We only went on two hikes in December, one in town, and one out in the eastern gorge.
12/1/2025 – Mt Tabor, Portland
On a sunny day, we drove to our nearest extinct volcano, and walked around its circumference and up to the top, taking in views, and getting a good leg stretch (2 miles, 200 feet). There are many trails that circle around and through the park, and many users, running, walking, and stair climbing. It is a great public space on the east side of Portland.
As we gained elevation, we got a western view toward downtown Portland across one of the reservoirs.We continued upward on one of the forested trail to the top.There is a view to Mt Hood through the trees near the summit.And another view toward downtown.We hiked down the northern slope, and got a peek at Mt St Helens.The amphitheater near the parking lot has an outcrop of the volcanic layers.We passed Joan of Arc, glittering defiantly in the sun, in her traffic circle, on the drive home.
12/23/2025 – Catherine Creek, WA
We went with our daughter to this favorite winter hiking spot. This is our second time here since the Burdoin Fire last July. This time, we walked the East Loop above the Arch, and also made a quick trip down to the waterfall viewpoint on the lower ADA trail. (3 miles, 450 feet).
At first we planned to walk the loop that returns by crossing the creek below the Arch, but we wanted to be sure the creek crossing was possible, so we went to look.
Catherine Creek crossing on the lower Arch trail. The waterfall-like step is actually the plank bridge, now broken and underwater. The road/trail was not accessible without serious wading. So we took the trail above the Arch, and then the eastern return loop.Walking across the burned slopes toward the lower bridge across Catherine Creek. This one survived the fire.Once we reached the slopes near the Arch, we could see across the Columbia River to the west,And to the east.Bitterroot foliage coming up through a rocky, mossy area that likely escaped burning. There were a few unburned areas within this mostly burned slope.View from the top of the Arch, new fence in place.We ate lunch on the rocky outcrop just north of the Arch, then continued our loop to the east, passing scorched pine trees.We returned back across the lower bridge.
Then we took a quick walk down the paved ADA trail south of the parking area, to see the waterfall.
Catherine Creek Waterfall. This side of the road has dead, dry grasses on the slopes because it didn’t burn along the paved trail. But it looks like it did burn across the river.
We enjoyed this hike on an overcast but not rainy day. It was nice to spend some outdoor time with our daughter. And it will be interesting to watch the land here as it recovers from the fire damage.
I managed to do many of the traditional December things this year, despite the lead up to the winter solstice being a little darker than usual, as I carried the grief of losing two family members in November, and the chaos of our national wrecking ball situation. In some ways, the traditions kept me going through the otherwise difficult days. The solstice arrived, bringing longer days and more light. And we thoroughly enjoyed a two week visit from our daughter.
Knitting:
I finished two pairs of gift socks, and then re-made a cowl into a felted bowl.
Gift socks – Malabrigo Sock, PocionGift socks, Patons Kroy scraps held double.Lancelot Cowl, as finished last year, in a bulky alpaca yarn called Hobbii Apricity.
When I tried the cowl on this winter, it was just a bit too itchy for me. Since I knew the yarn would shrink and felt, I decided to unravel the last six rows and reknit it with a closed bottom into a bowl shape. Then I machine washed and dried it, and the fiber shrank and felted into a small bowl, with the textured stitches still visible in the fabric. I count it as a success!
Remade into a felted bowl..
Books:
I finished 8 books in December. The Correspondent, by Virginia Evans was probably my favorite of the bunch. I enjoyed seasonal rereads of The Tailor of Gloucester and The Dark is Rising. I learned a lot about the Gilded Age lifestyle in Consuelo Vanderbilt’s autobiography – The Glitter and the Gold.
December books
Museum Day:
The Portland Art Museum has just opened their newly expanded and remodeled gallery space. We bought a membership, and I hope to go monthly to see all the new exhibits and spaces. Today, we focused on the Rothko exhibit, where we saw examples of this Portland grown artist, from early career to the abstract art he is famous for. There was an adjacent exhibit presenting Abstraction Since Rothko.
Part of the Rothko GalleryMark Rothko placardNo. 16 (?)No. 10Abstraction Since RothkoMurasaki by Arlene SlavinCheran by Valerie Jaudon
I am always attracted to bright colors and patterns. And I love to see the close up view of the texture of the paint layers and brush strokes on the canvas. I am looking forward to looking at a lot of art next year.
Neighborhood walks:
The flowers of December sparkled amidst the holiday and protest decorations.
ViburnumRhododendronRose
Holiday decorations somewhat overlapped with the ongoing protest signs. New this year were some birds, and some frogs.
FlamingosPelicanFrog added into to this traditionally elaborate displayAnother frogA mixture of holiday and protestStraight protest.
Celebrations:
The first December celebration was Jane Austen’s 250th birthday, on December 16th.
Long my favorite author! (Internet meme)I have her ornament, which I bought at her house in Chawton, UK, hanging on my tree.I slowly put all the decorations on the tree,And hung a wreath on the door.We lit Hanukkah candles.The shortest day went by.We baked a very few cookies,and had a lovely traditional Christmas dinner with long time friends.
We also went on a few outdoor walks and a hike, to be detailed in the next post.
On New Years Eve, we stopped on our way home from doing errands to look at our volcanoes from the top of Rocky Butte.
Clear and cold view to Mt Hood from Rocky Butte on New Year’s Eve.Mt St Helens and our long shadows.
We had a delightful Thai takeout dinner with our daughter and several of her childhood friends, who also happened to be in town for the holidays. Then they went out on the town for the night, and we were early to bed, ready to say goodbye to this difficult year, with hope for better things in 2026.
Margaret Quilts 