Going West 2013: the Fourth and Fifth

Yesterday was Blues Fest day. The Trimet 6 bus got us there at noon. The gates opened at 11, and by noon the lawn was three quarters full. We found a spot facing the Willamette River and in front of a jumbotron. There were four stages. We were halfway between the two main stages, so we could see the stages (in the distance) and the jumbotron so it was all good. The bands alternated sets on the stages, so only one band was playing at a time. This made for continuous music – no waiting for breakdown and setup for a band. Every 45 minutes was a new group, so there was a lot of variety. It was a beautiful sunny warm day so we fried a little, but there was food and water and beer, so it was all good. The plan was to stay ‘til evening then return to the RV park to view fireworks from Vancouver, across the Columbia River. This would avoid trying to get on a bus with hundreds of other people. We left about 6:30, decided to go to a brew pub we found a few days earlier, Rock Bottom Brewery, for a quencher and a munchie, which we did. It might be our favorite pub so far, but there are many we didn’t get to. Anyway, we got back to the campground and walked to the Columbia River shore. The RV park is right across the river from Vancouver, WA., and there were fireworks from Fort Vancouver at dark. A great show, and a 5 minute walk back to the camper. Great!

Today was Columbia Gorge Waterfall day. We decided to go east on the Washington side of the river, Rt. 14. As we crossed the bridge there were signs for Fort Vancouver, so, why not? This is a nicely restored fort with a long history. It was first established by the British as a trading post. Taken over by the US, it was upgraded over the years to a very fancy compound. During settlement of the area it served to protect the settlers, later it was a training center for world wars and a WPA center. We toured the old fort and watched the movie, then moved on, since it was the waterfall tour. Along Rt 14 there were some nice views of the river and mountains on the Oregon side. We also drove through Washougal, WA., the home of one of our friends from the Keys. Nice town! We drove to Cascade Locks, crossed the river on the Bridge of the Gods ($1.00 toll, cheaper than going to Mass!)(there was a toll booth at the end, not a bright light) and started back west. First stop was Bonneville Dam for views and potty, then the waterfalls. We stopped at Horsetail Falls, Bridal Veil Falls, Wahkeena Falls, and Latrouelle Falls. Several required short hikes to see the falls, but all were worth the effort. We skipped Multnomah Falls because there was no available parking. We also visited Vista House with its magnificent views of the river valley.