This is the Palouse, a geographical area of eastern Washington and north-central Idaho characterized by rolling wheat, canola and legume fields, dirt roads, silos and grain elevators, and plentiful abandoned farm structures. It is characterized by random silt humps and hollows. During the ice ages the earth was stripped and ground down into a fine windblown glacial silt or loess. The silt was blown into the area and, like sand dunes, have shifted many times to form the dune humps we see today. The dune form is dramatic – gentle south-facing slopes and steep north-facing slopes aligned parallel to the prevailing southwesterly winds. The fine grain silts are perfect for farming. More geology and notes on photographing in the Palouse can be found in my blog post.
