Fresh Snow, Clearing Skies...

...and a very icy road.  The incredible Hoffstadt Bridge on The Spirit Lake Highway.

Cormorant, King of the Rock!

Big And Small

 Mallards feeding in the late afternoon sun with Mt. St. Helens resplendent in a new coat of snow

Dusk At The Wetlands...

 ...on the day before Thanksgiving.  I am most thankful for family, friends, and the wonderful people who stop by my blog!

Crossing...

Into The Light

 Now reduced to just an engine and 4 cars, the Empire Builder passes through one of many tunnels through the Columbia River Gorge.  

Long Forgotten

A little bridge to no place at all

New Snow

The Whole World...

...is out there

The Five-Mile Wide Rainbow

Take Me Down To The Sea...

Chilly Water, Chilly Air-- So What!

Surf's up!

The Last Glow

 Ten minutes before the sun went behind the hills

on a clear, cold November Afternoon

In The Cold Afternoon...

 ... Just before sunset

Wetlands Fireworks

Sunset Surfing

Magic Castles

Seaside's hotels in the late afternoon light

Watching

Shining

Surfing Above The Waves

At The Ballet Redux

This young woman kept running, dancing like a ballerina, out to the incoming waves.  She was wearing a dress, and was amazing to watch.  The dog, not so much.

Ship Watching

 

Epic Architecture

The Last Flower

This was the last survivor on this high desert plant.  Earlier it would have been covered with these yellow flowers, each about the size of a thumbtack.

Just a Few High Desert Pines

 Open land, open sky, and a closed gate...

The Little Schoolhouse On Tygh Ridge

A Bend In The River

 Roads, rails--- the earliest was more than a hundred years ago!

Falling...

 ...in very slow motion

All That's Left

I don't know if this had been a vault, a root cellar, or some other place to keep things safe---but it's all that's left of a structure that used to be in what was once called Friend, Oregon. 

Clown School

Happy Halloween

 

Happy Halloween

All Alone

High Desert Color

Looking At The Past

An active farm community--100 years ago.

Notice the giant wind turbines on the far hills.

A Bit Scary...

...but still beautiful in its way.

Sentinels

Hello?

Stormy Sky In The High Desert

     We encountered many different and beautiful skies on last week's trip to the Dry Side.

LONG!

Look very closely along the river

for a mile-long BNSF coal train.

Just Tall... That's All!



Train...

A mile-long BNSF oil train, passing by Horsethief Lake on the Washington side of the Columbia River.  

...(sigh)

He still wants to be out on the road...

Let's Go!

Suddenly, The Sunshine!

Long Unused

...but still standing, a haven for owls and magpies

What's Around The Bend...

Celebrating our 33rd anniversary yesterday with another day of discovery!