Getting There

Winter morning on the Crooked River

It’s the journey more than the destination.

We offered a mantra last week which reminded me of another adage we follow. Don’t get caught up in where you’re going and miss great stuff along the way.

This week we headed back to a common destination, the Crooked River and as it turned out that wasn’t the best part of the day.

It has been bitterly cold this week. Clear skies will do that. However, those same blue skies make it hard to not get outside.

A week ago the wind and cold pushed us off the river.

This day it was just the cold   .  .  .  and no fish were interested in what we were offering.

To sate a foiled wade, as well as emerging appetites, we headed to the Tastee Treet to feast on a cheeseburger and fries. This made things much better.

However, it was the journey home from Prineville that really highlighted the day.

A wall of freezing fog rolls towards us.

We passed through a bank of freezing fog which had rendered the landscape an ice frosted wonderland.

Belted Galloways, or as we like to call them “Oreos”, are a favorite sight along our route home.

The fog had delayed numerous flights out of the Redmond Airport. We simply passed through the cloud unscathed, mesmerized by the altered scenery.

Freezing Fog casts an eerie light on the landscape.

The fishing trip turned out very different than what was planned, but that is the way many of our travels seem to go.. Looking for a different route has served us well.

Some Fall Color

Vine maple

Fall has descended on Central Oregon.

The high desert isn’t known for its foliage displays, but there are spots of color. Morning temperatures have dropped to near frost level chill,  but the skies are clear, and by noon we are in the mid-seventies.

It’s a great time of year.

Marshes at Summer Lake Wildlife Refuge

Early in the week we headed over to Summer Lake only to find that it’s locked down in preparation for waterfowl hunting season. Didn’t really see many birds, wonder why?

Undaunted we swung up to Winter Ridge for the trip home.

A favorite pull off on the Chewaukan River

Large swaths of the forest were ravaged by wildfire three years ago and yet some sections were untouched. Wildfire is a tricky beast.

Aspen leaves hold a distinct shade of yellow/orange in the falll

The area is peppered with marsh land, which in turn is home to numerous Aspen groves. This was our fall color and while mainly just shades of yellow. It was beautiful.

Later in the week, we headed back to Maupin for an additional attempt at Summer Steelhead.

This week’s trek began at first light  .  .  .  or at least early morning.

My cast count must be getting close to that magic “1000” number and still no steelhead. Instead, I settled for a stand in the river, taking in the wildlife and practicing those casting moves.

It’s the height of apple season and we were hoping to get some more cider.

There are around a hundred boxes of different apples and pears at Kikawa Orchard
If apples with redish flesh are pressed you get red cider … tastes just as good.

From the Deschutes River it’s a short jaunt to the orchards in Hood River.

On the slopes of Mt Hood there are a great variety of deciduous tree species and thus more fall colors.

Trees are still loaded with fruit, though mostly pears and the harvest is in full swing.

We did find some cider, as well as a few different variety of apples and pears to complement a growing fall fruit basket. Ladened with seasonal fruit, we headed home.

Apple Cider weather

Early morning start, upstream from Warm Springs.

Our week started cold and wet. This did manage to cool off a wildfire that had Sunriver residents on edge.

At the end of last week the Lava Lake fire joined what was now being called the Mt. Bachlor complex. Burning up thousands of acres on the south edge of the mountain and headed east toward the resort.

The photographer’s POV

The rain and low temps also flushed out a smoke plume that was plaguing Central Oregon. In typical High Desert fashion these gray skies moved on but left behind more fall temperatures and really nice days.

On Wednesday we celebrated national cheeseburger day at our favorite old school diner, Tastee Treet. Then, as the nice weather persisted we decided to take a jaunt over to Kiyokawa Orchards in Hood River.

Fruit-ladened trees line the road side

It’s height of apple season and there are plans to can some sauce and reduce some cider for syrup.

The trees are heavy with fruit and farm stand shelves are loaded with a variety of apples and pears. The fresh cider was an unexpectedly good treat.

One more chance at Summer Steelhead

As long as we’re over there, we decided to swing up to Dufur, check out the Dufur Market and then spend the afternoon on the Lower Deschutes.

Still no Summer Steelhead, but I had a great time building up my cast count.

It was a perfect afternoon to sit along the stream  .  .  .  we’ll likely head up there again next week and try to find the illusive ‘fish of a thousand casts’.

Back to the Canyon

This is what we mean by Sage Steppe

We’ve managed to book regular stays at Cottonwood State Park and this week was September’s visit.

There is a quiet stillness to this spot that is very restful.

This cabin camping is just the ticket.

It starts with a couple hours drive up Highway 97 through a cross section of Central Oregon landscapes  .  .  .  forests to wheat fields, sage steppes to wind farms.

There is a great grassy spot in the day-use area

The day-use area allows us to plan a late lunch before the ‘official’ check in time.

Joined us for lunch
A shady spot even in the heat of the day

We also managed to get in some fishing early in the afternoon.

Evening to sunset we mostly just sit in the shade of the cabin’s porch and sip cold beverages.

Though this time, the day was a bit too warm and we had to take advantage of the AC to endure the afternoon heat.

Sunset on the plain

Outside urban light pollution, the star-filled skies require an early morning gaze.

Our start of day vista

There is coffee sipped to the sunrise over the John Day River and perhaps a morning try at Small Mouth Bass.

We’re usually packed and back on the road by noon.

The road home

It’s not a lot of time spent, but the value of place and peace of mind is huge.

We’ve got another stay reserved for next month and regularly check the reservation site to look for openings and chart the next stay.

Preserving the Season

Another cast at summer steelhead

A couple of things this week, Steelhead and seasonal fruit canning.

If you’re a regular on this blog, you might recall we’ve combined trips for Summer Steelhead on the Lower Deschutes and orchard visits before.

Well, it’s that time of year again. Fishermen refer to Steelhead as a fish of a thousand casts. It can take that many or more to actually catch one.

Our favorite stretch of the Deschutes River.

In simple terms, this is a Rainbow Trout smolt that spent a few years in the ocean and then comes back to the fresh water river of it’s birth to spawn and repeat the cycle.

Sage lines the river’s edge

Late summer on the Lower Deschutes offers a chance to add to your cast number in pursuit of large fish. Mostly, I’ve been trying out fly patterns, improving my casting skills, and a  little more.

This week I did manage to hook up a large fish, but lost it before a positive identification. In a week, I’ll try again. The Lower Deschutes Canyon in late summer is worth the trip.

Suncrest peaches feature in a new recipe, Ginger Peach Butter

August and September are huge canning months as farms and orchards overflow with new harvests. We eat “seasonally” which requires the preservation of some of what you are enjoying at the moment.

Pickling and fermenting are on this month’s menu

Stone fruit have started to show up at the Hood River orchards so that is what we gathered extra of this week. Peaches, plums and some crabapples are getting sliced for breakfast today and loaded into jars for meals this winter.

Tree ripened fruit from the farmstand outshines anything you’ll find at the mega-mart. It is always worth the trip.