I recently discovered this short poem in a Tillamook County Historical publication and it had no reference to the author but I felt compelled to share it;
Life
is a history in volume three
The
past, the present, the yet to be
The
first is finished and laid away
The
second we’re reading day by day
The third and last of volume three
Is locked away from sight, God keeps the key.
I presume that the poem was written by an early
Oregon pioneer and it says to me, “keep on living your history”!
Saturday, September 19, 2015
We arrived in Portland and took a campsite on Marine
Drive, alongside the Columbia River, and just west of the PDX airport. We were
right in the airport flightpath but fortunately it was not disturbing, in fact,
we enjoyed watching the jets and identifying the different carriers. On
Wednesday evening, we shopped Costco and drove over to the IKEA store and the
Mall.
On Thursday, we reconnoitered the Northwest RV Show
at the Portland Expo Center. Every class and model of RV was on display along
with vendors of every imaginable camping product. It was a good rainy-day
activity.
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| Mt St Helens |
Today,
we visited the old site of Hudson Bay Company’s, Fort Vancouver, the “Outpost
of the British Empire”, in the Pacific Northwest. Today, the fort’s buildings
and furnishings depict what life was like when Fort Vancouver was the most
important settlement in the Pacific Northwest. Dr. John McLoughlin was the very
successful manager and leader, violating company policy to assist the growing
American settlers and subsequently becoming an American citizen and settler
himself.
It
was a cool, sunny, fall day and we enjoyed walking the grounds with our dogs.
We were surprised to see some Western Scrub Jays feeding on the gall grubs of
the large Oak trees, with Mount Hood showing off its crown of new snow.
On
Sunday, we attended Mass at the Old St. James Cathedral, founded in 1838. It
reminded me of some of the Cathedrals that I’ve seen in Europe. The Mass was
very traditional and reminiscent of the original Church at Fort Vancouver.
Monday,
September 21, 2015
Our
visit in the Portland area was relaxing and enjoyable with some nice
Fall
weather and interesting attractions. Now we have moved on to the Columbia River
Gorge and a cozy campground at the Cascade Locks, just upriver from the “Bridge
of the Gods”. This evening, I met a Nez Perce fisherman down by the river and
made arrangements to buy some Fall Chinook Salmon fillets from him. The Native
Americans have platforms built out over the water and (by law) they employ their
traditional methods of fishing. I also met a Fish and Wildlife employee running
a predatory fish reward program. You can fish and make money by turning-in
predatory fish (Pikeminnows) and earn an $8 reward for each.
Now,
we head out to the Columbia River Gorge.
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| Horse Tail Falls |
Today,
we toured the Columbia River Gorge from our Cascade Locks camp.
At
Bonneville Dam, we toured the Visitor Center with fish-ladder, hydroelectric
generating facility, navigation locks, fish hatchery, and picnicked at the
recreation area. By heading west on old US 30, we visited the waterfalls along
the south rim of the gorge. Multnomah is the most popular but Horsetail is my
favorite. Driving up to the south rim, we got an overview of the river and
gorge. Thus area of the gorge is very popular and has lots of parks and trails.
Returning to Cascade Locks, we crossed the daunting “Bridge of the Gods” to
Washington and visited Beacon Rock. The old bridge is high, narrow, and the
deck is see-through steel grid-panels, so you can see the river below. There’s
a local Native American, famous for jumping from this bridge when the whiskey
and bets are just right.
It
was a beautiful day for touring and with our plan complete, we are enjoying our
evening rest. Next, we’ll head east to Hermiston and a visit with Terry’s Jeff,
Justin, and Marley.
