Gorge(ous).............

The Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area is a canyon (with the Columbia River flowing through it) in Oregon/Washington that boasts miles of hiking trails, scenic waterfalls (90!), and beautiful views of the gorge. There is a lot to see and do in this area. It has the greatest concentration of waterfalls in North America. Some can be seen from the road, some are a short walk from the parking lot and others are accessed by hiking in.

huge ship floating down the Columbia River (photo taken from our campsite!)

Our first waterfall was the Bridal Veil, which is accessed by a short steep walk through a beautiful forest  down to the falls. Just beautiful! There was also a short loop trail, with overlooks to view the Columbia River Gorge itself. We enjoyed the views there, and also some wildflowers along the way.

everything in the forest is supersized here

love the shade and mossy trees

with the water gurgling, it adds to the refreshing feeling here

ah, there it is .... pretty!

heading up for a better view

WOW!

Bridal Veil Falls....

very peaceful walk in the shade :)

nice views of the Columbia River

sweet...lots of flowers on this loop

X marks the spot? Several contrails right over our heads

scenic views of the Columbia River Gorge

this is a new one for us!

see the little house up on the top of the rock?

its the Crown Point Vista House (we will visit later)

just so cool!

We traveled along the old historic Hwy 30, which was really nice in and of itself since it was so nicely shaded, and stopped at Sheppard's Dell. It seems that this waterfall was not very popular, as no one was there the entire time we were there. It was nice and it was peaceful. The falls were like a ribbon flowing through the side of the hill. Nice. I could not get the whole waterfall in one shot though.

Historic Scenic Hwy 30 through the Gorge

Beautiful

heading down for a better look

we had the place to ourselves

the top of the falls

more

the bottom of the falls...i could not fit it all in one pic

striking

Back on the road, we stopped at Latourell Falls, which was very dramatic. The waterfall drops straight down over the edge of a cliff, rather than meander. There is a trail that can take you to the top of the waterfall, but we opted for the walk down to the lower viewing area so we could feel the mist (that's code for "cool off"). We thought the path went up the other side of the falls to return to the parking lot, but no...so we had a nice little walk there as well. Haha. We are having such trouble with directions in Oregon. 

more peaceful Historic Scenic Hwy 30 through the Gorge

woah!

a close up of tourists at the top of the waterfalls

very nice

it was a bit crowded here

aahhh...the spray felt good

taking a bit of an extra walk on the other side of the falls

Soon it was lunchtime and we were looking for a good picnic spot when we came upon the Crown Point Vista House. This historical building was originally built to provide a resting stop for tourists, and it still does today. They had great bathrooms and I think they even had food available, as well as displays of interesting things having to do with the Gorge. The views from the Crown Point Vista were great. As far as a spot for lunch, well, everything was in the sun! So, off we went to our next stop.

Crown Point Vista House

views of the Gorge were great

I liked the building too

great views

inside

more inside

The Women's Forum Scenic Overlook was another good overlook of the Columbia River Gorge. Great views! Also a great view of the Crown Point Vista House not far away. And...it had a big shade tree to have lunch under! 

eating lunch with a view (in the shade)

more great views

Crown Point Vista House

Feeling refreshed from our lunch, we were ready to go to Multnomah Falls...described as the crown prince of the waterfalls here....but it was sooooo crowded we continued to drive and decided to set that aside for another day. Instead, we parked near Horsetail Falls, which was also a very crowded area, and decided to hike to Oneonta Falls, but the trailhead sign was a little confusing. We weren't too sure which way to go. Usually I do my homework very carefully,, but for some reason we had trouble finding trailheads. So....we headed up to where we thought we'd see the falls. We just weren't sure which ones. Haha.

even the slugs are huge in the forest!

heading up the trail

Luckily the trail was fairly well traveled so we were able to ask other hikers which trail went where and how were the ledges conditions. Everyone seemed confused by the signage in the woods. Things just weren't too clear. So, we thought we'd follow Oneonta Trail, but somehow ended up past the Oneonta Falls and we were at the Upper Horsetail Falls, also known as the Ponytail Falls. We passed a couple of waterfalls on this hike actually. Anyway, it was a beautiful hike...testing my height phobia....but I did well! And the falls we saw.....were awesome!

let's go this way

I know...its still going up up up

I did take a little spill at one point, slipping on loose gravel, and dropped my camera! Yikes!! Just to check to see if it worked, I snapped a picture of a relieved-looking Tom, relieved that I didn't hurt myself.  (Turns out, the day we did this hike, 2 hikers needed to be rescued on two separate trails in the Gorge area due to broken legs). 

still with me Susie? After that spill??  (yeah-my camera did not break!)

stay brave

After about a mile, we made it to the bridge that we were warned could only hold one person at a time. The warning was just a little sign posted near the hiking trailhead, and on one side of the bridge (but not the other). So, the bridge wasn't too scary but the switchbacks right after it had me a bit on edge. There are no pictures of that because it was all I could do to manage the trail. By the way, we thought the waterfall was ok..not spectacular. Well.....in chatting with other hikers that came from the other side.....that was nothing. We were in for a treat! And another hiker suffering from a fear of heights assured me I'd be fine on the rest of the hike...no ledges with steep drop offs, just gentle sloping drop offs. Haha. I assured her she'd be fine on the trail we came up, but actually, it was a stretch in parts!

the first waterfall we came upon

a view down at the one-at-a-time-crossing bridge

The trail evened out for a bit and was very enjoyable and easy. We passed some nice features, one of which was a dripping wall growing ferns and moss out of it. It was just such a refreshing, cool hike...very enjoyable.There were also many trees with the heavy moss again, like we've seen throughout our time in the forests here in the Pacific Northwest.

okay...the trail is good again...not scary here...the worst is over

nice wall of moss

very cool moss covered tree

hiking along...

After about another half mile, we approached a huge waterfall, which turns out is the Upper Horsetail Falls. It was a beauty. And, bonus...we could walk under it! Our first glimpse of the waterfall was from high up on the trail, so it was like finding a little gem in the woods. (Along with a ton of other people)! Very cool!

Oh wow! Check that out! We came around a corner and saw this!

pretty awesome

the trail goes right down below the falls

that's me in the bright pink

so cool!

isn't this spectacular?

another view..

ok...time to get moving along

The trail then led us to a parking lot and we walked by and admired Horsetail Falls! It was a beauty as well. Our car was about a half mile or more down the road, and we passed the Oneonta Falls sign. That is when we realized Oneonta Falls is reached by hiking up the Oneonta Gorge! Walking through the water. And over log jams. We weren't prepared for that. So, all in all, our hike was the right one for us! It was great! (I was also proud of myself for pushing my limits with the height thing)!

nice wide trail here

one more switchback

Oh wow!! And this one you can see from the parking lot!

just beautiful

another view

the Oneonta tunnel

Traveling back to Washington (well, just crossing the river), we stopped at the Bonneville Dam, which also has a fish hatchery for salmon and such, as well as lochs. It was late in the day...too late to view the lochs, but we still had time to check out the fish ladders. Salmon swim upstream to spawn, so the salmon from the hatchery need to learn those skills before being set out in nature. There is a whole setup for them...they need to make it up the rapids and through a maze before being set free. It was interesting! 

this is the loch at Bonneville Dam

these things are not eels...they are lamprey....check it out...

they have teeth!!

an underwater view of the fish ladder

part of the maze...after the fish make it up the fish ladder

can you see the fish down there (lots of salmon!)

the fish ladder-the fish are swimming "up" and have to get jump to the next level all the way up

you can see a fish there...in the middle

these are swimming really fast to gather momentum to "jump"

see a few made it up the ladder

The Dam itself provides power to the area and is quite a complex in itself. There were tours available and movies and displays, but we were there late in the day and ran out of time. 

giant turbine

the Bonneville Dam

As we made our way back home, we went over the Bridge of Gods into Washington, which is right across from the Pacific Crest Trailhead. These places are of "Wild" fame, the recent movie that we watched with our kids during our last visit to Virginia. The movie was not what we expected, and by the end of the movie, I think we were all reading our kindles...ahhahahah. Next time, we'll bring a better movie....ahhahaha.

Recognize this Jess, Andrew and Chris??? Maybe we need to see the movie again??

Bridge of Gods 

heading into Washington 

We saw the  Pacific Crest Trail down the mountain

another view of the Bonneville Dam and Power station from the other side of the river

On the Washington side of the Columbia River Gorge stands Beacon Rock. The trail description for this beauty says its "easy to moderate", with 600 foot elevation gain and a 15% grade, with handrails lining most of the ascent for a "breathtaking view". You're not kidding! My breath would definitely be taken away!

Beacon Rock-we didn't stop-too tired!

After a beautiful day exploring the Columbia River Gorge area and checking out some of the waterfalls, we were treated to this beauty. Great sunsets here over the Columbia River!

end of a Gorge-ous day!