The Painted Hills

On our way back from camping at Lake Owyhee last week, we stopped off at the painted hills. They are located in Eastern Oregon near the small town of Mitchell. We were lucky to get a quick break from the rain to enjoy the scenery... for only about 10 minutes. I was climbing up the half mile trail to the main overlook at the top, snapping pictures along the way, when it began hailing and I had to tuck the camera in my jacket and run back to the Jeep. Fortunately it didn't come down too hard and it was actually letting up a little by the time I was able to get inside. I think this might be the last shot I got off before it hit. I didn't venture back out for another attempt.

Teepee at Sunset

This is one of the teepees at the campground we stayed at on the Owyhee reservoir. This was taken the day after the big wind storm hit with 50-60 MPH sustained winds. As you can see, the teepee was still standing and only a little worse for wear. The trees in the picture are quite blurry because it was still windy at this point and this is an HDR composite which includes 3 exposures. I kind of like the blurry trees though since it helps tell the story.

Haceta Head

For sunset the other night, we decided to go down to Haceta Head, just North of Florence, Oregon. The lighthouse there is under repair but it's still a scenic area. I took several pictures during "magic hour" as the sun was dipping down toward the horizon. In this HDR shot, you can't quite see the lighthouse with all it's scaffolding because it's hidden behind some trees, but there's a nice view of the house up on the cliff with the two giant rocks leading out into the ocean. A father and daughter are prepparing to watch the sunset on the far right of the frame as well.