Tuesday, January 22, 2008

McKenzie River

A beautiful river, my favorite in Oregon, the McKenzie.

Tom had MLK Day off. We drove up to the Cascades to breathe in their frigid freshness.

Jolly burst of color in the midst of the startling - for us - cold. The temperature here was in the mid to upper teens.

Exhilarated sisters clown around.

Hard, crunchy snow, temperature in the single digits by this time as we were higher up, and these three began to hike around.

Beautiful moon casting its reflected light followed us home.

As we headed toward a wide spreading sepia sunset, the bright moon low and to our left, shadows and trees and cityscape silhouettes met us. Invigorated relaxation.

We made it home before the colder temperatures settled into our valley. Last night the moon was a clear, bright white I've never noticed before. Tom says it might be because there's no moisture in the air. The girls and I braved the chill, standing, hopping, gazing until our bare feet screamed to go inside.

11 comments:

Marianne Elixir said...

Lovely adventures and pictures. Thanks for sharing! My feet are cold just thinking about you guys out there last night - or perhaps they are cold because I am not wearing socks.

Ann said...

Ah, more beautiful pictures. I always enjoy them.

tshsmom said...

Wow, a river that isn't frozen!
What a beautiful day for a hike!

I wish you could see the way the snow sparkles under the full moon the last few nights *humming* "Dancing in the Moonlight".

Cherie said...

Hey, Marianne, yeah, brrrr! You've had the same cold we've had, so you know what I mean. My wool socks have become my constant companions these days. Brrr. Maybe you haven't unpacked yours, yet? ;)

Ann - Glad you enjoyed these. Thanks for letting me now. ;)

Tshs: I would LOVE to see your sparkling snow under the moon! (I thought of you and your song last night.) I've seen that sort of sight before, but not where you are, and not recently.

Though our lakes will freeze over, the rivers don't freeze here in Western Oregon. We don't normally get this cold, and if so only for a little while. Frozen rivers are amazing!
----
I'm glad all three of you enjoyed the photos. I had fun taking them.

Anonymous said...

I think I felt a blast of your fresh Oregon air hit me in the face when I looked at these photos! Beautiful! Pristine. It looks like you had a much needed break. Thanks for sharing these.

Cherie said...

A cold blast to the face eh Annie. Bet that woke you up! It does me everytime I go outside these days. Yes, we had a wonderful break. Very peaceful and relaxing. Glad you enjoyed the photos!

Anonymous said...

I love these pictures!!! That water looks really cold. I hope your daughter didn't actually fall in. ;)

Sandy said...

The top picture is very beautiful! You always seem to have something do to and beautiful places to go when you want to.

Cherie said...

Hi Ashely! I splashed my hands in the water a little, and it was indeed very cold. No, Cassie didn't fall in. She'd have been one cold kid if she had. ;)

I like that top one, too, Sandy. The figure in the bottom right is Tom, looking into that cold cold clear beautiful water.

I'm glad both of you ladies liked the photos. Thanks for stopping by!

cecily said...

The moon has been very beautiful here too... but not as white I don't think. A bit creamy looking. :-)

Oregon is totally on my list of places to visit. One day...

Cherie said...

And Tassie is totally on my list of places to visit as well, Cecily.

I am transfixed by the moon and I don't really know why...