For our first full day we planned to visit the Columbia River Gorge. Because we had a lot planned for the day and we knew the waterfalls could get crowded with limited parking, we wanted to be on the road by 6 am. I consider it a major accomplishment that we got the teen out the door by 5:45 am! It helped that we had the lure of Voodoo Doughnuts, which was a spot Norah wanted to visit on our trip. The Davis location is open 24 hours and was en route, so it worked for us to stop on our way out of town. Huge bonus that we were the only customers - no lines or wait - perfect. With donuts in hand we were on our way.

Multnomah Falls is the most famous and popular falls in the gorge, so we decided to visit it first to guarantee parking in the small lot off of the Historic Columbia River Highway (HCRH). The falls are impressive at 620 feet over two drops. We took some pictures at the bottom and made the short walk up to Benson Bridge (built in 1914 and named after the builder, Simon Benson). I’ve seen so many pictures of these falls, it was cool to see them in person.
We backtracked on the Historic Columbia River Highway to visit three waterfalls: Wahkeena, Bridal Veil Falls, and Latourell Falls. All three were very accessible with short walks. Wahkeena is just down the road from Multnomah and there is a trail that connects the two falls, although we opted to make the short drive. It is only 0.2 miles to the stone arch bridge at the base of Wahkeena Falls for a nice view. Wahkeena Falls is 242 feet over several drops, although they are not all visible at once.

It was another short drive to Bridal Veil Falls and a short walk to the falls. This trail was steeper as it descended 0.3 miles down to the base of the falls. Bridal Veil flows in two tiers down the basalt cliffs for a total drop of 118 feet. There is a viewing platform and also a short scramble down to the pool at the base of the falls. A massive basalt boulder lies in the pool and made for a perfect photo op with Steve. In contrast to the other falls, Latourell Falls is a 224 foot, single-plunge falls off an overhanging basalt cliff. Latourell Falls is located in Guy W.Talbot State Park and is only a few minutes walk from the parking area. Not only is this a scenic waterfall, it also has some cool columnar basalt formations.

We headed back east on the HCRH and had one more stop for waterfalls. This one was a two for one stop in the Oneonta Natural area - across from the parking lot was Horsetail Falls (176 feet cascading down more columnar basalt) and after a 0.4 mile hike we saw Ponytail Falls (also known as Upper Horsetail Falls). What was cool about Ponytail Falls is that the trail traverses the naturally eroded basalt cavern behind the falls, which allows for views from different angles of the 88 foot waterfall. We also had some nice views on the trail looking across the Columbia River to Beacon Rock and Hamilton Mountain.

We made good time on our mini waterfall tour, so we were able to stop at the Bonneville Fish Hatchery in Cascade Locks before having lunch in Hood River. Bonneville Hatchery, located next to the Bonneville Dam, was first constructed in 1909 and has undergone different renovations and the introduction of programs to address the declining fish runs in the Columbia River Basin. For salmon, the hatchery raises 8 million Fall Chinook and 1.2 million Coho through a combination of adult collection, egg incubation, rearing, and spawning. Our timing was right as the adult salmon began arriving at the hatchery in September and we were able to witness the spawning operation where workers were sorting incoming salmon (there is good information about the hatchery operation in the room where you can watch the workers). In addition to watching the salmon operation, we visited the Sturgeon Pond and Viewing Center. Sturgeon are native to the Columbia River and have a reputation as a “living fossil”. They are a prehistoric, ancient looking fish that have not changed much in the last 200 million years. They are the largest fish in North America and in the Columbia River they can reach six to twelve feet long and weigh up to 800 pounds. The Viewing Center is housed in a small building where we could see Herman the Sturgeon up close and personal - he is approximately 10 feet long, 500 pounds, and over 80 years old!

We had a delicious lunch and drinks at pFriem Family Brewers in Hood River and hit the road again to visit some orchards and farms on the Fruit Loop. The Hood River Valley has a rich agricultural heritage with 14,500 acres of fruit in the valley spread across various orchards and farms. The Fruit Loop is a scenic 35 mile loop with 28 on-the-farm fruit stands, wineries, cideries, breweries, and fields of flowers. We didn’t do the full loop, but we were able to make a few stops to enjoy the bounty of the valley: Pearl’s, The Gorge White House, Hope Ranch Lavender, and Packer Orchards & Bakery. The Hood River Valley is beautiful and the produce and products looked great at every place we stopped. Highlights were the cider flight at The Gorge White House and the bakery at Packer Orchards.

Normally we would have had views of Mt. Hood from the Fruit Loop, but the mountain was obscured by clouds for much of the day. We made an impromptu decision to head to the base of Mt. Hood to see if we could get some views. Along the way we stopped at Trillium Lake, which was a scenic spot, and got some glimpses of the mountain. We got additional views when we drove to Timberline Lodge at the base of Mt. Hood. It was nice for a quick stop and also allowed Steve to check out the parking setup and see where the trailhead was as he was returning the next morning to hike the Timberline Trail. We had one more stop on our way back to Portland: Birria La Plaza. The birria was tasty and a nice way to end our day. We really enjoyed the Columbia River Gorge and Hood River Valley - it was a terrific day!