“Probably some of the best things that have ever happened to you in life, happened because you said yes to something. Otherwise things just sort of stay the same.” D. Wallace, Yes Man
Take a chance at least once, or now and then, to take a different path, to break the tired norm.
All day the weather pattern in Oregon as been a bit ominous. Unusually humid, clouds rolling in and temps still high. In other parts of the country this is not that unusual. To the East, I could see the clouds stacking up and hear distant rumbles. Ultimately, a weather front combined along the west slope of Mt. Hood. Extreme downpours fell on the side of the mountain and cascaded down the valleys of Mt. Hood. One valley contains the Sandy River.
A couple hiking into Ramona Falls came upon a bridge spanning the Sandy River.. A flash flood came down the valley and swept away a bridge the man was standing upon. The wife watched the incident unfold.
Local weather channel radar showed a severe storm cell roll in shortly after noon. The unsuspecting couple and many others were likely unprepared for this powerful event. This is something you expect in November when flood water rage in this area. Other hikers were stranded from their cars after the bridge disappeared.
Be prepared to spend the night, for lightning strikes, high water, the whole sheeebang when in the wilderness. This hike, which I have done countless times, is an easy, pleasant excursion into the ‘wilderness’. Today the wilderness was truly wild.
My Uncle Felix built the wall, floor and built in drawers in this downstairs bedroom in 1952. The walls and floor and attention to detail carried over into the ‘party room’ and a second kitchen area. He hung pictures that showed the Sierras, Mountain lakes, Western themes…all things that were appealing to the Wisconsin boy transplanted to the West in the 1930’s. Classy then, when I was a young lad. Still classy and durable today.
