Art with a Message Lands on the Moon and Discovers Cowboy Land!

There was a marked change in the landscape as we cruised along the Oregon side of the Columbia River. We discovered unique rock formations, some square and jagged while others were rounded and “sponge-like”. Union Pacific trains chugging by from time to time made things even more interesting. Now this, I thought to myself, is art in action!

As we drove east toward Idaho the alpine trees disappeared and a golden landscape of rolling hills extended as far as the eye could see. They call this stretch of road the Oregon Scenic Highway. The message emblazoned on the slope in the photograph below -- Keep Your Forests Green -- shows how passionate Oregonians are about protecting their environment!

We crossed the border into Idaho and shortly thereafter pulled over into a scenic turnout that overlooked a lush valley. Way below we could see what was once called the “Old Toll Road”. In former times it was the main stagecoach route to Idaho City, which at that time was the foremost settlement in the state. If you look closely down into the valley you will see a distant winding road. We followed that trial to Idaho City, now a well preserved historical site.

My husband, Bruce, and I had always considered Idaho to be just one big farm with fields of potatoes and corn and little else. We couldn’t have been more wrong. While there is farming on the plains, we learned that Idaho has more national park acreage than anywhere else in the lower 48 states. One such park was the beautiful Challis National Forest.

Once through the forest we found ourselves in a sort of twilight zone. The surrounding landscape looked as though monstrous farm ploughs had been busy that very morning! We scrambled for the map. Where were we? Craters of the Moon National Park. Those huge mounds of dirt were in fact dried molten rock, the result of massive volcanic activity eons ago.

We learned that Idaho is an eclectic mix of just about everything. When we finally reached civilization we found ourselves in Pendleton -- Cowboy Land! Home to the famous USA made Pendleton shirts. We stopped into a local saloon for lunch and made friends with these local gentlemen. When asked if they were retired their response was “yep, retired and workin”. But on that sunny day they were simply taking it easy and having a friendly afternoon chat over drinks. The prior week, however, had been a different story. Our new friends and the entire community of Pendleton had just hosted an annual rodeo, one of the largest and most famous rodeos anywhere. Hats off and cheers to Pendleton and its residents -- towns like this are what make America a great nation.

With the last light of a long day we spotted the Sawtooth Mountains in the distance and knew that Yellowstone Park and the state of Wyoming were not too far away.

Catch you on our next art with a message action adventure... pardner!

Leisa
www.leisacollins.com
leisa@leisacollins.com