Up Close and Personal With Nature

Most of you who know me know that my idea of nature is playing craps at a casino called Four Winds. We went camping a lot when I was a kid, both with Scouts and with my family. Ann and I extended that into camping when we were first married, usually going up to Wisconsin with Lighthalls and/or Robinsons. It almost always rained (ask Mary) and when the kids came along, camping got more difficult. Many a night we spent in the car at the campground with a crying baby trying to get them to sleep (Nate was not a good sleeper even then). So the following pictures of me out in the wild are in stark contrast to my normal life. We are just back from a week stay in Portland, Oregon, the jewel of the Northwest. Mike and Tammy live there now and it was nice to see them again. Mike is between classes at Portland State and so when the weekend came and Tammy was off work, we decided to head for the hills. And the ocean and the river.   

First up was a drive to Council Crest Park in Portland, which offers a beautiful panaroramic view of the mountains that surround Portland. The pictures below are of Mount Hood, which tops out at about 11,240 feet. It is a volcano, which explains the steep sides and is home to twelve glaciers. You could also see Mt. St. Helens and Mt. Ranier from the summit of Council Crest.    

On Saturday, we headed for the Willamette River which bisects Portland into eastern and western regions. We boarded a jetboat with 30 other people and headed south toward the Willamette Falls. Along the way we learned about the history of Portland and the River, and we got wet. Every so often, the driver would come to a sudden stop and the water would shoot over the bow and soak us. On the way back, we practiced spinning the boat, which also got us wet. Mike seemed to get the worst of it riding on the outside seat, but we were all pretty damp when the ride was over.    

We got a chance to see many of the Portland bridges up close and personal.    

And we passed a bay where World War II veterans were refurbishing a PT Boat.    

The falls were enjoyable, although we couldn't get very close to them.    

Then on Sunday, we drove out to Seaside, Oregon to visit the ocean. We had a nice time walking through the waves, watching the dogs splash, strolling along the boardwalk, and buying salt water taffy.    

 

We had a great time visiting Portland, but we are now resting up for the Chicago Wizard Comic Convention in two weeks. Bruce Campbell and Christopher Lloyd. Sounds like fun.