And off to the west coast I went!

Columbia River Gorge

Dear Diary,
**disclaimer- I know, I know- diary form is so 25 years ago, but hey- its my blog.  hehe

Did I mention how much I love flying??

GUESS WHAT!!!  I got to go on an airplane again and it was so freaking awesome!  This time it was Sun Country- a Minnesota airline that flew right on over to Portland with not one single layover  I am down with all that.  After all, I don't want to sit and stare at the inside of an airport when I could be doing other fun things.

Interesting though, that crazy airline charges you at the outset $25 for each checked bag, which means almost no one checks their bag.  Which causes them to beg people before boarding to consider checking their bags for no charge.....  what in the ever living....... huh? Yeah, I did not check my bag.  Plenty of other people must know the drill- they went right up there.

Before we take off!  We had ourselves a little room!  YAY US

We were in the smaller of the two Minneapolis terminals and while the choice of restaurants and things to look at was limited,  wow did we get through check in and security like nobodies business.  We had not one moment of waiting

I have to say though, my sister came through for me again.  she was out of town - like Chicago out of town and let me stay at her house so I wouldn't have to drive from Park Falls on Monday morning.  This was amazing and awesome and I am so so grateful for her.  The Mad-English teacher also drove over and stayed in the vicinity and we had such a nice time relaxing on that amazing screen porch of hers.  And we had a little nifty Indian food as well, so that was a winner of an evening.

The beauty of the land in Portland

Anyway, so Diary dear, I had SUCH a nice time in the Portland area, we spent a lot of time driving up and down the Columbia River Gorge- that place.  Whoa.  So much beauty.  So many people.  Lol. And some really good foods!  Because you know the Mad-English teacher and I- we do like to scope out some yummy vegetarian friendly eateries.

The place we stayed in actual Portland- and I think for the first time ever we were right next door to each other- was a cute little motel that wasn't super far from the airport.  It was in a more "interesting" part of town, near a railroad track, said airport, a busy highway and oddly there was a berry farm only a few blocks away.  Like I said- interesting.  But the rooms were cute- like a little apartment and I tell you once I fell asleep I heard nothing.  But I keep the air on constant as background noise so I don't hear said trains or airplanes or cars.  We weren't there very long, so that was just fine.

Monday-

Well diary, after arriving in town about 1:30, getting the car and finding the motel- the first item of business was to find a place to hike around.  There was a very cool park area we researched and unfortunately the path we wanted to take was  under construction, so we ended up winding around the streets- and it was all up hill.  yikes.  I was not in the walking condition that I wanted to be- I have many factors of blame there but I won't bother making excuses.  Every single time I think I am in charge of my life I am reminded that indeed that is not the case.

Stone building at the park

Anyway, the point of this park ( Macleay Park) was this really cool stone building that was at the top of said hill.  And it was indeed there!  Along with a homeless guy smoking pot.  Lol.  who I carefully framed OUT of my photographs.  It was HOT that day- like over 90- and there was a nice little child selling lemonade who I gratefully bought some from.  I noticed the plants that are in front of houses and in beds and I had some major Japanese maple envy there.  The lavender and the rosemary and other herb plants grew like bushes.  I know that the Mad-Science teacher would have enjoyed that!  And the houses were GORGEOUS.  At least in that particular part of town.

Mount Rainier and Mount St Helen from the air

OH- I forgot to say, we got to see Mount Rainier and Mount Saint Helen and maybe we saw Mount Hood as well- but that was AH-MAZE-ING.  From the air- that is- it was such a magnificent sight.  So this ties in, stay with me here Diary, with the fact that when we finished that first hike we decided to head over towards the general waterfall area- and our first destination was this little building that turns out to be an observatory called the Vista House at Crown Point. I later saw from the highway that it was precariously (I may be exaggerating there) perched on top of a massive cliff (so glad I didn't realize the extent of that as I took photos over the edge).  Anyway, there is nothing like driving along and suddenly this massive mountain is like right in front of you as you are doing 75 65 on this freeway.....  so cool.  We are such mountain nerds. And that will tie in later in the trip-  I realize that I will be doing more than one post about this.

iPhone pic of Mount Rainier while traveling!

Anyway, we stopped at Vista House and took lots of gorgeous photos and I had major heights moments, but I took lots of gorgeous pictures and tried to ignore it.  I don't know why I always end up taking vacations to places that make me get the creep crawls from the heights, but that does seem to happen.  As the hubs says- now what did she get herself into....  lol.  Because we make a point of planning very little - we decided, though it wasn't exactly in our rough outline, to see a few waterfalls on Monday.  And a good thing we did see them, the crowds were really minimal.  I wish we would have gone on to Multanomah then, but we didn't and we didn't stop on Wednesday because it was ridiculous.  BUT we did see Bridal Veil Falls and Latourelle Falls, and they were spectacular!  Holy smokes. They are so big out there along that gorge.  And the land is amazing- the trees are huge, the moss and the plants all were just breathtaking.  Such a great destination and so many things to do.

Vista House- the alleged cliff is behind me- click on the link in the text for a pic of it

I just had to check my Facebook page to see where the heck we even ate that night.  Italian!  We had supper at a cute little Italian place in Troutdale.  Ristorante di Pompello. The food was good, I am pretty sure I had white wine and all was good in our world.  We went back to the motel and I happen to know I passed out- not sure about my compadre - lol.

Columbia River Gorge from Crown Pointe

It really was a good first day- I have to mention that highway where all the water falls are.  What a harrowing horrifying road that was.  Monday it wasn't too bad, but the addition of a million more cars on those stretches by Wednesday proved a challenge to drive to say the least.  This website makes it seem like it is a gentle happy drive, but nuh-uh.  It seems like it needs some shoring up to say the least.  The scenic highway goes along the side of the gorge, and the freeway is down along river  along with a lot of trains.  It was a relief to be down there - let me tell you.  It was interesting to see how much trains are used there as well- not so much in Wisconsin anymore- at least in the north.

Latourelle Falls

Latourelle Falls

Bridal Veil

Well, dear Diary, I am getting sleepy, I have been at this post for 2.5 hours  and I have to get to bed.  I hope this touches on the first exciting day that I had, and hopefully it will let me remember even more stuff tomorrow......  It will be ART MUSEUM day!!  WOOOOT.

Find your joy everyone

Love,
Debi

Weekend day trips to the north

It snowed this past week, and though everyone said it would be gone by Saturday, it was indeed NOT gone.  But that did not stop the Mad-missing-English teacher and I from striking out on both Saturday AND Sunday for points north! 

Now living where we (I guess, I, now) do, one wouldn't think that we would need to strike out farther north, and yet we do.  There are waterfalls to be found, and lakes to be listened to, coffee to be consumed, and breakfast to be enjoyed.  Among other things, you know.

A slam on the brakes moment that needed to be captured

The Chippewa River north of Glidden

 We set off bright and early to head north to our favorite place to eat- possibly in the world- Coco's in Washburn.  After the proper amount of nourishment, we set off on Hwy C towards Cornucopia to a water cascade area called Siskiwit Falls.  We'd never been there, and we are always up for something new- Always.
There was a lot of water in this river and it was quite exciting to be so close to it.  We had done a little research and we knew that there were several areas that could be looked at.  We went as far as we could, slipping a little on the leaves and pine needles- and the afore mentioned snow, but the problem was, for this location,  a gigantic tree had gone down effectively stopping us from getting over to the best vantage point for both our viewing pleasure and for photos.  Sort of a bummer, but you so couldn't get there, so....  on to the next place.

Part of Siskiwit Falls

Our next stop was a planned trip to Lost Creek Falls.  We had been there last spring right around the spring thaw- but there was not nearly as much water then as there was Saturday!  All the rain and snow we have gotten filled the creeks and made a really great show for waterfallers such as ourselves.

The path to Lost Creek Falls

Lost Creek

Through the trees 

The Falls- a lot of water here!

As we needed to ponder our next move, we decided to go to Meyers Beach, as we were very close anyway!  Wow was this ever a great idea.  The pictures don't really show the amazing waves that were occurring- they were huge and rolling.  When you looked out at the lake, it didn't look that rough, but as the waves came to shore they broke in beautiful rolls spreading along the shore.  wow!  The cool thing was that every point that we saw the lake during the day had a different look.  It was so interesting.

again, these photos can't show the power, rhythm and sounds that were present Saturday.  

Flotsam and jetsam on shore

Looking towards the sea caves

lovely driftwood pieces artfully arranged by Mother Nature and Lake Superior

 We decided that we wanted to explore a few places that we had seen signage for, but had never ventured off to look at ..... so off we drove to the north.  Our first stop was Little Sand Bay Campground waaaaaaay up to the north, but there really wasn't too much to see there.  So we decided to try to find a "rustic campground" called Point Detour.  Apparently Point Detour is the farthest point north in Wisconsin, which we decided was worth getting out of the car to investigate.  Rustic it certainly was, by the way, we can't even comprehend how anyone in a camper could possibly even get their camper in that place. But maybe this is a campground that people don't drag more than a tent.

The lake definitely had a different look here.

We had to stop at the top of these stairs as there was a board across them- because there were about 8 steps out in the middle.....  and upon further investigation from the bottom, the entire thing is more than a bit rickety.  We had to shimmy down the side of the stairs, which was quite an adventure to say the least.  Leaves and pine needles and snow added up to some interesting footing this entire weekend.

After hanging out on this rocky landing for a while, and you will notice that the lake has a totally different look than at the beach, we decided to head on over to Bayfield.  We of course landed in the coffee shop for a while, and then walked on down to the docks, where our favorite ferry the Madeline was coming into town.

We ended up in Ashland at supper time, and I had one of those (almost) tire screech moments where I had to pull off the road to one of the lakeside parks to take some sunset photos.  The colors were just too compelling and the lake was so gorgeous and calm.

The Mad-English teacher and I went waterfalling Sunday as well.  After a nice pancake Sunday breakfast we headed on up to Iron County and visited Potato River Falls.  We had also been there earlier this year, but it was nothing like what we saw that day.  It is unfortunate for the picture taking that we had to be there in the morning, as the sun was really difficult.  But oh well.  The fall were STUNNING.  So much water, so loud, so fun to see.  The footing here and at Copper Falls was terrorizing in many places.  The wooden stairs and boardwalks were very slippery in spots and I had some really bad flashbacks.  I will over come this I promise!

Potato River Falls- Upper Falls

We decided to head to Copper Falls as well, which I have to say people around here take this for granted.  It is a gorgeous place and the falls are just spectacular.  It was fun to be there during the off season where there were no other visitors....  However, I did miss the concession stand's ice cream cones.  haha.

Brownstone Falls I think.

Interesting patterns on the ground

We had a nice time climbing around and investigating the various places around the park.  Again, the Falls were spectacular.

This was a great GREAT way to spend a weekend!  Seeing the glory of the scenery that is northern WI gave me more than my share of joy, and spending it with my partner in all things adventure completed the experience.  

Bayfielding and waterfalling at its finest

The urge to head north is really strong at the time of year.  The weather has gotten mercifully warm, the now has gone and the bugs are not out yet- it seemed like a perfect time to go for a day trip.  And it was!  Perfect for going on a Bayfield and waterfall adventure.

The Madeline getting spiffed up for the summer season

The Mad-English teacher and I began our journey on Saturday morning, and was I ever excited to be getting out of town.  The MA, now that apparently the new deadline of April 30 has passed- (Idk what the heck is going on.  Always the working late stopped on April 15, but not this year... this year it has mysteriously stretched out a few more days.  Mmmmkay) - is firmly entrenched in his yardwork clothes.  Meaning, he isn't going anywhere far from home.  So, I have to find partners in adventure and I have a few to count on!

The statue of liberty in Bayfield

The lake was so clear 

It was cool to see these sailboats out of the water- SO BIG

We drove on up to Bayfield for some luscious rhubarb/ginger scones and coffee/hotchocolate at the always amazing Big Water Coffee Roasters Coffee shop.  It is the best way to start one's adventure on a Saturday morning, I only regret that it is not about 60 miles closer so I could get there every Saturday.  The last time we walked onto the Bayfield City Dock and looked out onto the lake and watched the ferry (actually the ice breaker boat) it was REALLY cold and was the first or second day that the ferry was running to the Island.   SOOOOO much nicer in May!  A little adventure on the dock, and then a walk along the beach and to the other dock area and off we went (after maybe a short stop at a store front for a new Bayfield hoodie!!  :) ) to Houghton Falls.

The primary reason (other than the obvious coffee, scones and lunch at Coco's) was to get in some good hiking and see some water falls.  Mission accomplished!!  The first water fall area was Houghton Falls north of Washburn.  I was there for the first time when the ice breakup had just begun.  It was much more scary for me, as there was all the ice and snow and slippery and yikes!  With the proper hiking boots footwear and less slick underfoot, it was a good hike!  I had a great time climbing down the sides of the dells area and got to get down to the cave that I had seen last time. There was actually still ice in a couple parts of this dells area!  Pretty cool---- get it!!  HAHAHA

The ice left in the darkest part of the Dells area

Got down to the cave!

Anyway, we ended up sitting out on the rock that overlooks the big Lake and my compadre shimmied down to the lake.  I knew that I would never make it back up if I went down- I could tell that my height, or lack of it, would cause me problems.  So being an intelligent being, I stayed put.  HOWEVER, on the way back, we discovered another way down to the lake and I did get myself there.  I went and stood in the lake for about 30 seconds- long enough for photo proof- and then got out of there.  THAT is some cold water.  The "falls" part of Houghton Falls is sort of secondary to the rest of the experience.  I LOVE sitting on that rock landing overlooking Lake Superior.  It is just beautiful!

OH that was some cold water

Part of the overlook at Houghton Falls

After refreshing ourselves with lunch at Coco's (YAAAAAY), we headed on over on Hwy 2 to Hwy 169 to Potato River Falls.  Now THAT, boys and girls, is a waterfall..... 2 of them actually.  And if you want to hike, there are two trails and both of them involve a lot of steps.  There are several flights of stairs to the lower falls, some of them a little sketchy, and there was quite a bit of erosion here and there.  A water fall website said that you can cross the river below the falls--- they were not there in the spring, obviously.  We did not cross the river.

Lower Falls at Potato River Falls

After going and hiking around, and then regretting our decision to go down so many stairs when one is in rotten post-broken-arm shape, one finds out, we stopped at the car for some water (yeah, we left it in the car.  We are not too bright sometimes) we moved along to the upper falls area.  Well, now that was worth the trip down even more stairs.  Magnificent.  Just magnificent.  Lots of photos were taken, oooos and ahhhhs were said and then totally tired and happy we drove on Hwy 169 (wheeeeeeeeeee!!!) to Hwy 13 and then home.

Upper Falls

Not sure what this little yellow flower is. 

Beauty about to burst

These are the days that recharge my batteries and make me truly appreciate living in the place that I do.  And is also leading to more research for waterfalls in northern WI, and planning a few more trips north, and the next time (the day after school is done, you bet your life) it will involve a ferry and a car and a picnic on the beach...  And summer will be here at last.  And we have been waiting for it for such a long time.

Gorgeous Potato Falls

What a  joyful day it was!  Hope you can find your joy in what ever adventure you are embarking on!