A Blue Clear Sky

When the skies are clear like this in winter...you know it's going to be cold that night. But at least the daytime looks beautiful to make up for it! These are the Blue Mountains which in this case should probably be called the White Mountains. They've gotten a fair dumping of snow over the last couple of months, and I hope it helps keep our water levels acceptable this coming summer. This is a view from Highway 11, looking east.

Cabbage Hill 3

This part of the descent on Cabbage Hill enters a crevice of the hillside and takes one of several sharp curves. You can see why this hill might be treacherous in bad weather.

Typical Drive

Just before New Year's, my friend Ciel popped online to say hello and asked how the weather was. She is familiar with my part of the world, surprisingly, and although she is quite a ways away in Versailles, France, she holds a special place in her heart for the WW Valley, where she has some local friends. I took this picture that day to show her what the weather was like...but forgot to post it! We had some sun over the past weekend, but before that, most days looked like this. The sign says "Walla Walla River," as in this photo I am about to go over it. This is Highway 11, the main road that connects Walla Walla and College Place to their next-door neighbour, Milton-Freewater, just across the border in Oregon.

Disappearing Act

This is supposed to be Wal-Mart. I was sitting at a red light at the intersection right next to the large store and glanced over...only to find the store had disappeared! Winter is quite regularly foggy in the WW Valley; I don't usually mind, though, because it hides the fact that otherwise, things are pretty dreary and boring.

On the Way to Work

This was the view I had this morning as I left my house for work. The sky was beautiful; for the last several days we've had nothing but fog, so to see the sky was amazing enough, but the cloud formations and lovely colours were a nice bonus. Good morning!

Typical

This is a typical scene out my office window in the winter. Well, when there's snow. Really I'm just getting at the fact that it's quite dark and grey for a majority of the colder months here in the WW Valley. A lot of people strongly dislike this fact, but I suppose those same people are appeased when June, July and August roll around with its 100-degree (F) weather every summer. They can have their summer...I'll enjoy wearing scarves and hats, thank you!

Good Morning

I just love the view from my front window on days like this. The snow makes everything clean and quiet, and the sunlight on such a scene makes me warm inside. In America it is now officially the Christmas season, now that Thanksgiving is over (though all the stores and many homes put up decorations at the beginning of November). This scene is quite fitting for that time of year, as all of us in the northern hemisphere imagine white Christmases! (Sorry, Aussies...I just can't imagine a Christmas on the beach!)

Fire & Ice

This was taken through my kitchen window earlier this week. The sun was just peeking out over the Blue Mountains and was making the icicles look as though they were glowing.

Frosty Morning

Earlier this week it got down to about five degrees (F) at night. When we woke up there was not only frost like this on the kitchen window, but in our bedroom there was ice on the inside of the window. Our house is old and not well-insulated, and the windows are old and drafty. The frost did create a pretty scene through the window, though.

Tour of the Back Roads 8

Here, our last stop on our first tour of the WWV back roads, we see a field weed coated in ice, preserved until the sun warms the ground enough to fight back. And thus ends this tour of the back roads, though I do hope to go on another one, perhaps in the spring when there is more colour in the valley. I hope you'll join us for that tour, as well. You probably won't need your mittens for that one.

Tour of the Back Roads 7

Earlier on our tour of the back roads of the WWV, we encountered this field, covered in ice and snow, lined with icicle-laden trees. Yesterday we took a closer look at the trees themselves; today we're scanning the field and noticing each sparkle of ice-covered grass and stump of cut hay. You can see a few sparkles in this photo. Tomorrow we'll get up close and personal with the ground and see what makes the field sparkle like glass. Then we'll call it good for this particular tour of the back roads...until next time!

Tour of the Back Roads 5

It recently snowed a bit in the valley. Just a little bit, with the deepest spots boasting approximately 2 1/2-3 inches. But it was enough to freeze the valley, causing residents to drag out the gloves and hats again. Many fields pepper the valley; in the spring it's colourful and fresh, but in the winter, everything is brown...unless it snows, and then everything is white! For some reason, occasionally farmers (or the farm hands?) will allow the sprinklers to run even in the dead of winter. I'm not sure why, because it seems bad for the pipes to be pumping water through in freezing weather. The sprinkler heads coat with ice and then can't move. Whatever the reason, it happens, and when it does, it actually creates a beautiful sparkling field of ice. Such as the one pictured above. They are trees lining a field on the back roads, and they are completely covered in ice. Tomorrow we'll take a closer look and see what else this fantastic mistake has created.

Tour of the Back Roads 4

If I'd started this tour of the back roads just two days later, this would have worked out perfectly. The young person buried here died on February 2, 1903, so Monday will mark the 106th anniversary of his death. I think it's safe to assume that no one who knew him personally is still alive today, though it is possible. This little one died at age 11. When wandering through cemeteries - new or old - I always have to stop and think of the parents of these children who didn't live to fulfill their life dreams and goals. Join us again tomorrow for more of the back roads of the WWV.

Tour of the Back Roads 3

As we continue along our tour of the back roads of the WWV, our next stop is Valley Chapel Cemetery. With the snow on the ground, it's hard to tell how many graves actually fill this small place of memories and loved ones, but those headstones that rose above the ground numbered less than 20. Most of them marked graves that were between 100 and 120 years old, making this yet another pioneer cemetery. (See my previous post on Pioneer Cemetery on the outskirts of Milton-Freewater.) Tomorrow we'll take a look inside of the cemetery, at some of the very old gravestones laid with love and tears.

Tour of the Back Roads 2

This week we are touring the back country roads between MF and WW/CP. Yesterday was the beginning of the tour, so check yesterday's post for more information and the first stop. Today's stop is another typical scene along the back roads: livestock. This is a farming community, after all, and animals are crucial to successful farms. Perhaps not as much so as 100 years ago, but most farms still have at least a couple of horses, some cows, and perhaps chickens, goats, or sheep. This horse was huddled behind a large tree, procuring some shelter from the chilly winter breeze blowing snow all around the valley. Check back tomorrow for the next stop on our back roads tour.

Tour of the Back Roads 1

Welcome to the tour of the back roads! This week we're going to see what the countryside between M-F and WW/CP is like. Make sure you bring a hot drink...it's gonna be a cold drive.

When you leave Milton-Freewater and head north toward College Place and Walla Walla, there is the direct route, which takes approximately 7-10 minutes, and there is the much more interesting route, which can take half an hour to an hour or more, if you do it "right." There are plenty of back roads surrounding the cities in the WWV, and most are very fun and interesting to drive. Since I like taking photos, and my sister does, as well, we decided on Sunday to go for a drive on the back roads with our cameras. Husband drove, and we sat staring out the windows, eager for a good shot at anything, really. Because the roads were a little iffy (the snow and ice made stopping suddenly pretty much impossible), some of our shots were taken while the car was still moving. Such is the case with this photo of a typical WWV orchard in the winter. I'm not sure what these trees grow...perhaps apples, or maybe pears. I suppose this summer we will find out!

Winter Landscape

This weekend it snowed again. Just a bit, though - nothing like December. We only have about 2 1/2 - 3 inches at our house, and in some places there is barely an inch. I do like how it makes the world look wintry again, rather than just plain cold and grey. The sky was grey and overcast when I took this shot of the river on Sunday afternoon, but the snow brightened everything, in spite of there not being much to speak of. Just looking at this water rushing by beneath me made me cold. Monday morning as I was eating breakfast, our thermometer said it was 10* F (approximately -12* C). Over the next couple of days I'm going to take you on a tour of the back country roads between Milton-Freewater and College Place/Walla Walla. And it will be a wintry drive, so bring your coat and mittens!

Hill With a View

Another geocaching photo. My husband is way more into geocaching than I am, though I find the concept interesting. I just don't like spending half an hour searching for something. The fun part is following the GPS to an unknown destination. It's like a Christmas morning surprise journey. But once you get there, if you can't find the cache within about 2 minutes, I'm bored. Poor husband, I know! Anyway, this photo was taken on the hills south of Milton-Freewater last January (that's M-F down the hill in the distance). The stormy skies are typical for this time of year, and is, in fact, what we had some of last week. This week it was sunny and beautiful for two days and the rest has been foggy/cloudy/grey/drizzly. Nice if you like that sort of thing. I don't mind it. But I actually did like the sunny days. So we are back to wearing coats outside, etc....I'm actually wearing a scarf today. Ah, the weather. One never knows what to expect!

The Forgotten Photo

I meant to post this photo back with all the other ice and snow photos a couple of weeks back, but neglected to. So here it is now, since it's still January and winter. This is a photo of a light switch on our front porch with cobwebs on it...that were coated in ice when the fog rolled in and froze a couple of Sundays ago. My husband loves this photo because he thinks the spider webs just look so cool. I agree. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your mindset), the freezing cold weather is gone and we are experiencing early spring. I don't think it will last; I think we'll get some more below freezing days, but we'll see! Right now I'll enjoy walking outside with sunglasses and no coat.

The Hills of the Valley

Sounds like an oxy-moron, doesn't it? But really, it's true. This valley is a valley of hills. The cliche "rolling hills" really comes true here in the WWV. This is a view from a hillside on the east side of the valley, looking southeast. Husband and I were geocaching and when I turned around to take a look, this breathtaking view is what greeted me. True, it's not the Tetons, the Alps, or the blue Atlantic, but this area really grows on a person. After over 7 years of living here, I've started calling it home, and it really is beautiful. Just don't ask me in July as I hover in front of the air conditioning unit with a popcicle in each hand.