Amber Waves of Grain

Harvest time always makes me think of the fields and farmers and the good earth which produces the crops which we enjoy.  On our Labor Day camping trip, we drove 5 hours northeast to the Washington Palouse. [The Palouse is a region of the northwestern United States, encompassing parts of eastern Washington, northern Idaho and, in some definitions, extending south into northeast Oregon. It is a major wheat-producing agricultural area. Situated about 160 miles (250 kilometers) north of the Oregon Trail, the region experienced rapid growth in the late 19th century, for a brief time surpassing the population of the Puget Sound region of Washington.^[1]

The origin of the name "Palouse" is unclear. One theory is that the name of the Palus tribe (spelled in early accounts variously Palus, Palloatpallah, Pelusha, et al.) was converted by French-Canadian fur traders to the more familiar French word pelouse, meaning "land with short and thick grass" or "lawn." Over time, the spelling changed to Palouse.^[2] Another theory is that the name was in the first place a French word, describing the area which was then applied to the indigenous people inhabiting it.

Traditionally, the Palouse region was defined as the fertile hills and prairies north of the Snake River, which separated it from Walla Walla Country, and north of the Clearwater River, which separated it from the Camas Prairie, extending north along the Washington and Idaho border, south of Spokane, centered on the Palouse River. This region underwent a settlement and wheat-growing boom during the 1880s, part of a larger process of growing wheat in southeast Washington, originally pioneered in the Walla Walla Country south of the Snake River.^{[3]]  Wikipedia}

^{If you read that definition, you will know that we drove through glorious golden hills of wheat and rich brown earth being groomed for the next season.  I wanted to celebrate the glories of fall and harvest by putting the pictures into a mosaic like some of my learned blogging friends do, but I haven’t known how to do a mosaic.} 

^{Lately, my dear husband has become interested in my blogging technique and has installed a new system which “will make every thing much easier”.  So, I am trying to learn new tricks once again. Hmmm.}        

 

   

 

The purple peak in the distant deepest orange sky is Mt Hood, and the river is the mighty Columbia.

 

Oh, beautiful for spacious skies,

for amber waves of grain,

for purple mountains’ majesties

above the fruited plain,

America! America!

God shed his grace on thee

and crown thy good with brotherhood

from sea to shining sea.

P.S. I shall try a photo mosaic when my darling technical support person comes home from work!