Wish I Was Here

Summer Lake Hot Springs with Slide Mountain in background, September, 2005

This past weekend we stayed at home. My mind, however, was wandering the sunny, dry east side of the state. As the short, dark days of December drag on I often dream of the sunny (albeit chilly) high desert. Oregon's portion of the Great Basin desert is a wonderful place to explore and provides a great contrast to the sometimes gloomy Willamette Valley. This region offers wide open spaces, vast vistas, little precipitation and views unmarred by the clear cuts and strip malls of the maritime Pacific Northwest. It is this easily accessible diversity of landscape that defines the region. These images are from a camping trip to Summer Lake Hot Springs near Paisley last fall.

Oregon High Desert Sagebrush

Go there: http://www.topozone.com/map.asp?lat=42.73087&lon=-120.67067&datum=nad27&u=4&layer=DRG100&size=l&s=250