That annual thing we do...

It's become a tradition. Every year, my man, my pup and I go on a trailer road trip. When we lived in the city, we were able to get away on these trips much more often, but now that we're on property, and with a lot of critters, we have to really try hard to make it happen.

This year I had a lot of help getting ready to go.

Roopert and Spongebob enjoyed kicking dirt into the driveway as I was loading:

Skippy thought maybe she'd like to pack her bags and join us - and she told me l-o-n-g stories all about it:

George, as usual, had his feet in all of my business:

He finally decided that exploring the top of the trailer would be his helpful contribution. (WARNING: poor quality iPhone photo to follow) See him?:

Roxy placed herself smack in the middle of the trailer where she knew I wouldn't forget to take her along:

Beau, though, couldn't believe his ears when I broke the news that we were leaving. "You're going WHERE, Mama?!!":

Chester, who always considers himself the center of every situation, wanted me to know that all I had to do was bring the trailer by and he'd "climb right aboard":

This year, we've headed into the far eastern most part of our pretty Oregon state.

Our destination was the Wallowa Valley in the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest - and a campground at Wallowa Lake, an incredibly beautiful location, known for its scenery, pristine waters, and friendly wildlife.

Our first view of the lake was late afternoon under an overcast sky - quite dramatic:

One of the first things we did was climb aboard the mountain gondola, or tram. This tram is the steepest four-person gondola in North America, ending at the 8,256-foot peak of Mt. Howard:

Extreme heights and I aren't generally the best of friends, but as long as I was behind my camera lens, I seemed to do just fine:

At the top of this mountain are panoramic views of Oregon, Washington, and Idaho:

Wow:

Really, though, it was vividly colored lichen - which, granted, may not be every one's cup of tea - that was capturing my attention on this day:

Look! An entire stick's worth!:

The Wallowa area calls itself "Oregon's little Switzerland" and this claim was underscored by the type of food that was served at the cafe on top of Mt. Howard. The sausage and sauerkraut were delicious!!:

So far, so good ... we're having a ball!