Monday, July 20, 2009

A journey to the Alvord Desert July 9th-13th 2009 (part III)

This is the third of a five part series on a trip I took with the Pacific Northwest Adventure Group

I woke early the next morning hoping to watch the sunrise. Clouds had moved in since the previous afternoon, blocking the sunrise for the most part. I instead spent my time wandering around the desert, enjoying my solitude.

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Out on the desert floor, I had a descent view of Steens Mountain rising above our camp.

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After the others from our group woke up, a few headed for the desert floor.
Rod

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James and Ben

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From camp, we headed down to the Fields store for fuel. After sitting around chatting for a while and enjoying a delicious milkshake, we decided to head out with Mick and his wife Joey, along with Richard and Jan and their granddaughter Tara. Our plan for the day was to drive to Propeller Meadow, the site of a bomber crash in the 1940's. The clouds that morning were pretty nice.

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We chose to make a quick side trip to check out an old stone house. Somehow we missed to so we decided to follow the road up over Domingo Pass. Looking up hill, you can see Mick following the switchbacks up the hill.

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From the top, we could see off into the distance. Down there somewhere is the stone house.

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Once we crossed over the pass, we zigzaged back down the other side of the hill into Rincon Valley.

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Down in the valley, we headed south, hoping to be able to circle around and come into Propeller Meadow. The road went through several low-lying areas that, in the wetter times of the year, obviously were quite moist. Those area's tended to be a bit dusty, as was this one, which also had sagebrush taller than our truck!

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We noticed a number of beer cans along the road, most of which were picked up by Mick and Joey but these ones were picked up by Richard. There was actually more than he could even carry, so he kicked one along in front of him

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Shortly after crossing into Nevada, we could see Blacks Mountain off in the distance

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We stopped for lunch and Mick, Keegan and I walked over to an old ranch thinking there were some hot springs. We didn't find the hot springs but we did see some wildlife including these birds flying around near some small ponds.

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This old fence surrounded the ranch, its been a while since anybody has been around here though.

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From there, we headed on a road due north hoping to get up where we wanted. Unfortunately, after a mile or so, the road became increasingly washed out to the point where we decided to turn around. Big thanks to Joey for spotting us as we got turned around. Later, Matt was able to get up in his fully locked Land Cruiser/Lexus and reported back that there was NO WAY we would've been able to get up.

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As we were headed back down the hill, we could see several of the group cruising along the valley we'd been in a short time earlier.

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We met up with them at Bog Hot Springs, the springs Mick and I had been trying to find earlier. The water was pretty warm and would've been awful nice during a cooler time of year.

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From there, Mick, Richard and I headed South to Denio Junction where we stopped to eat. After our meal, we turned back north, hoping to once again head in towards the crash sight. Unfortunately, the roads never panned out as we crossed back into Oregon.

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We decided to try again at accessing the rock house. This time, I lead the way and chose the route less traveled which lead us into a pasture, where we parked and walked across to the house.

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While we were stopped, we watched a pickup approach us. Turned out to be a local property over, from the Oregon End Table Ranch, across on the other side of Domingo Pass. His name was Jay Hughes and you could tell he was a very interesting guy. We talked to him for a bit before we headed on our way. Its always great to meet somebody like Mr. Hughes...

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We headed back to Fields where we greeted some of our trip mates, who it appeared had not moved all day, just sat in front of the store and chatted... Mom, Keegan and I hopped back in the truck with the goal of visiting Mickey Hot Springs, northwest of the Alvord. On our way north, I spotted a draw opposite from the Alvord so we hiked up into to explore a bit.

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The road to the hot springs cut straight across the valley north of the Alvord before turning and skirting the south side of a ridge that extended miles north.

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Describing Mickey Hot Springs is somewhat difficult. It was nearly dead silent there. Just about the only sound there was the bubbling of water in a few of the pools as well as underground. For the most part, the pools were absolutely calm, no motion at all. In some areas, the ground was almost hot to the touch, definitely heat radiating from below. Such an amazing place, though the water was too hot to even touch in most pools.

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We then headed back to camp but, of course, we couldn't take the same roads back. We dropped down to the very northern end of the desert and headed cross country back, allowing my GPS to guide us to camp.

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Sunday, July 19, 2009

4449 Headed to Michigan July 3rd 2009

It was announced a few months ago that the City of Portland's big steam engine, Southern Pacific 4449, was going to travel to Michigan for Train Festival 2009. As luck would have it, her departure from Portland was scheduled for Friday, July 3rd, which I happened to have off from work due to the upcoming holiday. Plans were set and since my brother, Keegan, was staying in town with my dad for the summer, I headed out to Scappoose the night before to get him.
On our way back in my apartment, we stopped at Union Station, where the 4449 was waiting with her train for departure the next morning. For this trip, the train would be made up of privately owned passenger cars, with the seats available for purchase (though too much for my budget)

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Fortunately, even though the train station was closed for the night, the platform was left open so rail fans could come out to get their night pictures, myself included.

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The moon was almost full, though not for a few more days.

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The next morning, the train was scheduled for an 8am departure. The night before, we'd scouted a spot in the NW industrial district where we'd be able to watch the train cross the bridge over the Willamette. Unfortunately, that spot didn't work out so well for pictures, though we were lucky enough to get a good roll-by at track level next to highway 30.

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We then headed for Washington; my hope was to get a shot east of Washougal where the tracks cross under SR14. However, once we'd crossed the Columbia, we saw we were already ahead of the train. So, we made the decision to stop in a neighborhood in Vancouver. Parking near the crossing was filled up by rail fans so we turned around to get back on the highway when the gates came down. We were barely able to hop out of the car and grab a shot as it passed by. This BNSF officer was also stopped at the crossing.

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Since my car was sitting there running, we were able to get back on the road right away and passed the train in time to stop at the overpass near Washougal. The special rolled to a stop just short of the bridge to meet a westbound Amtrak train.

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Then, as the train started rolling again, EVERYBODY had to run across to the other side.

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I tried my best to block out the Amtrak unit but it still snuck into the shot.

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We caught it again one more time a bit east of there then were unable to catch it before we got to the Bridge of the Gods at Cascade Locks. I decided to cross the river and use the multiple lanes and higher speed limits on I84 to get ahead of the traffic and the train. We stopped at Mosier and took pictures from the train from across the river.

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From there, we continued on to The Dalles, where we crossed the river on the highway 197 bridge. Just across the river, the tracks pop out of a cut and go under the bridge. There is a small parking area just past the end, so you can run back along the bridge (on a sidewalk) to where you can get a good shot. I got out to two other rail fans and said a brief hello when we looked up and were surprised to see the train already there! I was barely able to fire off a shot between the girders as it passed.

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Just a short distance further, the train stopped at Wishram for servicing, which allowed us and everybody else to set up for their next shots. Keegan and I elected to drive up to the Stonehenge memorial overlooking the river. We appeared to be the only rail fans up there so we picked our shots and waited. The temps were in the upper 90's so spending any time in the sun was uncomfortable. Eventually, the train came along and Keegan and I were able to get our shots then get back in the car and on the move again.

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We decided to make one more stop so we put the pedal to the metal and eventually got ahead of the train so we pulled over at a small crossing with a number of other folks stopped there. Several miles of track was visible so we had time to watch the train approach.

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And one final picture of some of the crowd assembled there.

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From there, the train continued to Spokane and Keegan and I headed back west, but that is another story.
-Ryan

Thursday, July 16, 2009

A journey to the Alvord Desert July 9th-13th 2009 (part II)

This is the second of a five part series on a trip I took with the Pacific Northwest Adventure Group.

Thursday night we made it as far as Soda Gulch, south of John Day. Camp was next to Vance Creek, which couldn't actually be seen, just a nice burbling sound. We woke up about 630am and quickly broke camp and got on the road.

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Most of the group met at RJ's Restaurant in Burns before the official meetup. RJ's has EXCELLENT bacon, just sayin... We headed to get gas, diesel actually, then met up with the rest of the group at Hines Park in the center of Hines. Nice place.

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From there we headed east and south, our first stop of the day being the Peter French Round Barn.

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The Round Barn was built in the late 1870's or early 1880's the date isn't known for sure. It was used to train horses during the long and miserable winter. The roof was rebuilt in the 1920's using 55,000 wood shingles. Its got a few holes in it now.

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The view off in the distance shows there is nothing around, just a barn.

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From the center, you can see the all wood construction. Many of these trees had to come from a long way aways as there are no forests in the area.

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Our next goal was the Diamond Craters, just a few miles to the south. Diamond Craters is a series of small craters created by a shield volcano.

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My brother Keegan, along with Ben(?) stand near the edge of the crater.

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Keegan peering over the edge, looking for rattle snakes.

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We then headed for Frenchglen. Too many bugs, the gas pumps were out of service. We didn't stay for long.

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The portion of the group not eating in Frenchglen decided to head up the hill a bit toward Steens Mountain to get away from the bugs. We found a wide spot in the road where we were able to hang out and wait for the paying for lunch crowd.

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The sun was hot that day, it was our hottest day of the trip and while there were a few clouds in the sky, they never seemed to be in front of the sun.

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One group decided to head up early while a couple of us waited for the stragglers from town.

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Our leader for the trip told us about a grove of aspens where basque sheep hearders had carved notes into the trees. We stopped to find some but couldn't find any ourselves. At this point we'd climbed from from 4,200 feet to over 6,500 feet and the cooler air was allowing wildflowers to still bloom into July.

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Just a few miles up the road, we stopped at Kiger Gorge, where you can walk out to a viewpoint at the edge of a 2,000 foot deep gorge, which was carved by glaciers. Pictures can't even do the location justice, you really have to see it for yourself.

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One of our new friends Matt took our picture for my Mom so I thought I'd return the favor and get one of him along the edge.

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We followed Mick up to the east rim of Steens Mountain. the road stretches out along the ridge and the cars running along it are the only way to get a good idea of the size of this area.

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The east rim allows a good view of the valley stretching out below us. Our group leader takes a picture from the top.

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The Alvord desert is below the summit of Steens Mountain. The Summit of the mountain is about 9,750 feet while the desert below is about 4400 feet, over a vertical mile below. The slope drops away that elevation in just three miles, one of the steepest drops in the state.

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Not much life can survive on the wind swept ridge that is Steens Mountain but a few wildflowers are just starting their bloom in mid-July.

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Matt standing near the east rim viewpoint

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Bob headed out to the summit parking area ahead of us

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Then we followed Mick out.

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From the summit, you can look down into Wildhorse Gorge and to Wildhorse Lake, I believe the second highest lake in Oregon. Can you see the people camping down there?

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Looking back along the ridge from the summit to the parking area.

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We chose to complete the Steens Loop by following the road down the Rooster Comb. Spectacular views

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My Mom had read about the Kiger Mustangs and other wild horses in the area and was anxious to see some. After watching carefully, Mick (or his wife Joey) spotted one about a half a mile off to the left side of the road.

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A few miles further, we were greatly surprised. A herd of 28 wild horses were standing right next to the road! They were extremely calm and were comfortable with my Mom and Keegan getting within approx. 20 yards.

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We noticed this small group of horses that were up the hill a bit and they decided to head down toward the main herd

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We quickly discovered the alpha male of the herd as he came galloping over, letting the others know they weren't welcome with the herd. It was so cool witnessing the natural hierchy in the wild, definitely one of the most awesome experiences I've ever had.

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We got down to the highway and continued on into Fields. Mick continued to lead the way through the Catlow Valley.

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We went our separate ways, Mick and his wife were staying at the hotel in Fields while we planned to camp out at the Alvord Desert. There was a group who were planning on camping at the desert and we decided to join them. We didn't know there location but after scanning the desert with binoculars, I spotted them on the other side, headed up into an area called Big Sand Gap. Since Keegan had just gotten his instruction permit, we decided to let him drive across the desert.

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On the east side, we discovered the desert didn't end abruptly but rather slowly faded into islands of bushes which we had to maneuver our way through.

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My GPS showed there was a road that came out to the desert floor so we tried to track it down. Its out there somewhere

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Oh, we found it!

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We eventually caught up with the group, playing around on some sand dunes. Of course, it wasn't long before somebody got stuck in the sand. It was Rod...

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Matt quickly winched him out and they continued playing. I was very envious that I wasn't out there with my Jeep.

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James and Ben made there way back down to the sand and joined in the fun.

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We headed back to camp where everybody got set up. Bob in his Land Rover with the rooftop tent were particularly cool.

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The moonrise was particularly nice too.

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Thus ended our first full day of the trip. We covered a lot of ground, our route for the day