The Gorge.

In addition to the beautiful beaches in Oregon are the beautiful rivers and falls that dot the countryside. Not far away from Portland is probably one of the most famous falls, Multnomah Falls. Growing up, we frequented this site quite often...there are great hiking trails that take you to the top of the Falls and a wonderful little restaurant that you can grab tea.

There is a bridge that goes across the Falls halfway up. It is just so breathtaking. I always love going there.

After taking in the Falls we headed down the Columbia River and stopped at the Gorge. You can see the view behind me and my Grandma. This trip definitely brought back memories of my Grandma and Papa taking my brother and I on day-trips across Oregon. We took multiple trips down to the Gorge to ride the Stern-wheeler along the river. It was always a good time.

We didn't stop there...we kept heading towards Mt. Hood and stopped at Hood River to eat lunch and watch the wind surfers. You can see some of the wind surfers and kite surfers in the background. My Uncle Greg and I decided that it didn't look too terribly difficult so we are going to give it a go sometime.

After the Gorge we took a pit stop to visit my cousin, Jonathan, at the Cherry farm he was working at over the summer...pun intended. I crack myself up. Mt. Hood was our next stop. This is a sight that I will never get tired of. The mountain or "Our Mountain" as Portlandians like to call it is absolutely breathtaking.

Sigh, so pretty.

This pic reminds me of the song, "Toes in the water, ass in the sand," but instead my toes were in the snow while DC was going through a record heatwave. :)

Needless to say, I had an amazing trip. I miss my extended family, it was definitely hard to move away as a kid, but I love going back and visiting.