Before I write my final FINAL blog post, I thought I should include some pictures of the area that I have had the pleasure of living in for the past 7 months due to my CLM internship. I really feel lucky to have landed in central Oregon, and that I won the “BLM location lottery” so to speak. Working here and learning about local ecology helped to enrich my experiences outside of work too. After all, part of being an intern in the CLM program is exploring a new land, at work or play, and at the best times, it is both! Being in the center of the state was great because most any part of Oregon was accessible within a 4-5 hour drive. It is an extremely diverse place with countless things to do and very friendly residents. I drove most of the Oregon coast, backpacked in the breathtaking Wallowa mountains in eastern OR, and soaked in hot springs in the middle of sagebrush country. Here are some pictures to pay tribute to a lovely state.

enjoying the high desert with my little buddy

Elk!

The wild and desolate southern OR coast

Redwoods (small forests in OR)

Typical high desert-blue mountains ecoregion where I worked and collected seeds

Lava flow in the Cascades, the three sisters mountains

The Painted Hills

Rainy day in the usually dry Ochoco Ntnl Forest dominated by golden tamaracks and ponderosa pine

Crater Lake – unbelievably blue

Tumalo Falls, less than an hour from where I lived in OR

Wallowa Mountains