Like everyone else, Mark and I had learned about the explorations of Lewis and Clark and the adventures of pioneers on the Oregon Trail. Seeing for ourselves the Pacific coastline of Oregon and the Columbia River Gorge was another matter. And our photographs cannot do justice to the natural beauty we experienced outside Portland. I start out with our hikes, since they were the most memorable part of our trip. First, our drive to Cannon Beach where we had the best coffee and espresso ever at Sleepy Monk, and one of the most enjoyable hikes ever in Oswald West State Park up Neahkahnie Mountain. An interesting note: when we climbed up the steep and rocky last fifty yards to the top, we met up with three young hikers. (On the jagged rocks, we had to carefully make room for ourselves.) We joked about the unusually hot weather in Portland, and they said it was nothing compared to Texas. You can guess the rest. It turns out that the five of us on top of this mountain in Oregon were from Austin. Go figure...
