The Blues

The valley of the south fork of the Walla Walla River
from Lincton Mt. in northeast Oregon  (© Diane B. Reed )

In southeastern Washington and northeastern Oregon, the Blue Mountains are just called "the Blues." We see our pond out our back windows, but we see the mountains out our front windows. Wherever we go around town the Blues are there. They rise east of the Palouse Hills, defining the eastern boundary of the valley, even as the various branches of the Walla Walla River and its tributaries make their way down the canyons from higher elevations of the mountains. 

The Blue Mountains, Oregon                                        ©Diane B. Reed

The Blues are not the Rockies, but they rise to more than 6,000 feet in places, and can be a formidable barrier to travel. There are few roads over them. The Oregon Trail crossed the Blues south of here (east of Pendleton) and provided the pioneers with a final difficult mountain passage into the Oregon Territory and their new homes. Even with today's interstate 84, travel over the Blues (especially in winter) is challenging.

The foothills of the Blue Mountains                                             ©Diane B. Reed

 Traveling up into the mountains reveals a progression of grassy foothills dotted with Rabbitbrush and Bitterbrush, leading into a forest of Ponderosa Pines and higher up Douglas Fir, Engelmann spruce and Larch.

These pictures were taken just a few weeks ago, when the Fall seemed reluctant to yield to the oncoming winter. The struggle is still evident as the snow comes and goes on the highest peaks, but soon the snow line will creep down the slopes, announcing the arrival of winter. We're waiting and watching.