Day 1 – 8/25/19
20.3 miles
“Cows are so smart. I love cows.” -Bubs
Thanks to networking via ONDA with Friends of the Owyhee, we were given a ride to the start by a local volunteer, MJ. She grew up in the area and offered us a lot of local history and perspective. Thank you!! On the drive, we drove over a cattle guard and I got to pinch Bubs, game on.
After walking out to the classic start/finish spit jutting into Lake Owyhee and taking the obligatory photos we were on our way.
Almost immediately we took an alternate on a jeep road instead of bushwhacking up a canyon full of poison ivy. Don’t need none of that on day 1!
The rest of the day it was cross country, occasionally picking up cow trails. Our first water source and lunch break point was a spring piped into a trough for cattle. DNR’s pro-tip #1: For hands free lunch shade, stick the handle of your umbrella down your bra.
The afternoon was filled with awesome canyon walking, including some bits of scrambling down pour offs. Nice and Haydukey!
The primary takeaway of Day 1 was “Holy shit we drink a lot of water when it’s hot.” We each took 3L (Dan took 4L), from lunch for 10 miles to our intended camp and next water source, and we finished it all. I was handing out salt pills like candy.
By the time we got to camp it was nearly dark. Dan and I went off trail for water from camp, thankfully only ~0.25 miles down the canyon towards the reservoir. Bubs was not feeling great and stayed behind to get to bed sooner. She couldn’t stomach her dinner.
I’d say that photo at the end is very satisfactory.
The photo of the night sky looks very professional, at least my impression on first seeing it, not a common sort of image. Keep up the good work!
Thanks! I once was camped on the rim of Crater Lake in winter and a pro photographer doing time lapse of the sky over the lake taught me a bunch of stuff while he was waiting for his time lapse!
Hey DNR! So excited to follow you and to see your amazing photos! What a great adventure! Love your starry night photo. Which camera did you end up getting?
Arrow
I got a cheap Sony A6000 with no lens cap from some shady guy on craigslist (I bought a new lens cap). I still am figuring out how to use it. Hoping I can stay awake late enough to do a couple more nigh sky photos. It’s sooooo starry out here in the middle of nowhere!
Have heard alot about the “non-trail” desert walk and finely get to follow along with you as you hike it. Love the night picture – nothing like the night sky in the desert!!