TRAVEL JOURNAL INDEX > It’s Gorge-ous

The Columbia River Gorge.

Waterfalls, rainforests, rivers and world class water sport winds. Well, three out of four anyway. We arrive in the Columbia River Gorge on a perfectly still day—not even a breeze—and it stays that way for our entire visit (it’s so calm that we go ahead and put our awning up), much to the frustration of kite boarders who’ve flocked to the area in order to get out on the water in the area’s famous winds.

642 foot high Multnomah Falls is just one of many dramatic
waterfalls in the Columbia River Gorge.

One of those kite boarders is Timo who’s in the only other Airstream in the Memaloose State Park campground so, naturally, we get to talking. We are delighted to learn that, like us, Timo gave up his apartment and is living and working full time in his new Airstream which allows him to be in a lovely state part conducting business while waiting for the wind to pick up so he can go kite boarding.

Bridal Veil Falls.

The closest we get to the water is on trails past some of the area’s many waterfalls, which works up a thirst which we successfully quench at the Full Sail Brewery in charming, outdoorsy Hood River (the northwest really knows how to create livable cities).

The trail to Horsetail Falls takes you right behind the falls itself.

It's at the Full Sail brewery, over a couple of cold ones, that we decide to start a coaster collection (i.e., we steal a few and put them in our pocket). We figure brewpub coasters are small, light, portable, useful and evocative. Plus we’re in American microbrew central so it ought to be easy to really get the collection going.

Just inland from the Gorge is 11,240 foot Mt. Hood where plenty of people are skiing on the mountain’s perma-glaciers even on this hot August day. We make a sandwich in the Airstream and have lunch with a view.

Mt. Hood from beautiful Lost Lake.

This post originally appeared on our Airstream blog.