As signs of spring continue to show themselves in our neck of the woods we headed to Oregon’s Outback in search of Oregon’s state gem, the sunstone. The BLM has set aside an area for public collecting, and they litter the ground there, waiting to be picked.
We made an overnight stop at Anna Reservoir, the coyotes sang us to sleep and the blackbirds woke us and got us moving.
We moved on from Ana and past Lake Abert. It was smooth as glass so we stopped for a glance.
We had a chance encounter with a western meadowlark singing its heart out, which happens to be Oregon’s state bird. Yes, spring is in the air.
We arrived mid-morning staked out a camp and went to exploring the sunstone area. I was expecting them to be bigger, but their abundance made up for their size. Just walk into the sun and all the shiny spots are the gem you are looking for. We tried our hand at digging, and we found some that way too, but picking them off the surface seemed to be the most productive. Even the ant hills are made of sunstone here.
We picked enough for a tumbler load. We enjoyed the sun, the cranes and coyotes and mountains in the distance. Huge flocks of cranes and geese were high overhead in V formations, heading north on their annual pilgrimage. The quiet wide open stretched out in every direction.
We enjoyed a night around the fire, listening to the cranes trying to find a place to spend the night after dark. The stars out here, so far from any light pollution are something to behold.
As anxiety and uncertainty dominate the news of the day it was so nice to get back to the real world, if only for the weekend.
