Hey there everyone! I wanted to take a moment of your time and share another part of my life with you. As most of you know I am a photographer who is dedicated to capturing the beauty of the nature that surrounds us here in the Northwest. Being out in the woods near a creek or waterfall is one of my favorite things in life…..I spend most of my free time taking pictures….and you would be surprised at how many of the images I have on my website or Flickr page were taken with my “little assistant”.
Today was an amazing day for myself and my daughter and I thought I would give you a little rundown of our adventures here in the northwest. If you are not from the Northwest and want to follow along, grab a map and turn to the State of Washington page and follow as I describe our day!!!!
Springtime is the time when all the wildflowers bloom around here. Right now is peak season in some places and I wanted her to experience the beauty that surrounds us. We got up at 2:30am and were out the door by 3am. From Battle Ground, Washington we drove down 205 and connected to I 84 and headed east past The Dalles and crossed back into Washington via 197. Heading east on Hwy 14 we found our way up into the Dalles Mountain Ranch unit where the wildflowers were growing in abundance!!!
Nikon D300, ISO 200, F/13 @ .5 seconds. 3 stop soft grad.
After shooing the wildflowers for an hour or so after sunrise, we made our way back across the river via 197 and headed west on I 84 to Exit 76 and then proceeded up to Rowena Plateau where there are also wildflowers growing like crazy. At this point Lexi, who just turned 2, needed to get out and stretch her legs a little. There is a really nice trail that takes you all over up there so we walked for a while and she soon realized that some of the groups of flowers were the same height as she was. Lexi stands 3 ft tall and some of the blooms were almost at eye level with her….For some reason she kept trying to kick the little ones….not really hurt them but kick them to watch them move around. She must not have found it amusing because she quit before I had to tell her… This is a shot of her as we began our hike.
Nikon D300, F/10 @ 1/20th sec, iso 100, fill flash used
Here she is totally content in a nice grouping of Balsamroot Wildflowers
Nikon D300, F/16, 1/10th second, iso 160, fill flash, 3 stop soft grad
On our way back out we found a place to do a self timer shot and were able to get both of us in the shot…a memory I will keep with me forever. I am gonna have this one printed up and hung in our home!
Nikon D300, F/10, 1/15th sec, iso 100
By time she was done walking and ready for daddy to carry her back to the truck. So with camera and tripod in one hand and her in the other, we made our way back to the truck where we got her freshened up and ready for the next leg of our trip. Mount Hood!!!!!! I can honestly say that my 2 year old daughter has been up to Mount Hood more than most people I know. She is fascinated with the mountain. In fact a couple months ago we took a little trip up there to give her mom a break after a busy day at work. It was late and when we got up there the sky was crystal clear with billions of little stars. I think it was at that moment she fell in love with the night sky as I took this image!
Nikon D3oo, F/10, 664 seconds @ iso 100
So we take off from Rowena and follow the road down to the little town of Mosier and then back onto I 84 headed west to exit 63 where we stopped for gas and some supplies….ya know, chocolate milk for her, and a power bar for me!
Then we headed South on 35, wandering around in the hills of the Hood River Valley looking at the mountain from various vantage points….
Nikon D300, F/9, iso 100, 1/100th sec.
Next stop, the mountain itself….Mount Hood. It looked like they were doing some practice training on the hill to the left. What Lexi and I were both focused on was the amazing clouds that were flying by over the mountain….
Nikon D300, F/8, iso 100 1/400th sec.
We didn’t stay too long up near Timberline because of the massive amounts of people walking around carrying skis and snowboards….The parking lot was full and it was very crowded…. We drove back down to Hwy 26 and proceeded west to Still Creek where I was happy that the road was open for a little way and not blocked with snow. We only had to drive over one tree that was laying in the road and we made it up passed the first bridge before running into too much snow and having to turn around. I did find a little place for is to relax next to the river.
Nikon D300, F/8, 6 seconds @ iso 100
We enjoyed that view near a little camping site for a while before heading back down the road onto Hwy 26 and heading west into Portland where we connected to I 84 and continued west to 205 north and then back home to Battle Ground, Washington. I love photography and I love my daughter with all my heart and the fact that I was able to spend the day with her doing what I love and showing her the amazing things nature has to offer was just the best way I think I could have spent today!!!! Thanks for taking the time to read about our day!
