Exploring Idaho & Oregon's Columbia River Gorge
We left Wasatch Mountain State Park in Utah on 5/18 and headed north on I-84
to Twin Falls, ID. Big Red pulled the APPLE up and down the mountains and
finally got to rest at the Twin Falls/Jerome KOA in Idaho. The next day we
explored the area, beginning at Shoshone Falls, a 212-ft. waterfall that is
over 1,000-ft. wide when it is flowing-and it sure was flowing that day! The
thunder of the falls almost makes the ground tremble. The sunshine on the mist
created a beautiful rainbow over the Snake River. There are some times during
the summer when most of the water is diverted for irrigation of the adjacent
farmland, so then the waterfall only exists on postcards. Fortunately, the
Snake River was gushing with water from the mountain snowmelt and recent
rains, so the falls was spectacular. It is so large, and there is so much mist
that it is hard to capture it in a photo, but we have great pictures in our
memories.
We headed west a little ways to check out the Thousand Springs area. This
unique region has springs (thousands of them) pouring out of the hillsides for
several miles along the Snake River. The run-off is especially spectacular in
the spring when many waterfalls appear out of the rocks. The Niagara Springs
and Cascade Springs State Park are two particularly large areas of springs.
It's hard to describe the beauty of these springs. The clear water pours forth
with such force that it creates pure white foam which then floods over the sea
of green vegetation. What a treat for the eyes and ears! Even the nose can
smell the freshness in the air.
Next we headed to Malad Gorge State Park where a multi-tiered cascade ends
with the Malad Falls dumping into a rock formation called the Devil's
Washbowl. The huge gorge is well over a 1,000-ft. deep. After hiking two miles
along the rim of the gorge, we got a great view of an unnamed waterfall that
plunged from the rim and then cascaded to the bottom of the gorge.
The next day, 5/20, we headed north through Sun Valley and into the Sawtooth Mountain Range. We crossed over Galena Summit (8,700') where the road had only opened a few days before. There was still a lot of snow in the woods. (We figure we've seen more snow since we left MN than they did all winter long!) We headed into a beautiful area around Redfish Lake where we could view Mt. Heyburn and many other mountain peaks. It was a peaceful, scenic area to hike and explore. We also took a number of back roads through the Sawtooth National Forest and checked out several other lakes and campgrounds. We always enjoy spending time in the mountains.
On 5/21 we hitched up the APPLE and headed northwest through the rest of Idaho and into Oregon on our way to the Columbia River Gorge. On the way Big Red grunted his way up some serious grades. Our speed dropped to 30-35 mph but we stayed in 2nd gear and kept on moving. The scenery was nice, but the weather got worse and worse. It started with wind and rain. Then as the elevation increased, the temperature decreased. Rain turned to sleet, hail and finally snow as the mercury dipped to 33 degrees. Luckily the road was warm enough that it all melted instead of getting icy. We stopped in Umatilla, OR to pick up some mail late in the afternoon. Then we continued west until the wind wore us out. We pulled into the Driftwood RV Park in Boardman, OR and called it a day.
On 5/23 the clouds and rain moved in, but we went out exploring anyway. We
headed to Lost Lake and checked out the campground there in the Mt. Hood
National Forest. There were gigantic trees everywhere dressed in robes of
green moss. On 5/24 we drove the entire Mt. Hood Loop. We were all around and
even up on the mountain, but couldn't see the peak because of all the clouds.
We checked out Timothy Lake and several National Forest Campgrounds there.
When we spotted one called Pine Point (which was the name of the Seliskar
family resort) we thought we'd found our next home. We enjoyed meeting the
hosts, Guy & Barbara Marvin (relatives of the Marvin Window folks of MN). We
had planned to move there until we found out it was 23 miles to the nearest
payphone, and 40-45 miles to get groceries or fuel. We like the wilderness and
outdoor experiences, but that was more inconvenience than we wanted to deal
with at this point.
We explored the area around Trillium Lake and guess what we saw there: trilliums! There were hundreds of the beautiful white flowers lining the roadsides and scattered throughout the woods. Sprinkled along the way were columbines, pink and purple foxglove, rhododendrons, and many varieties of yellow flowers. Later that day we spotted another New Horizons rig at Milo McIver State Park. The people who live in it are campground hosts, but they were out and about so we didn't get to talk with them.
Have you ever had a lost day? We did on 5/25. No, we didn't lose a day. It was
a day when all we did is lose things and get lost. First we lost our patience
at Wal-Mart (and left a cart full of stuff for them to put away). Then we got
sort of lost trying to find a K-mart on the edge of Portland. We did
eventually find it, but by then we had lost our sense of humor. Next, we went
for groceries and lost out on finding many of our favorite brands of items;
some products must get lost on their way out here. Then we asked for
directions to a good pizza place, and, you guessed it, we got lost. Actually
we knew where we were, but the directions to the pizza parlor were incorrect,
so we never did find it. By evening we were thoroughly frustrated. As I was
feeling sorry for myself, I remembered what day it was---Memorial Day. When I
thought about all the people who have lost their lives trying to preserve our
freedom, it made our 'lost day' seem pretty unimportant. Sometimes all you
need is a little perspective…
On Tuesday, 5/26 we moved the APPLE to Ainsworth State Park. This
campground was farther west in the gorge near the famous Multnomah Falls. This campground
had gigantic trees that formed a green canopy over the area. Moss was growing
on the paved paths and curbs along the roadway in this verdant world. It is
the quietest campground in the river gorge. While we were here we met several
nice couples including Ralph and Mary Lou Feldt from Michigan. They have been
full-timing for a couple of years. We had a great time swapping tales of
places we visited and experiences on the road.
In the days that followed, Tom and I visited - drove and/or hiked to many
beautiful waterfalls including Multnomah, Bridal Veil, Horsetail, Latourell,
Wahkeena, Upper McCord, Wah Gwin Gwin, Loowit, Metlako, Punch Bowl, High
Bridge, Oneonta, Elowah, and others. The conditions were sometimes too windy
or rainy for good photos, but we still managed to shoot a few rolls of slides
plus some digital photos for the website. Waterfalls are a treat for the
senses--the white ribbons of water framed in green, the roar and thunder, the
mist caressing your face, and the smell of freshness in the air. The energy of
each waterfall seemed to fill us with peace.
On Sunday, 5/31, Tom and I went to church at the Living Enrichment Center in Wilsonville, OR, just south of Portland. Let me explain how we came to find this particular church. When Tom and I had arrived in the Columbia River Gorge, I was trying to figure out what our next step of the journey was to be about. After sending up a prayer for guidance, I was urged to go to my bookshelf and pull out "Building Your Field of Dreams" by Mary Manin Morrissey. This was the book that I had been shown by Rita Minard on Day 1 of our journey (when we were stranded by the ice storm). When I read the cover that first day, I had gotten goosebumps and knew immediately that this was a book I was to read. Later, when I got my own copy and read it, I felt a great commonalty with Mary and her beliefs. Mary and her family had even full-timed in a travel trailer, crossing the country and doing workshops. Sound familiar?
Anyway, as I started to re-read the book, I realized that Mary was the Senior
Pastor at the Living Enrichment Center in Wilsonville. When we looked it up on
the map, we found that we were only about an hour away from there. So, one day
Tom and I drove to Wilsonville. Mary wasn't there that day, but we had a
personal tour of the wonderful retreat center and other facilities. We headed
back there to hear Mary preach on Sunday. The service was uplifting with great
music and good messages. After the service, we had a chance to meet Mary and
talk with her for a few minutes. There was a connection that we both felt.
After telling her a little bit about our journey and my passion for helping
others discover and live their dreams, I asked Mary if she would ever consider
certifying other trainers to deliver her "Field of Dreams" workshops and
retreats. She smiled and replied, "Funny you should mention that now. We've
just been discussing that possibility for later this year." She urged me to
keep in touch. Who knows what our future connection might be…?
After the church service, we headed out in search of Mt. Hood. It was the
first sunny day in over a week, and the mountain was out. (That's mountain
lingo meaning the mountain is visible, not in the clouds.) We traveled up the
East Lolo Pass Road along the west flank of the mountain, stopping many times
to ooh and aah while we took photos. We circled around the south and headed up
to the Historic Timberline Lodge. We noticed news crews in the parking lot,
but it wasn't until later that evening that we found out there had been an
avalanche that killed one hiker and injured others. We ended our day by
sitting on the edge of Trillium Lake watching the changing light on Mt. Hood
as the sun slowly set. It was a wonderful day, filled with possibilities and
the beauty of Mother Nature. As John Denver said/sang, "Some days are
diamonds."
Tom and I continued to explore the Columbia River Gorge through June 3rd. Then the time came to move on to the beautiful Oregon Coast. That's where we'll pick up in the next travelogue.
Until then…Love from the wanderers as the journey continues...
Kay & Tom
