Columbia River Gorge

Without floating the river, perhaps the best way to see the Columbia River Gorge is to drive the Historic Columbia River Highway.  Samuel Lancaster’s engineering prowess designed the road that was Sam Hill’s dream.  Of course, the road has been upgraded and resurfaced a time or two since 1915, but the stone walls and historic bridges (now covered with moss) are still here for us to enjoy.  I’m sure Lewis and Clark and the Corps of Discovery would have given much for a road in 1805 when they passed this way.

Although the skies were very overcast this morning, the rain from yesterday had moved on and we decided to go ahead with our plan to drive along the Historic highway.  We saw no evidence of sun until mid afternoon, not the best day for dynamic photographs.  Since we are only planning to be in the area this week, we don’t have the luxury of waiting for perfect weather.

We drove eastward on the Oregon side of the river for about 50 miles, crossed the river and came back to our campground along the Washington side.

Beautiful stonework along the highway

A key feature of this scenic byway are the numerous water falls cascading and free falling over the rim into picturesque pools and then on out to the Columbia River.  We stopped at three falls, the last of which was the granddaddy of them all--Multnomah Falls--the 4th tallest waterfall in the nation at 620 feet.

Multnomah Falls

A portion of the old road has been replaced by the interstate.  Even though it follows right next to the river, I-84 is just not the same as the old road.

Bridal Falls

After crossing into Washington the return trip took us closer to the river than when on the Historic Highway.  The Gorge is notoriously windy.  We didn’t notice any wind as we drove along the highway, but there were white caps on the river.  These windy conditions create a perfect place for wind sailing.  Even on this cool, cloudy day, there were several enthusiastic sailors on the water.

The Historic Highway is also a popular place for a long distance bicycle rides.  There were several bikers out today and one bicycle adventure touring group complete with the sag wagon.

We had planned to go farther up the Gorge, but many stops at overlooks and waterfalls (which usually required a bit of a hike to get to a view point) took longer than we expected.  If we find an opportunity later in the week, we may do another section.

We are not sure what is on the agenda next.  We want to go back downtown and Mt. Hood awaits.  Odds are, we’ll go back downtown tomorrow.

Silver Falls State Park

We were up and out early this morning for a day of hiking.  Our destination was Silver Falls State Park about 25 miles east of Salem.  The drive was as beautiful as the hike.  Once we got on highway 22, about 5 miles from our campground, we were in rural Oregon.  Like on our drive to Salem, today we passed beautiful rolling farmland.  We didn’t see much cattle today, but there were hundreds of acres of hay interspersed with tree farms.  The whole area was just gorgeous.

South Falls

Silver Falls State Park is a real jewel for the state of Oregon. There are several trails within the park, but we selected the Canyon Trail and the Rim Trail to for an 8 mile loop.  Canyon Trail fallows the north and south forks of Silver Creek as it falls in a series of waterfalls through the canyon.  Along the course of Canyon Trail, we passed 10 waterfalls.

Lower South Falls

About three quarters of the way around, we came to the “lodge” at the South Falls area.  The building, which is a small gift shop and cafe, was built in the 1940-41 by the CCC.  There were several picnic tables outside which offered a great place for a lunch break.  After we finished our hike, we drove back to the lodge for an ice cream bar and an ice cold coke.

Middle North Falls

North Falls

The Rim Trail portion of our hike took us back to the truck along the other side of the canyon.  This was a woods walk mostly, but the section where we were on the edge of the canyon did not offer views of the falls.

Upper North Falls

This is a very popular park and there were a lot of people on the trails today.  Weekends are especially busy.  But despite the crowds, this was a very nice place to visit just for the spectacular beauty of the falls.  Even if you don’t hike, Upper North Falls, North Falls, Lower South Falls, and South Falls are all within a very short distance of a parking lot.

Tomorrow is moving day again.  We’re not going far, however.  Just up to Portland--about 70 miles.

Salem, Oregon

Salem is the capital of Oregon and the state’s third largest city, with a population of nearly 200,000 (nearly 400,000 if you include the Marion/Polk county metro area).  The city is located on the Willamette River about half way between the coast and the Cascade Mountains.

Today our focus was the capitol building. This capitol is relatively new, having been built in the late 1930s and the “wings” added in the 1970s.  The previous two capitol buildings were destroyed by fire. Our tour included a walk up 122 stairs to the roof of the building for a close up view of the “golden pioneer” who stands on top.  A very knowledgeable guide took us through the House and Senate chambers and the rotunda.  From the outside, you don’t really notice a rotunda.  Perhaps the roof is flat and only domed on the inside.  In any case, there was no lighting from the top of the dome, so the photos were not good.  The seal of the state was centered under the dome, as is typical of most capitols we visit.  Along the walls of the rotunda, were several murals depicting Oregon’s history.

Circle of Flags

View of Capitol Mall

After our tour of the building and a small purchase from the gift shop, we found a small city park a few blocks away for our lunch picnic.

The Golden Pioneer

The remainder of the afternoon will be spent catching up on chores.  Gene got the “OK” from the office to watch the truck.  It is pretty dirty from driving in the misting rain for a couple days.  I’m going to scout out the laundry room myself.

Mural depicting Lewis and Clark Expedition

We are planning a trip to a nearby state park tomorrow.  Waterfalls and hiking are both involved.  We are looking forward to that.

Old Growth Forest

Our morning was bright and sunny at the campground, so you can imagine our surprise as soon as we turned onto US 101, a mere half mile away, and we saw the fog the Oregon coast is so renowned for. It was so thick, the ocean was completely obliterated.  Well, to say the least, we were impressed.

Gene had found two short hikes for us today.  One was another short segment along the Oregon Coastal trail and the other was a short nature walk through old growth forest.  Since the forest walk was away from the coast, we went there first hoping to give the sun some time to do its thing and burn the fog off.

The Shrader Old Growth Trail in the Siskiyou National Forest was a real treat.  Given the fact that so much of our forests have been cut by the lumber industry, we seldom have the opportunity to walk among the old giants.  It was a short 1.5 mile loop trail, but we got to see several big trees.  The most impressive was the Laddie Gale Tall Fir measuring 10 feet in diameter and 220 feet in height.  That is enough tree to build three 3-bedroom homes.

By the time we got back to US101, I really expected the fog to be gone.  Well, I was wrong.  It had pulled back a little, but not enough.  We drove farther south to Cape Sebastian where we found our trailhead at the very edge of the fog.  There were no sweeping vistas today along the trail, but I liked the effect of the fog along the rocky coastline.  The wildflowers were pretty; we saw several tiger lilies, a couple of wild iris, and a new one for us which we have not yet been able to identify.  This section of the Oregon Coastal Trail, like the piece we did a few days ago, was well maintained--a very pleasant hike.

There are several activities planned for the 4th of July in the town of  Port Orford.  We want to be able to take in some of those activities, so we will use tomorrow to do laundry and the few things needed to prepare us for moving on Sunday.  And who knows, we may find something exciting to do besides chores.

Humbug Mountain

This has been yet another beautiful day in Port Orford.  The sun has been shining all day with a steady breeze.  Right now, my thermometer registers 68 degrees.  The wind makes it a little chilly in the shade, but in the sun it is very pleasant.

Wild iris

Tiger Lily

After morning coffee with the gang, we drove the short 5 miles or so to the Humbug Mountain State Park.  Our trail head was located at the back of a parking lot right off US 101, so it was easy to find.  We started our 3-mile, 1500 feet uphill climb about 8:30.  This was a forest hike and we only got one little glimpse of the coastline on our ascent.  The summit was almost completely treed in not offering a view there, either.  We knew the ocean views were very limited before undertaking this hike, so we were not disappointed nor surprised.

The hike was very nice without views.  The treadway was mostly dirt, typical of mountain sidehill cut trail building.  There were very few roots and only one rocky place, but it was so short you hardly noticed (if, indeed, it is possible not to notice rocks).  With the dense forest, rhododendron, and fern, the hike was actually quite reminiscent of a trail we might find in the Smoky Mountains in East Tennessee.  

There were several wildflowers in bloom. We saw tiger lily (which might be called Oregon lily here) and wild iris.

This evening, we are gathering with many of our fellow campers to enjoy a spaghetti dinner together.  I am getting the impression that, besides the morning coffee and afternoon social, there are covered dish dinners on a regular basis here.  What a fun place to be.  Of course, I’d have to hike everyday to work off all those extra calories.

We don’t really have a plan for tomorrow, but I wouldn’t be at all surprised to find us just hanging around the house and relaxing.