A hot day inland- a good day to go west to the Oregon Coast and walk on one of our favorite beaches, deliciously foggy at first, then sunny.
We first walked over the old road at Hug Point – our timing was such that tide would be coming back in soon…
Then we walked all the way south to Arch Cape, passing our favorite landmarks…
And the walk north – about five miles round trip today.
Of our five hikes in July, three were on or near Mt Hood.
This hike begins at the Elk Meadows trailhead. We walked uphill along flower-filled ski runs of Mt Hood Meadows, and across to the knob called Picnic Rock. We visited Umbrella Falls, then circled downhill through flower-filled forest to complete the loop.
Flowers along the uphill trail…
This was a blooming bear grass year in the ski run slopes, with a view of Mt Hood
At Picnic Rock we had great views…
We passed back through the bear grass meadows on our way to Umbrella Falls.
On the downhill trail, we passed through meadows full of sitka valerian, and swampy areas full of shooting stars and buttercups. Once in the forest, the Oregon anemones were sparkling up in abundance.
This was only my second time doing this hike, but it has become a favorite! Especially at this particular time in the bloom season. I hope to be back to explore some of the other trails in the Mt Hood Meadows area.
The next week, we hiked the short, sweet (3 miles, 550 feet) loop to Lookout Mountain from High Prairie trailhead. We have done this one many times, and it never gets old! The lower part of the trail crosses a couple of large meadows.
Eventually, we ascended to the ridge where views opened up…
Lots of wildflowers to look at here, as well…
More views on the return trail…
The main challenge for this hike is the slow bumpy road up to the 6000 foot trailhead.
This long favorite hike also begins with a long bumpy drive up gravel switchbacks, and through a burned ghost forest. From the Cloud Cap Saddle Campground we hiked about up along the crest of the East Eliot Moraine to the Cloud Cap Shelter for lunch. Then we continued south along the Timberline Trail, the high point, about 7300′, for a total of about 5 miles, 1500 feet.
We crossed south toward the Cloud Cap Shelter for our lunch break.
After enjoying a good rest rest in the shade at the shelter, as it was a hot day, and I was having trouble with the uphillness of it all, we decided to continue on to the trail high point.
Then we retraced our steps, back along the seemingly barren slopes, with lots of subalpine flowers blooming amid the rocks.
As we walked the Timberline Trail beneath the Eliot Moraine, I spotted the giant teetering boulder that I have noticed in previous years. It’s still there…
Another enjoyable day on Mt Hood. I was really out of shape this year – life circumstances have interrupted my spring hike season. This hike, which I have done easily before, was hard! I hope I will be in better shape for the next time!
Our other July hikes were on Mt Adams, and at the Oregon Coast – to be reported in the next posts.
July was a busy month, when I look back. Our daughter visited for two weeks at the end of the month, and of course, that was my highlight! Before that, I visited a Textile Exhibit at the Columbia River Gorge Museum, and we went to the Peninsula Park Rose Garden on the fourth of July. There were five hikes (next post), lots of neighborhood walks, and the World Naked Bike Ride rode right past our house.
I went with my friend Peggy to the Columbia River Gorge Museum in Skamania, WA, to see an exhibit of tapestry weavings by indigenous artist Kristie Strasen, that were inspired by the Columbia River, and its dams.
Not much going on for us today. We went over to the local rose garden to see the roses.
I have made progress on my three projects – socks, a scarf, a cardigan.
Our daughter is an expert sock monkey creator and teacher. We started making our own sock monkeys on her previous visit. We are further along now; one more visit from her and we should finish. Meanwhile, she made one for a gift to a friend.
Home Improvement/Upkeep – It took half the summer to finish the house painting, and that included having all the storm windows freshened up.
I finished 11 books in July. Several (Cranford by Elizebeth Gaskell, The Dante Game by Jane Langton, Wintering by Katherine May, and Civil to Strangers by Barbara Pym were comfortable re-reads. The type of book that is worth a second listen a few years later. My book group had a lively discussion about Commonwealth by Ann Patchett.
My Hollywood Branch of the Multnomah County Library is closed for six months of remodeling. I went to the newly opened Albina Library, just a little farther away, to pick up my books. It is a beautiful space, open and light-filled. The old part of the building is now a colorful children’s library. The new section is a beautiful, airy space, including classrooms, an outdoor patio planted with native plants, and lots of study spaces.
Appreciating our shared acknowledgement that we are not looking away.
And last but not least, The World Naked Bike Ride rode past our house on July 26th. It took 45 minutes for the full peloton of thousands of people to roll by. Neighbors came out and cheered them on. The atmosphere was festive, as the riders expressed their freedom of speech and body acceptance. No photos.
Having been out of town for two weeks in southern Utah where it was too hot to walk outside or exercise, and I was otherwise engaged in helping a family member with a health care situation; Having returned, exhausted, and happy to be in my own home quietly for a couple of days; Having successfully taken a couple of slow neighborhood walks in the flatlands…
Today I felt I had the energy to walk up to Alameda Ridge and do a few stair repeats. Success! And once again, I am charmed by my neighborhood where I am so lucky to live. Front yards are in bloom and colorful; and today it is only in the mid60s; how lovely to be able to walk outside without being dried and desiccated by the sun. I lived seven years in Tucson, I know dry heat; I knew my survival strategies then. The two weeks of abrupt immersion in the heat and aridity in Utah were exhausting; but now I am recovering. Soon I will be walking in mountains again.
Today I walked my way up the hill, and noticed all the whimsy throughout my neighborhood. It is part of the keep Portland weird vibe. Little doors on trees, little houses under bushes, interesting little signs painted on the sidewalk stair cases of Alameda. Little free libraries throughout my neighborhood.
I also looked at each poetry post – today there was Emily Dickinson‘s, ‘Hope is a thing with feathers’, on one signpost. My favorite poetry post, the one I never miss if I am up in that neighborhood, had a very hopeful, expressive poem today for these terrible times we are living in, with the authoritarian effort to crush anything progressive, kind, diverse, multicultural, and human in our country.
Also up on the ridge today, there is that one house with a flagpole – today they were flying three flags, the Pride flag, the Juneteenth flag, which I had never seen before, and the Ukrainian flag.
How positive those signs are to me just wandering my way through the neighborhood on a beautiful early summer day with flowers blooming everywhere. Birdfeeders and gnome doors and buckets of water on offer for the dogs; signs and flags and symbols of inclusion and acceptance and community. Our quiet mostly white, mostly financially stable neighborhood is not in the firing line of ICE raids, but I have seen my neighbors going to the demonstrations and standing in the space to support the resistance.
I did a few stairway repeats on the ridge today – and now I am ready for our next hike of the week in the mountains.
We usually hike to Chinidere Mountain from this trailhead near Wahtum Lake, but I was curious to try the Anthill Trail toward Tomlike Mountain, which is another rocky peak in the area.
The Anthill Trail begins above the parking area, and continues upward at a gentle gradient along the ridge above the lake. It is beautifully shaded, and on this June day, all the white flowers of the forest floor were sparkling up at us. This is a new addition to my list of favorite trails.
Near the ridge crest, a rocky view opened up, back to Mt Hood and Wahtum Lake.
We continued along the Anthill Trail, to the spur that ascends Tomlike Mountain. This is a less well maintained trail, a little rockier. After eating lunch at a rocky viewpoint and admiring the view, we decided begin our return hike. It was another rocky mile to the top – I wasn’t quite ready for that today.
We decided to walk along the Herman Creek Trail toward Chinidere Mountain before returning to the trailhead. We walked through shady forest for least a half mile of blooming avalanche lilies, as far as one could see, across the forest floor. And a few beargrass as well.
My husband took the side trail to the top of Chinidere Mountain, while I continued a very short distance along the Pacific Crest Trail to the rocky open slope below Chinidere’s cliff side. From here I could see many of the sunny blooming cliff flowers above me, and a view back to Mt Hood the other way. Then I rested in the shade near the trail junction – it was beautiful and quiet in the forest!
We completed our circuit by descending along the Pacific Crest Trail above the lake.
This had been a thoroughly enjoyable hike. We had seen some of the wildflowers blooms at their best, though there are more to come. It was lovely to be back in the woods!
I spent the first half of June in St George, Utah, helping a family member with a health care situation. I was extremely grateful to return to the lovely pacific Northwest for the rest of the month, enjoying our more temperate climate and the lovely flowers blooming in the neighborhood. I finished knitting a pair of socks, and cheered on the No Kings Day Protests from afar.
It was too hot in Utah to do much more than scurry from one air conditioned space to the next. We drove through nearby Snow Canyon State Park one evening, to admire the Navajo Sandstone landscape from the car window. I paid homage to the air conditioning gods and the electric grid, praying that it didn’t go down while I was there.
Snow Canyon State Park –
Birds of St George…
Flying home through Salt Lake City:
I knit not a single stitch while in Utah, but I finished one pair of socks after I returned. I cast on a new pair of socks, and made some progress on a scarf and a cardigan.
Of the nine books I completed in June, by far the most compelling was Figuring, by Maria Popova. It is a long and interwoven biographical tale of several women artists and scientists who made major contributions within their fields, yet have gone somewhat unrecognized. The women include astronomer Maria Mitchell, poet Emily Dickinson, sculptor Harriet Hosmer, writer Margaret Fuller, and biologist Rachel Carson. She includes many intersecting peripheral people, who interacted with her selected historical figures. I found it fascinating to listen to.
I also enjoyed a trip down memory lane as I read Sandstone Spine by David Roberts, a description of hiking across Comb Ridge in southern Utah, a place I did field work 40 years ago.
June 14th – While I was roasting away in St George in a care-giver role, millions of people all over the world were marching in No Kings Day protests. I am grateful that so many were able to show up!
Back in Portland, I took a long neighborhood walk on Juneteenth, and a real hike near Mt Hood on June 24th – to be described in the next post…
We went on five hikes in May, all in the Columbia River Gorge, following the wildflower bloom…
Warm and a bit windy today – we got a chance to see the waning balsam root – everyone’s favorite!
On our drive home, we stopped briefly at the Catherine Creek Trailhead so I could get a peek at the bitterroot that blooms there – probably my only chance this season.
Tall larkspur season at Cape Horn – it is always a treat to walk on the neatly groomed trails here. Today we started at Strunk Road, and walked to one of the lower overlooks – less than two miles, but with rain in the forecast for the next few days, we took our opportunity.
Back again to this five mile long, 1500 foot loop.
After a lunch break at the trail junction, we walked eastward toward Multnomah Creek. This part of the trail has always felt rather magical to me – mostly flat, through a forest of tall firs. The undergrowth has changed a bit since the 2017 fire, but it is still one of my favorite places.
We wanted to take our son and his fiancee for a hike – though they didn’t bring proper shoes, and it was a bit rainy. We settled for going back to the tall larkspur-lined path from Strunk Road to the Nancy Russell Overlook at Cape Horn. It was less than two weeks since our previous visit, the tall larkspur were even more profuse, and the cow parsley were starting to spread their umbrella heads. Lovely, even with a bit of our Oregon sunshine misting us.
The Labyrinth was one of the first trails we ever hiked in the eastern gorge, and we have returned many times. The path winds through piles of columnar basalt that provide some protection from the wind, and the views are great! Wildflowers change throughout the bloom season. Today was the first time I have seen this particular suite of flowers – blue and purple bachelor buttons and ookow; white buckwheat, yarrow, and mock orange; pink clarkia and onions; all accompanied by a full gauntlet of poison oak.
Starting up the trail along Labyrinth Creek –
Continuing up along Labyrinth Creek –
Lunch views, with mule deer…
It was getting warm, and I was losing my uphill motivation, but I wanted to go a little higher, to the rocky bluff where bitterroot blooms.
It was beautiful day in the Labyrinth. But it is getting too hot for me in the eastern gorge – we may not be back until fall! I am going to southern Utah in June, where it is already very HOT, to help a family member. I may not hike much in the next month, but there will be red rocks and possibly some dinosaur tracks…
In May we enjoyed a visit from our son and his fiancee, went on five hikes (next post), and attended a live concert, while the spring flower season rolled on…
Blooming this month in Portland:
I finished a dishcloth for donation, and I have three active works in progress.
I finished eight books in May. The one I enjoyed the most was Austen at Sea by Natalie Jenner, set in Post-Civil War Boston, and Portsmouth, England. It is an imagining of Americans who appreciate Jane Austen’s novels, and interact with her last surviving sibling. Ms Austen’s themes of women’s restricted access to their own money and life choices are compared between the two countries. Spoiler – neither was great, and we still have a ways to go. The judicial aspect was interesting. I love the opportunity to think deeper about Ms Austen’s work.
We spent a lovely afternoon in a garden in Eugene, Oregon. Pegasus pizza, toy airplanes, and lots of conversation.
I passed on this beautiful dress, handmade in about 1982 by my sister for her daughters. My daughter wore it in about 1998; and my little grandniece is the next eligible little girl in the family.
We attended the James Taylor concert at the Ridgefield Amphitheater with one of our sons. The music was lovely!
An upcoming event I will not attend because I will be in Utah, helping a family member with some health issues. But you should go if you have an event near you!
We went on one hike on April 1st, before my husband’s neck surgery on April 4th. After a couple of weeks of rest, we found some shorter, easier hikes in the last half of April, following the wildflower bloom, but keeping activity level within medical guidelines.
One of our usual trails. It was lovely to see the next phase of bloom in the meadows here.
Last month I mentioned seeing the nearly completed Mitchell Point Tunnel from the highway as we drove by. The tunnel is now open. We stopped on our way to Mosier Plateau to see the views from the tunnel.
We drove on to Mosier Plateau, where the lower part of the hike is protected from the wind. Eventually, the trail emerges onto the open bench above the river, where the blooms and views were beautiful, but the wind too strong to want to walk the full length of the plateau.
A one mile loop trail through a natural area near Highway 205 and the Willamette River – somehow preserved from surrounding housing and industrial development.
Another short, easy walk in a suburban area where large slopes of camas lilies are not far from housing developments.
The wind continued strong and steady all week in the Gorge. We chose this hike, in part because it has fabulous displays of balsam root along a smooth trail, but also because it is a bit protected from the relentless blasting wind in the main Columbia River corridor.
On the drive home, we stopped at the overlook on Highway 84 just below Corbett, where the perfectly calm air allowed a river mirror to form – we don’t see that very often on our gorge excursions.
Thus, we enjoyed another month of wildflower hikes, with more to come in May.
The first part of April was slower paced and focused on healing. We had to cancel plans to visit family on the east coast, and instead my husband had a surgical procedure to his neck to relieve stenosis. All went well, he is nearly back to normal, and his neurological symptoms are receding. I took on most of his chores, all the lifting and even cooking (he has done most of the cooking and shopping since he retired five years ago). I am glad to have him back to most of his regular activities, although our son is still mowing the lawn, and the weeds have gone crazy. We went on several slower paced hikes to see the wildflowers (see next post). And I saw many beautiful flowers in neighborhood gardens on my near-daily walks.
Dogwoods in bloom all through the neighborhood…
It was early for the rhododendrons to be in full bloom, but we saw a few…
Signs of Literature in the neighborhood:
Meanwhile, in Philadelphia, our daughter, our son, and his fiancee met up anyway, even though we had to cancel our trip. Looks like they had a good time. I look forward to seeing them all during the summer!
We enjoyed three wildflower hikes in the eastern Columbia River Gorge in March, all trails we have been to many times in different seasons. I love tracking the phases of wildflower bloom each time we go.
Early March is grass widow season at the lower elevations of the Catherine Creek and Labyrinth trail systems. My camera doesn’t do them justice, but the swaths of purple grass widows are so very pretty!
The next week, on the Oregon side of the river, we saw more swaths of purple grass widows along Rowena Crest – both in the lower part of the Tom McCall Trail, and the Rowena Crest Trail.
We went back down, and walked all the way to the end of the Rowena Plateau Trail.
Reflections in the ponds along the way provided some abstraction distractions…
We walked back along a side trail near the cliff edges – so many flowers!
By mid-March in the Catherine Creek area, grass widows were joined by other flowers – saxifrage, gold stars, yellow bells, more of the parsleys, and the first balsam roots.
It was a beautiful day, and I am looking forward to the next phase of wildflower bloom in the eastern gorge!
Driving home westward on Interstate 84, we passed under the base of Mitchell Point. The tunnel on the old highway was destroyed when I-84 was built, but has recently been reconstructed and reopened as part of the bike path through the gorge. I grabbed a photo as we passed – and we hope to walk there sometime soon. The views are supposed to be amazing!
Margaret Quilts 