Exploring Oregon

I've been trying to go to a few new hiking ventures. The mountains to my north and south are still blocked by SNOW. So we headed east to the Sutton Mountain Wilderness Study Area. The directions and trail were vague at best. 

 I was hoping to find some wildflowers and I did! Not all of my photos turned out but this one of wild lupine did. When the sun is bright and skies are blue it is hard to take photos.

 This was the "trail" we followed up Black Canyon. It looked to us like an old riverbed.

 I sure wished I had wore my boots rather than my trail shoes.

Parts of the canyon had this little creek. Some places it just came out of the ground.

When we started climbing we pretty much made our own trail (or followed Elsa)

 And up, up up!

 The views were pretty amazing!

Rewarded with more wildflowers. 

It wasn't the longest of hikes, but vigorous, for sure!