Down to Oregon

So my brother asked me what was the cheapest way to the northwest. I say...go to Emeryville and get on board one of the freight trains, get off at this spot in Oregon where I pick you up...and here is the photo of my brothe after he got off the train (I'm waiting in the gettaway car)......I'm kidding, of course ;). He actually flew to Seattle and we drove down to Oregon.

Our first stop was the Multnomah Falls. I'm still trying to figure out the right way to pronounce it but I think it's "mool-no-mah". It's a 600+ feet waterfall and quite a sight. Seeing that the weather was still a little cloudy, we drove farther east to find the Columbia River Gorge Interpretive Center.

On the way to the center, we had to cross the Bridge of the Gods. It's a steel bridge that goes ove the Columbia River. Crossing this bridge actually brings us back to Washington state! It's no Canadian border or anything, but I just got a kick out of crossing 2 states that easily. It's a buck to cross...and having lived in California before...that's quite a deal :)

This shot is of my brother taking a shot of the bridge (and some moving fog in the mountains).


The Interpretive Center has a museum with relics of the old livelihood at the Gorge. One of the displays was this 1921 Mack truck.

According to the sign, the thing still runs! Looking at it though, it looks like the engine had a tough time tugging all that heavy metal alone. And when you load the lumber....well, I beleive it when they said it only went no more than 17mph. Take a look at the tires!...I guess z-rated low-profile tires are ancient technology!


Outside the museum, we found old tractors, machinery, and two old trains. I enjoyed looking at this red one. I remember having one like it in one or two toy train sets I've ever had. Now I'm looking at it...the real thing!

After we left the center, we crossed the bridge again and, on the other side of the bridge (the Oregon side), we ate lunch at the Charburger Restaurant. I have to say, they served the best mashed potates and gravy and it was an excellent complement to my baked chicken (yumm!)

Back at the Multnomah Falls place, there was finally enough light to take some decent pictures. The exit to the falls is actually in the middle of the freeway so you exit to the left. After parking, you go underneath the freeway and see this entrance with an inn that's actually a gift shop.

There were a lot of tourists and quite a number of professional photographers using the falls as a backdrop for wedding photos...or photos of the couple at some informal place...or whatever you call that kind of setup.

You actually walk the hill to get this nice view. We went as far as the bridge but when we got there, the weather started to get bad again so we never really found out what was on the other side of the bridge. Who knows what we might have missed (maybe there was this isolated tribe living behind the falls!....or, as we joked on the ride back...maybe we find a machine that pushes the water to simulate the falls!....kidding!)

Aaaannywayyy.....this is my favorite shot.....the things we do to force people to visit our exhibits! :)