River Art

Today I played at Three Pools Recreational Area on the Little North Fork of the Santium River. I loved the way the rocks and lichen looked under the clear water. Here is a series of my favorites.

Peppermint and Beef Jerky...

These are the two items I decided to bring with me for sustenance when I went hiking on Saturday, along with my cannister of water.  I had been thinking about my Granddad, and I did this to honor him.  It's what he always carried, if he carried nothing else when we went hiking back when I was a kid. 

I fondly recall us taking off for impromptu hikes, stopping first to fill his waist pack with peppermints, which were ever-present in one of the house candy jars, and beef jerky, which there always seemed to be a good supply of in my Grandparent's home.  Once we had hiked a good while and reached a proper rest stop with a view, we'd break out the goodies and soak it all in.  It was always stunning.  Either an eagle's view of a valley below us, or a view of an cold, clear alpine lake, or simply an amazing stand of aspen during the change of season when they were all gold and flickering.  After chatting a bit, Granddad would always take a catnap (with a smile on his face!), and I'd explore the vicinity.  I can't eat either peppermint or beef jerky without thinking of those good times - and wanting to get out to the mountains.

Granddad must have been with me yesterday, because good things started happening right away.  Things that reminded me of him.  First of all was the great sale on one of my favorite brands of jerky - the luck!  Then, on my way out of Gresham on Hwy 26, I saw this old, but great looking, '70-something Datsun pickup that was so similar to the one he and I beat around in on the backroads and dirt roads on our way to trailheads in the mountains near Durango, Colorado in the '70's.  The only differences were the color (Grandad's was blue, and this one was a bright orange), the OPB and NRDC bumper stickers, and the camper shell on this fabulous orange version.  The one I saw on Saturday looked like this:

I took it as an omen for a great day.  I drove along with a big 'ol smile on my face.  And I smiled even more broadly when I got a peek a the driver.  What a character!  Must have been in her late 60's or early 70's - with bright white hair tied in a colorful bandana, silver bangles on her wrist and this fantastic blue denim oxford shirt, that was exactly like the ones my grandad used to wear!  She's was enjoying music and tapping in rythym on her rear view mirror.  She was beautiful!  I had to compliment her rig when we were stopped at a red light in Sandy.  She loved hearing it, and seemed to enjoy the story behind my admiration, too.  I wish I could have a cup of coffee with this woman to get to know her better.  There was just something about her.  I had happy thoughts revolving around her and how I want to live my life all the way up to the mountain.

After a brief and accidental side trip out Lolo Pass Road (and stunning views of Mt. Hood!), I finally found my way up to the Top Spur Trailhead.  I parked, got my pack on, called Molly and headed up the Top Spur trail, on my way to the Timberline trail.   I found myself huffing and puffing a bit.  I'm not in the shape I'd like to be in this Summer.  I started to take a break, but then remembered Granddad encouraging me to go a little further all those many years ago.  He'd tell me to hum a song or think of something else to keep my mind off my steps.    If we kept stopping, we'd never get to our real rest stop, he'd say.  Again, I smiled, remembering his advice, and I hummed myself along.  And I marvelled at the wildflowers along the way, trying to remember their names.  Granddad almost always knew, and if he ever didn't, we'd be looking them up in his field guide on wildflowers, which he'd nearly always have with him. 

There were plenty of wildflowers on this hike.  So many it surprised me.  At first I saw mostly Trillium and the remains of Bunchberry, but I also saw a few Indian Paintbrush. As I got out of the trees, I found I was walking through tons more bright red Indian Paintbrush, lots of purple spears of Mountain Lupine, bright and beautiful Leopard Lillies, Foxgloves and something I later learned is called Alpine Fawn Lillies, or possibly also called Avalanche Lillies!  I had to use the internet for that one, because I don't actually own a wildflower field guide.  There was also Beargrass in abundance, still not fully bloomed.  As I climbed higher, I saw Glacier Lillies and Mariposa Lillies.  I couldn't help but think about how much Grandad would have enjoyed this day full of color and stunning vistas!

I had planned to go to a spot I hiked to last Summer, but I took the "wrong" trail and ended up hiking much farther.  I'm so glad for this happy accident, because if I hadn't "messed up," I would never have seen the beautiful streams with lush green moss and other plants, and I would have missed the the giant, and very stunning rockslide.  Most importantly, my mistake led me to the most beautiful meadow I've seen in a long while, with lovely shallow ponds, which were not only lined with bright green delicate grass, but reflected the mountain beautifully.  It was a sight which brought tears to my eyes. 

The sun was getting too low in the sky to go further, so I took off my pack, sat down and enjoyed this jewel of a place.  And I savored my jerky with the warm sun on my shoulders, then chased that with a pretty little peppermint candy, while Molly explored the vicinity.  I shared some jerky with Molly, too.  Then I closed my eyes and I smiled. 

Then I said outloud, "Thank you,for sharing the best things with me, Granddad."

Thank you, Shar!

Today we were split over how to spend the day.  My two girls really wanted to go to the Maplewood Picnic and Ice Cream Social to see their friends, and Evan and I wanted to go hiking and have a picnic out by a waterfall or somewhere else less crowded.  I've not gotten much hiking in this Summer because of sports obligations and other logistical issues, so I was really railing against the idea of sitting on my butt out in the hot sun in 90+ degree weather today when I know there are lovely shaded trails near creeks and waterfalls only 45 minutes away, where I can move my body, breathe fresh air and dip myself into a cool mountain stream.   Imagine my happy surprise when I called my daycare provider about a completely seperate issue and she offered to take Stella and Annie to the picnic!  That left Evan and I with a few hours to escape the city!

Since everyone still wanted to have a picnic, we compromised and ate rustic baguettes with blue cheese, brie, berries, grapes and cherries out on our back deck before we went our seperate ways.  It was delightful!  It's such a shady, pleasant spot back there!  Evan and I took the remaining baguette with us on the hike, and Stella and Annie looked forward to Ice Cream at Maplewood.

I had such a nice time with my young son.  I've not spent time with just him in a very long time.  He is always such good company and I like that he really notices beauty around him.  We have that in common.  And while I really enjoy my girls, Evan is also very engaging, but doesn't feel the need to talk constantly.  He does have interesting thoughts to share and is really fun to hang out with.  We had a pleasant drive to Eagle Creek, the hike we chose because we had limited time, but wanted to get out of town.  Evan's never been there.  Because I usually have all three kids with me if I have one, and it's got some really high, narrow places where it would be tough to manage the safety of all three at once, I don't go there with kids, usually.  It's a great hike, though, because it's got an easy grade, and there are spectactular views all the way, so that even though we couldn't make it  all the way to even Punchbowl Falls with our time limits, we enjoyed plenty of beautiful sights and some good exercise.

We also really enjoyed playing in Eagle Creek on our way back to the car, and I took a few photos, too, of my beautiful little boy in this beautiful place. 

From my backyard…

Renewal

Shadows move swiftly across the sage-dotted, red, rolling earth.  They chase tempestuous clouds which roil and wrestle in the sky, like a dusty swarm of warriors battling in a vast bright blue field.  Jumbles of basalt jut out over rivers and streams, vexed and swelling with the first evidence of snow leaving the mountain tops.  Ravens tumble and turn together against this striking backdrop.  The drama of Spring is unfolding in the high desert.

I took the kids out to enjoy the wonderful change of both scene and season earlier this week.  The four of us went to Kah-Nee-Ta  for a few days to play together and rejuvenate our little family.  We hiked in the desert in the morning and swam in pools heated by natural hot springs all afternoon.  We read books by the giant fireplace, watched movies in our room at night, and we went to sleep together in our two super-comfy king sized beds.  But I alone woke early and sat out on the balcony to enjoy some peaceful solitude over a cup of coffee and some truly glorious high desert sunrises.  This really is becoming a beautiful tradition.

(Feel free to click on any pics you want to see larger.)

Green Winter: February hike in Forest Park

Stella and I took a hike on Super Bowl Sunday and I’m finally getting around to posting some pictures.

A picture from yesterday's lunchtime walk...