January | 2023 | Margaret Quilts

What do I want to remember about December? A freak snowstorm the first week. A lot of grey, rainy cold days which I spent counting down to the winter Solstice. I only went on two hikes this month:

12/6/2022 – Catherine Creek, WA –

We drove through the snowy Columbia River Gorge, and found the early snow at Catherine Creek.

Ice on Rowland Lake

Snow covered slopes on the Lower Trail

We saw a fox run up the slope.

Looking across the Columbia River to Oregon.

Catherine Creek Waterfall

Then we walked up to the snow-covered fairy pools,

and looked across to the Arch.

While eating lunch and warming up in the car, the sun came out, so we decided to walk the trail above the Arch.

Bridge over the creek

I saw a few predator birds in the tree tops – a hawk

American kestrel

Looking up toward Sunflower Hill

We turned around at the top of the Arch, not having adequate footwear for deeper snow and ice.

Eastward view

12/13/2022 – Portland Arboretum –

Another day, we found a slightly dry weather window, and took a 2.5 mile walk through part of the Portland Arboretum.

We found the most color in the Holly Garden.

Bare deciduous trees and grey skies.

Mahonia in the Winter Garden

Cedar

Meanwhile…

I took plenty of walks through the neighborhood looking for cheerful holiday decor.

I remember willing the Solstice and longer days to arrive. For a few days each year, the sun is so low, it shines through our front door windows onto the stairwell wall.

Later in the month, the east winds swept through and pounded our neighborhood, blowing down several very tall fir trees, including one across the street that we had been worried about for years. It fell on the neighbor’s house. Fortunately no one was in the room that was crushed at that moment. Then we watched the street drama of tree removal for several days, front row seat from our living room.

December 22nd, tree down

December 23rd – a thin layer of icy snow over everything…

December 26th – first they removed the other standing tree,

Then used a very tall crane to remove the fallen tree.

Rainproofing the roof; reconstruction and repair will take a while….

Elsewhere in the neighborhood:

Over in the park, Henry Huggins lost his shade tree,

and the tall fir to the left of this nutcracker…

blocked this street for a few weeks until it could be removed.

Fortunately, nobody was hurt an any of these local incidents.

What else…one son moved to Philadelphia at the beginning of the month and was not here for the holidays. We began to settle into our next phase of empty nesting, with no sign of any of the kids living here in the near future. We were glad to have our daughter home for the holidays. Luckily, she moved her flight up one day, and missed the travel craziness that happened this year. We were amazed that our other son arrived home from a business trip on a delayed flight from Denver, at 3 am on Christmas morning…for some reason not cancelled. We enjoyed setting up our tree, admiring the ornaments and the memories they bring; lighting Hanukkah candles, baking cookies, having a lovely Christmas dinner with some of our oldest friends.

New ornament from Scotland

Portland Art Museum – 12/28

My daughter and I went with friends to see a few of the current exhibits.

The golden brush strokes on this special exhibit Botticelli painting drew me in.

Very different from the rectangular smudges on this Impressionism work, which I also loved.

The Japanese woodblock prints of Mt Fuji were much more intricate and detailed, also beautiful!

A large retrospective exhibit of the Native American artist, Oscar Howe, was so interesting. His style evolved from representational to fractured, and was very colorful. These paintings are both dancers, with one arm raised, and feathers hanging down. I loved them!

Other December news:

An artist friend gave me a small painting of Mt Hood that we hung in our kitchen adjacent to one of my husbands’ photos of Mt Hood. We love the mountains!

I knit my way through the month, completing a few gifts, and finishing the year of gnomes.

I made three of these Warm One Hats in Knit Picks Mighty Stitch yarn held double, as gifts for each of my kids.

I made the 12th gnome, Gnova, by Sara Schira, for the December Year of Gnomes.

I made three Little Tigers that have new homes.

I continued knitting the Malabrigo Slip Stitch Blanket after all the gift knitting was done. This one is for me.

I plan to write one more post for 2022 – hopefully soon.

We went on three familiar hikes, and to the Maryhill Museum of Art.

11/3 Steigerwald Wildlife Refuge, WA

This used to be our reliable close-in flat walk, for partly rainy days, where we could go to see upside down trees reflected in the lake, and often, many waterfowl. For the past couple of years, the site has undergone major reconstruction. The berm that separates these lowlands from flooding by the Columbia River has been breached in order to reconnect salmon to the Gibson Creek drainage. On our first visit back on the rerouted trails we saw a few birds and drained lakes. I will be interested to walk the rest of the trails when the project is complete.

Looking across the new Steigerwald Lake to the east.

Egret and heron

The bridge that used to have a lake under it.

Killdeer

Crossing the bridge

Trail now closed

Art trail – should be open next spring

View across the Columbia River from the berm

Geese

11/10 Angel’s Rest, OR

We save this popular close-in trail for midweek hikes. The trail zigs and zags up, through the forest, then the cliffs, to stunning panoramic views up and down the gorge, and across to the snowy Washington peaks (4.5 miles, 1500 feet).

Angel’s Rest

View to the west from the upper cliffs

Looking north across the Columbia River

Closer view of Silver Star Mountain

View to the east, northern shoreline highlighted by sunbeams

Blue jay lunch companion

Colorful twice-burned forest in the foreground.

11/14 The Labyrinth, WA

Our reliable eastern gorge hike, especially on windier days when the basalt columns give some protection. I love to visit all my favorite trees along the trail, and check the water levels in Hidden Creek (4 miles, 800′).

Approach trail – Old Hwy 8

Looking south across the Columbia River

Pools in Hidden Creek

Hidden Creek

Dry grass

Basalt cliffs

Up the labyrinth

More basalt cliffs

Favorite oak grove

Lunch view to the east

Farther up, the cliff-edge oak tree

Poderosa at the upper viewpoint

And down, past the haunted tree

Driving home toward rainy Portland through sunbeams

11/8 Maryhill Museum of Art, WA

I was still nursing a knee injury, so instead of hiking, we drove east of our usual winter hiking ground and visited the Maryhill Museum of Art. It is perched on a cliff edge on the northern side of the Columbia River Gorge, in a mansion built by Sam Hill. He was the remarkable American businessman who built railroads and roads, including some of the first roads through the Columbia River Gorge. He travelled through Europe in the early 20th century, and made many artist friends who convinced him to turn his mansion into a museum. The building was started in 1914, but not opened until 1940. It contains an eclectic selection of art, some donated by Sam Hill’s friends, some acquired later. So out in the middle of nowhere, on the edge of the Columbia River Gorge, is a museum with galleries of Rodin sculptures, gilt furniture that once belonged to the Queen of Romania, historical exhibits about Sam Hill and friends, and a large and well curated display of Native American art and artifacts. And hundreds of chess sets from all over the world. It is a beautiful collection.

Driving east out of the rain, through the Columbia River Gorge along WA 14

We accidentally parked near the service entrance, so walked to the museum from the western side.

Throne chairs, inspired by those donated to the museum by the Queen of Romania, with excellent views.

View west, to the vineyards and Columbia River

We walked around to the eastern entrance plaza.

Main entrance

Yarn-bombing installation

Dedication by the Queen of Romania

One of the historical exhibits was about pioneering modern dancer Loie Fuller, who encouraged Sam Hill to dedicate his house to art.

There is an entire gallery dedicated to the works of Auguste Rodin, the French sculptor, including a fascinating exhibit with miniatures showing each step in the process of Lost Wax Bronze Casting. We had just seen one of Rodin’s more famous pieces, the Burghers of Calais, in the Washington DC Hirshhorn Sculpture Garden, and here was a whole roomful of bronze statues, and plaster casts, working models, sketches and completed pieces.

Rodin gallery

Plaster model of The Thinker

More Rodin artwork

Another Gallery, Theater de la Mode, displays miniature mannequin collections from Paris fashion houses.

Native American Art and artifacts are on display in several galleries:

Modern jewelry

Displayed in a glass walled gallery with extensive views.

Modern paintings in another gallery,

these change seasonally.

And extensive displays of beading, basketry, stone, leather, weaving, pottery and other antiquities, organized by regions of the west. This exhibit is scheduled to be overhauled during the winter closure. (The museum is closed from midNovember to midMarch).

The last gallery we visited was the hall of chess sets – over 400, from all over the world, carved or sculpted from many different media, a dazzling display.