The huckleberries are thick this year. I find it so relaxing simply focused on the berries with nothing else to interrupt my thinking–other than Leif slurping up some berries! (And the Indian paintbrush are gorgeous as well)
The Mt Emily Summit Road, as I have indicated before, offers some of the most spectacular canyon views you could hope to find anywhere. It is only about a half hour drive from home. it travels through the Umatilla National Fores, USFS 31, off of Interstate 84. The road also provides excellent views of both Meacham Canyon and the Grande Ronde Valley.
Grande Ronde Valley, Mt Emily Summit Road
Mt Emily, Grande Ronde Valley, mustard
I went out into the Grande Ronde Valley just after sunrise and enjoyed finding some beautiful places to photograph.
Mt Harris, Cathering Creek, swallows, Grande Ronde Valley
BSA Troop 514 Scouts enjoyed a sunny, chilly day marching in the parade in La Grande. After the parade they went over to the local Safeway and collected food for agencies that help those in need.
Troop 514 recently took its annual September backpacking, camping, rock climbing weekend. Eleven Scouts enjoyed their time camping at Hoffer Lake above Anthony Lake and then rock climbing higher up. We have been doing this event since the early eighties.
We set up our tents in the rain. When the clouds cleared in the evening, we enjoyed a spectacular sunset that reflected in Hoffer Lake.
“Around us life bursts with miracles—a glass of water a ray of sunshine , a leaf, a caterpillar, a flower, laughter, raindrops. If you live in awareness, it is easy to see miracles everywhere. Each human being is a multiplicity of miracles. Eyes that see thousands of colors, shapes, and forms; earth that hear a bee flying or a thunderclap; a brain that ponders a speck of dust as easily as the entire cosmos; a heart that beats in rhythm with the heartbeat of all beings. Where we are tired and feel discouraged by life’s daily struggles, we may not notice these miracles, but they are always there.” Thich Nhat Hahn.
The Mt Emily Recreation Area above La Grande and the the Grande Ronde Valley in Union County Oregon calls recreationists anytime of year–hiking, snowshoeing, cross country skiing in the winter, and mountain biking, riding dirt bikes, hiking the rest of the year. We are so blessed and fortunate to have such a great place to enjoy so near to us.
“God’s hand reaches back to the past, settling all the claims against our conscience….Let us go out with the patient power of knowing the God of Israel will go before us. Our yesterdays hold broken and irreversible things for us. It is true that we have lost opportunities that will never return, but God can transform this destructive anxiety into a constructive thoughtfulness for the future. Let the past rest, but let it rest in the sweet embrace of Christ.
On Saturday, I snow shoed up to Hoffer Lake, above Anthony Lake, OR with five Scouts and two other adult leaders. I came back with two “day” scouts, and the others are camped up there tonight. It was a proverbial winter wonderland, but not enough to attract/convince my “elderly” body to stay overnight 
“You are present, Eternal God, in every moment of my life, in the daily tasks and the swirl and seeming chaos of world events. Help me then to be aware of your presence and responsive to your purpose.” Evelyn Underhill
