Smith Rock Snow Photos
Recently, Troy McMullin and I ventured to Smith Rock State Park to enjoy the low elevation snow to be found there. It was the first sunny day in quite some time and we both were happy to get out of the clouds that had been inhabiting Central Oregon. I am repeatedly amazed at how stunning the Smith Rock area is. I’m convince that if it was located east of the Mississippi River, it would have been made into a national park long ago. With its stunning colors, vertical towers the Crooked River flowing around its periphery, and with Gray Butte as a backdrop it is simply an amazing place to visit. Personally, I think it surpasses anything outside of Utah with its rugged, rocky appeal. Of course it is world famous for its Rock Climbing and less so for its hiking, mt. biking, and photo opportunities.
The Monument and snow at Smith Rock State Park
One of the less obvious but very photo worthy rock features at Smith Rock is the Monument. I’ve always been very fond of this photo location and Troy seemingly has developed something of an obsession with the scene. Please click the following link to visit Pacific Crest Stock . It is the stock photography company that Troy and I will be launching shortly after New Years. In the link included you’ll find some other very nice photos of Smith Rock and the high desert areas of Central and Eastern Oregon.
The snow cover made for some interesting textures and mid range details in our images. If you or anyone you know visits Smith Rock while it is still snow covered, please be careful. The snow adds a level of danger to the scene as well as beauty. The prominent basalt columns along the Crooked River Canyon are especially dangerous when snow covered. Obviously they are slippery, but many small crevices are now snow covered creating many hidden and potentially dangerous pitfalls. Be careful if venturing near any cliff edges for photo, climbing, or sight seeing purposes.
Smith Rock towers and snow covered basalt columns
Above is a photo of Smith Rock from high above the Crooked River Canyon featuring some slippery yet attractive snow covered basalt columns in the foreground with some rocky snow covered spires in the background. The light was not optimal for some areas of the park but the exploring was exceptional and beautiful from every angle, even if photo conditions were slightly less than perfect. It is rather rare to have this much snow at Smith Rock and blue skies because the snow tends to melt of quickly at that elevation when the sun appears on the scene. I captured the next photo from an entirely different area of Smith Rock. This rock formation is to the left after you cross the bridge over the Crooked River. It has some beautiful pastel hues in its rock formations but is quite dangerous for rock climbing purposes as I’m told that it is rather crumbly.
Smith Rock and the frozen Crooked River covered in snow.
One of the surprising things about this photo adventure was how thoroughly the Crooked River was frozen. The clouds behind this impressive rock formation are a bit disappointing in that they obscure South Sister peaking out to the left side of the rock formation. I like how the snowy juniper trees frame the bottom of this picture and the curvature of the Crooked River(perhaps this is why it’s called the Crooked River!) emphasizes the shape of the giant rock formation at the south end of Smith Rock. Finally I’ll include a detail shot of one of my favorite rock formations. Smith Rock is a wonderland for photos, hiking, biking, and virtually any outdoor activity and I love the big western scenes there. This being said, perhaps my favorite aspect of Smith Rock State Park is the small details I find upon intimate inspection of this stunning location. Like so many other spots at Smith Rock, the following photo reveals beauty in its finer details.
Smith Rock winter details
I love the varied color palette visible in this picture. The rust, aqua, and oranges all enlivened by the snowy details on these intricate rock formations. It is finding perspectives like this that has become my favorite aspect of photography explorations of Smith Rock.
If anybody is interested in a beautiful and snowy perspective of Smith Rock, now is the time for a hike as the snow often does not last long in this area of the high desert of Central Oregon and please be careful near cliff edges as the snowy beauty harbors some seasonal dangers that are best avoided. Happy Holidays!
Deschutes River Winter Photos
As Old Man Winter has thoroughly put his stamp on Central Oregon, my preferred backcountry photo locations become less accessible and even simple hikes can become a difficult task. With nearly a foot of snow in my backyard, conditions are excellent for some great winter photos, of locations that would otherwise be photographically unworthy. As there doesn’t appear to be a break in Central Oregon’s pattern of snow storms and heavily overcast skies in the near future, I’ve temporarily given up on any mountain alpenglow and fresh snow shots for the foreseeable future. Instead I’ve turned towards some less remote scenes for some interesting winter pictures.
On overcast, snow days like today, I usually find some worthy photo material at Tumalo State Park. As Highway 20 descends into the Deschutes River’s basin, on the left side of the road is an attractive overlook where you can get an arial view of the northern end of Tumalo State Park and a graceful curve in the Deschutes River. On rare snowy cold days like today, when the riparian area along the Deschutes’ shores are powdered with fresh snow, the scene is especially elegant because the juniper and ponderosa trees retain extra detail from the snow on their limbs and the snow covers some less attractive areas in the state park area. The following photo was taken from that unmarked but very pleasant location.
Deschutes River in winter
Upon entering the state park, I was rewarded with solitude and some of the best winter and snow scenery in the Bend, Oregon area. I made first tracks in the freshly fallen snow and thoroughly explored this beautiful Central Oregon location. I took pictures from all over the park but I’ll only present a few of my favorites in this blog entry. I think these photos will be great for stock photo purposes. As I stumbled up stream, I made an obligatory stop at my favorite ponderosa tree. It’s broad limbs were predictably snow covered making an interesting, graphic picture. This tree is absolutely immense and the density of the arrangement of its branches make it one of my favorite oregon photo subjects.
Snow covered ponderosa tree in Central Oregon's Tumalo State Park near Bend Oregon
Further up river more rewarding winter photos were to be found. The red osier dogwoods along the Deschutes River’s shores add a splash of red to the scene as do the trunks of numerous ponderosa trees along both banks of the river. Near the southern end of the park is a broad and rugged boulder field filled with volkswagen sized lava rocks. This boulder field is tedious to navigate in summer and it turns out that it is fairly treacherous when snow covered. The following photo was taken at the up stream end of the boulder field.
Snow covered boulders and ponderosa trees line the Deschutes River
Because these boulders were snow covered many cracks and concave areas were hidden, making the travel especially difficult. I spent a considerable amount of time on my belly grasping at small slippery hand hold in an attempt to not fall into any of the snow covered cracks that served as trap doors between the large rocks. Frankly, I wouldn’t recommend traveling through the rock field to others. Instead I would recommend climbing up hill above the rocks if you insisted on pressing up stream beyond this location. The next photo is from just beyond the boulder field. I really like the graceful curvature that the deschutes makes in this location and I love the color lent to this beautiful winter scene by the ponderosas and red osier dogwoods that flank the river.
The Deschutes River flanked by snow covered ponderosa trees fill this Central Oregon scene.
I stopped my hike at the point where the above picture was taken and began a cold and hasty retreat back to my truck. For those of you who enjoy winter hiking, Tumalo State Park is beautiful right now. The snow cover has made an already beautiful hike even more stunning but I would highly recommend avoiding the snow covered boulder field as it is challenging and quite dangerous when snow covered, like now!
Central Oregon snow, Winter’s Arrival!
It appears that old man winter has finally arrived in full force on the Central Oregon scene. I received a mixed reaction when I declared that Central Oregon residents were in need of a cold snow infusion two entries ago, in that perhaps there aren’t as many snow lovers in our midst as I had once imagined. Personally, I love distinct seasons. I wouldn’t mind spring being a little more distinct and prolonged here in the Bend area but I have no reservations in regards to winter’s arrival. In celebration of our recent snowfalls, I strategically made my first cross country ski outing of the season to Tumalo Falls. I knew it had been quite cold and enough snow had fallen to make a potentially interesting photo or two. I’ve been to Tumalo Falls many times in the winter but frankly I’ve never really dialed in the scene to the point where I’m truly proud of my photos. This outing was very good but far from perfect. It was a day that my friend and fellow photographer, Troy McMullin refer to as a good stock day. By this we mean that the conditions or the setting might not have been appropriate for capturing a fine art photograph that is worthy of selling as a print but it was probably an attractive enough scene that is has some commercial value.
In early season conditions like this, one often has travel options. The road from the parking lot along Tumalo Creek had enough snow for skiing but it had little enough that it was still hikeable. Probably the only way to go wrong was to snowshoe. I had enough kick and glide that the weight of my skis were easily justified. After the quick 2.5 mile ski into Tumalo falls, my first stop was at the viewpoint where I took the following wintry picture.
Bend, Oregon's Tumalo Falls after Central Oregon's first significant snow of 2008.
The attractive elements of this image led me to my next several shots. I like the snow cover on the trees and the rocks in the middle of Tumalo Creek but I am especially fond of the ice formations at the base of the waterfall. Their artistic shapes and blue hues made them a subject worth zooming in on a little closer. any good photographer will tell you that it is better to get closer to your subject that to employ a lens with a longer, so I got closer. I dropped my skis and skirted along the right hand side of the creek’s canyon for a more intimate vantage point. The travel was actually more hazardous than I’d anticipated as some of the steep snow laden slopes were a bit nerve racking. Looking down I realized that one slip and I slide 75 feet straight into the creek which would be uncomfortable but not devastating. What would be devastating was the fact that I was potentially the last person into the falls that evening and that I could possibly break my leg during a slide into a creek. It is moments of exposure like this that trigger my mind to draw out dark scenarios of my own dismemberment that at worst are melodramatic and at best are preventing my wife from cashing in on a life insurance policy!
Bend Oregon's Tumalo Falls in Winter.
As I was fussing with optimal tripod placement and being covered with fresh fallen powder, I became acutely aware that i was getting cold! I like the details of the falls and its associated ice formations that are captured in this picture. When I tried to hike/climb/scramble I ran into two issues. The hillside became intimidatingly steep for someone(me) who isn’t ready to cash in their own life insurance policy and the spray from the waterfall became problematic for my lenses. The next image emphasizes the Ice sculptures beneath a tad more aggressively.
Icy formations beneath Tumalo Falls near Bend, Oregon.
Hopefully this will be the first of many winter photo outings that I’ll make this winter season. It was great to be back out on skis and I’m glad winter has finally arrived despite the wishes of my loving wife and my favorite ultra-marathoner/retailer. By the way, my wife will have to wait awhile for summer and to cash my life insurance policy!
First Friday Art Show- 12/5/08
Broken Top Basin
Deschutes River in Autumn
The above image was taken near the Deschutes River Trail just south of Bend. The next photo, also never shown before is of Mt. Bachelor taken from the Three Sisters Wilderness Area. This is the most dense stand of Indian Paintbrush that I’ve found in the Bend area. I also like how the small cloud cap adds another element to the composition.
Mt. Bachelor and Indian Paintbrush
Oregon Cascade Mountain Gallery
High Desert Print Gallery
Trees and Wildflower Prints Gallery
Rivers, Lakes and Waterfalls Gallery
All content © 2010 by Mike Putnam Photography