Monday, June 22, 2009

Through Hells Canyon to Home


We said goodbye to the RV park and it's pastoral setting ...

... and headed up the mountain toward Hells Canyon. On the way we passed a beautiful creek...


...with fast moving waters.


The Musemobile looked happy in the cool green of the mountain.


We finally reached the overlook of Hells Canyon.

Hells Canyon is a ten-mile wide canyon located along the border of eastern Oregon and western Idaho in the United States. It is North America's deepest river gorge at 7,993 feet and the most important feature of Hells Canyon National Recreation Area.

The canyon was carved by the waters of the Snake River, which plunges more than a mile below the canyon's west rim on the Oregon side and 8,000 feet below the peaks of Idaho's Seven Devils Mountains range to the east. The area is inaccessible by road.



I had to climb down a little to get this shot of survivor foliage growing from the side of a rock cliff but it was worth the shot after almost sliding down a 500 yard rock slope.


About a mile farther up the road we reached the official overlook of Hells Canyon.

The earliest known settlers in Hells Canyon were the Nez Percé tribe. Others tribes visiting the area were the Shoshone-Bannock, northern Paiute and Cayuse Indians. The mild winters, and ample plant and wildlife attracted human habitation. Pictographs and petroglyphs on the walls of the canyon are a record of the Indian settlements.

In 1806, three members of the Lewis and Clark Expedition entered Hells Canyon along the Salmon River. They turned back without seeing the canyon. It was not until 1811 that the Wilson Price Hunt expedition explored Hells Canyon while seeking a shortcut to the Columbia River. Hunger and cold forced them to turn back, as did many explorers who were defeated by the canyon's inaccessibility. There remains no evidence in the canyon of their attempts; their expedition journals are the only documentation.




The overlook was like something out of The Sound of Music with a field of flowers. I will have a special blog next of the flowers we encountered on this trip because there were just too many to include and keep the blog at a workable size.


The canyon is a beautiful example of the power of water to carve these beautiful contours in the rock. I've seen the Grand Canyon's majesty and it's hard to believe the grand canyon at 6,000 feet deep is 2,000 feet shorter than the drop at Hells Canyon.


In the distance is the Seven Devils Mountains of Idaho.

The Seven Devils are notable peaks in west central Idaho in the Hells Canyon Wilderness. They are above the east bank of the the Snake River, which forms the Idaho-Oregon border. The mountains are part of the Rocky Mountains, and the tallest peaks are 7900 vertical feet above the adjacent Snake River, with few trees in between.



The main difference between Hells Canyon and Grand Canyon is that Grand Canyon is a sheer drop while Hells Canyon, from this vantage point seems more gentle and sloping with many areas of foliage.


The view is unsurpassed for the vastness of the gorge.

Great open areas of wilderness are abundant with wildlife in Hells Canyon Wilderness. Black bear, cougar, elk, deer, mountain goat, chukar, and bighorn sheep are common. There have been reports, though unverified, of grizzly bear in the Wilderness. Reintroduced wolves in Idaho have at least passed through the area, and Peregrine falcon, bald and golden eagles can also be seen.


The over look is accessible from Joseph, Oregon to the north and the town of Halfway to the south...

...as you can see the drive is worth it for the views.


There were plenty of bikers out the day we drove to the overlook and it's worth noting that on the way to the overlook we saw 8 cars 2 camper trucks 4 motorcyclists. At the overlook we saw a maximum of 15 people. It was hard to believe such a magnificent place was not crowded. Its a reminder of how crowded most of the places we go really are and how much that distracts from the placid feelings we really should have in nature.


Between The overlook and Halfway we ended up in the middle of a cattle drive on the two lane highway. The cowboy waved and smiled as her passed our Musemobile where I was scrambling to get a picture...


...so I got that picture and this one in the rear view mirror. I think they may have been from Pine Valley Ranch.

Much of the heritage of this valley is based on ranching. The Pine Valley Ranch stretches from the Snake River to Richland, Oregon on approximately 27,000 deeded acres and over 100,000 acres of leased lands.

We are a commercial Angus Ranch and run 1200 cows with an expected calf crop of over 1100 per year.




Later I got a shot of a corral with two head cattle (that's cowboy speak for two cows in a pen) along the road.


Then a nice surprise was the town of Whitney. Whitney was named for a pioneer in the county, C.H. Whitney. The community of Whitney had a post office from 1901-1943, the year I was born.


I like barbed wire and fence posts so this shot was a foregone conclusion.


Whitney is an unincorporated community, also considered a ghost town, located in Baker County, Oregon, United States, on Oregon Route 7 southwest of Sumpter. It is on the North Fork Burnt River, near the Blue Mountains and Wallowa-Whitman National Forest.



Rails of the Sumpter Valley R. R. reached Whitney Valley June 1. 1901. Originally a lumber company town, Whitney grew to become the main head of the Stage Lines to mining and cattle towns such as Unity, Bridgeport and Malheur City.


Logging railroads were built in all directions out of Whitney during the next 20 years. Nibley Lumber Company set up a large sawmill south of town in 1911...


...as loggers "Daylighted" the large stands of yellow pine nearby.


I just love the shots possible in ghost towns...

... and wonder how these houses are still standing after all these years.


The swallows must love building nests under the eaves of this old house.


The sign to the left of the door says "Garage Sale" upside down. I wonder if this piece of wood was purchased at a garage sale.


Someone does live here, probably to watch the herd of cattle. They are hard to see in this reduced size picture but there are solar panels and a satellite dish next to the house.


What a beautiful cow, it reminded Sharyn of Elsie the cow from the old commercials.


At one time over 150 people called Whitney their home. When the railway was abandoned in 1947, the town closed its doors.


The sign under the yellow "Slow" says speed enforced with a 30-30. You can bet I was going about 3 mph through here.


As we approached the town of John Day we had a great view of the Strawberry Mountain Range.


There was a rest area/information kiosk in the form of a Conestoga Wagon so I got a shot of the old and new style wagons together.


They did provide steps for climbing up for pictures. Being the saps that we are we set up the tripod and a 10 second timer and got a picture.


After passing through John Day we were approaching the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument and stopped at the Mascall Formation Overlook. In the distance was "Picture Gorge", named for Native American pictographs painted on the canyon walls, is 6 miles northwest of Dayville at the intersection of Route 26 and Oregon Route 19. The Sheep Rock Unit of the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, including the Thomas Condon Paleontology Center and the James Cant Ranch Historic District and museum are jut through this gorge. The peak in the distance is Sheep Rock.


This is part of the Mascall Formation.

These deposits were subsequently covered by successive falls of ash from volcanoes to the west and from the much closer Strawberry volcanics to the east. Alternating between the tuffs – consolidated volcanic ash – are layers of ancient soils and stream deposits that provide evidence of a dynamic floodplain. Many of the vertebrate fossils from the Mascall are found in close association with a prominent layer, the 15 million-year-old “Mascall Tuff.”

The deposits of the Mascall strata began when the flows of lava, known as the Picture Gorge Basalts, ceased.



The John Day river flows through the gorge and is a fast moving river.


Sharyn sat in the Musemobile as I walked around taking pictures in picture gorge.


I loved the layers of color marking time and events forever.


There was a blast from the past as we approached highway 97. It was an Arctic Circle fast food place like the one we used to go to all the ime when we lived in Ogden Utah.


After we passed through Bend Oregon we had this sight. It looked like a volcano venting. Of course it was only a cloud passinf by but I loved the shot.

No Scrabble

Quote of the Day ~
“I would rather wake up in the middle of nowhere than in any city on earth.” ~ Steve McQueen quotes (American Actor, 1930-1980)

Friday, June 19, 2009

Joseph and Wallowa


We finally made it to Wallowa gateway to the Wallowa Lake and almost to our destination and I stopped to get a library picture for our friend Carol.



On the way to Joseph I stopped for this barn photograph.





Stopped for a picture of the mountains...


... and this historic marker that explains how the town of Joseph got it's name.

Our first stop was the Mountain View Motel & RV Park and it did have a great view of the mountains...


... and a small pond...


...with a very nice bench.


The Musemobile looked great in this setting.


As the sun was setting it sent some rays across the foothills of the mountains.


The sunset and dark clouds told us rain was on the way and weather.com verified out inclination.


We got up the next day to beautiful weather and drove to Wallowa Lake set in the Swiss Alps of Oregon. Wallowa lake is four miles long and about one mile wide. It’s waters are very clear and very cold.

In the center the lake is about two hundred and eighty feet deep. The name, Wallowa is of Indian origin. It is said that the Indians used to fish here with traps. Instead of removing the traps from the water on leaving the valley for their winter camps, it was their custom to weight them down with upright poles on which they fixed crosspieces.

In Indian tongue," Wallowa " means fish-trap, and was applied to the lake by the Indians because of their custom of leaving these traps in its waters.


The mountains reminded me of the Tetons and are absolutely worth the trip.


Near the North end of the lake is a cemetery that includes Chief Joseph's Grave Site...


at the grave site people have left mementos of all kinds...


...from Sock monkeys to Star trek ships...


...to lavender sunglasses...


and a button that reads...


"Will work for World Peace", which reminded me of Chief Joseph's often repeated quote "I am tired. My heart is sick and sad. From where the sun now stands, I will fight no more forever. "


We parked next to the Wallowa County Museum and walked in to discover the true pronunciation of Wallowa. It sounds like will-low-ah. The journals of Lewis and Clark Expedition record the name of the Wallowa River as Wil-le-wah. An alternative explanation is that Wallowa is derived from a Nez Perce word for "winding water".


The downtown is a tourist Nirvana of murals and...


... some great bronze statues like this one titled Garden Walk by Ramon Parmenter.


Then there is this great horse sculpture...


...with the horse looking toward the mountains.


I think the cowgirls favorite is either this one titled Attitude Adjustment by Austin Barton ...


... but I'm putting my money on this one.


This "Little Store" sells Premium cigars and Night Crawlers.


Was I thinking about coffee when Sharyn shot this one, or maybe a shave.


Most shops had cute names and western themes...


... like Gobblers Knob...


... the Hydrant Bar & Grill which includes ...


... a Deer Garden (play on Beer Garden) too cute.



My favorite establishment names were Shady Lady Jewelry and Naughty Cowgirl Apparel


Some places had courtyard areas like this one that had three or four beautiful statues.


We liked this poster for Rodeo Queen Candidate Sierra Hopkins, because she reminded us of our grand daughter Sierra.


I really thought this cafe was staying traditional with Old Town Cafe until I noticed the side banner talking about the "Chuckwagon Sisters."


Every western town needs a stage stop and Joseph, Oregon is no exception.



I just love old cars. I did find out the planters along the street have been adopted by townspeople who maintain their own raised bed flower box. What a great idea.


I really liked the view of the mountains behind the town like this shot over the top of the First Baptist Church.


The city hall looked prim and proper and efficient sitting at 201 Main Street.


No picture shows Joseph, Oregon as it is better than this one of the mountains, the flowers in a raised flower bed and a camper truck with a canoe on board. Majesty, Beauty and Adventure all in one place.

Scrabble Score - Scrabble Queen couldn't quite overcome an early bingo but made it close by the end of the game losing to The Contender by 14.

Quote of the Day ~
"Great things are done when men and mountains meet" ~ William Blake, (1757-1827) English visionary Mystic, Poet, Painter and Engraver.

Copyright

©Paul Viel