I began my random road trip. I brought my bike and my hiking shoes and I’ll be visiting towns throughout the Pacific Northwest in Washington, Oregon, and California for the next ten days. If you think there is a site or town I should not miss, please leave a comment or send me an email. And if you’ve followed my work, it would be a joy to have a cup of java or pint of brew with you.
I also got my first iPhone today. My son Jesse has had one for a couple years but I never felt a need. But now it is a very mature product which replaces my laptop for most social networking, iPod, photography, and basic information retrieval and storage functions. It has a great 5 megapixal camera. Here’s the first pic I took today:
View of the Columbia River from the trail to Ponytail Falls
Is Oregon beautiful or what? Sweet green creation of God – life, life, and more life everywhere you look! I LOVE this place! Here is a pic of Ponytail Falls – very refreshing after the 250 foot climb to see them!
And then I drove down the old “Historic Scenic Highway 30” to Multnoma Falls:
And here’s a pic from between the rails of the bridge that you see just below the falls:
I’m writing this post from Shari’s restaurant after having a delicious Spinach Cobb salad for dinner (most excellent!). Shari’s has good food, is open 24/7, and has free 10 MB wi-fi, so it’s an excellent resource for a random road tripper.
Tune in for tomorrow’s episode!
With the name of God, Peace be unto you! The first picture is absolutely gorgeous!
If I come back to the states I’m definitely going to settle in Washington/Oregon area Allah-willing. Amazing pictures! … The first two pictures and especially the last one are really calibre for a magazine.
Well … it’s what happens when you capture God’s creation with 5 megapixel camera from a prime location! 🙂
This trip is really reinvigorating!
Is the rock on the north side of the river (picture 1) the core of an old volcano? There was one (and maybe more than one) somewhere there. The dramatic change in the plant population depending on the “rain shadow” has always amazed me. When we were coming back from The Dalles (on the north side of the river), it was three miles from the time we saw the first tree until it was solid trees. Then there are the scablands. 🙂
I am south of Houston and we are getting Alex related showers that have drowned our former dry spell. Pike Street Market was fun in Seattle.
Hi Bennett,
I too have long been amazed how quickly the vegetation changes depending on the average precipitation.
Sounds like you’re well familiar with the Pacific NW. I used to live in Seattle, and often enjoyed the music and life of the Pike Street Market. It’s an icon of Seattle, usually shown at least once in movies set there.
I don’t know about the big rock just below the falls. I didn’t look closely at it. But I would guess you are correct, it probably is a big chunk of basalt. An interesting description of the falls is found here, and here is a relevant snippet:
I’m sitting in Eureka right now. I wish I could stay longer but I have a little driving to do today – I’ll be visiting a brother-in-law in San Fran this afternoon.
Richard
[Don’t tell Squirrel about the rocks.]
My first wife and I took several driving trips toward and along the Pacific Coast. The longest was 63 days away from home. We saw a lot of interesting country. Grand Canyon was my best “erosion scenery.” Looking west from the west side of Glacier Park is filed under the best single view. The Canadian Rockies were our best big scenery. And Watkins Gorge in Watkins Glenn, NY was the best small scenery. The Crazy Horse monument was the “best human effort (limited number of people category).” Niagara Falls is the best waterfall. The drive from Minnesota to Fargo, ND was the flattest drive. Iowa was best corn country. There were many grand things to be seen.
Interesting synopsis – longest, best, flattest. Thanks.
I think the ancient layers of rocks revealed by erosion in the Gorge coupled with the angular lifting of those layers as plates collide provide completely convincing evidence of an old earth. And the beauty of this is that we have a coherence with many other independent “clocks” such as radioactive decay. So for me, the case is closed though I am more than happy to discuss the evidence with anyone who wants to pursue it.
Richard, Absolutely beautiful! Awesome pictures – wish mine came out that spectacular. Have a blessed time on your trip enjoying God’s wonderful creation. Be safe and wish I was along for the ride. Love you.
Hi Deanna!
It’s great that you stopped by to visit here on my blog. The pictures really did come out wonderfully the first day. A lot better than I had expected.
Many blessings to you and the family,
Richard