Category: Around the Pacific Northwest
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Nature writing with my students
By Neva Knott Prompt: The image of an owl soaring through the night. I love the darkness and the damp wonder of fall in the Pacific NW–it’s a time of secrets, not those we fear to tell but a time nature reveals her secrets in the details of changing color. Soft grays of dawn unfold…
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A robin, a church, a garden
By Neva Knott March 15. Yesterday, Saturday, we awoke to snow. Light flurries, swirling but not sticking. Dry snow and a cold wind coming up off the low end of the Salish Sea. Ted and I walked for an hour, through our neighborhood, up toward Trinity. A few people were cleaning brush at the church…
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Camping at Summer Lake Hot Spring, Oregon
By Neva Knott I amble around the Pacific Northwest often. A recent Memorial Day, my friend Chandika and I took off on a suggestion from a coworker of mine to Summer Lake in Central/East Oregon. We stayed at the Hot Spring campground there; it’s a cool place–the owner has set up Airstream trailers as cabins…
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Beachscapes at Fort Stevens, Astoria, Oregon
By Neva Knott A photography teacher once quoted a famous photog, whose name I’ve now forgotten, stating that photography has nothing to do with the beach. I disagree. The place where the sky meets water and water meets land is magical, mysterious, and abundant of life.
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Sea Lions in Astoria, Oregon
By Neva Knott Sea Lions resting on the docks in Astoria, Oregon. Most, if not all, of these are male California Sea Lions, distinguishable by their darker color and dog-like bark, according to Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. This is a charismatic species; these lounging and napping sea creatures draw an audience when they’re…
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Whale Bones Memorial, Newport, Oregon
By Neva Knott For me, this memorial is a visual connective element between humans and the circle of life. The enormity of the whale reminds that we are not the primary species on the planet.
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Sandy River Delta Pond Across the Seasons
By Neva Knott I walked the same area of the Thousand Acres dog park on the Sandy River Delta and took photos of the wetlands ponds once a month for a year to show how wetlands shift and cannot be seen as static elements of the landscape. Wetlands are considered the kidneys of the planet.…
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Talk Here
By Neva Knott Sandycrest Terrace. The first place I lived all on my own as an adult. The first place I was totally financially responsible for myself. The first place I was in charge of my whole life. Twenty-two, naïve, alone. Just me—paying the bills, figuring out who I’d become. I found myself there after…
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Cloudscapes
If you’ve never stared off into the distance then your life is a shame… By Neva Knott Redmond. This Central Oregon town hasn’t changed much since its founding a hundred…
The Diary of Beautiful Enchiladas 