Steens Mountain, July 10 to 13, 2023
This has been a summer of long drives to distant areas. Steens Mountain is in far southeastern Oregon in the high desert. The mountain rises to 9733 feet above sea level, but you are already at over 5000 feet in the high desert. There is a loop road, going all the way around this fault block mountain (the largest in the US), but there was a landslide up the Southern route and the road was blocked. We drove both roads, the northern route on the second day there. The views are stunning, of the four gorges formed from the glacial flows years ago. Hiking was hot and dry. There are a few very long trails through the gorges, but we only hiked shorter portions of the trails. The lower Blitzen River Gorge trail was past prime for most of the wildflowers, but on the upper trails, near Wildhorse Lake and the Kiger overlook, there were many, many flowers.
Wildhorse Lake with the Alvord Desert in the distance
Dwarf Alpine Lupine
Sagebrush Mariposa Lily
The unique Steens Mountain Thistle
Nesom’s Monkeyflower
Alpine Lewisia
Steens Mountain is close to the Malheur Wildlife Refuge, this is the view from the Buena Vista overlook
Pussy Paws
Showy Penstemon
Steens Mountain Draba
Nuttall’s Linanthus
Sunset view from the historic Hotel Diamond
Part of the herd of wild horses of the Kiger herd
Dusky Horkelia
