Last Saturday, Elin, my Mom and I drove up the old McKenzie Highway. As you can see from the pictures the fall foliage was fantastic! We had a really nice drive going across the high desert into the mountains climbing from 2900 feet at Prineville to almost 5000 feet in just a matter of 60 miles. It was spectacular!

If you have never been to the Dee Wright Observatory in the Willamete National Forrest, up on the old McKenzie Highway, please, before it closes for the winter, take the trip. It doesn't matter if your from the valley or from central Oregon, just take the drive. It has the most fantastic viewpoints.
That is a wall of lava behind Elin and the sign at the base of the observatory. While we were there, the clouds moved enough to see Mt. Washington through. What an eerie sight. The foreground in lava, then the boiling clouds then the Mt. peakIt was about a 160 mile round trip, with stops at the viewpoints, and at the Sno Cap Inn in Sisters for ice cream. It was a fun day all around!