For The Journey Not just the destination…

One of the first blogs I ever read, and still read, is Running Stitch.  She was a crafty mama of a toddler living in a fern and tree-covered area in Washington.  I loved reading about her creative activities and close-knit family life.  She said she started reading my blog then too – I was in grad school in Indiana and had just started learning to sew.  While we were in Oregon two weekends ago, we met up.

Cannon Beach

Stitch (she uses nicknames on her blog) and her family (her toddler is now 5 and she has a 3 year old too) met us out on the Oregon coast for a little hiking at Ecola State Park.  We thought about doing a geocache, but unfortunately ended up in a geocache-less park.  We did, however, stumble upon a letterbox (similar to a geocache but without coordinates).

Stitch, The Man, Moo and Wah

The park was beautiful.  There were huge trees, big enough for Peter Pan-playing little boys to hide in, and a gorgeous view of Cannon Beach, where parts of the Goonies Movie was filmed.  Remember the shape of the key and where the pirate ship came out? That’s the Haystack Rock.  We hiked for a while and had a great time – Stitch and her husband are just as interesting as they sound on their blog, and their boys are tons of fun.

Haystack Rock

After we parted ways, Thomas and I headed off to the beach to get a closer look at the Haystack Rock – and find a geocache.  We found the rock, the cache, and a really awesome quilt shop too!  The sunset was gorgeous and we had a lot of fun doing gymnastics and making silly silhouette photos on the beach, all the while, calling out, Hey you guys….

Thomas jumps!

It was a wonderful day and I truly hope I get to meet up with Stitch and her family again someday.  I’ve posted more photos online, and Stitch posted on her blog about our meeting too.

• Ecola State Park and Cannon Rock (28 photos)
• Running Stitch’s blog post from this day

More than once, I’ve been told that Portland is my kind of city. Last week, we headed to Oregon where Thomas visited one of his company’s offices. We flew into Portland, but only spent an hour in the city. I don’t think I got a good feel for it – it felt a little too big for me (and reminded me of Indianapolis). Afterward, we headed to Hood River, two hours east of Portland where we spent a week, and I loved it!

Base of Latourell Falls

Hood River is surrounded by beautiful scenery. The little resort town is on the coast of the Columbia River – Washington is on the other side – and it’s at the base of Mount Hood. We drove along the Historic Columbia River Highway from Portland to Hood River, where the roads were lined with tall evergreens, ferns, and huge waterfalls. It was a gorgeous drive.

Multnomah Falls

Downtown Hood River feels like a little mountain town, filled with boutiques, coffee shops, live bluegrass bands, and microbreweries. Most of Thomas’ coworkers that we met with brewed their own beer in their free time. They also did a lot of skiing, and graciously lent us ski gear for the weekend. We drove 30 minutes up Mount Hood to Mount Hood Meadows and skied one day. It was beautiful and even snowed while we were up there.

While we were in town, Mount Hood had a little Christmas celebration – a parade, caroling, and free hot chocolate. I was shocked at all the families gathered together, catching up with old friends. There really was a sense of community. And I can tell why – whenever I went in a store, the people inside looked me in the eye, smiled, said hello, and asked me if I’m having a good day. Maybe I’ve been living in Belgium for too long, but I haven’t experienced this kind of friendliness for a while. I particularly liked this poster I saw in a restaurant stating instructions on How to Build Community.

The Main Drag

I don’t know about Portland, but I would say Hood River is my kind of town. I really enjoyed it.  We joked that it’s a Yippie community – part hippy and part yuppie.  From the Eddie Bauer-style, to the many surrounding camping and hiking places, to the folk music playing everywhere we went, to the many restaurants and stores selling organic, locally-grown, fair-trade, and green… There were also a ton of VW buses, though I’d be a little worried about mine with all those hills.

Full Moon in the Afternoon Sky

Who knows where we’ll end up when we eventually move back to the States, but this is a place I would want to explore more. If you’d like to see more of my photos, I’ve posted them on Flickr:

• Hood River and Skiing (25 photos)