again, boy does the time sure fly!

We drove out of Utah the way we came- through the scenic Sacramento and Connors Passes.  Snow flying, sometimes heavy, up at the tops but nothing seemed to stick to the roads.  It's so dry it just blows off!

We're now into Nevada overnighting again at Valley View RV park in Ely.  It's snowed here a bit since we were last here and is now a bit cooler than it was.  In addition, we woke up this morning to a cm of new snow on the ground!  Gads!  Will spring ever arrive?

Maybe we should just turn around and head south again....

Off today to Mountain Home, Idaho.  Utah yesterday, Nevada overnight and Idaho today.  Sure makes Canadian provinces seem big!  Well, I guess they are in comparison!

Green River, Utah

A bit out of Green River is Crystal Geyser.  This is a man-made geyser which was more of an accident though.  It was discovered- or created- while doing an exploratory drill for oil in 1935.   It is a rare example of a cold water carbon dioxide driven geyser; geothermal activity does not play a role in the activity of the geyser. The ground water near the geyser has significant quantities of dissolved carbon dioxide, along with substantial underground gas accumulations in the surrounding area. Saturation of the aquifer with CO₂ creates enough pressure to force groundwater through the geyser and out on to the surface.  It can erupt to a height of 40 meters or more and only once or twice in a 24 hour period.  We timed it perfectly and caught an eruption only minutes after our arrival.  Though not a spectacularly high eruption it was impressive none-the-less.

What is even more interesting are the deposits that build up around geysers.  Travertine, or Calcium Carbonate form interesting formations.

A close up view of the 'ripples' that are formed as the water runs down and deposits the minerals and then dries- a process that is repeated thousands of times.

After visiting the  Green River museum we drove out to Sego Canyon.  Sego Canyon contains three culturally distinct styles of rock art: Fremont, Ute and Barrier-style. The Fremont culture thrived from A.D. 600 to 1250 and was a contemporary with the Anasazi culture of the Four Corners area.  There is also rock art from the Archaic period dating from 7000 B.C., the Barrier Canyon period from around 2000 B.C., and the Ute tribe dating from A.D. 1300.

Barrier style: 

There is also a very well preserved ghost town. The boarding house has since collapsed but the boarding house still partially stands in the center of town. There are ruins to many houses scattered through out the canyon along with remnants of the coal mine and some railroad bridges.

Sego has a history unlike most ghost towns in Utah. Its history is surrounded by coal and not gold or silver. A rancher named Harry Ballard made the discovery in the early 1890s. Ballard bought the land surrounding his find and started operations on a small scale. In 1911, Ballard sold the mine to a group of Salt Lake City investors. Production started with grand plans for a long and prosperous run of coal production. The new owners built a store, a boarding house and other buildings all with their own water supply. Trouble started almost immediately when the water supply started to dry up. There were other problems as well, all of which contributed to little or no profit for the investors. Some miners were not paid for as long as a year but received script, which enabled them to buy food and other necessities for their families from the company store. In 1933, the miners agreed to become members of the United Mineworkers Union. On November 1,1947, the mine was closed and the property sold at auction.

This is part of the Company store.

One of the houses.

It needs a bit of work inside though and the roof leaks a bit...

One of the train bridges used to haul the coal out.



Goblin Valley State Park

Now here is a strange place to visit.

After driving across a flat expanse of mostly nothing you come across a few outcroppings of red rock buttes.  Eventually you reach the mountains again and you enter Goblin Valley State Park.  Once parked in the parking lot you can walk to the overlook and immediately you feel you've been transported into an animated movie in pause mode.

You look down into a bowl filled with fantastic creatures magically transformed into stone.  One gets the feeling that to stay the night in this place would be a very surreal experience.  You can easily imagine these formations coming to life.

Setting  our imaginations free we wandered around these incredible formations.  Dogs, ducks, mushrooms and of course, goblins are everywhere.

I even found where they come from.  This portal to the underworld must be from whence they came to our world, where in the light of day they become stone awaiting the night so they may wander at will.

Turning still another corner reveals a hidden passage.  I ventured in briefly but the taunting voices of trapped goblins convinced me that perhaps I should leave-NOW!  ...or maybe it was just the wind, I shall never know...

On our way out of the park we passed this amazing butte with layers of colours that we never get tired of.

We took a side trip to Wild Horse Canyon where I shot this tree in a wash.  Washes are the watercourses that flash floods take so caution must always be exercised as flash floods may occur as a result of rains hundreds of miles away.

Moab, Utah Day 9

Our final day in the Moab area took Lee and I back to Canyonlands National Park.  On our way we stopped in at Dead Horse State Park.  This park has a terrific overlook onto the Colorado River snaking its way downstream.  Seeing this one can imagine how this river has carved the landscape out in the way it has.  After the confluence with the Green River it is able to do a lot more carving.  This is the same river that created the Grand Canyon in Arizona.

We stopped at many viewpoints on the drive through Canyonlands, each offering a more spectacular vista than the last.  This is not a park for those afraid of heights!  Island in the Sky is the top of a large butte accessible by driving over a very narrow connection to the rest of the world.  The land drops steeply hundreds of feet on each side of the road.  You feel as though you are on an island because the drop all around the butte is over 300 meters.

One of the things I watch for when in the desert are the lizards.  They're only about 15 cm long but come in many different colour variations.  I found this one on a hike to the False Kiva.



My main interest in this portion of the trip, and one of the items on my personal bucket list is visiting False Kiva.  This archaeological site is not on the official maps. The trail is treacherous and not easy and the site is not protected from vandalism. Hiking along the canyon top is not for the faint of heart, but the destination is well worth the effort.  Thanks to Lee for guiding me to this fantastic place!

The original purpose of the stone circle is unknown and the name False Kiva is because it resembles a Kiva though it is unlikely that given the location of this site it was ever used as a Kiva.  It sits at the edge of a cliff in a natural cave at the top of a steep slope that drops about 350 meters.  The view out of the cave is spectacular and during a period with no wind it was absolutely quiet in there.  As far as the eye could see there would probably not be another living person.  This is truly one of this country's most amazing sites.



Moab, Utah Day 8

Yesterday was a windy, cloudy day so we spent the day browsing in town and generally taking it easy.

Today on the other hand, was beautiful with the perfect clouds and light that photographers dream about.  We went out Potash Road to see petroglyphs and indeed found some really nice ones.  We also shot Jughandle Arch which resembles an upside down jug.

We then went into the park and hiked up to the iconic Delicate Arch.  This is the arch that is featured on the Utah state vehicle license plates. It is an uphill hike of about 2.5 kilometers to get there but well worth the effort. 
We even managed a rain shower in the distance!

After walking down that trail we stopped at the petroglyphs at the Wolfe Ranch, an old homestead and shot those as well as the old log cabin and root cellar.  Both are remarkably well preserved- probably the dry climate helps there.

On our way out of the park there was another rain shower over the Lasal Mountains and Panorama Viewpoint gave us the perfect vantage point to watch it.

Just past this viewpoint is another classic Arches National Park icon known as Balanced Rock.  It's not really the most spectacular balancing rock we've seen but is probably the most photographed.

It was difficult to get out of the park because of the play of light and weather but we had to get back a bit early today as Laura is cooking a belated Christmas dinner turkey for Gaye and Lee.  Our RV never smelled so good and I'm sure we're the envy of the park right now as the smell wafts across.

After dinner we decided to 'Head for the Hills' and drove the Lasal Mountain loop road.  We went from the desert floor all the way up into the snow belt.  Some amazing views from up there and will definitely re-do this on our next visit although Laura may decide to stay at the RV...

The road comes out in the Castle Rock valley and we stopped for this silhouette shot as we went past.

Moab, Utah Day 6

Today we went out to the south end of Canyonlands National Park.  Our first stop was at  Newspaper Rock where there are some pictographs that date back over 2000 years.  Despite some vandalism they are remarkably well preserved and numerous details can be made out.  It is not known whether the figures represent story telling, doodling, hunting magic, clan symbols, ancient graffiti or something else.

We were treated to some periods of blue sky so we didn't waste the opportunity to get some shots with interesting clouds.

As always I'm interested in the flora.  This is a Narrowleaf Yucca (Yucca angustissima).

On our drive back to Moab we stopped at Wilson's Arch.  This is an arch that is right on the side of the highway and we were fortunate to find it without any people.

Moab, Utah Day 5

A very cloudy day so we decided to spend the afternoon in Arches National Park.  There are photo oportunities that do not require good skies so we focused (no pun intended but hey!  If it works why not?) on these.  While parked near the formation known as The Tower of Babel I noticed this road sign indicating Hula Hoopers in 1000 feet.  We never did find them though...

We headed out to a place known as The Fins-so named because they are very narrow outcroppings of rock seemingly stacked side by side.  In some places you could barely put your hand between them but in others you could walk between them.  These narrow walls rise about 100 meters above the sand.

The ground is covered in a fine red sand which the wind easily picks up.  There are many surprises awaiting any explorers.  Some passages opened up into courtyards where the vivid greens of Junipers and Piñon Pines contrasted beautifully against the red rocks and sand.

The biggest and best surprise is a hidden arch appropriately known as Sand Dune Arch found in another passage.

Everywhere one looks evidence is found that shows just how arrid this area is.  Junipers only 3 meters tall are probably hundreds of years old and once dead may stand for another hundred years.  Their wood, dry and cracked, displays another kind of beauty all its own.

Like reading cloud formations the rock outcrops in this park take on many shapes.  Many well known ones- some already shown in this blog- have names like the Three Gossips, Courthouse Towers, and Balanced Rock.  Other, less well known ones may be found if one looks.  This tiny one appears to be a Cheshire-like Cat holding up a much larger rock.  Use your imagination- Can you see the eyes and big smile?

Another area we stopped at was the Fiery Furnace.   The Fiery Furnace is a mazelike labyrinth of narrow sandstone canyons.  Here is a view from the overlook.

Moab, Utah Day 4

The day started off cloudy so Laura and I went for a walk along the Colorado River.  We found some interesting rock formations and some cactus to photograph.  We noticed the sky clearing so we headed into Arches National Park to a number of arches.  This is Double Arch.

Near the Three Gossips I found this interesting tree with Sheep Rock to the left.

As we headed back for lunch we stopped at Park Avenue.  This is a wide view of that area.

After lunch, a treat from Gaye as she made us her Avocado Shrimp dip with a Lemon Cream pie for dessert, we went into Canyonlands National Park.  While the two parks are very close together they are ages apart geologically.  While Arches is comprised of rock upthrusts with arches (of course) Canyonlands is more canyons (of course- hence their names!)
This example shows how deep the canyons are. 

Note the Jeep on the road near the top right of the photo.  Note also the road WAY down on the canyon floor in the middle of the photo- that's the same road!  How would you like to drive that road?

You can tell this area is very old because when you look out across the canyon you can see evidence of the dinosaurs that once ruled this land.  Here are two shots of a giant dinosaurs footprint.

Here's a better view...

Just kidding!  While dinosaurs really did rule this area milions of years ago they wern't quite this big!  This was caused by erosion from the Green River way down at the bottom of that canyon.  We're about 1000 feet above the white rim that you can see and it goes down about another thousand feet below that!

Unlike the Grand Canyon there are few fences along the edges of this canyon.  We were able to get very close- well as close as my nerves would allow- to the edge to take photos.