Wildland fire training leads to stunning vistas

The sun shined on Kettle Falls this morning. Grasses are beginning to deepen their hues of green that convert the sun's radiation into sugars to build stem and leaf, feeding furry and feathered creatures great and small. It was the perfect start to a travel day. I spent about 9 hours driving 460 miles to attend a week-long training on running a public information campaign during a wildland fire.

I stopped to refuel near Pasco, Washington. I didn't realize it when I pulled in, but a Mexican family runs the kitchen at the North Corners gas station. It was the best torta I've had in a long time. The red salsa was picante and smoky, the perfect match for the braised pork sandwich topped with avocado, lettuce, and tomato.

Vast farms cover Central Washington. Even through the fog, rain, and cloud cover, a neon green blanket wrapped the landscape in every direction. 

I crossed into Oregon at Umatilla, and followed the Columbia River into a rugged landscape of eroded basalt columns draped with the most vibrant carpet of lichen, moss, grass, and wildflowers I've ever seen. This riot of colors followed the sharp contours of rock slides and the rounded masses of worn down pebbles, sometimes looking like terraced gardens and other times appearing as if a web of green velvet had been laid across the jagged landscape. 

This photo is from the scenic pull off before the Columbia River Gorge Scenic Byway, but doesn't show the stunning cliff faces and otherworldly spires that accompany the twisting river toward the Pacific. It's not a photo you can take while driving -- there's fast, heavy traffic and the winding road is unforgiving. Even a passenger might have difficulty snapping the photo for being too enthralled by the audacity of its shape and color.

Wind turbines are everywhere along the route. Their scale is hard to pinpoint, until you realize the black specs in the grass are full grown cattle.

Rather than drive through Portland, I turned south at Hood River to drive through the Mount Hood National Forest. It was like driving in a snow globe.

After checking in, unpacking, and having dinner, it was wonderful to have the hotel hot tub to myself.