Columbia Gorge & Mt. Hood - Senior backpacker at the wheel (5)

 This was actually my first one day

drive since I came to US 3 days ago on Aug. 29. I planned to make a round tour from Portland through Columbia Gorge, Hood River, Lake Mirror, and back to Portland. I thought this would be also a nice test driving to confirm that I was ready for safe driving in US where people drive on the wrong side of the roads. 




<Historic Columbia River Highway>
 Historic Columbia River Highway is a scenic highway along Columbia River in Oregon stretching from Troutdale to The Dallas. A guide book says that it was constructed between 1913 and 1922 not just as means of traveling by the then popular Ford Model T, but designed with an elegance that took full advantage of all the natural beauty along the route. Nowadays this old two-lane road runs in parallel with the modern Interstate 84. While in Japan, I checked my portable US Garmin GPS navi in simulation mode to see if it would correctly choose this scenic road instead of I-84 to go to Hood river from Portland. But this intelligent machine chose I-84 without hesitation, which forced me to input two more extra addresses on this particular road for Crown Point Vistas and Multnomah Falls.

       

 I departed the Northwest Portland Guesthouse at 8 am and after filling up at a service station, headed for Crown Point Vistas, one of the most scenic points on this historic road. This site stands 223 m above the river and I could enjoy a magnificent view of the Columbia Gorge from the lookout of this Vista House. From here to Hood River, it was really awesome to drive on this old winding mountain road with a magnificent view of the Columbia River spread out beneath my eyes, sometimes stopping at falls like Multnomah Falls, the highest in the area. 

    

<Hood River Fruit Loop>
 After lunch at Hood River, I turned to the Hwy 35 at the Exit 64 of I-84 heading south for Government Camp on the southern slope of Mt.Hood. I drove through the Hood River valley, a farming community famous for its varieties of fruits and wine. Along the route just before reaching to Tamanawas Falls Trailhead, I found a fruit stand lively with some visitors and parked by the near roadside. They were offering peaches, nectarines, plums, and apples in a country style of store surrounded by the lovely colored flowers garden. How sweet their peaches were! In the brochure I got at Hood River visitor center, more than 30 of local farm stands were mapped on the Fruit Loop.  

      
   

<Mt. Hood>
 Passing through the Fruit Loop on Hwy 35, Mt. Hood was beginning to appear in the westward. This is the highest mountain in Oregon with the height of 3,427 meters above the sea level, especially popular as a ski resort through all seasons.    

     

<Mirror Lake>
Oregon Route 35 merges onto U.S.26 toward Portland a few miles east of Government Camp on the southern slope of Mt. Hood. I found the Mirror Lake Trailhead 1 mile away from  Government Camp. It was nearly 3 pm and although I was anxious to return to my hotel in Portland before dark, I started to walk across the small wooden bridge to make my way to the lake. This loop trail hiking is loved by people of all generation in Portland and I met many young couples, families with their kids and senior groups on the trail and enjoyed saying hello to them when we passed each other. Unfortunately it became cloudy when I reached to the lake, so I could not admire this great Mt. Hood standing in the north side from the loop. But it was a nice and refreshing two hours' hiking.

     

I drove through Rhododendron and Gresham on the route 26 and came back to the Northwest Portland Guesthouse before 6 pm. It was a gorgeous round tour with 9 hours of scenic driving, hiking, and delicious fresh lunch at a Hood River's cafe lounge, which also gave me more confidence in driving on U.S. roads for the week ahead.           

(to be continued; next back to Portland)