A Trip Through Sprague, Wa

From Wikipedia

The town has a seasonal creek running through it named "Negro Creek." Much debate has occurred regarding the creek's name but the name remains.

Yeah! An interesting town, for sure.

Hey!  Which way do I  .... Oh, I see.  thanks!

For this trip, I took the GoPro Hero 4 that I've borrowed from the good folks at Huppin's. Using the Hero 4 for the type of photography I do is certainly a stretch.  It has great features but I don't think that it was designed for landscapes or cityscapes and stuff.  Despite that, I think that I've found an interesting mix of photo taking and processing that ends up with a pretty cool final product.  I capture the images at about 14 MB so there's plenty of detail with which to work.

The area around Sprague, Wa has such wonderful views of the horizon.  I intend to return again this summer and try a few new things with this camera.  The time-lapse and video features will be great tools with which to capture the shifting skies.  Stay tuned for that.  Even in its basic modes, the expanses captured are impressive.

Hey, Buddy?!  Why the long .... Oh, you've heard that one before?

I'm pretty certain that some of these images will end up on my print gallery. I really do like how the nuances of the GoPro seem to add more cool elements than they take away.

And look! I DID return to Sprague!

 

Stevens Lake by GoPro

From the All Trails/NatGeo website:

Stevens Lakes is a 5 mile out and back trail located near Mullan, Idaho that features a lake and is rated as moderate. The trail is primarily used for fly fishing & hiking and is accessible from June until October.

I love this place!  When I need a one-day escape from the world, I often head east to this getaway nestled in the Bitterroot Mountains just outside of Wallace, Id. Though I wouldn't call it an easy hike, it's really only steep in a few short places.  Really manageable for most hiker.  What I always find amazing about the trail is how it winds through a few different geographic zones.  

In one area, you'll be  surrounded by cedars and walking through great dampness.  A little while further you'll be on an exposed rock slide face that is more dry pine.  Just a bit further and you'll be walking under deciduous trees and have very different shrubbery surrounding you.

Let's not forget the lakes.  This most recent trip showed them at the lowest level that I've seen.  We had an easy winter and it was near the end of a dry summer so it wasn't unexpected.  Nor was it disappointing.  The water was still clear and cold. The ancient deadwood logs were still scattered along the banks.  As I was alone up there, I did go for a skinny dip in the icy water.  As I am a wimp, it didn't last long.  The chill was washed away within minutes of stretching out on a rocky bank and soaking in the sun.

The nap induced from the warmth made the short trip to the upper lake a slim prospect.  I would have had to circle back around the west side of the lower lake and head up.  Not a hard scramble but my time was running short.  Had to get back to Wallace.

Again, I'm thankful to the good folks at Huppin's for the loan of the Go Pro.  A cool tool for capturing interesting angles.