Spring Break

Our nine days were relatively uneventful, which is more or less the way we like it.

Kay returned from Eugene and set about her usual rounds of meeting friends, catching up on web comics while making small talk at breakfast, and providing comic interludes that would likely be viewed as inscrutable scientific rambling in any other household. She mixed things up a bit by going on late evening jogs from time to time, her first radical evolutionary step since being in college (the new lip piercing does not qualify).

We had a great time having the J-A's for dinner on Sunday, along with my mom and a new friend/client of mine (thanks Aria!) who scandalously was given dispensation to cook steak for the carnivores. Kay and Peggy did some driving practice (these Portland kids have no urgency around getting licensed), Peggy and Irene went ice skating, Edward and I went to work as usual (my spring break is in not having to walk Irene through her morning routine and make lunch by 8 am every day, yee haw!)

Then at the last possible moment, we took A Drive. This time Edward masterminded the general plan- to drive towards The Dalles (thus escaping wet western Oregon weather), then turn south toward completely heretofore unexplored geography.

We stopped to check in on the Rowena Plateau on our way through the Gorge, a place we'd loved hiking last summer. Turns out dogs are not allowed on the trail on account of it's a bone fide Wildflower Preservation site, so we just trotted the beasts around the roadside viewpoint for a while. They took out a few unprotected flowers whilst attempting to roust inhabitants of the mysterious holes peppering the surprisingly tundra-like terrain.

We decided to head south towards Maupin, and Edward handed me the road atlas to peruse as we drove. The only clearly labeled location for outdoor activity not related to skiing or rafting was the White River State Park. I figured there would at least be a hiking trail, so after much page flipping without another lead I proclaimed that to be our destination. Luck was clearly on our side as the Only Clearly Labeled Location for Outdoor Activity Not Related to Skiing or Rafting turned out to be a heaping plate of Natural Wonder with a gob-smackingly unexpected side of Steampunk-style Industrial Ruin.




First the lovely falls.












Then... a mysterious concrete outbuilding with giant rusty pipes.















That you can chase children through!
















Check out those great rivets.




And built-in
spectacular composition: square-circle-rectangle-triangles-square-circle!

Towards the bottom of the falls is the old Pump Station, a beautiful stone building with numerous signs proclaiming how extraordinarily hazardous it is. Naturally we immediately started scoping out possible entrances. I even manged to get the dogs inside.























The interior was filled with all manner of enormous mechanical equipment, all of it featuring the most gorgeous turn of the century industrial design. What looks like small cogs in a giant gear are actually hundreds of paper-thin metal sheets. Wow!




We didn't have the time, camera batteries, or freedom from dogs to do the place justice.






Downstream of this crumbling delight is an easy hike along the river through an almost cinematic basalt corridor. Sadly, afore-mentioned battery issues prevent a visual documentation of the cliffs, the cool promontory overlooking the rushing river, or my stern conversation (argument) with Irene about staying AWAY from the edge of said promontory (too bad cuz stern is a good look for me).

The protected area of river just outside the station is also rumored to be good swimming in the summer. This is definitely way up there on my list of places to drag anyone and everyone I know, maybe on a Wednesday so we don't have to share...








For the record, all this excitement combined with the compulsion to watch an entire season of Dexter in one week means I caught up on no sleep during Spring Break. Dang!