Forever Young but Growing Old in Portland

A little bit of this…a little bit of that for active Boomer travelers

Searching for Waterfalls in The Gorge

Multnomah Falls

Driving a Mini in Portland is great in the city but not the best vehicle for exploring when winter arrives. Harsh winds and snow, in the higher elevations, keep us from exploring the many mountain opportunities within a short drive.

So, before summer is officially over, we decided to take a field trip to the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area (locally known as The Gorge), for some of Mother Nature’s immersion therapy.

Vista House

Only an hour from the city, our goal was to reach the Vista House at Crowne Point and catch a couple of falls along the way. Built in 1917, the Vista House was constructed as a way station for travelers making their trek through the Gorge.

The structure is located along the Historic Columbia River Highway, US Hwy. 30, and provides restrooms, gift and coffee shops, at the lower level. The views are beyond phenomenal of the Columbia River and surrounding area, and the architecture is beautifully retro.

View of Columbia River from Vista House

We happened to be there during a wedding photoshoot and the weather cooperated with cool temps, full sun and mild breezes. The House closes when winds reach 60 mph, which happens often in the winter.

I grabbed a photo from the internet of the House frozen over during an ice event, which can happen in this elevation. I’m afraid our Mini would be swept off the ridge if we dared try to reach it in the winter.

Vista House Interior

Close by are several waterfalls, one of which is Multnomah Falls, which we have visited several times in the past (Included are photos from past trips).

Multnomah Falls Bridge

On this visit we took in Bridal Veil and Latourell Falls.

Bridal Veil Falls

Hiking down Bridal Veil was challenging as the trail was rocky, an ankle sprain waiting to happen. We gingerly made our way down with the results well worth the effort. Of course, what goes down must hike back up!

Rocky trail
The climb back up

Our next stop was Latourell Falls which offered a sighting without the hike, so we took advantage of that and were satisfied with the view of the long, skinny stream of water, falling from the ridge above.

Latourell Falls

The beauty of this area provides a soothing, mental relief from the rest of the world and its issues. There’s a lot more to explore in the Gorge but we’ll wait til next summer as snow tires and chains are not on our radar.

Latourell Bridge

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4 responses to “Searching for Waterfalls in The Gorge”

  1. Avatar
    Anonymous

    I enjoyed reading about this beautiful place. In the mountains of NC; near Cashiers.. we also have a Bridal Veil falls. You can actually walk underneath it.
    I am not familiar with the Columbia River.
    You have piqued my interest in the history of the area.
    Wonderful adventure!!!

    thanks for sharing, m

    Reply
  2. Susan Young Avatar
    Susan Young

    Thanks, we lived in NC for a bit and visited Bridal Veil Falls. Such a beautiful state. In the PNW, the Columbia River separates Oregon from Washington state. NE Portland sits on the border, with a bridge to Vancouver, WA.

    Reply
  3. Terry Matthews-Lombardo Avatar
    Terry Matthews-Lombardo

    Hi Susan – so nice to see that you’ve picked this back up again! I didn’t realize you’d moved to Portland but assume it was a positive move and sounds like you’re still on the go, so good on you! I’m still traveling the world as part of my work assignments as a meeting planner, but always with an idea or two for those side writing gigs when I have time for them. I hope you and the hubs keeps smiling on the journey!

    Reply
    1. Susan Young Avatar
      Susan Young

      Hey, Terry, so good to hear from you. I’ve been stalking your travels, you are busy! We moved to Portland 2 years ago. Our son lives here and every time we visited, we just didn’t want to go home. It’s the climate, mainly. The heat and humidity was really getting to us as we are getting older. It’s much more temperate here and we don’t even have ac. I still get gigs from TravelPulse but not as many as a few years ago, but there’s so much to explore here I figured I’d put the info and pics on my blog instead of FB and IG. Thanks for reading and checking in!

      Reply

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