Day-16: The Columbia River Gorge & Mount St. Helens

Friday, October 11, 2013

Check-out Morning At
The Timberline Lodge

Our plans to be up and out by 8:30 this morning were slightly delayed but by 9 we were headed to breakfast at the Cascades Restaurant. The breakfast buffet "lite" was our choice however by time we had consumed more than our share of the chef's hand-made pastries, the word "lite" was somewhat inappropriate. 

Today was the opening of Mt. Hood ski and snow-boarding season. The summit was shrouded by fog and the skiable snow was at the higher elevations so not a day for beginners. The cold air and more than gentle breeze meant that our foursome would not take the lift up and down the slope; no way we would be dressed well enough to stay warm.

The Dalles Hydro-Electric Dam

Fishing The Columbia

Packed and ready to roll by 11, we departed Mt. Hood and drove north to Hood River on the Columbia River. There we decided to cross the Columbia and head east to The Dalles for up-river scenery and to see the hydro-electric dam. As with other federal installations, the visitor center and observation areas were closed. Back in the cars we turned to the west on the Oregon side of the river on I-84 toward Portland. At Cascade Locks after a brief stop where we saw several fishermen come in with a catch of six Coho Salmon we again crossed the Columbia River, this time on the Bridge of the Gods; should check into the history of the name. 

Bridge of the Gods

Cape Horn Lookout

Our last stop along the river was at the Cape Horn lookout; no not the South American Cape Horn, the Washington State Cape Horn.




From Cape Horn we headed to our overnight destination at the Silver Lake Resort, in this case aka Silver Lake Fishing Camp. As Sheila signed the check-in papers she had to agree to not clean fish in the kitchen sink, furthermore we were advised that even though the use of marijuana was legal in the state, the resort rules prohibited such use. With all these restrictions we went ahead and signed the papers and checked-in. We made a quick visit of the suite, actually very nice in view of the $150/night price tag (total for the four of us). 

Our Suite Is On The 2nd Floor

With a recommendation from the resort manager, maybe owner as well for dinner we headed east toward Mount St. Helens, hoping for a peek at the summit through the high level fog. We passed Patty's, the recommended restaurant and agreed that we'd stop on the way down the mountain. Surprisingly, we were able to drive right to the Johnston Ridge visitors' center of the National Volcanic Monument, no road blocks, no police tape, etc., however the actual visitor center building was closed. The good news is that with weather permitting, one can still see the mountain, the crater and the path of destruction from the 1980 eruption. Hopefully tomorrow with a little weather luck we'll have a few hours of clear weather for another peek at the peak.

Patty's Restaurant - CLOSED

En-route back down to the lodge we arrived at Patty's, the OPEN sign was on; well not so fast, as we pulled into the parking lot, the OPEN sign was turned off. I approached the door but found it locked; though the threesome remaining in the car said they could clearly see a woman in the restaurant. We continued downhill and found Peper's 49er Restaurant, a glorified diner. The waitress (looked like Flo from the Mel's Diner TV show). Sheila ordered an AHNULD PALMA; "Flo" said "what" with a mystified look. We clarified the ingredients of an Arnold Palmer and "Flo" magically produced the correct drink. Sheila, Diane and Greg all had some form of sandwich, for me it was chicken fried steak, actually pretty good. The entire dinner for the four of us cost less than a dinner for any one of us yesterday.

By 8 we were back at the "resort". We opened a bottle of wine, started a fire and turned on the Dodgers vs. Cardinals playoff game to watch a few innings. We're still watching and it's now the 13th inning. As for the traveling foursome, it's one down three to go; if the game doesn't end soon we'll lose one and possibly two more before the 14th. Well it's 10:26 the game just ended with a Beltran base hit; the Cardinals victorious in game one of the series.



Tomorrow we'll take a shot at the mountain if the weather cooperates, otherwise we'll get on our horses and head to the Oregon coast to begin the journey south.

Once again it's time to say good night.