beardentravels: 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.