Typically, in the world of Central Oregon Landscape photography there is a shoulder season between Autumn and winter which can be prolonged and unproductive.  During this shoulder season, which we are in the midst of right now, I always hope for a few light snows that add texture and interest to our Central Oregon Cascades.  There is a fine line, however, between enough snow and too much snow.  Enough snow allows access without requiring overnight camping and snowshoes. Recently we’ve had just enough snow.  One spot I like to visit in our photographic shoulder season is Big Lake.  It is near Hoo Doo Ski area and is beautiful any time of year.  The shoulder seasons are my favorite times of year at Big Lake because of sunsets like I recently experienced there.  Below is the first of many shots I captured that evening.

Mt. Washington and pastel skies reflected in Central Oregon's Big Lake

As the sun slowly faded I enjoyed the kind of light that is a landscape photographer’s dream.  The initial soft pastels hardened into more intensive and contrasty colors.  Below is a photograph taken within 10 minutes of the first, showing a quickly changing set of cloud formations.

Mt. Washington and Big Lake's shore line illuminated by pastel skies high in the Central Oregon Cascades.

Next is slightly later image showing Mt. Washington reflected in a small cove along Big Lake’s shore.

Mt. Washington reflected in Big Lake, high in the Central Oregon cascades

As the light faded an attractive and almost electric scene developed along Big Lake’s shore line.

Big Lake reflects a beautiful sunset high in the Central Oregon Cascades

Soon after the above shot was taken, the light faded, the wind picked up and I packed up my gear and headed home to Bend after a very successful and extremely beautiful sunset.  The next photograph also falls into my “shoulder season” category.  It was obviously taken on a different evening but one that was no less beautiful than the one I enjoyed at Big Lake.  This photograph was taken at Bend’s Tumalo Reservoir.  It is one of my favorite locations for Central Oregon landscape photography for several reasons.  It is close to the city of Bend, and it offers a nice reflection of all three of the Three Sisters Mountains.  The mid ground of the following image is an area commonly known as the skyline forest. This area is privately owned and was previously known as the Bull Springs tree farm.  It is composed of over 33,000 acres and encompasses much of the area between Bend and the Three Sisters Wilderness area.  It would truly be a shame to have this wonderful area developed into a resort with the possibility of over 1,000 homes.  It would be a shameless waist of breeding habitat for elk and mule deer and recreational habitat for people.  Can you imagine the view of the Three Sisters from Awbrey Butte spoiled by a city the size of Sisters where there was once nothing but beautiful ponderosa forests?  Can you next imagine the following image spoiled by a city crowding the area beyond the the reservoir? Groups like the Deschutes Land Trust  are working hard to make sure that the cities of Bend and Sisters never have their view ruined and that valuable wildlife habitat isn’t permanently destroyed so that out of state developers can get richer.  The Deschutes Land Trust is a special group filled with great people, many who I know personally and all of whom have Central Oregon’s best interests in mind Another group worth looking into if you are interested, as I am, in preserving the skyline forest west of Bend, is the Central Oregon Landwatch.

Enough of my conservation ramblings, below is the photograph which reminded me of the struggle to save the skyline forest area.

Sunset over Tumalo Reservoir, west of Bend. Just beyond the tree line is the area referred to as the "skyline forest"

     While on a recent trail run, with Debbie, I was stunned by the fall color in Shevlin Park, one of the true jewels in Bend’s park system.  I’ve been there hundreds of times before but this time was different.  During our usual Shevlin Park Trail Loop run, I found myself repeatedly stumbling while [...]

      OK, I recognize that this blog entry is a vast deviation from my normal protocol of documenting backcountry adventures highlighted with pleasant images and sprinkled with family details.  Well, a lot of friends and family have been clamoring for pictures from our recent trip to Italy so here they are.  Debbie(my 1/2 Italian, [...]

     Some of my favorite Central Oregon hiking areas are the alpine basins that surround Broken Top Mountain, located in the Three Sisters Wilderness Area near Mt. Bachelor.  There are several beautiful hiking trails that hive good access to amazing alpine scenery high on the flanks of Broken Top, including the Tam McArthur Rim [...]

     The Cascade Lakes Highway near Bend,Oregon is arguably one of the prettiest drives in the United States and is filled with outdoor adventure options.  Fishing, skiing at Mt. Bachelor, cross country skiing from Dutchman Flat, hiking, climbing, and of course photography.  Every year I make several photographic journeys along the cascade lakes highway, [...]

Debbie, Emma and I recently enjoyed an overnight backpacking trip in the Mt. Jefferson Wilderness area. The trail is relatively short (about 5 miles round trip) and the scenery is stunning.  Emma was a trooper while Debbie and I groaned about pack weight.  Below is a shot of my girls shortly after entering the lower [...]

Balsamroot in the Columbia River Gorge

On the weekend of May 10th, Emma and I decided to visit our good friends, the Max, Chrissy, Joe Joe and Jill Reitz in Hood River, Oregon.  Unfortunately, Chrissy(Momma) Reitz and Joe Joe and Jill were out of town, leaving my long time friend Max as the only one left [...]

 
 
The painted hills unit in the John Day area of Central Oregon has been a favorte of photographers since its discovery because of its stunning colors and other worldly scenery.  I’ve been there many times.  Some visits were more successful than others, but one particular shot that I’ve obsessed over has eluded me for quite [...]