Springtime Pilgrimage

Well, I made it out to Smith Rock afterall, and I'm so glad I rolled myself out of bed before dawn to get there early.  The drive was perfect, even through the snow on Mt. Hood.  And the light was still pretty when I arrived at Smith Rock.  One of the fun things about this trip was all the wildlife I saw:  lots of geese (must be mating season - they were very vocal!), a coyote, a little cotton tail bunny, which Molly wanted to go after soooo badly.  I also saw some eagles and one falcon.  I'm too tired to write much, but the pictures say it all, anyway.  It's kind of hard to take a bad picture in a place like this...

(click to see larger)

Mt. Jefferson through the gap.  Taken near the bivouac area.

The morning light brought out the reds quite well.

The Crooked River winding around the Rocks

Deep Shadows

Like a cathedral!  I love this place.

This lone goose looked kind of funny playing "King of the Hill" :o)

Prettier from this angle.

Stunning colors - I love the green wash in some areas.

Molly, wet from fetching sticks I threw in the Crooked River.

A coyote!  (severely cropped - my lense couldn't quite reach him.)

Molly heard the climbers talking waaaay up there!

Good ol' Monkey Face!

I'm calling this "Skull Rock" - but it kind of looks like Edvard Munch's "The Scream"

Even prettier with the vapor trail in the sky.

Nature's artwork.

Other side of Monkey Face.

Monkey Face with Mt. Jefferson in background.

Mt. Jefferson from atop Smith Rock.

My heart went into my throat when Molly walked into this shot, so close to the edge!

Dead wood and flowers - two of my favorite things!

The Desert Sage is very pungent and freshly green this time of year.

A big juniper.

On the way back...

Lots of climbers out today.  Wish I'd caught up with Connor, but I just hiked and didn't ring him up to rendevous.

Spider Woman.

UPDATE:  This is Connor's girlfriend, Allysa in the pic above!  Looks like I ran into them afterall - sort of!  She looked like her from a distance, and I wondered if it was her when I shot this. I was too far away to see if Connor was in the party and I considered just asking, but I was on my way out and would have had to hike up to where they were, so I took the photos and moved on.  Turns out they left shortly after, because the winds were really picking up.

Amazing!

Bottom's Up!

Such a lovely place in the late afternoon light, too.

Happy Hiker! (taken with cell phone camera)

Lunch Surprises

Today I went home for lunch, so I could eat cheaply and surprise my dog with a mid-day walk down to the little park near our house.  I got a few surprises of my own when I when I walked into my kitchen to make a burrito.  I found one of the stove burners on underneath a pot which had obviously been used to make poached eggs. 

Now, not only did I not leave any burners on, I did not even make eggs this morning.  I distinctly remember enjoying a toasted bagel and some yogurt with my kids.  So it looks like my ex decided to come in and have breakfast on the house before attempting to burn it down. 

I turned the burner off and cleaned up the mess before getting out the ingredients for a quick bean burrito.  I’m talking microwave-quick, so I could hurry up and get out with Molly and maybe have time to play with my camera, too, during my one hour lunch break. 

Well, that was the plan, anyway.  When I opened the microwave to put my burrito in, I found a bowl of…well, a bowl of something.  I recognized penne noodles,  along with chicken and some other unidentifiable things in it – I’m not sure what you call it.  Just another lunch break surprise left for me by my ex, sitting there looking congealed and smelling disgusting.  It was there for me to clean up, obviously, so I did - gagging and cursing a bit under my breath. 

Finally I made, heated and ate my burrito, then took off out the door with Molly and my camera.  I knew I didn’t have as much time at this point, but I went for it anyway, since it was a warm and dry day and I often stay late and come in early to get things done at work.  Molly and I had a fairly nice time, which in this beautiful Spring-like weather, was no surprise.

Here are a few pictures: