This is the first gallery from our week long June 2023 trip to Oregon. On the drive down, we passed an old abandoned house in northern Oregon, one that has been slowly deteriorating over the years and gaining more and more graffiti inside. I've photographed the same house on multiple other occasions over the span of decades and it is interesting to see the progression.
The first "real" day of photography started to the north east of the Painted Hills Unit of the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument. The above image was taken along a backroad route, coming in to the area from the north, whereas normally people would access the Painted Hills from the south. This was a very scenic drive as you can see, first starting off with a lightly paved backroad before turning into a much narrower and rough gravel off-road trail. The views were spectacular and there were virtually no other vehicles along the way, something I love about the Oregon Outback! The night skies there are magnificent and the area has been designated the largest dark sky sanctuary in the world.
We spent the afternoon and evening at the Painted Hills and that night, camped nearby. The next morning was relaxing, taking in some gorgeous views over the John Day River while sipping our morning coffee.
After breaking camp, we drove back out and up the John Day River valley to an area called the Blue Basin, which features strongly blue-green coloured and eroded soft sandstone formations, which made for a very scenic hike. I have been there on other occasions over the years, but if I recall, it was always either overcast or hazy, or scorchingly hot, and I never had an opportunity like this one to capture the beauty of the area...
Read: All the blog postings from my 2023 Oregon Trip
