Portland, Oregon sucks but the countryside is beautiful

The view of the gorge was still great despite the smoke

I don't know who first said that you never get a second chance to make a first impression, but I was reminded of those wise words as I arrived for a short visit to August, to Portland, Oregon. For I got a terrible impression of that major US city, the minute I exited Lyft, for I found downtown dirty with numerous unkempt, apparently-homeless, mostly-white young people, either walking around or lying down the sidewalks. And this was not in some "ghetto" but right around 5th Avenue, where the Hilton hotel is located!

Vista house

Later, I walked around a bit and found a similar condition spread far and wide. I did try to think through the "dirty" aspect, by speculating that since it was a Sunday afternoon, maybe there had been a lot of recreational activities downtown, hence the garbage strewn all around. I was partially right, as by Monday afternoon when I returned to the city, the place was much cleaner but still dirtier than Seattle or Vancouver, Canada, which I had visited a few days before.

Maybe the incident on the train trip to Portland was an omen to me that things were not going to be too great once I got there, although the hotel was fine. For just around five miles outside of Portland, in the vicinity of Vancouver, Washington, the train came to an abrupt stop followed by an announcement from the engineer shortly after.

He said he could not tell us how long we would be unable to move, as the sheriff had been chasing a stolen car and it had crashed on the track, about 2 car lengths from our train. The good news, he said, was that the train did not hit the car, for if it did, we could be there overnight as it would have been an accident scene. 

Fortunately, since we didn't, we would only have to wait for a wrecker to remove the vehicle and an inspector to make sure the track wasn't damaged.

We were lucky therefore, to be able to get moving fifty minutes later!

Another observation I couldn't avoid about the city itself, was

the huge number of food carts, almost as many as one sees in Manhattan. Most of what I saw however, was promoting halaal dishes, so since I realized that this eliminated pork right away, I surely had no interest in sampling any!

To give Portland its due though, I found it to be one of the most pedestrian friendly big cities I have ever visited. The sidewalks were wide and attractively constructed out of some kind of red brick. Most traffic lights were unique too, in that pedestrians often do not have to press buttons to cross, as the walking lights just come on automatically.

Nice.

A view from the hills in the gorge

The waterfront walkway is also fabulous, like a breath of fresh air and I discovered it is the hangout for visitors and residents alike.  So I felt quite comfortable and refreshed until I saw the prominent graffiti promoting "Proud Boys," (a notorious neo-fascist group), so I made my exit.

Once I got outside of Portland however, it was an entirely different picture as the countryside is so lush and inviting, protectively surrounded by mountains.

This was the picture I got as we headed out to visit the fabulous Columbia River Gorge, just half an hour outside of Portland.

According to geologists, that gorge was created some 1400 years ago by glaciers which caused numerous mud flows and created some 300 tidal waves. But the peace and tranquility today, almost belie such a turbulent birth.

We deviated from the main road to go up to Vista House which celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2018.

This property which houses a museum, gift shop and rest stop, is just over 700 feet above the main highway. It is located at Crown Point, through which you travel via a narrow winding road in a temperate a rain forest. This area can get so severely windy at times, that our guide pointed out how most of the trees have no leaves or branches and some of the huge pines even have the side facing the breeze, permanently torn off.

From that property, you get the most comprehensive and breathtaking view of the Gorge below, and

although we went there while a wild fire was raging south of us and it clouded the view below somewhat, it was still awesome. This fire was producing so much smoke though, that the normally outstanding almost 13000-foot-tall Mount Adams volcano, was barely visible.... just an outline of a few sections.

Incidentally, almost half of the Columbia River gorge was destroyed in 2017, by a wild fire which had been set by kids playing with illegal fireworks. The fire burnt fiercely from July to September and was only completely doused when the weather changed and rains and snow started to fall. Even now, the burnt trees on the hillsides can be clearly seen, for they cannot be removed, lest they cause soil erosion and landslides in the area.

This has caused almost a half of the gorges parks to be still closed to the public.

The gorge is reputed to house around 200 waterfalls, many of which freeze up totally in the winter, we were informed. However, only six or seven are accessible by motor vehicle.

The thick forest that covers most of the gorge is home to mountain lions, bears and deer and I understand when the wild fire was out of control during 2017, many animals were killed and others strayed into populated areas as they lost their homes.

I visited three waterfalls, Multnomah, Wahkeena and Horse Tail Falls, after short hikes up well marked trails. I was however far more impressed with the view from the hills than the falls themselves, as most falls in Jamaica and Guyana, dwarf those I saw.

But as you begin to ascend each of these, the view becomes even more captivating. 

A section of Bonneville Dam

As far as I am concerned though, Columbia River Falls would be one of the most refreshing, tranquil and serene places on earth, had it not been for the hordes of tourists (including me and my party!) hiking and riding to, enjoy this great gift to the state of Oregon.

Another scenic area within the Colombia River gorge, is the scenic Bonneville Dam and Lock which is managed by the US engineering corp. It generates electricity for some half million households and security there is so tight that every vehicle is searched before being allowed to enter the area.

 During our visit, we could see Sea lions hanging around in the river, waiting to gobble up the salmon and other fish which are so prolific there. They have had to set traps for them, as each one can eat its body weight in a day and some grow as large as 1000 lbs we were informed!

 So, if they are not tightly controlled, I guess the world would suffer from a severe salmon shortage.

Sea lions visible underwater as they hunt fish

A large sea lion

I am happy I decided to take the out-of-town tour to the gorge on my short stay in Oregon, for the trip did minimize the disappointment I felt with the capital city, and has even inspired me to return one day to  and see a lot more of this apparently beautiful State.