So far it’s been an outstanding fall in Central Oregon.
Morning walks require an extra layer, gloves and a cap. However, by afternoon we can sit on the patio in shirt sleeves.
There has been a notable increase in visitors to the bird feeder, out the office window. Migration is in full swing.
We didn’t really take advantage of all this nice weather this week. We were busy organizing for the pick up of an adventure van. We mentioned this in an earlier post and were originally going to take ownership in early spring.
This week that changed. The company we’re buying from gave us a very good price on a build that would be ready in November.
So instead of 6 months, we have a few weeks to get all the paperwork done, organize the trip to pick it up, and plan a short camping trip to break it in.
There will be more details about this in future posts, but this week we’re a bit preoccupied . . . we should be back with a regular post next Sunday.
Every day the aspen tree framed by our office window has a few more yellow leaves and bare branches.
As October gets underway we’ve been treated to a string of outstanding fall days. It looks like that pattern is going to keep going.
Days like these should not be spent inside. To that end we’ve been on the road quite a bit.
East Fork of the Hood River
Made a swing over the pass to Hood River and around the Fruit Loop. Weactually just went to Kiyokawa Family Orchards.
It’s peak season and the wooden box racks were loaded with pears and apples.
We filled bags with Warren and Tosca pears, Honey Crisp, Ambrosia, Green Dragon and Granny Smith apples.
We also snagged a jug of fresh pressed mixed apple cider.
We drove up Highway 35 along the East Fork of the Hood River. We pulled into Sherwood Campground to have some lunch and a glass of cider.
Fall colors on Mt Hood’s east slope
As you climb higher up the side of Mt. Hood the fall colors pop out of the forest and near the top, most of the low bushes have lost all their leaves.
Winter is coming soon to the high country.
We’ve set up our chairs along the Crooked River a couple of times this week and while extremely low water levels limit fishing, it’s still a great place to have lunch.
Crooked River
Our weather app assures us that this string of beautiful days will extend for another week or more and we’re planning accordingly.
It seems like there are hundreds of these Passerine flitting among the branches
A glance out the office window reveals more gold than green in the aspen branches. The feeder is getting constant visits, including a couple of Gray Squirrels.
A crisp fall morning on Summer Lake
Mornings start with a hint of frost on the ground . . . October has brought Fall to the high desert.
This week we returned to Summer Lake, hoping to be there before the gate on the Link Canal dike was closed.
First light plays across the reeds and grasses
We were too late. The hunters had even started to stage their RV’s for waterfowl season.
This is the kind of image we came for
Another aspect of the trip was to catch a sunrise, capturing that early morning light. That was a success.
At dawn there is a mist on the ponds, dramatically long shadows and a orange hue to the light. This make for some really nice photos.
Fall marsh still life
The bird population is up from our last visit, even if we couldn’t get to the east side along River Ranch and Schoolhouse Lake.
American Coots
Loggerhead Shrike
Song Sparrow
However, activity really doesn’t pick up until mid-morning, so mostly we took in the landscape and spied on perching birds.
Marsh wrens
In late January or even mid-February, when the hunters have cleared out we’ll make a winter visit.
Stealthy predator using the tall grass for cover
There is plenty to keep us busy in other parts of the state through the rest of these beautiful fall days.
The leaves on our aspen trees are a mix of green and yellow, mornings are often frosty, and the bird feeder needs refilling every day. Transition to fall is underway and we’re making the most of it.
A shaded spot by the river to keep an eye on everyone
Trips to the Crooked are spaced weekly, between an occasional rain storm. It’s easy to get on the river just before the sun crests the canyon walls and triggers a morning caddisfly hatch.
Layers are mandatory, but our warm sweaters are folded away by mid-morning. This also is about the time Tip is suggesting it’s time to have some snacks.
What’s in the cooler? Lunch time?
There is a day use area fifteen minutes upstream from Prineville that is a regular stop and these last few weeks we’ve mostly been setting up our chairs there.
That crest makes this Merganser look like he’s facing into a wind
A ‘Raft’ of mergansers has been in the area for most of those days.
Occasionally we see the osprey. Often he perches on a snag that dominates the opposite bank. This day the bare branches hold a heron, briefly, but no osprey.
Bull Thistle takes on a lethal quality in the Fall
Some time in mid-summer an SUV spotted JQ adjusting focus on a telephoto lens and pulled over to chat . . . photog to photog.
The gist of that conversation was there’s a Mountain Goat that inhabits the top reaches of the basalt columns on the far side of the river. Since then we’ve scanned the canyon wall, but never spotted him.
A week ago a fisherman chatted with Jack and besides sharing fly pattern information, also pointed out that the goat was on a ledge, over there.
“Fourth ledge down and just right of that outcrop . . . “
It’s no easy tasks to direct someones attention to a small white dot hunkered down on a rock face that is identical to the hundreds of other outcroppings and a mile away.
There are a lot of spaces for a goat to hang out on the canyon wall
But I got the general location.Once back at the car, with the aid of binoculars and JQ’s Telephoto lens we located a mound of white fur nestled in the rocks.
Well, now you see him . . .
With a better idea of where to look and what to look for this week, we tried again. Pretty quickly we found him standing, exposed with the morning light making it easier to get a photo.
Right as the morning sun hits the water
Fall continues to offer a smattering of rainy days amid stretches of clear sky, making it easy to pick out a good river day . . . or whatever outing we feel like. This is by far our favorite time of year.
The air over the Hood River area finally cleared and our fridge was in need of a seasonal fruit infusion. This week’s trip sent us north to the Fruit Loop.
Aftermath of a wildfire on Mt. Hood
The devastation of recent fires scarred the hills along Hwy 26 and 35. Mop-up efforts were still underway as we descended the eastside of Mt. Hood.
But Kiyokawa Orchards was open for the season, and while not overflowing with varieties, there was plenty to choose from.
Our go-to orchard.
The boxes of fruit set out on their shelves included some late season peaches and a wide range of small stone fruit . . . plums and plumcots.
Also on the wood racks was an early harvest of apples and pears. We loaded a basket with something from nearly every box.
First haul, there will be more trips in the future.
We were looking for a tart apple to turn into pie. Pies are wonderful treats but lousy picnic fare. The easiest way to change that is to bake individual servings.
Hand pies are no more trouble to make than a whole pie and so much easier to have on the road.
America’s Test Kitchen “Baking For Two” has an excellent pie crust recipe, see attached. Rest in the fridge a few hours (or freeze for later), rolled out a quarter of an inch thick and cut into 5 inch rounds.
You load these disks with pie filling, although the fruit needs to be chopped into smaller pieces.
With peach or apple filling, start by chopping the fruit in small chunks, about a cup will fill the eight to ten disks that a single recipe of pie dough will make.
They freeze and re-heat well . . . if they last that long
Toss these cubes of fruit in a tablespoon of lemon juice, to discourage browning. Add one tablespoon each of brown and white sugar and AP flour. To this we also put in ½ teaspoon ofcinnamon and nutmeg, though spices are a personal matter.
Pie Dough (American Test Kitchen "Baking for Two")
Ingredients
9Tbspunsalted butterchilled and divided
1 1/4cupsAP flourdivided
1Tbspsugar
1/2tspsalt
¼cupice water
Instructions
Grate 2 tablespoons butter on large holes of box grater and place in freezer. Cut remaining 7 tablespoons butter into ½ inch cubes.
Pulse ¾ cup flour, sugar, and salt in food processor until combined, 2 pulses. Add cubed butter and process until homogeneous paste forms, about 30 seconds. Using your hands carefully break dough ball into 2-inch chunks and redistribute evenly around processor blade.
Add remaining ½ cup flour and pulse until mixture is broken into pieces no larger than 1 inch (most pieces will be much smaller), 4 to 5 pulses. Transfer mixture to medium bowl. add grated butter and toss until butter pieces are separated and coated with flour.
Sprinkle 2 tablespoons ice water over mixture. Toss with rubber spatula until mixture is evenly moistened. Sprinkle 2 more tablespoons of ice water over mixture and toss to combine. Press dough with spatula until dough sticks together.
Transfer to sheet of plastic wrap. Draw edges of the plastic over the dough and press firmly on the sides and top to form a compact, fissure-free disk. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 2 days. Allow to sit on counter top for about 10 minutes to soften before rolling out.
