Day 26

Between trains, interstate traffic, and Ryan getting sick we were all up half the night. Well, except for Laney. She slept through everything. There is a folk tale that I slept through my mom vacuuming my room but we all know how accurate folk tales are.

Our day started bright and early anyway to beat the crowds at Multnomah Falls. We met in the parking area and got our first of many pictures by this mammoth 620-foot waterfall.  This place was already a very popular spot this morning so we got on the trail to explore.

The hike was an easy paved trail with nice switchbacks to soften the elevation gain. We made it to the second viewing area pretty quickly after stopping for Lola the dog celebrity to get all her petting in.


We weren't really interested in going to the top of the falls today with the threat of rain so after I played with shutter speed for a little bit we headed back down. We left the girls at the bridge this time so I could get a good picture of just how big this guy is. Can you see them with their arms up on the bridge?


By the time we got back to the trail head the information desk was open so I grabbed a trail map while Grammie shopped. Lola got a lot more attention too!

Another waterfall I had on my list just happened to be a short hike away so we headed down that trail to see it too. It's always nice to have access to so many trails without having to move the car! We saw so many bikes in Oregon around the gorge - that seems the definite way to go!

We made it to Wakenna Falls after about a mile then headed up to a couple different viewing spots to feel the spray. The kids weren't too keen about getting wet though!

We've seen these flowers absolutely everywhere - they are one of Laney's favorites! The wildflowers growing everywhere are so beautiful and colorful! On this hike the kids even spotted some teeny tiny tomatoes! Tiny like the size of a bb for a bb gun. I forgot to get a picture though I was so interested in them.

We were headed up to Fairy Falls when I checked the radar for the rain that was promised today. It looked about 30 minutes away so we decided to head back to the car. I don't mind hiking in the rain at all but combine it with cold and we are all instantly grumpy!  We ate lunch in the car and picked up Grammie and Laney to drive to gorge spots we were interested in seeing.

Our first stop was Mitchell Point. This spot is a cape in the gorge with a hike up that we bypassed with the threat of rain. There was a viewpoint with lots of wind at the base that we enjoyed though. This spot once had a five-windowed tunnel through a sheer rock face to continue the scenic highway. Unfortunately for us it was blasted away when they built the neighboring interstate.

Our next stop was Memaloose Overlook where we learned about these islands in the river. The native americans  living in the area never buried there dead but placed them in canoes on the river or in cedar vaults on islands like this one. Lewis and Clark made notes about these islands in their journals.  Many of the islands are now covered with water and this island is only one-third of what Lewis and Clark would have seen. There is a lone monument at one end of the island that is said to be the grave of a pioneer who wanted to be buried with his native american friends.

At this viewpoint a lady cycler noticed Brayden's Boston sweatshirt and struck up a conversation with him. The group seemed to be sisters from all over the country gathering to ride the scenic highway. They gave us some pointers of what to see along our travels along the gorge. One of them was this lovely barn. So many of our views could be turned into puzzles!

Our last stop in our climb around the gorge was Rowetta Crest. There were winding turns up and down both sides of this viewpoint. The kids had stopped getting out of the car by this point so I figured they were pretty much done for the day. The view was still just mountains and a river to them after all! I enjoyed learning about the construction of the roads anyway! We were so high up you could see the white caps in the river but couldn't tell they were moving at all. 

We ended the drive ready for naps so we headed back to Grammie's campground and the girls made cupcakes instead! What a luxury it is to be able to bake on the summer trip. Brayden and I emptied hiking backpacks and got things ready for our exit the next day. We took a stroll across the train tracks to the river for a few minutes of cold water therapy. There were a few kite surfers there so I was hopeful we would get to see them but they were done for the day.

The gremlins were hungry once we got back so once the cupcakes were iced we made much-anticipated tuna melts for dinner. Brayden had been asking for these since pretty much the first day of the trip so we finally made it happen. I think he liked them as he ended up eating 3!  It didn't improve his mood all that much so we ended up playing My Ship Has Sailed without him.

I took Ryan and Brayden back early so we could try to catch up on some sleep. They were reluctant to climb in the tent with it still being light out but once I let them read for a few minutes their eyes were very heavy. We all went to sleep before the sunset hoping the train would be less frequent tonight.