time’s flying by…

“We all have two lives. The second one starts when we realize we only have one.” Tom Hiddleston

Phelps Creek, Hood River, Oregon © SwittersB

out yonder…

Vista…

Vista House setting atop Crown Point in Oregon. Columbia River below and Washington State to the left. The distant rock formation (left) is Beacon Rock. 

Vista…

Looking East from Crown Point, up the Columbia River Gorge. Washington to the left and Oregon to the right.

 

across the Columbia R.

from beneath the Bridge of the Gods at Cascade Locks, Oregon

keeping the peace…

a quiet little place, well off the trail. If one can just sit, contemplate and unwind, it is a special little no name spot. One of many, up the Columbia River Gorge.

dense…

A dense stand of Alders that went on and on up the Columbia River Gorge near Dodson.

A half hour from home…

the Columbia River Gorge is just breaking free of its fifth ice storm. Normally this is a great view of the Crown Point & the Vista House from Chanticleer Point…a few days ago the ice and wind still made a stable shot difficult.

Frozen in time…

Columbia River Gorge, or as locals call it the Gorge. A small waterfall along the ‘Scenic Hiway’ (the old road up the Gorge before the I-84 freeway was constructed)

Momentarily frozen…

one of many small, unnamed waterfalls tumbling (frozen this day) over the cliffs of the Gorge into ponds, lakes and wetlands that all empty into the Columbia River, on the Oregon side. 

Below is an 1880 photo taken by……………. of the same general spot, but from a slightly different angle. The photo is courtesy of the Wyeast Blog, which is a good source of Columbia River Gorge information.

“Palisades, Columbia River” This 1880s scene captured by Frank J. Haynes, official photographer for the Union Pacific Railroad. Crown Point (then called “Thor’s Heights”) and its lacy waterfall are the backdrop for what was known as Echo Bay in the early days of settlement.