The Surprise Valley is bordered by the Warner Mountains on the west and to the east begins the sage and rock ridges of the Great Basin. Cedarville was a stopping point for California and Oregon emigrants, and today only a gas station reminds one that this is not still the nineteeth century. I heard of a landscape painter who paints here and keeps his locations a secret, like I might do with a threatened fishing spot. I think our best bet at preserving these beautiful places is for people to know them. This one was looking south down the lower lake bed.

 Kate and I drove up the valley to Fort Bidwell, stopped at Fee reservoir to catch two good trout for a dinner offering to our hosts, then drove around trying to pick a view to paint. Everywhere we looked was beautiful, pastoral and well-kept ranches framed by red rock mountains. It is a place where one could paint for a few years and still find fresh views. I painted this one looking back to Cedarville from halfway across the causeway between the lakes.