I have a love hate relationship with my minivan. I can NOT sleep in it. I’m warm and comfortable, and I just lay there awake most of the night, swearing that I’m going home and selling it. And then I get up in the morning and I’m so glad to be there.

I had my choice of campsites in this sprawling, almost empty campground, so I cruised the place a couple of times to pick just the right spot. I chose a site on the eastern edge of the campground, where I could leave my curtains open to the east and see the sun rise. It was a spectacular decision!

I stopped to see the BLM wild horse corrals near Burns. They are all well fed, and divided into pens of mares, stallions, mares and foals of different ages. In the pen with the youngest foals one was limping, and another looked brand new and didn’t seem to be nursing well. I wonder how hard they try to get the foals off to a good start, or if they don’t worry too much about losing some?

South of Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, on SR 205. A beautiful empty place. I can breathe in the desert.

Camping at South Steens campground, my new favorite place! The road in was 20 miles of gravel, across the open desert and the dipping down into a canyon and back out. There are only a few other campers here. It’s so so quiet.

I don’t often build a campfire when I’m alone, but the campers before me left a couple fragments of charred logs it seemed like a great way to enjoy the evening. I didn’t have much to use for kindling and it has rained recently so gathered wood was wet, but I got it going!