Red, White, Blue (and yellow and purple too!)

Rob and I have been wanting to get away for a while now. Not a major trip or anything, just a night or two away from the demands of to do lists, chores, hobbies, etc. Since it was a long weekend, we decided to drive to Portland, stay over night, and then do a nice hike in the area. We definitely made the most of our little roadtrip.

We arrived in Portland in the early afternoon and relaxed in the Pearl District, not too far from our hotel. We browsed in some of the ecclectic shops, grabbed some inexpensive happy hour eats, and tested our stamina at Powell's Bookstore. In the evening we enjoyed the blues festival, watched the fireworks, and gobbled some late night food at one of the (many) street vendors.

The next morning we drove to the Columbia River Gorge in the South Cascades to hike Dog Mountain. It was a pretty difficult hike for both of us. It starts steep, takes a break from being so steep, and then at the end it's steep again. Mercy!

It was also a bit chilly that day, and the wind was whipping all around us, getting stronger the closer we got to the summit.

But the views at the top were outstanding! You could see panoramic views of the river, the cascade mountain range, and rolling meadows of wildflowers.
I thought that all that hard work hiking up the mountain was worth it for such a view, Rob said he loved me anyways.

So, we had our luscious reprieve from all those to do lists and now feel much relief! But, we're not on holiday anymore...so it's back to the same old busy shenanigans!

Although, I have to say that last month ended up being a heavy-spending month for me. There will probably be no Goodwill Hunting posts until August at the earliest! My goodness how time and money flies when you're having fun!

Giddy-up, let's hike!

One of my goals this summer is to do a lot of hiking. I'd like to average at least 3 hikes a month (but hopefully there will be more!) From May through September, that means 15 hikes.

Living in the Seattle area means there are so many mountains, with so many trails, it won't be hard at all to find places. Maybe a little harder to find the energy...especially for my Rob. But, as an infinite benefit to me, I can experiment with a new category of fashion and to layer, layer layer: grungy tank tops, flannel, windbreaker, and hard core hiking boots. I feel so...so...RAWR!


So far , we've been going strong. We did a minor hike on Tiger Mountain near Issaquah. I can't even remember which trail we took as it wasn't a terribly memorable hike...it was just a way to get out and get used to trecking up a hill.

Also, Rob and I bought some fancy hiking boots (thank you REI sale!) and did an epic 3 hike weekend.

We did a quick and easy hike on Saturday to Twin Falls. It was a nice hike with rewarding river and waterfall views. Unfortunately, we didn't take a camera, because it was pretty rainy that day. My primary goal was to break in our hiking boots for two more challenging hikes on the next day: Lake 22 and Heather Lake in the North Cascades.



Robert was not particularly pleased with being brow-beaten into two 5-mile hikes, but I did a lot of cheer-leading to get him onto the trails, and a little bit of groveling on the way home as we nursed our sore feet. I still think it was worth it. I always love a good challenge, and we saw some amazing sights!


I would recommend either the Lake 22 or Heather Lake hikes to just about anyone. Both are very well maintained trails that feel safe and organized, but still outdoorsy and natural. Lake 22 is a bit harder, but in my mind it's a nearly perfect hike. Along the way you're treated to stunning old growth forest, waterfalls, rivers, and then the crystal clear lake and snow capped mountain view at the top.
The main con with Lake 22 is that it got to be pretty crowded by late morning/early afternoon. Heather Lake is a little easier -- it's shorter and the terrain is less rocky. Also, it's less crowded than Lake 22.

While we saw some hikers, we mainly had the trail and the view points to ourselves. We even saw deer on the way back!