The Great Gershwin

Last night Bill and I went to our first Oregon Symphony pops concert of the season. Trying to save money, we didn't go last year but this year they kept on calling us and we finally purchased a series of four concerts for $64. That's quite a bargain and we expected our seats to be high in the balcony, behind curtains or poles or something. We were surprised to find that we had quite good seats! They were farther back than ones we had before but we could still see well and we were right on the first floor. And added bonus for me was that the woman sitting next to Bill took out her knitting during intermission and gave me some valuable tips for knitting socks on circular needles.

The concert was called "The Great Gershwin" and was all Gershwin, including "Swanee", "I Got Rhythm", "An American in Paris", "Fascinating Rhythm" and "Rhapsody in Blue". Gershwin had so many songs http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Gershwin , surprising because of his short life. He died at only 38 years old!

We both enjoyed the concert but the one song that didn't meet our expectations was "Fascinating Rhythm". Both Bill and I felt that the Doraville Arts Theater did a much better job. The version we heard last night was much too rushed, possibly the way it was originally written - but not our favorite version.

Before the concert, we went to Pastini Pastaria http://www.pastini.net/ which is only a block or two from the concert hall. We had passed it many times but hadn't given it serious consideration before. This time, we checked it out on the net and found that they had gluten-free pasta available so we decided to give it a try. We will definitely be back. The food was good and the prices were reasonable. They also had quite a variety, including many vegetarian options.

Work on the Springwater Corridor Trail

For the past week or two, work has been proceeding on the area across from the railroad tracks. They have removed a lot of the blackberry bushes that were there and now they are removing the dirt. I was concerned that the entire wall between us and the condos would be removed but it looks like they are leaving a portion and maybe the trees will be saved. All the sewer work has to be done first so maybe they are only worrying about that right now; maybe they'll come back and do more removal after the sewer work has been done.

This is what the area looks like from the base of our driveway. The noise hasn't been too bad unless they are right outside our deck. Last week I stopped over at Mary's house to bring her some caprese salad and she was wearing earplugs. She said the parrots were driving her crazy. They would hear the beep-beep-beep of the machinery and that would get them all worked up and they would start in something terrible. They were especially bad that day but they don't seem as bothered now - maybe because the machinery has moved down the tracks.

The Worst Columbia Gorge Hike Ever

On Monday, we decided on the Starvation Ridge Waterfalls Trail after reading about it in the "Curious Gorge" book by Scott Cook. He said "This moderate 2.5 mile loop packs in plenty of sights plus a decent workout for its short length. Highway noise is bothersome at first but the effect fades as you go. The hike features a very steep .5 mile climb, a terrific cliff-edge Columbia/Dog Mountain viewpoint, a rock-hop across both Cabin Creen and Warren Creek, and to top it off, three different waterfalls in the final .75 miles of trail." Doesn't sound that bad. I was not eager for the half mile steep climb - but it was only half a mile. I figured I could handle that if it leveled out after that.

We got to Starvation Creek and started with the trail to the creek. Lovely, goes along the old Columbia River Highway. I'll be posting that portion of our hike on Facebook but I'll spare my FB readers with the gruesome tale of the waterfalls trail. After we walked along the old highway for a while, we turned back to connect with the waterfalls trail. It was difficult to find as the labeling was not all that good but we managed to locate it and begin our upward trek. It wasn't much of a trail, just a dirt path that - for the most part - went straight up. We walked and walked, stopping to rest when I just couldn't go any farther. The path was narrow and there were no good spots to sit and rest. Finally, I just sat down in the dirt path and tried to catch my breath. The only thing driving me forward was the realization that if we turned back, we'd have to go down, down, down that steep incline. I was not at all sure that I would be able to manage that!

We pressed onward. According to my pedometer, we'd gone at least a mile. Still, we kept going upward. We came across a huge fallen tree and stopped to sit a while. We heard a dog coming up the trail behind us. Soon his owner and another dog appeared. Bill asked her if she had ever hiked this trail before. She said she had but she had never completed it, she turned back once she got to Warren Lake. Bill asked her if the trail leveled out soon and she replied "No, it just keeps on going up!" That was enough for me. I was heading back, even if I had to roll down the hill to get there.

We started back down and it was treacherous. It was very hard to get a foothold at all and once you got one, the next was far away. Bill and I went down almost the entire way hand-in-hand, helping each other to balance and stay upright when one of us had a foothold and the other did not. I was sure we were going to fall but we managed to make it all the way to the bottom with only one such incident.

I can't believe the author of "Curious Gorge" ever actually took this hike. The written description certainly did not match the reality. If that was a moderate hike, I've certainly become feeble. I spent most of Monday afternoon just resting; Tuesday I still had trouble walking without feeling like I was 90 years old!

When I got home on Tuesday after Clark Center, I found a copy of "Hiking the Columbia River Gorge" by Russ Schneider that Bill had left out for me. (Too bad we hadn't read this one before our hike!!) Here's what Russ had to say about the Starvation Ridge Trail:

"The Starvation Ridge Trail is not easy. It climbs more than 3,000 feet in less than 4 miles. The trail doesn't switchback much, climbing straight up the ridge. The Starvation Ridge Trail isn't as well known as the Mount Defiance Trail but is in my opinion the toughest hike in the Columbia Gorge, especially with a pack. This is a very strenuous day hike, but makes a good overnight trip for athletes and climbers trying to get in shape. After climbing to Warren Lake, you probably won't want to leave right away anyway, so stay a night." ... "After climbing this trail, you may need someone to pick you up, take you home, and put you to bed."

I think Russ Schneider actually DID hike this trail.

And now it begins

Earlier this week, utility folks were here and placed a new pole in our yard (see it to the right of the CRV). They put it exactly where they had said they would when they were here some months ago so that was good. They managed to get it in without disruption to the water or gas lines which are only inches away.

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Yesterday, they came and added a pole right next to our neighbor's pole. I expect they'll remove the old one after all the re-wiring is done.

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Today, they are working along the tracks, creating holes around the poles that are already there so they'll be easy to remove (I guess). From what they told us, they'll be removing all the telephone poles across the tracks and won't be replacing them until after the Springwater Corridor work is done. That's why they needed to put a pole in our yard. No word on when the actual re-wiring will occur.

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The new sewer line will be across the train tracks and is scheduled to start this fall. It is projected to take a year! Once that is complete, then the Springwater Corridor folks will come along and set up the trail over the sewer. Again, it is likely to take a year. Completion of all this work by 2011 or 2012 if they stay on schedule...

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The wiring is probably the only remaining thing that will be on our property. Being on a dead end can get awkward sometimes as many of the trucks are huge and it can be difficult, if not impossible, to get out of our driveway. We are hoping they won't need to use the dead end much for the sewer or Springwater Corridor work.

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Look to this site for exciting updates as the work progresses.

Dalles Mountain Ranch in the Gorge

On Saturday we drove over to Dalles Mountain Ranch at Columbia Hills State Park. It's about 80 miles east of Portland and looks like a different world, more like the west you'd associate with New Mexico or Arizona. The area we went to is a former ranch of 3,300 acres which is full of lupine and arrow-leaf balsamroot flowers this time of year. They were everywhere we looked. Gorgeous!! There are no trails through the open meadows, creeks, and stands of scrub oak so people are allowed to walk where ever they please. Parking is a little tricky as there is no designated parking along the narrow dirt road but there are areas wide enough to allow for a car to be parked off road and we took advantage of that. We met a fellow from the Ukraine who was there wandering about taking pictures of all the flowers as we were. He was on his own and requested that we take his picture so we got to talk with him a bit.

We walked through the meadows, taking lots of photos. It was hot out there in the bright sunshine and we slathered on the sunscreen. After we had taken in all the beauty we could handle, we drove over to Horsethief Park which was just down the road. We found a picnic area with lots of trees that was down near the lake and we settled there with the provisions we had brought and had a restful lunch in the same general area where Lewis and Clark camped on their journey westward. http://www.stateparks.com/horsethief_lake.html As part of the park, there is an area of petroglyphs and we stopped and looked those over before heading to Hood River.

At Hood River, we stopped at a couple of wineries and sampled their wares at both places. Some we liked; some we didn't. My favorites included the Halbtrocken (a red/white blend) from Cathedral Ridge. http://cathedralridgewinery.com/store/product-info.php?pid127.html
From the Hood River Vineyards, I liked the dessert wines (which you sip like a liqueur) and we got some raspberry and marionberry to take with us. http://hoodrivervineyards.us/home/?page_id=4 At both places we got some pinot and other reds to take with. Spent our monthly wine budget in two brief stops. :)

On our return, we stopped at New Seasons and got some cheeses and salads and enjoyed them for supper with some of our new wine.

A Mixed Day - Thursday

I belong to a knitting group called the TKGA http://www.tkga.com/ and I signed up for a class they were offering at their Knit & Crochet Show which started yesterday in Portland. The show continues on through Sunday with classes and a vendors' exhibit hall where you can purchase all sorts of yarns, needles, books and associated necessities for knitting and crocheting. The class I chose was called "The Mad Hatters" and it was supposed to help you design your own hats. The show is being held down at the Doubletree Hotel near the Lloyd Center so it was easy to get to and I was able to park over near the Lloyd Center. When I registered for the show, I was given a goodie bag (shown on left) because Iwas a TKGA member. That was a pleasant surprise. The bag is huge, a fine size to hold all the materials I'll be needing for the afghan I'm planning as my next project. Inside the bag was a brand new book called "Just Bags" from Lion Brand Yarn, a couple of skeins of Lion's Jiffy yarn, a ruler, a knitting needle, some patterns and a catalog - all things I can use.



Sadly, the class was NOT a pleasant surprise. The bubbly instructor showed some slides, talked a bit about creating hats and motifs and then spent a good bit of time talking about her new book which will come out next year. She was pleasant, my classmates were pleasant but the class itself was a waste of money as I really didn't learn anything useful. The main thrust of the class was to design a motif and then calculate how many stitches you would need to cast on for a multiple of that motif (i.e. if your motif is 10 stitches wide, should your hat stitches equal 110 or 112?? - a no-brainer as your total number of stitches needs to be evenly divisible by the number of stitches in the motif so anyone who made it through 3rd grade math would know to use 110). I saw some nice patterns and got a few ideas but I would have been better off purchasing a book and reading it on my own. So that was disappointing.



I'm hoping to go back today to the shopping/vendor area just to look over all the yarns and supplies. It's not likely I'll get my afghan yarn there but I might find some nice yarn for a hat or scarf, and unusual yarn that I can sample.



After the class, I rushed home as we had tickets for Leon Russell that night. We drove over to Tastebud http://www.tastebudfarm.com/ for supper - salad & pizza & beer. All tasty but not a wide menu available. We walked across the street to the theater for the concert. Tom Heinl http://cdbaby.com/cd/heinl was the opener and he was really quite funny and had a good voice. We enjoyed his portion of the show but were really looking forward to Leon. About 9:15, Leon and his group finally came on. We especially liked "Lady Blue", "Back to the Island" and some of his other rather mellow songs from The Best of Leon album that we've had for many years. You'll get a bit of a feel for the Leon we were expecting if you sample (under his picture) "Song for You" and "Hummingbird" http://www.amazon.com/Leon-Russell/dp/B000002TYM/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1242458234&sr=1-4 . Sadly, the albums we really like are no longer available (according to amazon) so it's good we hung onto our albums! We found at the concert that the Leon we loved was no longer available either. After listening to 5 or 6 songs, including "Lady Blue" and "Back to the Island" which we hardly recognized as they had been so distorted, we walked out. What had been done to his fine songs was nothing less than torture. This was the worst concert I have ever attended. It was HORRIBLE. Some night we'll sit down with a drink and bring out our old albums and enjoy the real Leon, hoping we can erase from our memory the travesty his music has become.

Friday - the plumber showed up to install our new toilet and sink in the hall bathroom. Finally, we were getting rid of the ancient gray fixtures for our newly chosen white modern ones. It took him much of the day to get this done, made more difficult since the bathroom is on a slab.
While he worked at that, I headed over to the library to spend a couple of hours on the HOLDS. I checked books in, sorted them alphabetically on the rolling carts, and then (once a cart was full) shelved the books in the reserved section. I find that I really enjoy it. I spend a couple of hours just concentrating on books and alphabetizing them by name of the patron who reserved it. It's relatively mindless and yet useful and I generally come across a book or two that I'd like to reserve myself. In fact, today I came across one that I actually had reserved myself. Sort of funny to check it in and see my own name pop up.

Later in the afternoon, I headed back to the yarn show and checked out all their books, yarns, needles & supplies. I surprised myself by not finding a single thing I needed or wanted and left the show without spending a penny. I did pick up a 15% off coupon from Lion Brand Yarn that I can use on the afghan yarn I plan to purchase so the trip to the yarn show was not wasted.

Tomorrow we head to the gorge to check out the wild flowers.