Yes, it was hard to believe that high winds and heavy rain were in the forecast. I arrived at the Wizard Falls Fish Hatchery right at 8 (when they’re open for visitors). I don’t suppose it would have mattered if I got there a bit earlier, since I was just going to park there and hike along the Metolius River. There was bright sun the last time I was at the Metolius, and you know how much I hate that when I’m hiking along a river. This time I was early enough to be able to shoot the rapid by the vehicle bridge before the sun was high enough in the sky to put it’s evil light on the scene. In case you’re wondering, the sun rose above the hills at 8:55. I was setting up my tripod and camera for a shot and the scene literally lit up across the scene like someone panning a light as I was preparing my shot. It was like watching a time lapse video, except that it happened in about a minute.

As I was hiking along in some areas I felt that it was a lot like being in Laguna at home, except for that river thing down below. Farther along, the trail travels pretty much right alongside the river. You have to love trails that do that. And since that area is a small canyon, the direct sun was not yet intruding into the scene.

I had forgotten how fast the Metolius moves in the canyon area. In case you’re wondering how much that is, the flow, measured in cubic feet per second, is “pretty darn fast”. I put that in quotes because I made it up. But I’m fairly sure that it’s the correct measurement.

There wasn’t anyone else when I was at the springs. I sat on a rock and ate my snack while looking at the springs gushing out of the hill right next to the river. It was nice. Cheryl would have liked sitting there enjoying the moment.

By this time it was getting windy. High winds were supposed to precede the rain, so I headed back. I did stop at the hatchery to feed the fish in the settling pond. I thought the little pellets smelled like cat food. Maybe I should have picked up a big bag of cat food from Costco. That would have set off a feeding frenzy. There was no soap in the restroom, and my hands smelled like cat food during the entire drive back to town.

There was very good fall color near the turnoff for Echo Basin and Hackleman Old Growth trail. I should have stopped for a quick hike (at Hackleman, not Echo Basin), but I’m paranoid about leaving my car full of all of my luggage unattended. That was the reason I picked the Metolius River as my location today. I’m my mind, it just seems a little safer than some other places.

My timing was good. It was still sunny when I left Wizard, and although it was very windy and some clouds had finally shown up, it was still sunny enough that you wouldn’t believe it was going to rain. As I drove west there were light showers as I approached Sweet Home. They stopped when I arrived at the hotel. It rained hard a short while after I checked in. Now it’s stopped, and that should be it for the rain for the next week.