The Golden Lining - Crooked River Canyon

"Where would I live if I were a man of golden words or would I live at all?" - Andrew Wood, Mother Love Bone

My youngest daughter, Odessa, and I recently traveled to Central Oregon to both visit family and so I could participate in a craft show with my photography creations. I had set out a full agenda for our travel day over. Some hiking, lunch in Bend, and just doing what I love to do best - playing with my camera.

Mount Hood as seen from one of our stops

Unfortunately, my vehicle had other ideas. My Land Rover - which I affectionately call "The Zombie" because my husband has brought it back from the dead after rebuilding the engine - had some brake issues and we were forced to make several prolonged, unscheduled stops. By the time we reached Madras, to say I was  annoyed and frustrated would be a a gross understatement. The way I saw it, my day had been ruined and I just wanted both the day and the road trip over with.

 
As we reached Peter Skene Ogden State Scenic Viewpoint near Terrebone, "golden hour" had just started to set in. I decided this was a good time to make an unscheduled stop, this time that I chose, and see what I could capture with the camera.

Anyone who has met Odessa, knows that sometimes she can be a bit "bouncy", and after being cooped up in a sometimes moving vehicle most of the day, she had a lot of energy that needed to be burned off. She was very excited to have a chance to stretch her legs. However, when I saw this sign, I immediately began to rethink my decision to stop here.

 
The view here was incredible. Once we got to the rock wall, and peered over, I could understand why a warning sign is necessary at the parking lot. I snapped off a few shots, drinking in the last of the sunlight and the smell of sagebrush in the air.

Odessa wanted a turn with the camera as well. I nervously helped her hold it and she grabbed a few shots of her own. Apparently she thought everyone needed to see this image of the wall.

A photo by Odessa

The grounds here were absolutely littered with leaves, over ankle deep in places. Like any other little kid, Odessa could not resist such an opportunity, and ran and jumped in them with a look of pure glee on her face.

She then decided that it would be fun to bury herself in the leaves, kinda like a little crab in the sand.

Can you find Odessa in the leaves?

After I was able to locate my child again, we were back on the road. As we drove down Highway 97, I thought to myself that the day wasn't the complete disaster I had thought it had been. The chance to watch my girl, so completely happy playing in the leaves, and capture those images with my camera was truly the golden lining to the day.