Happy Monday!

 Wishing everyone a great day and a happy new week!

"Never give up, great things take time."

"All good things are wild and free."

Oneonta Gorge @ Columbia River Gorge area, Oregon.

"We take photos as a return ticket to a moment otherwise gone."

Comments off, enjoy your day!

Happy Monday!

Wishing everyone a great day and a happy new week!

"Life is like a waterfall, always moving."

Oregon 2012, Multnomah Falls, Columbia River Gorge,

"Like a waterfall, life doesn't flow backwards."

"We take photos as a return ticket to a moment otherwise gone."

Comments off, enjoy your day!

SWF>>Columbia River

I am linking up with Skywatch Friday and Green Day

I still have lots of images from my vacation in Oregon, On this day we were still hanging and traveling around the Columbia River Gorge area.  There were more birds to be found and more waterfalls to see and we did manage to see somewhat of a pretty sunset on the Columbia River.

We took a hike to see the Bridal Veil Falls near the old Scenic Highway. The green moss and ferns are pretty along the cliff of the waterfall. Birds seen and heard here were the Swainson's Thrush, Chestnut-backed Chickadees, Cedar Waxwings and some Crows. I was also hearing Nuthatches but they were hiding in the treetops and teasing me.

Except for the size I find it hard to tell a Crow from the larger sized Raven. I believe the beak is a little different too.

A family of common mergansers were seen near the fish hatchery.

 

When we are on vacation we are constantly moving around beside stopping along the gorge we drove around the loop of Mt Hood to Timothy Lake. Here I also saw and heard more Chestnut-backed Chickadees, Nuthatches and more Thrushes.

 

I like the various shades of color left in the sky after the sun had set. I hope you enjoyed my photos. I have the Columbia coastline coming up next.  Thanks for stopping by to see my skywatch post.

To see more beautiful skies from around the world check out : Skywatch Friday  and more Greenery is seen at Green Day. Thanks Sylvia and Sandy the host of Skywatch Friday and to Fiona the host of Green Day.

SWF>>>Oregon

I am linking up my Oregon skies with Nature Notes and Skywatch Friday

These are some shots during our visit to the Columbia River, the Gorge and another waterfall at the Gorge. We stopped at various overlooks along the Columbia Gorge. At one of the overlooks we saw the sun shining beautifully on the Vista House.

 

Above is a pretty view of the sky, river and the Columbia Gorge Vista House.

Above, hubby made this trip up the Oneonta Gorge to see another waterfalls. The trail to the waterfalls was a watery one. To see the Oneonta Falls, hubby had to first climb over a big log jam and then walk up the stream thru this narrow gorge. He said at times the water was up to his waste and he was holding my spare camera over his head in a backpack.

 

Above is the Oneonta Waterfalls. Hubby took this hike alone and I stayed  near the parking lot looking for birds. Let just say I tried to get some bird photos, luckily I saw them enough to id some before they took off.

I tried so hard to catch some of the swallows  flying above me at the Gorge trailhead. I am not sure if they were Cliff Swallows or another species of swallows or maybe they were swifts. At times I thought they landed on the cliff walls. They flew fast, I did have fun watching them zoom all around me.

This was my attempt at trying to get a photo of the Stellar's Jay. You can see a blue flash.

 

LOL,  seriously I really tried getting some good Oregon bird shots. This was a Cedar Waxwing showing off his pretty backside and tailfeathers. 

The sky looked threatening but it did not rain. 

The sun tried to shine and had a small opening before setting behind the clouds for the evening. We stayed near the Columbia River for three days before heading to the Oregon Coast. During our week stay in Oregon I took over 1600 photos and that does not include photos I took at my SIL's wedding in Washington state.

To see more pretty Nature Scenes and skies please visit : Nature Notes  and Skywatch Friday

Thanks to Michelle the host of Nature Notes and to host of Skywatch: Sylvia and Sandy.  Thanks for stopping by to see my post. I hope the rest of the week and weekend is a safe and happy one for everyone.

Oregon birds..Columbia Gorge

I am linking up with Our World Tuesday
and Wild Bird Wednesday

Last week I had a fun vacation in Oregon visiting the Columbia River Gorge area, Mt Hood and the beautiful Oregon coastline. We spent the first three nights near the Columbia River Gorge Area, we used the town of Troutdale as our base for our visit. There were many hikes to waterfalls and beautiful scenic views of the Columbia River. This river splits the state of Oregon from the state of Washington. I am starting my post off with some of the Columbia River Gorge birds I saw and a few waterfall shots.

Click on the photo if you would like to see a larger image

This is the Multnomah Falls, the trail leads up to the middle of the falls and to the top.

Multnomah Falls drops in two major steps. The upper falls is 542 ft and the lower falls is just 69 feet. A trail leads to the footbridge which allows visitors to cross over the lower falls. There is a lodge, restaurant and visitor center on site.

This American Dipper was near the stream near the Oneonta Falls. We stopped here the first day to check out the hike to the Oneonta Falls. One must climb over a large log jam and then walk upstream to get to see the Oneonta Falls. Hubby did do this hike and I will show more of the waterfalls on another post.

The American Dipper is found near streams, it is a chunky slate-colored bird. I noticed and captured the flashing eyelid on the shot above. At the Oneonta Gorge area I saw a few of these birds. I was thinking I came across a family.

 The bird above looks like a juvie thrush to me but I am not sure. If any one can help with the id, I would appreciate the help. Edited, thanks to Jen id help the bird above is a Swainson's Thrush.

The Oregon Junco is another bird I heard and saw often.  The Oregon Junco has a dark black head with rusty sides.This Junco was seen hanging around the visitor center at the Multnomah Falls.The Oregon Junco is a lifer for me since I only see the Dark-eyed Slate Junco in Maryland.

The scenic overlooks of the Columbia River were all gorgeous stops along the Columbia River Gorge highway.



To see more photos from around the world visit: Our World Tuesday and to see birds from around the world check out Wild Bird Wednesday.  Thanks to the hosting group of Our World: Arija, Gattina, Lady Fi, Sylvia and Sandy. And Stewart our host of Wild Bird Wednesday. Thanks, also for stopping by to see my post.