4 Wheels 4 Girls

On June 1, we drove to Hood River, OR. We went there to see our friends Lori and Sarah who had invited us to come and stay with them for a while. We weren’t sure if they knew what they were getting themselves into but we decided to take them up on their offer. Lori, my great friend since about 2nd grade, had told me about having moved to this beautiful area in the Columbia River gorge about an hour from Portland where it didn’t rain all of the time and windsurfers from all over the country fill the river in the summer. So, when we headed for Hood River we were excited (“disneyland excited” as Lori says) not only to see Lori and Sarah but to see the paradise that Lori had described. We didn’t need to drive very far down the gorge to begin to understand what she had been talking about. It was beautiful. Where we entered the gorge east of Hood River it was dry and deserty but as we drove west along the river the hills were soon filled with trees. The town of Hood River is located at the point where the Hood River (coming from Mount Hood) joins the Columbia.

As we arrived in Hood River, we zig-zagged our way up the hill in search of Lori and Sarah’s house and as we, unknowingly, drove past their driveway, one of the girls said a bit dumbfoundedly, “Look, there is a sign there that says ‘4 wheels 4 girls'”. We had arrived.

A warm welcome in Hood River, OR

Lori was soon at the RV to greet us and to help us overcome our hesitation to move inside the house. When she told the girls “we have rooms and beds for everyone” that was it, they were off, a good share of their belongings in tow.

Though we had initially planned to stay for a couple of days we ended up staying almost a week. We had a great time, exploring Portland, Hood River, and the gorge by foot, car, and bike. We visited, played games, ate like royalty (thanks to chef Lori), hung out with the poodles Olive and Roxanne, and celebrated my pending birthday nightly. Though we did so reluctantly, as Lori and Sarah left for work on Monday morning we finally packed up and moved down the road. We left feeling sad to leave Lori and Sarah (and Olive and Roxanne) but really happy to have had this time with them and know that we have friends like them in our lives. It was hard for all us to leave paradise.

Me and my friend Lori

Following will be several stories from the girls which reflect how much fun we all had with Lori and Sarah in paradise.

On May 31 we woke up and found out that the RV was right next to some horses. We had breakfast and then we went to go and look at the horses. They let us fed them. I came back and did some posts and then me and Stella went to go and play with the horses. I named them all. Here are some names. Sugar, Hot Coco, Blosome, Mocha, Big Red, Sanddune, Camomile, Brighty (is a mule), and there are some more but you might not want to hear them all. We fed them grass and we rubbed their bellies and we scrached their necks. After that we came and had blt bacon lettuce and tomato. We ate them fast and then we went back outside and played with them. Some of them farted real loud. We fed them for along time and then we left.

I named this beautiful horse Sugar

On May 30th we went to Crater Lake. When we got there we went to go to a lookout. We wanted the sun to come out so we could see the lake. We got ready to go and see the lake. On the way there we threw snowballs at each other. It was fun to throw snowballs at the parents. The sun had come out so we could see the lake. We got our pictures taken and then me and Ana went to play in the snow. We tried to make a snowman but that failed. Then we played horses and we threw snowballs at each other.

This building is the visitor center

Then we left to go to the Lodge. When we got there I climbed up a pile of snow and broke off two icicles. One for me and one for Ana. We left our icicles outside because we did not want them to melt. When we got in the lodge we went to the fire to warm ourselves up. We read books and then we went out and played in the snow.

Can you believe how much snow there is?

We went to the visitor center, where we met a very nice Ranger who taught us how deep Crater Lake is and other stuff about the park. Dad said Ranger Darby reminded him of Uncle Will.

With Ranger Darby at Crater Lake

We played in the snow some more and then we headed back to the RV, wet, cold, and hungry. Me and Ana had a fun time playing in the snow.

On Monday, May 30th, we arrived in Crater Lake National Park. We checked out the visitor center, parked, and then decided to walk down to explore the lodge and Crater Lake itself. When I saw it, I thought, WHOA. It was huge, a gaping round hole, with a little dome-shaped island in the middle called Wizard Island. Well, I suppose I should explain exactly what Crater Lake is…

*Speaks in mystical, story-teller voice* Thousands of years ago, there was a large volcano that created a massive explosion that blasted the volcano to bits. It collapsed in on itself and the broken pieces fell down and formed the bottom of this caldera. Over time the caldera filled with rain and snowmelt and formed Crater Lake. It is now almost 2,000 feet deep. Wizard Island is a newer volcano that formed under Crater Lake.

Crater Lake; cold, deep, and beautiful

So anyway, I stood and looked at it for like, ten minutes straight because it was so spectacular. Then the rest of the family joined me and we headed for the lodge. Read Ellie’s post to find out more! 😀

After our wonderful tour through the cave with Heather, we decided it would be nice to check out the warm cozy lodge and get something to eat. We warmed up by the fire and then explored the gift shop. By that time we were super hungry, so we went to the lodge cafe to get lunch.

This 50's diner was great

It smelled delicious, and we sat down at a long winding counter with spindly chairs. Our waitress, Connie, was very nice and she gave us each a free cookie in honor of Ana’s birthday. We chatted with her for a bit and we learned that she used to live near Atlanta, in Tennessee. It was nice to talk to someone from the Southeast like us!

We ordered our food; I got a buffalo burger with fries and a marion berry milkshake. Marion berries are like blackberries, only sweeter. Stella got a grilled cheese sandwich on rye bread but she meant to get it on wheat, so I got to eat it since she hates rye. The food hit the spot for all of us; it was absolutely marvelous.

After lunch, we quickly went back to the visitor center. Then we left the park and drove off for our next national park!

May 29, we drove up to Oregon Caves National Monument. We thought we had seen the last of the snow in southern Utah, but we were wrong. As we climbed up into the Cascades that morning the snow was falling hard, and the mountaintop looked like a winter wonderland.

We were not expecting snow again, two days before June!

The cave was very beautiful. It was a small cave, and relatively young, at about a million and a half years. It is a marble cave, and it was cool to see the marble in the ceilings and steps throughout the cave. The entrance and first several 100 yards of the cave were along and atop the stream which cut the cave, the Styx river. It was nice to hear it roar along and see its path through the rocks.

At the entrance to the cave, the mouth of the Styx river.

The downside of this cave: a significant number of the cave decorations were removed by early visitors to the cave. Two rooms were almost completely defaced. There was one room however, called Paradise Lost, which was absolutely beautiful. It must have been too difficult to access in the early days, because it was a wonder to behold.

A portion of the waterfall formation in the Paradise Lost room

We went to Oregon Caves on my 7th birthday. When I woke up, Greta told me to go back to bed because she needed to make my breakfast, which was toast with Grandma’s corncob jelly, a banana, and granola cereal. There were cheerio decorations on the toast and cereal.

Enjoying my birthday breakfast in my birthday crown

In the cave we saw the ghost room. It was called the ghost room because a guy with a candle got scared when he saw the white stalagtites dancing in the candlelight.

The Oregon Caves Chateau

We had a very big lunch at the Oregon Caves Lodge, in an old diner with a long lunch counter that zig-zagged all through the room. It had spinny stools all along it. I had a hot dog, french fries, and an oreo shake.

We opened presents in the RV after the caves. I got my very own credit card on my very own birthday, so I could pick out my own skirt. I got a little ranger bear and it is very cute. It has a ranger hat.

My first gift card for a skirt

On May 28th, we took a very nice hike in the Redwood National Park. We bundled up in layers of clothing because of the cold wet weather, and we filled up our water bottles and started off on the trail.

It was on a path of dirt and leaves, so it didn’t hurt your knees to go downhill the way concrete does. We saw lots of banana slugs, massive trees, and pretty white flowers. We were under the canopy of the redwoods during the entire hike, so it was like we were walking under a shaded ceiling of green leaves and branches. We chatted along the way and got our shoes unbelievably muddy. There were also some cool hollow trees that we could climb inside.

These trees are HUGE!!!

My great grandma Erma LOVED ferns. We thought she would love to be on this hike with us since the forest floor was covered with ferns. It was really beautiful.

This ferny photo is for our great-grandmother Erma

We sang songs to entertain ourselves, and soon we reached Trillium Falls. It was a small, pretty waterfall with a bridge crossing over the creek that it flowed into. We admired it for a few minutes and then finished our hike. On the way back to the Visitor Center, we saw some elk with huge antlers.

I really liked the hike because of the beautiful scenery and towering redwoods. It is one of my favorites so far! 😛

May 27th, we went to Humboldt Redwoods State Park in Northern California. I was just sitting at the table, looking out the window as we drove along the Avenue of the Giants, and suddenly we stopped in a pull-off. I guessed we were just pulling over to let the cars behind us go by, but I heard the RV shut off. Then Dad said, ” Whoever wants their picture taken, come out now.” So I did. There were lots of thin, windy, zig-zaggy, criss-crossy paths heading into the forest of redwoods. Just in case you don’t know, redwoods are the tallest trees on the planet.

We wandered through the woods, and took a few pictures. Here are some:

Here's a big redwood tree with the center burned out, but it just keeps on living.

Here's our family inside a fallen redwood.

Here's a picture of a redwood that goes way up into the sky.

We had a fun time wandering through the land of the earth’s tallest trees.

After leaving our nice little campground in Mendocino, we left to go to Redwood Forest National Park. On the way we spotted a nice-looking beach to run around on for awhile, so we pulled over and hopped out. I brought my camera, of course.

Can you see the tiny dots near the waves? Those are us.

The water was much warmer than the ocean in Pacifica, and there were lots of pretty shells, sand dollars, and seaweed. There were also mole crabs and lots of dogs. (Those weren’t living on the beach, though. 😉 ) I tried SO hard to keep my feet dry and free of sand, so I was mostly the photographer. My sisters played around in the ocean and ran from the waves as they splashed at their ankles. It was really entertaining to watch them scream and have fun.

I only took a few pictures before Stella and Ana got caught in a sneaker, a big powerful wave that you don’t notice until it hits you. Dad was watching, and so we had to head back to the RV because the waves were getting strong. We cleaned the sand off our feet and then drove the rest of the way to the Redwoods!