THE MOUNTAINS SURROUNDING OSP

We are standing high on the main observing field at OSP. It's evening, and the last colors light the form of Spanish Peak, at 6871 feet, very nearly as high as either Lookout Mountain or Mt. Pisgah. By air, it is just 19 miles away. Just to the right of the summit, you can see some kind of white object, which through my telescope looked like some kind of communications antenna. Fire lookouts manned its summit starting in 1930, and in 1939 a 50 foot high lookout tower was built, but all was torn down by the Forest Service in 1968..... Much earlier in Oregon's history, somewhere in the general vicinity of Spanish Peak, the infamous Chief Paulina was shot dead by a rancher in 1867, finally ending decades of depredations upon the hated white invaders.....Picture note: the angle of this picture is uncertain, and it is possible that we aren't seeing the true summit in this view-- it may be behind what appears to be the summit.....I'm excited about the viewing potential of Spanish Peak. Close examination of topographic maps of its summit ridge area shows both water (springs) and two or three potentially nice viewing sites for some high altitude astronomy (at 6500-6871 feet, depending on the exact site). ... HOWEVER, further study is needed because there is a distinct possibility that the Ochoco National Forest has designated the whole area as a Roadless Area.....I propose we lead a small expedition up there in 2009 for an evening of viewing!

In the picture below, taken from our OSP site's main observing field, you can see a remote sweep of dry mountains to the east of OSP. We are seeing pieces of three different counties-- Crook, Wheeler, and Grant....In the very far distance, if we were just a bit higher, we'd see the 8000-9000 foot summits of the Strawberry Range, above John Day and Prarie City....

ASTRONOMY: All of the labelled summits have, or have had in the past, Fire lookout towers....Most were established in the 1920s and 30s. Some began as simple open platforms afixed to the sawed-off top of huge trees, such as the 100 foot high one on top of Paulina Butte! Flagtail Mountain and Wolf Mountain are still being manned every summer (along with the one on top of Mt. Pisgah). Wolf Mountain's tower is a truly scarey climb-- at 107 feet high, it is, I think, the highest still-manned tower in Oregon.. The Wolf lookout also presides over the western edge of the 13,400 acre Black Canyon Wilderness Area......For Astronomy viewing, keep in mind that all these current and former lookout mountains have road access to their summits for possible high altitude viewing purposes! (keep in the mind, however, that some have been turned into offical NF Roadless Areas)

"Campers of All Persuasions, a Photo Essay about the Variety of Ways We Make Our Homes At The Oregon Star Party." Click for the first images from that photo essay.

Also soon to come: more on the mountains surrounding OSP-- Mt. Pisgah, Round Mountain, and others places, such as the swimming hole at Upper Falls on the North Fork of the Crooked River, only four miles from OSP at Indian Trail Springs.