Wow. It’s been two weeks since we returned from our The Dalles Trip. Better write this before I forget!
Emee and I spent nearly a week in the Columbia Gorge again, this time concentrating around The Dalles, Oregon. This is the full transition to “The Dry Side”, where grass, sagebrush, and occasional juniper dominates. It’s always a good transition from the damp side, especially during the cooler months. We brought our “adventure” bikes out, but we were so busy with other things, we only used them once.
Here is a quick run-down:
- Wednesday March 23: This was the travel day. We drove out, stopping in Hood River for lunch, and checking into our The Dalles hotel, where we’d be until Sunday.
- Thursday March 24: The work day. Emee had a couple site visits, so I tagged along as photographer. The best was visiting the Columbia Gorge Discovery Center, where we met Josephine the horned owl!
- Friday March 25: The bike day. We drove our bikes (Emee: Surly Cross Check. Me: Bantam) to the Deschutes River Trail, a favorite ride. (Read more about past visits here .) We only went four miles in, but that’s still enough to get a taste of that High Desert landscape.
- Saturday March 26: The Maryhill day. We visited the main attractions around the small community of Maryhill Washington: their version of Stonehenge, the Maryhill Museum of Art, and Maryhill Winery. (We also stopped at another winery, Waving Tree.)
- Sunday March 27: The head to Bingen day. It was time to depart The Dalles. We crossed the Columbia and drove east (though we headed west first.) 1 A couple more wineries (Sunshine Mill, Jacob Miller) and a couple hikes in Columbia Hills State Park (Crawford Oaks, Horsethief Butte) on the way to Bingen, Washington, where we spent the night at The Society Hotel.
- Monday March 28: The return. We drove home on the Washington side (SR 14), with one more site visit for good measure.
It was a fun trip that just went by too fast. We’ll be back again, of course. Enjoy the photos!
1 The Dalles Bridge has been closed on the weekends for construction, necessitating a crossing either further east at Biggs/Maryhill (which we did) or west at Hood River.
Urban Adventure League 