Spring in the Columbia River Gorge: Pt 1

The Columbia River Gorge is another magical place for me, especially the part from Hood River to Portland. I love it because of all the green trees and ferns, waterfalls, history...well there are just a LOT of reasons why I love it! Why don't you come along with us and see, if by the end, you love it a bit too?

This is Crown Point--the little building (which is actually not a little building) is the Vista House. The views from up there are breathtaking, literally, which is why I was not up there this day:)

Two highways go through this area--the Columbia River Historic Highway (parts of which are open to vehicles; parts which are open to hikers only and some which are still not open if I recall). The other highway is I-84 which is the lower highway; this one runs along the river and also has great views.
The early morning light was unbelievable--this photo does not give the beauty of the area justice. It was SO beautiful, I kept shooting photo after photo; it was also really cold so some of them, sadly, were shot through my car window:(
Another major tourist attractions is the Multnomah Falls! Visitors from all over the world come to see the falls--some to hike the many trails in the area.

When we were there, we almost had the place to ourselves. Later in the day, when we drove by, the place was crowded. It is very green and shady in the area right by the falls. We could also feel the spray off the falls. I loved it and all the old rock walls and steps. I love the historic lodge there too, but you will have to wait until part 2 for to see that! As I have said, many a time, I would love to know what my Oregon Trail pioneer families thought of this area after being in the drier area of the Gorge. Unlike many other families, mine came the river route instead of the Barlow trail. The river was quite a different place then--no dams--so they would have seen Celilio Falls in the Dalles area and the Cascades (rapids) near Cascade Locks.

The Columbia River here is in a gorge that divides the Cascade mountains of Oregon from those of Washington. Some mountains and higher elevations had a lot of snow on them; some other areas less so--the lowest elevations no snow:) I cannot believe this spring--we just got snow at about the 2,000 foot elevation and Washington state extended their studded tire season till just a little while ago.

This last photo (below) is in the Hood River area. This is a big area for windsurfing! During the summer you can see loads of them and it is very exciting to watch! We didn't see any windsurfers that day-it was pretty calm, we did see a few boaters though.

Looking eastward--the next town would be Mosier. From here the gorge area becomes drier and less green.

See you later for part 2! One of my fav shows just started.

Blessings this day, Aimee

Photos: spring 2011, Columbia River Gorge (westernmost area). Sorry about the formatting--it has been very strange lately.