A Day At The River

Eager to go out, I took one of my days off and spent a while at the river across the street. It seems that everyone I have met here in Oregon is someway, shape, and form tied to the rivers out here. It is funny to think how I am from the East Coast, very close to the same Latitude as Oregon. The weather is very much the same, but the one thing that really captured me when I first moved here, was the fact that the woods and rivers are enormous!

I grew up on a dead end mountain road named, “Blueberry Hill”.(*) I am very comfortable in the outdoors and “getting lost” in the woods as Boy Scouts. I have been doing that sort of thing since I was a little tyke! But I would like to mention that the woods do not seem to be as forgiving out here. I went camping the second week with Mom and Grant and it was quite a trip! I could not have asked for a better spot to really feel both the weight and comfort of the terrain! Even though I was comfortable being there, the more I ventured in the more rigid I became. It would not be hard to get completely lost in these woods if you are not fully prepared.

SO back to my story.. After my trip to the river, I stopped by the local Bar. It must have been 110 degrees that day! I sat down and had a brew, and not too long after an older man sat down next to me and we got talking about the river and how many people are at it. I would drive down the road that runs parallel to the river some days and it reminds me of driving down a boardwalk with people everywhere! It was noted on the news recently that over 1,000 people float under the bridge an hour! (picture below) That is amazing!

I decided to bring my camera with me and take some pictures of the excitement, but it was a weekday and there were not nearly as many people as I had hoped.

(*) A little side note about Blueberry Hill – Stock, who wrote the lyrics, recalls that “One important publisher turned down Blueberry Hill, because, he claimed, blueberries don’t grow on hills. I assured him I had picked them on hills as a boy, but nothing doing”.

I did the same exact thing. :)