Up close . . . another Wildfire

An unexpected hazard on our way to Cottonwood Canyon. Wind gusts of 47 mph tossed mounds of tumbleweeds across the road, making one lane impassable
fireweatheravalanche.org maps fires of all sizes

Let me bring you up to date in case you haven’t been reading the blog these past few weeks.

Large sections of the west are on fire. Smoke chokes the air of an even larger region. And, there’s not been much relief from Ma Nature.

This week, hoping to find a space with clean air, we drove up to Cottonwood Canyon.

Months ago we put a reservation on a cabin at that state park. Looking forward to lazy time on the veranda and smallmouth bass fishing, the car was loaded and headed north.

Upon arrival a flustered Park Ranger informed us that we had to leave. Cottonwood was under a Stage 3 Evacuation.

We did not even get unpacked. After a two-plus hour drive, this was not welcome news.

View of fire from Cottonwood Canyon State Park

But this news was not completely unexpected. There was a massive plume of smoke roiling over the crest of a hill on the eastside of the John Day River.

To the north, upstream, a hillside was completely blackened and smoldering.

View looking south from the park to scorched hillside.

We had been looking forward to this two-day stay, now we were driving back down Highway 97.

By mid-week, past our reservation window, the park had reopened with little or no fire damage.

We have two days reserved in October which should be outside wildfire season.

Until then it seems smoke-filled skies will continue to disrupt our summer plans.

Summer’s new Villain

Lowell Covered Bridge on Dexter Lake along Highway 58 . . . smoke from the Bedrock Fire near Fall Creek

A few more acres got added to the wildfire tally and the week was mostly about staying out of the heat and away from the plume. Eventually the heat subsided, but the opposite happened to the smoke cover.

Usually you can see the Cascade Range on the horizon

Every week it’s a game of guessing where the weather patterns are going to move the veil. The Crooked River might be sitting at 20 AQI (Air Quality Index) on Saturday and by mid-week have shifted to three times that number.

We’ve managed to re-direct travel plans, but with a tropical storm messing with the weather and 3 more major fires it’s not lookin’ good for outdoor activity.

There was a short trip over the Cascades to a favorite German Deli and some Willamette Valley fruit stands. But the rest of the week was spent avoiding smoke-ladened air.

This has become the new normal for Central Oregon . . . we’ll make it work.

A Return to the River

Osprey – keeps close watch on the river

Wildfires continue to foul Central Oregon’s air . . . and It continues to disrupt scheduled outings.

Last week the world got a lesson in the destructive power of wildland fire. It certainly adds prospective to any inconvenience we might suffer at a shift in air flow.

Taking advantage of how the wind blew, we spent a day on the Crooked River. Luck favored us and there was no one in the campground or on the water.

Flicker pair
Hunting for a new prospective

The river treated us to an excellent parade of flora and fauna.

Temperatures in the week ahead are supposed to push up near the hundred degree mark. However, for this trip there was ample sun without a searing heat.

There are still patches of green grass and shade to rest in.

A predicable afternoon breeze and shade from the Juniper branch canopy took over about the time the sun caught our side of the canyon.

Enjoyed a picnic, shot a lot of images and caught some fish. In all . . . a very nice day.

Hints at Summer’s End

A thicket of reeds line the road

Not sure you’re ready for this . . .  but I saw a vee of geese heading south yesterday.

Summer is spinning to an end and if you chance a look, you’ll see leaves are starting to turn.

Canada Geese

While it’s just the start of the migrations, this week we drove over to Summer Lake Wildlife Refuge. As a bonus, on the AQI (Air Quality Index) map it seemed to be out of the smoke plume.

There was smoke, but it was hung up on the Abert Rim, shrouding the southern end of the valley in a brownish haze. This made for a lousy photo backdrop, but the air was pretty clear over Summer Lake.

Just chillin’

The road that runs through the center of the refuge follows a series of the canals used to move water between ponds. These were lined with thick fresh growth of dark green reeds and cattails. There was an abundance of dragonflies and frogs, but not many birds.

In recent trips to Summer lake we’ve started to drive the whole loop road. Instead of retracing our route, we turn west at a northern junction.

Marsh sentinel

Here the road turns into a narrow set of ruts on a gravel levy that follows the refuge’s boundry with School House Lake.

These ponds offered up a variety of shore birds plying the shallow waters. Grebes, Pelicans, Gulls, Geese, Stilts and Blackbirds had all congregated in this northwest corner of the reserve.

After shooting a SD card load of images, we stopped for lunch. The heat of the day was pushing wildlife to cover so we headed back over the Paulina ridge and home.

 

 

Crooked River Day Trip

Casting

This week we headed up to the Crooked. Looked like a good place to avoid the Bedrock fire smoke plume, which has haunted us for weeks.

Typically, BLM sites are in use by summer campers. So, we’ll pull into a day use spot.

This day we got lucky and found a favorite spot empty. In fact, the whole campground was empty.

Summer is peak season for camping so we’ll pay the parking fee when we find a spot. Two reasons; old guys like me get half price deals and BLM uses these dollars to maintain these spots.

Collared Dove

We set up camp chairs in the shade of some ancient juniper trees. Pull out the lunch boxes and while I rigged a couple of rods JQ points her camera at flowers, butterflies, birds and bees.

Dark Wood Nymph

Might be because the smoke has been bad for days or it’s just a fluke . . .  but there are very few people on the river. Amid this calm, we take photos, enjoy lunch with a cold beverage and catch a few fish.

Searching

In all . . .  it was a great day and nice break from the smog.