Ann and I finally made our long-delayed trip to Hood River to take in the sights along the Columbia River. The previous post covers the day and a half that we spent in Hood River proper. This covers our trip back via Mt. Hood and the Peter Skene Ogden Viewpoint just north of Terrebonne.
There are two principal routes between Bend and Hood River. At Madras, you must decide whether to fork northeast and continue up US 97 toward Yakima or fork northwest and continue up Oregon 26 toward Portland to Oregon 35 into Hood River. On the trip to Hood River, we took US 97 so as to see White River Falls State Park north of Maupin. On the way back, we took Oregon 35, the Hood River Highway, in hopes of getting good views of Mt. Hood.
Although when I worked in Portland and when we lived in McMinnville, seeing Mt. Hood was a regular occurrence weather permitting, seeing the tallest peak in Oregon never gets old. The last time that we travelled the Hood River Highway, it was pouring rain and we couldn't see Hood at all. Given our sunny day, we hoped to rectify that on our trip back to Bend. We were not disappointed, pulling over three times to snap photos of this iconic mountain.
 |
| Hood River |
 |
| Baby Blue Blooming Deerbrush, Ceanothus integerrimus |
 |
A Sight We Missed Since Moving to Bend
Lichen-Covered Oregon White Oaks, Quercus garryana |
Most of our trip from Hood River to Mt. Hood along the Hood River was in brilliant sunshine. However, the closer to the mountain we got and the higher we climbed, the closer the clouds, looking so distant in the photos above, became. By the time we had climbed to 4400 feet just below Mt. Hood Meadows ski resort, there was snow on the ground. And as we climbed up to the ski resort, we entered the fog layer and our sunshine terminated. We started to go into Mt. Hood Meadows in hopes of shooting some photos of the vistas and wildflowers; however, it was quickly clear from the snow cover and the fog that photography was out of the question.
We continued on to the intersection of Oregon 26 near Government Camp and turned east headed for the Warm Springs Indian Reservation. Coming into Warm Springs from either direction descending into the canyons of the Deschutes River is always a spectacular sight and today was no different. Just beyond the casino in the town of Warm Springs, we took 97 south at Madras, for the final 45 miles of our trip home.
As many times as we have been up US 97, we have never stopped at the Peter Skene Ogden Viewpoint just outside Terrebonne and Smith Rock. I wanted to remedy that this trip to see the fantastic bridges and the Crooked River Canyon that we have glimpsed while speeding along US 97.
This viewpoint on the border of Jefferson County (Madras) and Deschutes County (Bend) is perched on the south side of the Crooked River and its canyon which is roughly 300 feet deep. Here you can see three bridges: the steel hinged-arch Crooked River Railroad Bridge over which the BNSF tracks run, the abandoned US 97 steel arch which is now a pedestrian bridge over the chasm, and easternmost, the current US 97 steel arch bridge.
Walking up to the edge of this canyon with its sheer walls plunging 30 stories is a bit of a gut check. The views of the three bridges, the Crooked River far below, and the Cascades as a backdrop are phenomenal.
 |
| Crooked River Railroad Bridge; Three Sisters in Background |
 |
Looking East, Abandoned US 97 Pedestrian Bridge and Current US 97 Bridge
|
 |
| Mt. Washington |
 |
| Middle and North Sister |
 |
| Mt. Washington |
 |
| Creek Joining the Crooked River |
 |
| Black Butte |
 |
| Crooked River Far Below |
 |
Colony of Small, Nondescript Ground Squirrels at the Viewpoint
Probably Merriam's Ground Squirrels |
After driving by the always beautiful Smith Rock, we hit the usual traffic in Redmond and then the construction mess just north of Bend where they are finishing up the 97 realignment, we finally got onto the Parkway and arrived home about noon.
No comments:
Post a Comment