Maxwell

Software developer and machine learning enthusiast

Camping in Cottonwood Canyon

24 October 2019

Three 15-second shots of part of the milky way stacked together using photoshop to reduce noise. Edited for color and noise reduction.
Three 15-second shots of part of the milky way stacked together using photoshop to reduce noise. Edited for color and noise reduction.

Cottonwood Canyon is about a 3-hour drive from Portland, OR. Located deep in the Columbia River Gorge in Eastern Oregon, this isolated site is ideal for hiking, rafting, fishing, and many other activities. I chose this site because of its lack of proximity to any major cities and other sources of light pollution, making it an ideal spot to go stargazing in the days surrounding a new moon.

On this trip I invited my girlfriend Allie as well as my friends Shelby and Jeff. After setting up camp in the dark we decided to start a fire and make burritos filled with vegetarian meat, eggs, spinach, onions, and some spices. Having a cast-iron pan was extremely useful for this because we were able to set it directly in the fire to cook.

Jeff was extremely entertained with the laser pointer he brought and with it we were able to point to stars and planets with extreme precision.

Pictured below are scenes from the drive there.

… And pictured below this are scenes from Cottonwood Canyon.

A group of Bighorn sheep ewes passes by camp in the morning.
A group of Bighorn sheep ewes passes by camp in the morning.