Portland--Multnomah Falls, Mt. Hood

Many years ago, when the world was young, I had a friend named Donna who came down with a serious case of the wanderlust one spring. She hooked a homemade trailer to her VW Beetle, loaded up her 3 goats and 2 dogs, and set off with her toddler to drive to Oregon, her personal Promised Land. Her journey became a personal metaphor for me whenever I had an unfulfilled wanderlust--"someday I'll pack up my goats and drive to Oregon". I've finally made it, by airplane, and sans goats, but delighted to be here just the same. My first foray into the natural wonders of the Portland was a visit to Multnomah Falls, above. Below is a view from the trail to the top of the falls, looking out over the Columbia River Gorge.

Here is the waterway that feed the falls. I love the way the trees are coated with moss:

Here I am at the mouth of the falls, trying not to plummet to my doom:

The view looking from the top of the falls down over the mountain:

A side hike took us to Weisendanger Falls, easily one of the most beautiful places I've ever been. The pictures don't begin to do it justice, but here's one anyhow:

Next up was a drive to Mt. Hood. The weather was exceptionally fine, clear and warm and sunny, giving us fantastic views all the way there. Here I am in 74 degree weather, standing on a deep snowpack, while crazy snowboarders prepared to leap off the precipice:

A view from Mt. Hood, with Mt. Jefferson off to the right:

I'm living life too fast to fully document it right now, which is a good thing. More San Francisco pictures will surface at some point when I catch up with myself.