This old tree, bent by the wind, may not be green and growing anymore, but look how graceful it is as it mimics the clouds...

 

It looks like a fine day for a picnic!

 

It's a rather mystical spot, isn't it...? The opening is like a giant eye...

 

The ferns love to dance when it's almost dark...

 

It's a whole different world under the trees...

 

Yes, we still do have wildflowers along the wetlands path in August!

 

The owl and the pussycat! They're in charge of things!

 

So many different parts of the forest...

 

It's very quiet here today...

 

Beautiful light in the forest...

It rained a tiny bit Saturday morning. We could use some more.

 

Here's a tree that was old when Lincoln was President. He knows many things, but won't tell me.... I'll keep asking.

 

There's a hint of change in the air...

Two crows on the unused trestle across the Cowlitz River: "Is it true, Dad, did they really run log trains up here in the old days?" "Sure, son! They made the whole bridge shake!"

 

Another Minnie! Another view of Minnie peak from a different vantage, but still with a magnificent sky!

 

The thing about Minnie Peak is, it's always a dramatic sight, especially with a sky like this one.

 

This little barn is a bit bleak... But it hasn't fallen down yet!

 

July is the month for wildflowers in this part of the world! From this meadow, you can look up and see Boisfort Peak, named in the mid 1800's by a French-Canadian trapper, Pierre Charles.

A beautiful July day at this winery-- The vines are happy, the lavender is lovely, but don't pay any attention to the guy by the barrel. They say he's just a stuffed shirt, and the crows just laugh at him!

 

Oh my... The Swallow is having a secret moment with Mrs. Redwing!

 

It looks like we're just in time for a party!

 

It was unusually hot today-- 96 (F)! So spent some time in my mind at one of my favorite spots- North Central Oregon's White River Falls, near Tygh Valley.

 

Sometimes somewhat ordinary things can seem quite interesting when the light is right-- like this tie-rod from some ancient bit of farm equipment. For me, it's the roundness of the parts-- almost a living softness.

 

This is the front of a steam-powered tractor from about 120 years ago. In those days, farm equipment like threshers, plows, etc. were either pulled by animals or, if the farmers had enough money, a steam-powered tractor like this one from Case. They ranged from about 10 horsepower to 150 horsepower--- incredible numbers for the time. They ran just like steam locomotives, complete with the familiar whistle. But what I really like now is the wonderful bird on the front. They really knew how to make machinery look great in those days. Throw some more wood in the firebox!

 

Big sky, big mountain (Mt. Hood), and a very large orchard-- This is north-central Oregon, about 15 miles south of The Dalles (city) and the Columbia River. I don't know what's growing in the orchard, but I do know that cherries are the most prominent tree fruit crop in Wasco County. It could also be Apples, pears, or peaches-- but the area near The Dalles is a major producer of sweet cherries.

 

Dead trees in an empty field...

 

It's the light that always takes you there...

 

The secrets to the Cosmos are behind this door... Or maybe not.

 

It was 90 years ago that this truck rolled off the Ford assembly line, all shiny and ready to go to work. Now the windshield is gone, the tires are flat, and I doubt that it's moved at all for a few years. It was a handsome, heavy-duty truck for its time.

 

Another magical spot-- a waterfall in the rainforest.

 

The trees are so tall, they make the cattle look tiny!

Big tree, little shack!

 

The old tractor and the old shack-- they belong together.

 

It may be old, it may be tired, but it's still the first thing you see...

 

Hidden...

 

This is the OLD Columbia River Highway, deep in the Columbia River Gorge, on the Oregon side. With just one lane in each direction, it parallels the Union Pacific tracks.

Nightwings... The contrail from an unknown jet is lit up by the setting sun.

 

Way up in the hills on the Washington side of the Columbia River...

 

Watch your step...

 

It's hard to believe there really are places like this... Oregon's Latourell Falls, in the Columbia River Gorge

 

Big and powerful-- The amazing basalt formations on the Washington side of the Columbia River!

 

The Mountain, the River, and Stonehenge! Washington's replica of Stonehenge is a monument to the fallen in the First World War. It's over 100 years old. Oregon's Mt Hood is in the distance, and the Columbia River separates the two...

 

It looks like the train tracks go through a tunnel carved in the wall of a castle! A magic tunnel!

Looking across the Columbia River to the Washington side, as a mile-long BNSF freight train heads west past some of the most interesting rock formations in the Gorge...

 

Freedom!