{"id":1822,"date":"2016-05-18T22:01:20","date_gmt":"2016-05-18T22:01:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/old.cherylhill.net\/blog\/?p=1822"},"modified":"2020-01-11T21:03:39","modified_gmt":"2020-01-11T21:03:39","slug":"hells-canyon-zumwalt-prairie","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/2016\/05\/18\/hells-canyon-zumwalt-prairie\/","title":{"rendered":"Hells Canyon: Zumwalt Prairie"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>On the last day of our trip, before driving home, we visited a place that is near Hells Canyon, but is not in the Hells Canyon Recreation Area. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.nature.org\/ourinitiatives\/regions\/northamerica\/unitedstates\/oregon\/placesweprotect\/zumwalt-prairie.xml\">Zumwalt Prairie<\/a> is north of Joseph and is owned by the Nature Conservancy. It encompasses 33,000 acres and is part of the largest remaining intact Pacific Northwest bunchgrass prairie in North America.<\/p>\n<p>From the little community of Imnaha we drove east on 350 then turned right on county road 676. This lovely stretch of road follows Trail Creek upstream.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/c6.staticflickr.com\/8\/7524\/27114998421_d93c61b4d9_c.jpg\" alt=\"Beautiful drive\" width=\"800\" height=\"531\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/c7.staticflickr.com\/8\/7014\/26908814590_8d5edc9e5c_c.jpg\" alt=\"Beautiful drive\" width=\"800\" height=\"531\" \/><\/p>\n<p>You can&#8217;t tell from the pictures, but the road gets very rough in spots. There were a few water fords, one of which was down in a ditch. My Outback would not have made it down this road and I&#8217;m glad we had the high clearance truck.<\/p>\n<p>We saw cows and calfs grazing alongside the road:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/c1.staticflickr.com\/8\/7675\/26908811480_1685ce59d2_c.jpg\" alt=\"Cows\" width=\"800\" height=\"531\" \/><\/p>\n<p>We stopped at the trailhead for the Canyon Vista Trail and set out. It follows an old road up through the trees:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/c2.staticflickr.com\/8\/7527\/27183403905_814b7e737e_c.jpg\" alt=\"Old road\" width=\"800\" height=\"531\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Then in climbs up out of the trees and up onto the plateau where the views start opening up.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/c2.staticflickr.com\/8\/7157\/27183398385_2ac4d8206b_c.jpg\" alt=\"Mountains\" width=\"800\" height=\"531\" \/><\/p>\n<p>We later learned that officially the trail takes a sharp turn and sort of doubles back, angling to the northwest to a slight summit. But there were no signs and the old road we were on continued on to the southeast toward a communications tower, so that&#8217;s where we ended up hiking.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/c3.staticflickr.com\/8\/7701\/26587670274_65448ea402_c.jpg\" alt=\"Radio tower\" width=\"800\" height=\"531\" \/><\/p>\n<p>We saw a few cows, one of which had a bird on its back:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/c6.staticflickr.com\/8\/7290\/27183391805_85221bc0db_c.jpg\" alt=\"Moo\" width=\"800\" height=\"531\" \/><\/p>\n<p>This is prairie smoke, a wildflower I&#8217;ve never encountered before:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/c3.staticflickr.com\/8\/7002\/26587675194_22a1833656_c.jpg\" width=\"800\" height=\"531\" alt=\"Prairie smoke\"\/><\/p>\n<p>More wildflowers:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/c8.staticflickr.com\/8\/7342\/26588771743_57aee694f2_c.jpg\" alt=\"Wildflowers\" width=\"800\" height=\"531\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Off in the distance we saw a herd of elk. Thanks for standing there in front of the Wallowas, elk! Made for a great photo!<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/c2.staticflickr.com\/8\/7397\/26588774953_0bdb495938_c.jpg\" alt=\"Elk\" width=\"800\" height=\"531\" \/><\/p>\n<p>We finally reached the communication tower:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/c3.staticflickr.com\/8\/7270\/27098044482_1859d7eb02_c.jpg\" alt=\"Radio tower\" width=\"800\" height=\"531\" \/><\/p>\n<p>We could see the top part of the Seven Devils to our east:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/c6.staticflickr.com\/8\/7172\/26588759693_569b20c1e3_c.jpg\" alt=\"Seven Devils\" width=\"800\" height=\"531\" \/><\/p>\n<p>And of course the Wallowas to the south:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/c4.staticflickr.com\/8\/7120\/26588757443_48a5fa1d89_c.jpg\" alt=\"Wallowas\" width=\"800\" height=\"531\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Prairie all around us:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/c1.staticflickr.com\/8\/7719\/27098040152_985827552c_c.jpg\" alt=\"As far as the eye can see\" width=\"800\" height=\"531\" \/><\/p>\n<p>We could see the little town of Imnaha far below us:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/c7.staticflickr.com\/8\/7711\/27160405926_0fd6cb5b60_c.jpg\" alt=\"Imnaha\" width=\"800\" height=\"531\" \/><\/p>\n<p>We hiked back to the truck and after enjoying a snack we headed over to Duckett Road. More wildflowers along the road here:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/c5.staticflickr.com\/8\/7551\/27098037692_429ec70fec_c.jpg\" alt=\"Wildflowers\" width=\"800\" height=\"531\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/c2.staticflickr.com\/8\/7563\/27193761505_3459186a8c_c.jpg\" alt=\"Wildflowers\" width=\"800\" height=\"531\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/c3.staticflickr.com\/8\/7420\/27160393946_ececa73106_c.jpg\" alt=\"Prairie Smoke\" width=\"800\" height=\"531\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Parked along Duckett Road:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/c4.staticflickr.com\/8\/7036\/27193745675_88c7b17fe5_c.jpg\" alt=\"Rough roads\" width=\"800\" height=\"531\" \/><\/p>\n<p>We headed to the Duckett Barn Information Center, which turned out to be a covered collection of interpretive panels:<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/c7.staticflickr.com\/8\/7254\/26587647334_0c8b713139_c.jpg\" alt=\"Education\" width=\"800\" height=\"531\" \/><\/p>\n<p>We learned:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>This grassland remains one of the largest ecologically-intact prairies of its kind because the shallow rocky soils, high elevation, and rugged canyons made it unsuitable for crops.<\/li>\n<li>The Zumwalt grasslands harbor many mammals, over a dozen native bunchgrasses, more than 100 native wildflower species, and 20 birds of prey.<\/li>\n<li>The Nature Conservancy leases Zumwalt pasture to area ranchers and uses the preserve as a model and testing ground for compatible grazing. They are studying the effects of grazing to better understand how conservation and production go hand-in-hand.<\/li>\n<li>The Nature Conservancy pays their property taxes even though they are a tax-exempt organization. They also donate elk hunting tags to local charitable organizations which use them as fundraisers.<\/li>\n<li>The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife is working to reintroduce the sharp-tailed grouse to Zumwalt Prairie.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>There are other trails to explore in this vast preserve, but we still had a six-hour drive back to Portland, so we headed out. I definitely want to come back. I&#8217;d love to see the lupine blooming here. Check out <a href=\"http:\/\/donnelly-austin.photoshelter.com\/gallery-image\/Oregon\/G0000EXaVOUt2338\/I0000Y85fxcLXzUs\/C00001HLU1_a.axA\">this photo<\/a> from Donnelly-Austin Photography. I don&#8217;t know what time of year the lupine bloom like this, but I hope I can see it someday. Wow.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/2016\/05\/17\/hells-canyon-freezeout-saddle\/\">&lt;&lt; Thursday: Freezeout Saddle<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>On the last day of our trip, before driving home, we visited a place that is near Hells Canyon, but<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/2016\/05\/18\/hells-canyon-zumwalt-prairie\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Hells Canyon: Zumwalt Prairie<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[159,172],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1822"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1822"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"http:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1822\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3088,"href":"http:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1822\/revisions\/3088"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1822"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1822"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cherylhill.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1822"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}