Spotlight On: Huckleberries and Sake Kasu

The Huckleberry

Once we arrived in Coeur D’Alene, it didn’t take long before we started seeing  huckleberry products everywhere.  During the spring and summer season, you can find huckleberries practically on every street corner. They are sold dried, in jams and even as a flavoring for ice cream. But what are they?

No, Not This!

According to Linda Stradley, cookbook author and culinary historian and author of “What’s Cooking America” (link below), huckleberries are similar to blueberries and can be exchanged for them in recipes. She states that huckleberries are tarter than blueberries and have a thicker skin as well as seeds that make the berries crunchier. She also states that huckleberries have been a staple food for thousands of years and that the Northwest tribes used to dry the berries in the sun or smoke them and then would “mash them into cakes and wrapped these in leaves or bark for storage.” (See whatscookingamerica link below).

Dark berries with purple or bluish hues are rich in polyphenols, and specifically anthocyanin. These are antioxidant nutrients that are

This!

protective against various cancers, heart disease, and they are also very neuroprotective. Huckleberries are also the favorite food of a number of different animals, including black and grizzly bears.  So if you want to try a berry that is not as commonly found as our blueberry but which has similar nutritional content as well as a similar taste, come and get some huckleberries to try. Just be careful if you decide to forage for them, as you might be invading a bear’s favorite berry patch!

Sake Kasu

In the previous post, I mentioned that we found our all time favorite traditional Japanese fish dish, “sake kasu” in the Bonsai Bistro restaurant in Coeur D’Alene. Sake kasu is fish (black cod which is also called sablefish) marinated in sake lees and then grilled or broiled. 

What are Sake Lees?

Anyone reading this probably knows that “sake”, in this case, refers to Japanese rice wine. The drink, sake, is served either cold or warmed in special little cups. Romantically defined, sake lees are the fermented dregs of the sake making process. They are the sediment that sinks to the bottom of the barrel in either wine or beer making. The lees from making sake can be used in making this fish dish or they can also be used to make another traditional Japanese, but non-alcoholic fermented drink called “Amazake”. 

I first became acquainted with sake kasu when we were living in Japan. We lived in a Japanese neighborhood and bought most of our food from various food stalls that lined a particular street in our neighborhood. Every day, I would take our daughter, Holly, then 3, out to get our food for the evening meal. I loved stopping by the fish monger and looking at all the different kinds and shapes of fish he had for sale. Most of the time, I would ask the fishmonger how to prepare a fish that was new to me (most were) and he would tell me how the particular fish was traditionally prepared. One day, I noticed a vat of fish pieces marinating in a thick paste. I asked him what that was and he said: “Sake kasu”. He explained that the paste was from the process of making sake (rice wine) and that it was leftover from the process. I also asked him how would I prepare this fish and how does it taste? He told me that once home I should wipe the excess off the paste of the fish and then grill or broil the fish. He also informed

Sake Kasu

me that it was delicious. I asked him if we should eat the leftover paste and he said: “No”. So I brought some home and we tried it for dinner. It was a huge hit and thereafter, became one of our absolute favorite dishes. Years later, after returning to the U.S., I had forgotten about sake kasu, most likely because I have not seen it offered in any of the Japanese restaurants around us in California, and I have not seen the paste for sale in the oriental food store near us. So we had to come to Coeur D’Alene, Idaho to be reunited with this delicacy!  

I have since learned that sake kasu paste is not limited to the traditional culinary use… Apparently it can also be used to make a cheesecake and even a facial mask. (See links below). So now you can have your sake kasu AND eat it too!

Links:

http://whatscookingamerica.net/History/HuckleberryHistory.htm

http://www.uwyo.edu/foods/_files/fact-sheets/fact-2011-07-its-the-berries.pdf

http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/ss01/anthocyanin.html

http://www.nytimes.com/1988/06/26/travel/seattle-s-sake-marinated-fish.html

http://letseatmeal.blogspot.ca/2010/05/sake-kasu-cheesecake.html

http://www.hakkaisan.com/blog/recipe-sake-kasu-facial-mask/

I Left My Heart in San Francisco. Maybe I'll Find it in Coeur D'Alene

We left Hood River and drove to Coeur D’Alene, Idaho. That day’s drive was to take us along the Columbia River and then through the dry flat prairie of eastern Washington and into Idaho where we would then finally begin to see hills and mountains. Coeur D’Alene is a beautiful resort town in Idaho, with a large lake where, in the summer, people partake of numerous water sports. We stayed there two years ago, when we were on our way to Montana for this same nutrition conference and that year, we were there for our 30^th anniversary. But before we left Hood River, we HAD to stop for Breakfast at Nora’s. They have many wonderful delectable

breakfast offerings, including my choice which was from their “2 eggs your way plus 2 sides” section of their breakfast menu. This is then followed on the menu by a very long list of possible sides. I chose crispy bacon and zucchini fritters. My favorite way to have eggs is “almost hard”. This means, the yolk has some almost hard form to it, but is quite moist in the center. Almost NOONE knows how to make eggs like this and it seems to baffle breakfast chefs everywhere. Each and every time I order eggs in a restaurant this way and I either end up with totally hardened egg yolks or completely runny yolks (Really????How can this be almost hard by anyone’s imagination??), But Nora’s made them perfectly. The bacon was crispy and the zucchini fritters? Oh, I am going to dream about those fritters. Delicious little crispy on the outside bites with herb flavored fluffy zucchini centers. Can they ship them to Marin? Probably not. Sigh.

After breakfast, we began our drive north east and as I was driving, David had photography duty. He took a few photos. Quite honestly, we have little to show you about this drive as David

David's Photo of The Columbia River-side Trip

historically does not take photographs though he did take a few, especially as we drove along the Columbia River and ventured onwards toward Coeur D’Alene. This was also the long boring drive through endless vastness of hot empty prairie with the occasional dust devil at the side of the road. As we entered “fraught with peril possible dust devil exposure land” we were warned that our car might encounter one of these whirling dervish-like entities on the highway. We were wondering what happens to people in convertibles, if a spinning dust devil crosses their path on the highway; instant facial exfoliation? Would this be the kind of thing people would pay big money for as a spa treatment? “Try our new dust devil scrub!” 

This is What I Expected to See

But What We Actually Saw Was This

During the drive, we saw about 7 of these but none of them crossed into the road. Our journey took us past Spokane, Washington, and eventually into Coeur D’Alene. We made our way to

The Roosevelt Inn, a bed and breakfast converted from an old brick 1905 schoolhouse, just a few blocks up from the lake. We were welcomed by our hosts, John and Tina Hough who, as it turns out, are the aunt and uncle of “Dancing with the Stars” brother and sister choreographers Julianne and Derek Hough. We were shown to our historic room and treated to a welcome tray of their special spa water and Tina’s delicious bread pudding and a beautiful red rose. We unpacked, relaxed and then

walked toward the lake to stop for dinner at ‘Bonsai Bistro’, where we ate our 30^th anniversary dinner two years ago. They have an extensive Asian menu and we were absolutely delighted to see one of our all time favorite dishes, “sake kasu”. Sake kasu is a Japanese dish, and consists of fish (usually cod) marinated in sake lees for a long time and then broiled or grilled. Check out the next blog post for a more in depth explanation of this recipe. We got three small dishes and shared them:

1. Sake Kasu: Black cod marinated in “sake lees” for 72 hours and broiled.

2. Mongolian Style Beef: slices of wok caramelized steak, sautéed mushrooms, yellow onions with a sweet soy sauce, fresh green onions, black and white sesame seeds. Served over a bed of fried rice sticks

3. Garlic Black Bean with Prawns: Savory garlic black bean sauce, prawns and organic broccoli.

Sake Kasu

We were in heaven with the sake kasu. If you have never had it and can find it, we highly recommend it. Amazing that we have not seen it in Marin in California, but had to come to Coeur D’Alene, Idaho to find it!  After dinner, we found an ice cream place for dessert and then went back to our Bed and Breakfast.

Dinner Plate with Sake Kasu, Mongolian Beef, Prawn Dish

Our Route:

Route 84 to 82. Route 82 to 182 and then to 395. Route 395 to 90 and then Route 90 into Coeur D’Alene. About 323 miles and 5 hours and 27 minutes.

Links:

http://www.therooseveltinn.com/

Waterfalls, More Pointy Mountains, One No Longer Pointy Mountain and Fruit Loops

After checking into the Columbia Gorge Hotel, we relaxed with a “Happy Hour” drink outside on their beautiful terrace overlooking the Columbia River. We got into conversation with a friendly couple next to us, who were from Bellingham, Washington, and they had already seen some of the sights of the area. They were leaving the next day and they kindly gave us their leaflets, brochures and maps along with their advice as to what to visit. In addition to the scenic Historic Columbia River Highway (which we have been to once before and which I wrote about in the last post), they recommended a 14 mile detour off this road and onto the Larch Mountain Road which ends at a picnic area from which you can take a wooded trail called “Sherrard Viewpoint”. This trail is not long, but mostly consists of 120 steps ending at the viewpoint. More on that in a bit…..

Horsetail Falls

The next morning David had a World Neighbors’ Conference by phone for a couple of hours and I went online and did some business. So it wasn’t until almost noon that we got our start for the day. That was O.K. because the light was starting to get better for photography. Waterfalls are notoriously difficult to photograph on a sunny day because of the shadows surrounding them. I much prefer to photograph them in mist and fog. We drove the 33 miles to where we could pick up the scenic route and that brought us first to Horsetail Falls. That was a lovely single falls and we noted that there is still quite a lot of water even though we were way past the early spring run-off. Our next intended stopping point was Multnomah Falls, which is a double falls with a viewing bridge partway up the falls. This is the largest and the best known falls and has a museum, restaurant and a greater amount of parking than the other falls. Not enough though, for us: By the time we got there, there was no parking to be had. We went on and vowed to stop there on our way back. All the falls have hiking trails if you wish to explore further. We stopped at Wakeena Falls and then Bridal Veil which was not visible from the road but required a short hike. Our last falls for the morning was Latourell Falls, before we

Crown Point Vista House View

got to Crown Point Vista House on the other side of the road from where there is a great view of the Columbia River and environs. A bit further on was the Women’s Forum Overlook which also has a fantastic viewpoint of the River and area. From there, we could see the round Crown Point Vista House where we had previously been.

We then backtracked a bit so that we could drive the Larch Mountain Road and take the hike / climb at the Sherrard Viewpoint in order to see the view. We went down a beautiful wooded trail and came to the 120 steps. David helped me climb them as a torn meniscus makes it a challenge to go up and

View From The Women's Forum

down hill grades. The climb was more than worth it! Once we got to the top, at an altitude of 4,055 feet, we had a view of 5 mountains: Mt. St. Helens, Mt. Rainier, Mt. Adams, Mt. Hood and Mt. Jefferson. This view is not always available as often this area is shrouded in fog and clouds. The following are photos I took of some of these mountains. Some are hazy but only because they are so far away. It was a gorgeous clear day. The closest is Mt. Hood at 22 miles and the farthest is Mt. Rainier at 97 miles. So enjoy some photos of more pointy mountains (and one that blew its top).

Mt. Hood

Mt. Rainier

Mt. St. Helen's

Mt. Adams

On our way back down the steps and the trail, we saw examples of the many still blooming

beautiful wildflowers that dots the sides of Oregon’s roads and dwell in its forests. We stopped at Multnomah Falls on the way back and had no trouble parking because by then it was 5:00 in the afternoon and many had gone home or back to their hotels. After that, we went back to ours and rested, relaxed and then had a delicious dinner at the hotel’s “Larks” restaurant. Before that though, we noted that there was an on-going wedding reception in the hotel garden and today’s happy hour included a

piano player named Tony who had been working at the hotel for quite awhile. He even chatted with us and we learned that Tony had had throat cancer at some point, but made a comeback and is still playing piano and singing even though he is most likely now in his 80s. He took requests and I asked him to play our favorite song:  (I found the lyrics online at www.sing365.com). There is a sweet story as to why this is a favorite, but I’ll just keep that between us.

  

Bésame Mucho

 (Consuelo Velazquez)

Bésame, bésame mucho

Como si fuera esta noche

La última vez

Bésame, bésame mucho

Que tengo miedo a perderte

Perderte después

Quiero tenerte muy cerca

Mirarme en tus ojos

Verte junto a mi

Piensa que tal ves mañana

Yo ya estaré lejos

Muy lejos de ti

Tony

We finally tipped him and bid Tony adieu and went in to dinner at “Larks”, the hotel’s restaurant. We shared a delicious appetizer of zucchini flowers, stuffed with Boursin goat cheese, deep fried in tempura batter and served with a roasted red pepper aioli and then I had an appetizer as a dinner choice: Pan seared black sesame seed tuna with a ponzu glaze and a side order of a piece of steelhead. Steelhead is a local delicacy. As is the case of many

Squash Blossoms

restaurants in this area, this one prides itself in using locally sourced, sustainable, high quality ingredients. Wild steelhead are supposed to be high in astaxanthin which is a antioxidants that is especially protective towards eyesight. It was a very good meal.

Tuna

Steelhead

Fruitloops!

No, not these…..

This!

The next day after our waterfall and mountain adventures, we decided to follow the “Hood River Country Fruit Loop” which is a 35 mile route encompassing local farms, farm stands, orchards, vineyards, wineries and other local offerings. There is a map with links below. Some people follow the route by bicycle.

We began at “Hood River Lavender” which was an absolute treat! Diane, the owner, met us and offered us some lavender lemonade. She then answered all our questions about the farm. All her lavender was in bloom and she also has an impressive garden of wildflowers. You can pick your own bouquet of lavender and there are other goodies for sale in her shop, including lavender essential oil distilled from her lavender, and handcrafted bath and body products and culinary products. The farm has over 70 varieties of lavender and 15 lavandins. The volcanic soil, climate, altitude and sun are right for growing high quality lavender. This is a place where you will want to stay awhile and drink in the sights, the sounds and the

aromas. Apart from the eye candy that beds and beds of blooming lavender have to offer, the farm also includes a grape arbor in which birds reside. You can immerse yourself within the arbor and enjoy the cool greenness of the grape leaves and the occasional bunch of grapes while listening to the birdsong of hidden birds directly overhead. The farm also has a nice view of snow capped Mt. Hood. We picked a bunch of lavender, carefully brushing aside the many bees that were busy availing themselves of lavender nectar. This

was in itself a joy to see! So many articles I have been reading lately talk about our disappearing bees and the serious state of the destruction of bee hives (due to GMO crops and Roundup), it was heartening to see so many bees thriving in this little haven.

From the lavender farm we stopped at Cascade Alpacas and Foothills Yarn and Fiber. We saw some very adorable alpacas, including 4 day old babies. The store sells yarns for knitting and wool for weaving and they

are all very soft. We also stopped by “Glassometry Studios”, a artisan glassblowing and metal sculpture studio. We were able to watch the professional glassblowers at work. For those who are interested, one can take part in glassblowing and, with assistance, create a work of art made from glass. We stopped

at the Gorge White House, which had a bit of everything from U-pick fields for fruit and flowers, to a purveyor of local wines and craft beers. We bought a bottle of raspberry, merlot, truffle, chocolate sauce which can go over ice cream or on fruit. We hope it makes it all the way home! Our final stops before heading back to the hotel were to a winery that had interesting ports as well as wines, and then up to Panorama Point, where we were treated to a spectacular view of Mt. Hood.

We went into town for dinner and David had picked out a restaurant he had read about called “Nora’s Table”. What a find! Their tag line is: “World-Wise Food, Serious Pluck”. It was awesome. Our server told us that most people shared two appetizers and one main course.This is what we did. We had:  House-smoked salmon tostadas on house-made masa tortillas, lime tequila slaw, avocado jicama pico de gallo, a ceviche made with fresh vegetables and homemade chips, and their house burger. The tastes were exquisite! We decided we had to come back for breakfast before leaving the area. After dinner, we went to the local ice cream shack; one of David’s favorite things to do. We then went back to the hotel and packed up for our trip to Coeur D'Alene the next day. 

Ceviche

Tostadas

Here are some links for this post:  

http://www.hoodriverfruitloop.com/index.html

http://www.lavenderfarms.net/hoodriverlavender/index.html

http://www.hoodriverfruitloop.com/info/history.html

http://norastable.com/

http://www.globalresearch.ca/death-of-the-bees-genetically-modified-crops-and-the-decline-of-bee-colonies-in-north-america/25950

Spotlight on: The Columbia Gorge Hotel, the Columbia River Highway and a Short Geological History of the Area

Columbia Gorge Hotel

We arrived at the Columbia Gorge Hotel on July 25 and left on July 27. It is a beautiful historic hotel in Hood River, Oregon and it is situated right on the Columbia River. The hotel was originally developed in 1904, by a pioneer named Bobby Rand and in 1920 Rand sold it to Simon Benson who had helped complete the Columbia Gorge Scenic Highway, about 30 miles down the road from the hotel. We had been on the scenic highway before: it essentially parallels Highway 84 to Portland.  If you are ever traveling that stretch of highway, you MUST take the scenic divergence. It is well worth it! We do recommend though, that you try to avoid a weekend during prime time (morning and early afternoon) as there is limited parking to stop and see the various falls. This stretch of gorgeous road (pun intended) consists of leafy tree-lined road alongside which are a series of waterfalls. It has been claimed that the most beautiful time of year to visit is in the spring when the waterfalls are replete with winter run-off from mountain snows and the banks are replete with wild flowers. We have been there twice and not in the spring, but I can attest that it is still lovely, whenever you decide to visit. 

The geologic history of the gorge itself is absolutely fascinating and if you decide to delve into it, you will be amazed by the magnitude of the volume of water from ice-melt that carved out the entire gorge in a relatively short period of time, unlike the Grand Canyon which was formed over many years.

There is a sign board along Highway 200 , “Glacial Lake Missoula and the Floods That Shaped the Northwest”, which we stopped and read on our way OUT of Coeur D'Alene as we were headed towards Whitefish, Montana, which pictorially depicts and describes what happened geologically to

form the gorge and the rivers of the area. These were catastrophic physical events in Earth’s history.  On the signboard: “Glaciers advanced and retreated a dozen times or more, damming Lake Missoula, bursting with gargantuan force, flooding areas miles away, shaping today’s landscape in Idaho, Washington and Oregon”. It also stated: “The force of energy unleashed was hundreds of times the explosive energy of Mt. St. Helens.” Also, Glacial ice above lake level (was as) tall as a 200 story building above lake level, rose 4 times as tall as Seattle’s  605 ft. Space Needle, (and the) total depth of glacial ice may have exceeded 3,500 feet when reaching to the lake’s rock bed.”

Our waterfall viewing drive along the scenic highway will be better described in the next blog post. Here, I am setting the geological scene.

So Simon Benson, who was originally born in Norway, had had work as a farm hand, and later worked in sawmills and logging camps. Ultimately the logging industry allowed him to build his fortune. His philanthropy included financially supporting the construction of the scenic route mentioned above and ensuring that the land was designated public park land. He also owned the Columbia Gorge Hotel and intended for it to be an opulent place to stay for travelers who had completed the scenic tour. The 208 foot “Wah Gwin Gwin” waterfall is on the hotel grounds. Famous people who have supposedly stayed there include President Roosevelt and Rudolph Valentino. During the depression, the hotel became a retirement home and this remained so until 1977 when it became a hotel again and was restored. “Simon’s Cliff House” is the hotel’s restaurant and the food is very good. It is a beautiful well appointed hotel and weddings and other events are often held there, especially outside in their beautiful gardens. There is also a spa.

But the Columbia Gorge Hotel has another facet to its history that is NOT mentioned on its website. It is reputed to be haunted. 

Having stayed in an exquisitely haunted castle in Wales and having taken part in ghost séances there, we were keen to learn more about the Gorge Hotel’s ghosts. We asked numerous staff people about the resident ghosts. Half of the people we asked said they had not worked there long enough to have any first hand knowledge of ghosts, but one employee who has been there a few years, was more than eager to tell us about the ghosts. One resident ghost is a man the hotel staff  have named “Oscar” and he likes to smoke pipes and cigars. He also wears a top hat. Guests have reported smelling the smoke even though the hotel has a no smoking policy throughout. Another ghost is a woman who is reported to move furniture in front of the door so outsiders cannot get into the room. But the employee also told us of the sounds of children playing above the 3^rd floor. On different occasions, guests have phoned the front desk to ask them to ask the guests on the 4^th floor to ask their children to be quieter. There are no guest rooms on the 4^th floor. That is the attic. In our short stay there we did not see or hear ghosts, but at one point, when I had my dowsing crystal out and was checking rooms in the 3^rd floor hallway, I got a very intense tingling up and down my spine outside one door. It was literally chilling. In Wales, they told us that this sensation occurred when ghosts attempt to attach to you and the tingling is their attempt to suck some energy from you. They try to enter from the back so you are less aware of them at first. I have found that stomping my feet and saying in a stern voice: “Stop that! I am queen of this realm and you have no power over me!”  Most ghosts are not that invasive, however and leave well enough alone but if you seek out what they wish for, they will communicate that to you. Most times, it is just being acknowledged. We have had several ghost visitations at home and one in particular, knocked the exact same books off of the exact same shelf upstairs in the kitchen and the family room for 3 days in a row at exactly 5:00 a.m. She just wanted to be acknowledged and after I lit a candle in the kitchen at 5:00 a.m. for 3 days in a row and acknowledged her for ½ hour each day, she stopped knocking books around. 

Ultimately we were a little sad to leave our ghosts, waterfalls and the fabulous food and people of this Hood River area, but read on as the next posting will describe our enjoyable drive around the “Fruit Loop Tour” where we visited the local growers and artisans of this area. 

Some links for more information on the above: The second link provides a very useful map.

http://columbiagorgehotel.com/

http://www.columbiariverhighway.com/historic_columbia_river_highway.pdf

http://vulcan.wr.usgs.gov/Volcanoes/Washington/ColumbiaRiver/geo_history_gorge.html

http://www.historichotels.org/hotels-resorts/columbia-gorge-hotel/ghoststories.php

A Plethora of Pointy Mountains

We saw a play on our second day in Ashland. Isn't that what you are supposed to do there? After all, Ashland is the home of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival offering 11 plays in 3 theaters. We have been here before and the quality of theater here is superb. We saw a matinee production of "Taming of the Shrew". The setting for this play is often varied in location and time but the play remains the same. It is one of my favorite Shakespearean plays. This version was set on a beach boardwalk. There is dispute about the meaning of this play and some think that Kate gets "tamed" at the end of the play but I disagree. I believe that Shakespeare portrays Kate as one of his strong woman characters (even though in his time all the female parts were played by men).



Pangea Meal

I have been asked to post more food photos so here goes: Before the play we found a nice little restaurant cafe called "Pangea" and had a wonderful lunch there. The food was tasty and really healthy. David and I each had a bowl of soup and we shared a sald of lettuce, artichoke hearts, sun dried tomatoes and other goodies. http://www.pangeaashland.com/

We ate dinner at our hotel that night and had a great meal there as well. I had a vegetarian entree which consisted of a black bean and basil croquette, carrot confit, roasted peanuts and  sesame roasted mushrooms. It was delicious. As we were eating dinner, we noticed a somewhat familiar

face at the table next to ours. David said: "That looks like Steven Seagall". We knew him when we lived in Japan the first time (1981-1984) and  he was the "sensei" (teacher) at an Aikido dojo there. We both had several lessons with him. Much later, we learned that he had gone to Hollywood and had become an actor in action films. Sitting at the table, he did not look as we remembered him, though that was many years ago. But once he and his group stood up and left the restaurant, walking right past us, we realized that it was him. http://stevenseagal.com/ 

But what of "pointy mountains"? 

The next day we began our trek from Ashland to Hood River. We did not take the direct route, but decided to go past Crater Lake and stop and see the sights there before driving onwards. Our route took us on Interstate 5 to Medford, where we got on route 62 to Crater Lake. From there, we took 138 to 97 and then 97 to 26. At Madras, we turned onto 35 and took that to Hood River.  

We started our journey at 8:30 in the morning and it was already 78 degrees outside. Route 62 took us past a row of car dealerships and on into country land with rolling hills carpeted with evergreen trees.This was where we saw our first Oregonian pointy mountain.





Unidentified Oregonian Pointy Mountain

I have no idea which one it was. We passed through Shady Grove, along the Rogue River, and into Joseph Steward State Park where we were treated to tree-lined road and cooler shade which was a nice respite from the ever increasing temperature. (Remember, we were in a convertible with the top down, driven by someone who had yet to commit to an upper limit temperature at which point the top could be raised and the air conditioner be turned on). This part of the journey was lovely as the Rogue River meandered in and out of view and we were enjoying the shade of the trees overhead while listening to The Allman Brothers' "Eat a Peach" .The music seemed oddly in tune with the metronome-like image of the dotted lines of the road racing by, keeping beat along the way, accompanied by the staccato of intense sunlight flashes through trees as we sped on through the forest. Almost abruptly, the forest came to and end and we found ourselves thrust into a sun blast of warmth accompanied by the stinging singing of hot weather cicadas.

By the time we got to Crater Lake it was hot, exposed,  and there was a distinct aroma of hot oil and rubber due to the recently re-paved road which was baking in the sun. Crater Lake is as impressive as it has been described in the tourist books. It is the deepest lake in the United States at a depth of 1932 feet.  Lake Tahoe comes in second at a depth of 1645 feet.The colors of Crater Lake are intense blues and greens. We stopped at various vantage points along the western side of the lake before continuing on our journey to Hood River. 

Crater Lake

Once we left Crater Lake, we took route 138 and then route 97 towards Bend. We stopped and ate lunch in Bend  at a little cafe, and by that time, the temperature had soared to almost 100 degrees. Our route after lunch, took us through the Warm Springs Reservation and there we saw some very interesting rock formations.

Warm Springs Rocks

We were also treated to our next views of the pointy mountains of Oregon. All in all, we saw the the Three Sisters range, Mt. Jefferson, Mt. Adams in the distance and eventually a view of the magnificent Mt. Hood. Along this route, we also saw a sign that informed us that we were crossing the 45th parallel, which is halfway between the Equator and the North Pole. Mt. Hood continued to be in view for much of the rest of our journey into Hood River. We arrived at our hotel, The Columbia Gorge Hotel at 4:30 in the afternoon. Looking like the sun and wind blasted creatures we were, we checked into the hotel just in time for "Happy Hour" at the hotel bar. A drink and many glasses of water later, we were back to our old selves and ready to explore this old historical hotel. It has a reputation for being haunted which is something we would both enjoy learning more about.



Mt. Hood

But that evening, I was to dream less about ghosts and more about all the beautiful pointy mountains that Oregon has to offer.