Wednesday, August 5th
Staying last night in Hood River, we decided to take the Hood River Scenic Train which would take as for a four and a half hour ride to Parksdale, a small town at the base of Mt. Hood. Having a little time to kill, we walked to the riverfront area of Hood River. Prevailing strong winds throughout the Columbia River Gorge makes this town a popular spot for windsurfing and kiteboarding. We sat and watched all the action. At one point we counted over 15 kiteboarders in the river. We marveled at the strength and skill it takes for these sports.
Our train started boarding at 10:30 and left at 11:00. We splurged and got tickets in the dome car. It included lunch as well – pork BBQ’s. In the dome car, we sat up pretty high and it was great to see the scenery. At first, it was along a river and forests. As time went on, it mostly was orchards – pear orchards. This area is the biggest pear growing area in the USA.
Next on our agenda was the Columbia River Gorge Interpretive Center in Stevenson, Washington which is right across the Columbia from Cascade Locks. We crossed the Columbia on the Bridge of the Gods to get to the museum. There was an interesting film about how the Gorge was formed. It amazes me how the scientists and geologists have learned that ice age flooding long ago formed the Gorge we see today.
There was a 37 foot high full scale replica of a 19th century fish wheel that was used to catch salmon on the Columbia River. It was basically a wheel that scooped up the salmon as they journey upstream to spawn and then sent them to canneries. You can imagine how this affected the future of the salmon. The fish wheels were outlawed by Washington and Oregon in the 20’s and 30’s .
A model of a fishwheel
There was also a replica of a fishing platform used by the Native Americans who fished in the river, just like the real ones we saw on the river at the fish hatcheries.
Multnomah Falls was our last stop of the day. It is the second highest year-round falls in the U.S. with a drop of 620 feet. It really is a double falls. While it was pretty, this was a low snow year for this area and the flow of water was significantly less than I remembered the last time we saw it. We had dinner on the patio of the Multnomah Lodge with a great view of the falls.
After walking to the bridge to view the upper falls, we headed back to Portland which was about a half hour drive to Kate’s house. Since it was almost 8:00 p.m. the traffic was minimal and our GPS took us without a problem to 1439 NE Mason Street.
Later I suggested we take a walk to get ice cream. We headed for Alberta Street to a place Kate told us was quite popular here in Portland. It is called Salt and Straw. There was quite a line inside and outside of the store. Kate explained “You have to be ready to try several kinds. They’ll give you samples to taste.” I tried the sea salt ice cream with caramel ribbons and the snickerdoodle something or other. I did not like them.
This ice cream place was very different. But then, that is so “Portland”. I read in a travel book that the locals pride themselves in being weird. I think this ice cream store fits right in. Just like Voodoo Doughnuts with their unusual doughnuts like the Voodoo Doll doughnut and the Bacon Maple Bar doughnut. Weird works here in Portland.
More adventures tomorrow! Thanks for following along on our travels!