Day # 15 - Columbia Gorge

We didn’t get quite as early a start as we had hoped, but we gained an hour as we crossed into the Pacific Time Zone so we still arrived at the campground around 3:30 local time. The drive across Oregon was uneventful until we stared to climb into the Cascade Mountains. We went from dry flat plains full of hay fields into lush green pine forests. There were a few steep grades, but after tiny mountain roads with what I termed “rolling death” as a drop off to our right, a 2 lane interstate was nothing. Usually I get to do an hour or so of driving on travel days so Tony can catch a rest, but Tony drove the whole way today.

As we neared the Columbia River Gorge area the winds really picked up. They have been known to gust between 50 and 60 mph. That’s great if you are kite boarding or sailing, but not so great when you are towing a land yacht behind you! You can just hear the gas being guzzled down. To make matters worse, gas was up to almost $3.00 a gallon. We had been hovering around $2.50 throughout most of the trip, but it has steadily risen the farther west we have come. When we planned this trip, gas was just under $2.00 a gallon. That’s a big increase! What can you do? Grin and bear it and make the most of it!

The Gorge area is as picturesque as I remember it from our travels here many years ago. The huge pine trees are very stately. Our campground is actually across the river in Washington State. In order to cross the river, you must take one of three toll bridges. The Hood River Bridge is a towering metal grate bridge with a drawbridge in the center. It is extremely narrow and the tires make a strange humming, almost moaning sound as you cross over. It gives me the creeps. It doesn’t bother Tony though (even with the camper in tow) and the girls seemed to get a kick out of the fact I didn’t like it! The view is nice, too bad all I want to do is close my eyes until we are over!

Our campground is in the town of Home Valley, Washington. It is a small family owned campground. The place is really beautiful. It is extremely hilly as was are half way up the side of a mountain, but the campsites are surprisingly large and flat. We pushed hard to get here today and didn’t stop to eat lunch, so Tony decided to treat us to dinner at a local restaurant called "The Big River Grill" the campground owner suggested. We made the 7 mile drive up the road to Stevenson, WA. Stevenson is typical small town America. I thoroughly enjoyed garlic shrimp over pasta. For dessert we strolled down the street to Granny’s Gedunk Ice cream parlor. We enjoyed our ice cream in fresh homemade waffle cones – yum! Then it was back to the campground for a romp on the playground. We are worn out from our travels and are looking forward to sleeping in a little tomorrow. Tony wasn’t feeling well this evening – don’t know if it was something he ate or too much time in the car. I ventured back out in search of some medicine for his upset stomach. I encountered 2 deer on the road down and had 2 dogs chase the truck on the way back up. I thought we left the wildlife in Yellowstone.