The Columbia Gorge

Saturday, February 07, 2015
Cascade Park, Washington, United States
So we had a pretty good sleep and breakfast around 9:00....they actually had whole wheat bagels .....scrambled eggs and hash.....eggs were too hard but otherwise it was pretty good.the weather was terrible at first...monsoon rain and high winds but as we left the hotel the rain decreased......we drove down Hwy 14 on the Washington side of the Columbia through Camas, Washougal, Cape Horn, then past the Bonneville Dam, past the Bridge of the Gods....this is a toll metal span bridge built in the 20s. We kept on the Washington side of the Columbia through White Salmon and Bingen where the torrential rain finally let up and surprise we left the rain forest and entered an arid hill area very like the Okanagan. The sun came out and it was really lovely....rolling hills and rocky outcrops with several tunnels and small villages......logging and fishing seem like the major industries although there is a number of high tech firms that have moved here....Insitu is in Bingen...it s an unmanned aircraft company. The area was settled by Germans and White Salmon even has a Glockenspiel! We stopped at an outlook at Memaloose and what a view, then across the river to the Dalles. Which had seen better days and was unremarkable....there are many wineries and vineyards on the hills and I guess the warm,dry climate is good for wine like the Okanagan.....then along Oregon Hwy 30 and through Hood River which was quite nice...lots of old homes and restaurants...seems there are a lot of wind sports and cycling through here. It was charming and would be fun to stay and explore. We also drove through Mosier and Rowena where there are many hiking trails and outlooks.
The Pacific Coast Trail crosses the Columbia at Cascade Locks...we saw lots of hikers even though we were now back in the Pacific Rainforest and it was raining as usual. The guidebook states the rainfall here o. The west side of the Gorge can. E up to 100 inches per year vs 14 inches on the arid grasslands of the eastern side.
We drove up old Hwy 30 to Horsetail and Muultnomah Falls...very high and lots of wate... It's a beautiful Los road built I the 20s with winding curves and outlook views.we stopped at the Vista House and Women's Forum Stae Park outlook near Corbett.

We drove into NE Portland and eventually went to Trader Joes for a few goodies for Erik and Kara. We wanted a beer and would you believe the closest Pub was Migration...we were actually very close to the Laurelhurst area where the BNB is situated. It was really busy ....there was a Portland Blazers game and beer was cheap! So now we are back at the hotel and tomorrow we head home.

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