Saturday, May 19, 2012

Seizing good weather opportunities


The weather gods have cooperated this spring; we’ve enjoyed some of our best days on the weekends.  Last Saturday was a great Saturday in Portland.  Allyson and I hiked 6 miles in Forest Park.  Then, we replenished our lost calories outdoors at Beesaw’s for brunch.  Later, we enjoyed an evening boat cruise with Ken and Ann. 

Even though we’ve been on that stretch of the Willamette many times in the past, it is always great to go.  Particularly the part between downtown and Lake Oswego, it seems like such a different world with the gracious waterfront yards rising to mansions, rocky cliffs, trees . . . . If we lived at the coast, we would walk the same beach.  So, why not boat the same river.
This weekend, too, I had plenty of sun on Friday, sat outside for dinner at the Country Inn, and walked along Trout Lake Creek this morning. You may ask, why is there water in the creek? Well, I’ll show you. 

Drive up about 8 miles, and the road is blocked by snow. Little Goose Creek, I hear, is truly little during the summer.  But now, with snowmelt, it seems pretty big and powerful as it tumbles through a steep rock gorge toward Trout Lake.    

Eventually, the water flows into Trout Lake Creek and wetlands, which is as close as we have to a lake in Trout Lake, Washington.