Alvord Desert from above in southeastern Oregon
Wordless Wednesday (WW)
Lens-Artists Photo Challenge: Looking back at LAPC #31 – Landscapes (LAPC)
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I’ve always liked watching Cliff Swallows in action. Cliff Swallows, Petrochelidon pyrrhonota, live in colonies located in building eaves, bridges, dams, culverts, trees, cliffs, and caves. Their colonies often contain 200-1,000 nests.
Both sexes build nests by collecting mud pellets in their bills and then molding them in place. The gourd-shaped nests they create contain 900-1,200 of these pellets.
Mud is gathered along streambanks, lakesides, and puddles.
The Schoolhouse Lake Wildlife Viewing station, shown below, is located at Summer Lake Wildlife Area in Oregon. It doesn’t contain hundreds of nests, but it’s a great place to view Cliff Swallow nests up close.
Here’s a short video of Cliff Swallows in action flying around their nests on this building. Swallows in flight are mesmerizing and full of grace.
Cliff Swallows live in parts of North America, Central America, and South America. They are widespread with relatively stable populations.
Ragtag Daily Prompt (RDP) – Grace
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Driving through…
Big rock mountains, sculpted and fired by the sun
And ranges, arising from basins washed by summer storms
Approaching cliffs layered with basalt flows preserving stories of their past
And volcanic hills, pounded by thundering hooves and eroded by falling rain
Driving through…
The warm comforting embrace of oak trees
And pine forests, swaying in celebration of winter’s first snowfall
Lens-Artists Photo Challenge (LAPC) – On the Move
Sunday Stills Color Challenge (SS) – Brown and/or Gray
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Café Yumm! is one of those restaurants where I always order the same thing. I LOVE their Original Yumm! Bowl. The one word I would use to describe it is “fresh.”
The Original Bowl includes Organic brown rice (or Thai jasmine rice), Organic black beans, Original Yumm! Sauce, and a spoonful of mild red salsa. The bowls are topped with shredded cheddar cheese, diced tomatoes, avocado slices, sliced black olives, a spoonful of sour cream, and a pinch of fresh cilantro leaves. I don’t usually add anything else to mine, but you can add chicken, tofu, nori, pepitas, slivered almonds, and Café Yumm! Crispy Noodles. You may choose to create a custom bowl.
Café Yumm’s! menu includes bowls, bentos, quesadillas, salads, soups, skewers, cookies, and drinks. If you like their sauces, dressings, and salsas, you can also purchase those in their restaurants.
There are two Café Yumms! in Bend, one in the Old Mill district on the westside, and one near the hospital on the eastside. They are open from 10:00 am to 8:00 pm. Café Yumm! has restaurants in parts of Oregon, Idaho, and Washington State.
Foodie Friday
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Today I’m posting a few up close pictures of tree bark and more distant shots of trees. Can you tell which tree’s bark are shown in the first three photos? The answers are at the end of this post.
Bark A
Bark B
Bark C
Tree 1. Western Juniper, Juniperus occidentalis
Tree 2. Ponderosa pine, Pinus ponderosa
Tree 3. Black cottonwood, Populus trichocarpa
The answers are:
Bark A = Black cottonwood, Populus trichocarpa
Bark B = Ponderosa pine, Pinus ponderosa
Bark C = Western Juniper, Juniperus occidentalis
Did you guess which tree’s bark correctly?
There are so many kinds of bark in the world and they often make great subjects for close ups. Did you know there’s even a tag for bark? It includes tree bark, candy bark, dog barks, etc.
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The majesty of mountains with distinct fringes of red
Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area, Utah
and coming into focus over a blur of the Sagebrush Sea
Mt. Shasta, Shasta-Trinity National Forest, California
The mood of mountains retreating in a blush of color
Painted Hills Unit, John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, Oregon
and rising above, snow-clad and strong
Mount Rainier, Mount Rainier National Park, Washington
The majesty of mountains layered in subtleties
Badlands National Park, South Dakota
and taking center stage above a curve of crops
Mt. Jefferson, Willamette National Forest, Oregon
Lens-Artists Photo Challenge: Looking back at LAPC #31 – Landscapes
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I did this elephant seal drawing as part of the Inktober challenge. On October 9th, the prompt was “heavy.”
I drew this quick sketch with a black Pentel Brush Sign Pen Artist pen and I used a gray Tombow ABT pen for the shading. I especially liked the Pentel pen since you can easily vary the width of each stroke with the brush tip. The Tombow pen has a soft brush on one end and a hard tip on the other end.
Since I was going to be traveling during part of the Inktober challenge, I wanted a small pad I could tuck into my backpack. I found this cute little watercolor book. Yes, the paper has a rougher texture than I would prefer, but it worked out well.
I taped a copy of the 2025 Inktober prompt list onto the inside cover.
This is the photograph I worked from for the elephant seal drawing. I thought of this pair of seals I saw at Elephant Seal Vista Point north of San Simeon, California. They appeared to be smiling. I’m not sure they really were, but they certainly looked comfortable.
Do you have artwork you would like to share? Be sure to include the First Friday Art tag.
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Old Mill sunrise in Bend, Oregon
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Polo player sculpture, 7th-8th century. Earthenware with traces of white slip and paint. China, Tang dynasty (618-907). Seattle Asian Art Museum.
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A view from above east of Steens Mountain, Oregon. I took this photo with my drone on a cool October morning.
I liked the variety of components in this picture. Puffy white clouds, rough mountains, gray-green sagebrush flats, bright green hayfields, and red soil.
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Fall seating near the Flag Bridge in the Old Mill District of Bend, Oregon
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Strawberry Mountain in the fall, Oregon
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I saw this red fox caching out at Yellowstone National Park last year. It returned to where it had cached its prey and dug it up.
If this animal appears a little different from what you think of as a red fox, that’s because this is a subspecies. This is a Rocky Mountain red fox, Vulpes vulpes macroura.
While this fox may appear large, it’s not that big. Females weigh 10 pounds and males weigh 11-12 pounds.
In the first two photos, you may have thought I took the pictures in the forest. Nope. The red fox caching out was at the Lake Lodge Cabins, at the north end of Yellowstone Lake. It was not afraid of people in the vicinity at all.
When we visited the park, we spoke with a man who worked at the small airport in the town of West Yellowstone. Part of his job is maintaining the runways. He said the foxes often cache items under mounds of dirt, making an uneven landing surface. Since the airport is near houses, he told us they cache things like children’s toys and dog toys. Though he liked to watch them, they made his job a little harder.
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When I walked past this, I did a double take. It looked like a bonsai growing on this tree near Withers Lake, Oregon.
I imagined some woodland elf climbing up the ponderosa pine’s trunk to tend to this little tree. They must have trimmed and shaped it over many years. Is it dead or just dormant? Hmmm… there must be more to this story.
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These quirky sculptures are at Lassen RV Park Campground in McArthur, California. Their website describes the artwork as follows:
More than just a hub for relaxation and recreation, we’ve transformed our campground into a living canvas that celebrates the intertwining of art and the natural world.
The first collection shows painted wood creatures.
The second collection shows various mushroom sculptures.
There were also sculptures featuring recycled items.
To see photos of even more of their quirky sculptures and outdoor art, see this gallery.
Lassen RV Park Campground
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Calcite Springs in Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming
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When you drive by this old stagecoach stop on the east side of Steens Mountain in Oregon, it just looks like a couple piles of rocks in the distance.
From a closer distance, it still looks like piles of rubble.
However, when you see it from above with a drone, it looks completely different. You can clearly see the walls of the structure on the left.
The building on the right looks like this from above. There are remnants of the rock wall on the west side of the structure, but the wooden parts have fallen to the ground.
In other environments, the wood would have deteriorated by now. However, this structure is just north of the Alvord Desert, which gets an average of 7 inches of precipitation a year.
I am reposting some facts related to stagecoach travel from one of my previous posts.
In the late 1800s to early 1900s, stagecoach routes crisscrossed the West. On the more heavily traveled routes, there were stops every 25 miles or so. Why that distance? That’s about how far a team of horses pulling wagons full of goods and passengers could travel. Their progress was slow because of difficult terrain and weather that could quickly change from scorching heat to bone-chilling cold.
Some of these stations were just for changing horse teams, while others had accommodations available for travelers. The stops in Fields and Frenchglen in Oregon offered more options for weary travelers. One stop near the one pictured above charged 25 cents for overnight lodging and meals. The charge for the care of each horse was an additional 25 cents.
Travel along these stagecoach routes was not fast. For example, the east-west route from Ontario, Oregon, to Burns, Oregon, took approximately 40 hours. Today, the 130-mile route takes 2 hours 12 minutes by car. But imagine all the sights those early travelers must have seen on those slow journeys…
Lens-Artists Photo Challenge – Ancient
Fandango’s One Word Challenge – Fast
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The Pete French Round Barn in eastern Oregon is a beautiful structure. On a recent trip, I took pictures and video of the barn with my phone and my drone.
This picture shows the building from above.
In this video, the drone flies around the perimeter of the barn. You get a much better perspective from this angle.
These pictures show some of the internal structure. The supporting beams and posts are like a work of art.
In the spring and summer, barn owls nest in the center of the barn. You can see the whitewash near the nest.
This is a panoramic view of the inside of the barn. In this view, you can see the details in the rock walls.
Here’s a closer view of the walls.
The story of pioneer Pete French is an interesting one. Though he accomplished a lot in his lifetime, he was not well liked. He ended up dying at the hands of a neighbor with whom he had a dispute. See my previous post for more about him.
The Pete French Round Barn is a state heritage site near Diamond, Oregon. Built in the late 1870s to early 1880s, it served as a place to train and stable horses.
In the summer, the barn is open daily from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. In winter, it’s open Friday to Sunday from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm.
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Portable Cattle Squeeze near Crane Hot Springs, Oregon
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I am calling this post “Before Edmonds Part 2.” I previously posted about another mural located in this same alleyway in downtown Edmonds, Washington.
These murals include amazing details, and they took 18 months to paint. The murals feature depictions of Indigenous people who lived here long before the city of Edmonds was created. For more details on these murals, read this article.
Monday Mural
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In our dreams,
we remember
the light and dark moments
of our lives
We remember soaring
over the highest peaks
and sinking to the lowest lowlands
In our dreams,
we remember the stormy times
and anticipate
the rainbows to come
We remember
turning around dark bends
towards the light of a new day
Lens-artists Photo Challenge (LAPC) – Dreamy
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The Juniper Cookhouse, in Burns, Oregon, is well-known for its barbecued food. The first picture shows a Large Plate with chicken. It includes 8 ounces of meat, two sides, a dinner roll, and a side salad. The chicken has a subtle smoky taste and the baked beans and coleslaw were both delicious. The dinner roll had a light texture and a great taste. Sugared walnuts in the salad added a nice touch of sweetness.
I took the picture above while participating in the Harney County Migratory Bird Festival in 2023. This dish is still on their menu. There was enough food to last for a couple dinners.
I’ve had barbecue there several times, but had never had the breakfast. On our most recent trip, we ordered a couple breakfast meals. The first meal included your choice of ham, sausage, or bacon and hashbrowns with two eggs. The scrambled eggs had great flavor, enhanced with a grating of cheese. Shoestring hashbrowns were perfectly cooked. The thin-sliced ham had a great smoky flavor. The biscuit was light and fluffy and delicious.
The next picture shows biscuits, hashbrowns, and gravy topped with sausage and two eggs. Once again, everything was well-prepared and delicious.
We ordered a cinnamon roll to go. Do you ever order cinnamon rolls that are so sweet you can barely eat them? You may even resort to scraping off thick layers of frosting. Sometimes, the inside dough is not cooked all the way through. That was not the case with the Juniper Cookhouse cinnamon roll we ordered. It was cooked throughout and had just the right amount of frosting. The texture of the roll was light and not too dry. Yum!
We also ordered meat by the pound to go. I had read several reviews that mentioned their tri-tip beef and ordered a pound. The thin-sliced smoked meat had great flavor! We also ordered a pound of the chicken. It came in large pieces, like in my first picture. When I got home, I shredded the meat and made a sandwich with some of their homemade barbecue sauce. It was pretty good.
Juniper Cookhouse is at 540 Highway 20 in Burns, Oregon. For many years, it was in a small building next to a large tent with seating. Now their brick and mortar location is right next to the Best Western. They serve breakfast, sandwiches, burgers, hot dogs, wraps, salads, baked goods, and several sides. This family run business processes their own meats and creates wonderful baked goods. Juniper Cookhouse also offers catering services.
If you are considering stopping at Juniper Cookhouse, check their limited hours of operation. They are open on Tuesdays through Fridays from 7:30 am to 2:30 pm. On the day we were there, we learned they were closed the day before because the women had traveled to California to fight wildfires.
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This cactus close up picture was taken at Volunteer Park Conservatory in Seattle. The cactus was only a few inches tall. Its scientific name, Gymnocalycium fleischerianum, posted on a stake nearby, was bigger than the plant. 😉
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The valleys on Steens in the fall
Are filled with green, yellow, and orange leaves,
Framed by mountain mahogany
Clouds skitter across the sky;
Parting to enlighten
Lone patches of gold
On Steens Mountain
Fall’s foliage gathers at the bottom of
Deep glacially carved gorges
Golden leaves of aspen and
Fuzzy flowers of rabbitbrush
Edge the ridgetops and roads
The last colorful moments shine brightly
On Steens in the fall
As winter’s darkness creeps in
Lens-Artists Photo Challenge (LAPC) – Looking Back to Lens-Artist Challenge #106: Autumn
Ragtag Daily Prompt (RDP) – Valley
All pictures were taken on 1 October 2025 while driving to the top of Steens Mountain, Oregon. The mountain reaches an elevation 9,733 feet. The 52-mile long Steens Mountain Backcountry Byway loop road to the summit is open seasonally.
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On a recent trip, I saw a Great Egret up close. I thought I should try to draw one of these elegant creatures. For this drawing, I used a pen that has a brush on one end and a narrow tip on the other. It was my first time using one of these pens and I think I’ll improve once I get used to them. I also used colored pencils for the eye and bill.
I saw this egret on a beach near San Simeon, California. The bird was not bothered at all when people walked close to it. I guess if you stand over three feet tall with a wing span of around five feet, you don’t care if other critters get too close to you. 😉
Do you have artwork you would like to share? Be sure to include the First Friday Art tag.
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I noticed this Chinese birdcage right away while visiting the Seattle Asian Art Museum. Its intricate design really caught my eye. I especially like the dragon on top of the cage.
I used Corel PaintShopPro 2021 for different photo processing effects on this picture of the Chinese birdcage. In the original image I slightly increased the contrast and fill light and cropped the edges. Use the slider to view each effect compared to the original.
The first one shows the original photograph and the same picture with a filters effect. For this image I went to Effects>Photo Effects>Film & filters>Warming filter>Warm earth tones>20 density. I liked how this effect made it look older in glowing warm tones.
The next one shows the original photograph and the same picture with a lighting effect. For this image I went to Effects>Illumination Effects>Lights>Default setting. I liked how this effect gave the subject a starring role in the spotlights.
The last picture of the Chinese birdcage shows an Art effect. For this image processing I went to Effects>Art Media Effects>Pencil>Factory Defaults setting. It looks like a soft pastel drawing that shows all its details.
This cage was made during the late Qing dynasty (1644-1911) or Republican period (1912-1949). The label near the display noted that this “birdcage reflects luxurious dimensions of pet ownership accessible to the wealthy.”
One-to-three Photo Processing Challenge – September 2025
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On April 6, I was up bright and early for a birdwatching trip that would encircle Steens Mountain in southeastern Oregon in a single day. Being a bit of an introvert, I wasn’t sure I wanted to partake in a tour like this one. The Steens Mountain tour was one of 22 tours available for nature enthusiasts at the Harney County Migratory Bird Festival. The festival, which started in 1981, takes advantage of the annual spring bird migration in the Harney Basin. More than 300 species of birds use this area annually.
At 6:00 am, participants in the Circle the Steens Mountain & Alvord Desert tour met at Burns High School. The weather was not cooperating for the 200-mile trip. A big storm system was blowing in. Twelve hours and 76 bird species later, we returned to the high school. Though we didn’t see any rare birds, we did see a lot, considering the weather conditions. Our views were framed by the dramatic landscapes of Harney County. The pale colored sands of the Alvord Desert stood out in contrast to the dark stormy skies. Steens Mountain provided beautiful panoramas from many different angles. We also had great views of pronghorn and deer.
We traveled east of Steens Mountain, south to Fields, then north along the west side of the 50-mile long mountain. Our tour guides, Joan Suther and Rick Hall, worked for the Bureau of Land Management locally for many years. The first brief stop was to look at burrowing owls. The small owls were seen braving the wind on this tour and the one I was on the next day. Flocks of snow geese and Ross’ geese were in fields nearby. Our next stop, at Crystal Crane Hot Springs, was much longer.
Continue readingLast week, we visited Oblivion Pour House in Bend, Oregon. I ordered the Smoked Baby Back Ribs. It included a half-rack of in-house smoked ribs, smashed potatoes with a cheesy sauce, and grilled broccoli, zucchini, carrots, and squash. I ate part of the large portion of food and took the rest home for two more meals. The ribs were tasty but weren’t the fall-off-the-bone type. The veggies were all good, especially the potatoes.
This entree includes a Caesar or house salad. I chose the house salad with a honey mustard dressing and it was delicious!
My dining companion ordered the Jambalaya Mac. Oblivion Pour House serves 11 kinds of mac and cheese. This dish includes sauteed chicken, Gulf shrimp, andouille, bacon, garlic, and tomato. The house-made 6-cheese cream reduction poblano-infused sauce covers the elbow macaroni. Green onions garnish this delicious dish. A heel of bread is served on the side.
We shared a piece of Key Lime pie for dessert. It was also good.
Their extensive menu includes salads, mac and cheese, burgers, sandwiches, pizza, tacos, and several entrees. Their drinks include Oblivion Brewing beer on tap, as well as several nonalcoholic drink options.
Previously known as the Pour House Grill, this restaurant underwent renovations and added ‘Oblivion’ to its name. Oblivion Brewing is one of many microbrews in Bend and they moved their tasting room to this location. The comfortable interior has several big-screen TVs playing various sports.
Oblivion Pour House is in the outlet mall at the south end of Bend. The address is 61276 S Hwy 97, Bend, OR 97702. They are open from 11:30 am to 9:00 pm Monday through Friday, from 9:30 am to 10:00 pm on Saturdays, and from 9:30 am to 9:00 pm on Sundays.
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Forest at Night exhibit at High Desert Museum, Oregon
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Water falls in cascades over moss-covered cliffs
Burney Falls, McArthur-Burney Falls Memorial State Park, California
and between dolphins, dancing and spinning
Rhapsody, Kelowna, British Columbia
Water flows down rocky crags, plummeting and thundering
Bridalveil Waterfall, Yosemite National Park, California
and emerges quietly from lagoons bordered by blossoms
Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden, Portland, Oregon
Water falls twice through basalt canyons, producing essential power
Shoshone Falls, Twin Falls, Idaho
and continuously over rustic artistry created from stone
Columbia Gorge Discovery Center, The Dalles, Oregon
Sunday Stills (SS) – Fountains and Falls
Water Water Everywhere (WWE)
Lens-Artists Photo Challenge (LAPC) – City Mouse/ Country Mouse
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Above the playa, lupines bloom amongst the boulders.
Artichokes two ways – as a sculpture and in the garden
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she stands by his side
in the dappled morning light
white dewdrops on grass
reflect the last days of youth
as antlers of spring emerge
Tanka Tuesday Poetry Challenge (TTPC) – White dew on grass
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Yearning to visit places that warmed the body and soul
Wishing to smell the scent of purple, blown by the breeze
Pining for the sound of bugling calls, heralding the arrival of spring
Craving the taste of a special summer treat
Longing to catch glimpses of beloved companions from the past
A picture helps us remember when we are yearning to feel, smell, hear, taste, and see our memories.
Lens-Artists Photo Challenge – Longing
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Here’s the High Desert Voices September 2025 newsletter for your reading pleasure. Lots of nice photos as well! This newsletter is published by and for volunteers at the High Desert Museum in Bend, Oregon. I’ve been working there as a volunteer since 2013.
Articles this month include one about the Welcome the Night evening event, one on the Forest at Night exhibition, and one on hiking the Soda Creek Trail, west of Bend. A calendar of upcoming events and exhibitions is on the last page.
Please enjoy the High Desert Voices September 2025 issue!
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Marble Mountain View in Sequoia National Forest, California
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in a quiet space
dark shadows dance and light sings
on a summer morn
Anila Quayyum Agha: Geometry of Light exhibition at Seattle Asian Art Museum.
Lens-Artists Photo Challenge – Quiet moment
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Here are a few pronghorn sketches I did while working on one of my books. I was going to include a pronghorn doe as a character, but decided to remove her from the manuscript. I already had a lot of animal characters. Don’t worry, she’ll show up in a future book or story.
I’m also including a photo of two pronghorn does in Yellowstone National Park. They are such graceful creatures.
If you want to learn more about pronghorns, check out one of my previous posts.
Do you have artwork you would like to share? Be sure to include the First Friday Art tag.
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Last spring, I saw this group of White Pelicans involved in cooperative foraging near Island Park, Idaho. All About Birds describes their feeding behavior as follows:
They forage by swimming on the surface, dipping their bills to scoop up fish, then raising their bills to drain water and swallow their prey. They also forage cooperatively: groups of birds dip their bills and flap their wings to drive fish toward shore, corraling prey for highly efficient, synchronized, bill-dipping feasts.
Do you know what a group of pelicans are called? They are called a squadron, pod, pouch, or scoop of pelicans.
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