Waterfalls Run - Columbia River Gorge

I was a little overwhelmed trying to decide "where" to go running in the Gorge - there were just too many options.  In the end, I decided to park the car at Ainsworth State Park - and see how many waterfalls I could find.

Well.

I lost track after a couple dozen and be it that it was spring, there was a gazillion un-named cascades that had magically appeared for me to appreciate. How many waterfalls did I see?  Who the hell knows, but it was Waterfall Craziness. I got a taste of the Oregon that I had envisioned:  lush, green, wild and wonderful.  I ran through rain, hail and sunshine.  I ran through waterfalls, behind waterfalls and jumped right in to a few waterfalls.  Heck, why not?  I was already wet. :)

Horsetail Falls

Ponytail Falls

Leslie Falls

More Falls.  Down.

Triple Falls

Trillium

Big-Assed Falls

 Daring to be Different

It's Scary in The Woods

Multnomah Falls

In the end, I was out for 5 hour+ and had a Most Excellent Adventure.  I hit Horsetail Falls, Ponytail Falls, Oneonta Falls, Triple Falls, Wisendanger Falls, Wahkeena Falls, Mist Falls, Multnomah Falls, Angels Rest, Coopey Falls and Bridal Veil Falls. And the Gazillion Nameless Falls in between.  And then I turned around and I did it again.  It was so wet and rainy that I had the trails to myself.  Apart from the Multnomah Falls area trails, on this rainy day in the off-season, I hardly saw a soul.  Sadly, no sightings of Elves,Pixies, Fairies, Leprechauns, Hobbits or Ogres. I felt their energy though:  my body was tired, but my spirit was soaring!  Oh wait - that was the Giant Americano I had at Multinomah Falls.  Sigh. I love Oregon.  Only in Oregon will you find a Organic-Free-Trade-Rainforest-Ring-Tailed-Lemur-Friendly-Hippie-Friendly cup of hot coffee whilst on a run.  It's a Magical Kingdom.

I Love Oregon

As well as being home to many kick-ass runners and kick-ass people, Oregon is full of kick-ass scenery.  The trails of Sisters were a refreshing change for me, even if they were all torturesome and flat. ;)  Kidding, the trails of Sisters were AWESOME largely because they were DRY.  Yes, this little running vacation was mostly to give Keith and I a reprieve from winter and we ran, joyfully, soaking it all in. I made mental note of every leaf, blade of grass and flower fighting to come out.

James Varner and RD-Sean Meissner

Getting Past by a Weinereimer

The day after the race, we headed out to Smith Rock - only 25 minutes from Sisters. We hiked for about 2 hours and gawked at the incredible scenery and the swollen river.  I know Smith Rock as the place where all of our local climbers go in the off-season.  Sure enough, the climbers were out in full force.  Keith and I did a little mini-scramble of our own, but were cautious - our legs were not our own.  Still, the walk was the perfect thing to get our legs moving.

After that, we hopped in the car and headed for Hood River - my first visit to the Columbia River Gorge.  I was stoked to be there and the first thing we did was head to Double Mountain for beer and pizza.  Aaaaah.  Next day, we started our day with 3 hours of walking and running at Eagle Creek in a green, magical forest with lots of water flowing. It was exactly the image I had in my mind of Oregon, all moss, ferns and water falls.  We were in our happy place, but both were a wee bit tired.  That afternoon, the weather cleared up, so we got on our bikes and went for a tour.  I was expecting wet, drizzly grey - but instead we got a gem of an afternoon.  The Gorge is Gorgeous.

The Super Model - a beautiful Great Dane

Looking to the heavens, on Eagle Creek

I bought myself a map of the region, because the next day I was planning on a big run - inspired largely by the Gorge Waterfalls 50k course.  So many trails, so little time. I was stoked to be heading out for a longer exploration of this incredible place.