Let's Go Fly A Kite

After Saddle Mountain we went clamming at Seaside since it's pretty close by but unfortunately we found no clams at all!!  Even though we didn't find any clams we still had an amazing time and luckily John had brought along a kite which was super exciting since Eileen and I had never flown one before.  We felt like kids and I couldn't help but hum the song "Let's Go Fly a Kite" from Mary Poppins. 

Now for some pics: 

Oregon, you're our favorite. 

Oh, oh, oh!

Let's go fly a kite

Up to the highest height!

Let's go fly a kite and send it soaring

Up through the atmosphere

Up where the air is clear

Oh, let's go fly a kite!

After an afternoon at the beach we headed into town and had some delicious Tillmook ice cream, only $1 for two scoops. 

The following day were dead tired but it was a pretty epic way to celebrate the longest day of the year. 

-Diana 

Saddle Mountain

About two weekends ago Eileen came up to visit and we decided to celebrate the summer solstice by hiking Saddle Mountain and clamming at Seaside.  Saddle Mountain is a very popular hike in Oregon, it's about a 5.2 mile hike (elevation: 1600 ft)  but it is quite strenuous.  There are quite a bit of steep areas that you must travel on and the path can be rocky and slick in spots.   The view at the top is totally worth it though!  On a clear day you can see where the Columbia river flows into the ocean and you can catch a glimpse of Mt. Rainier, Mt. St. Helens, Mt. Hood and Mt. Jefferson.  Below are some pics of Saddle Mountain all the Seaside pics will be on the next post!

Right at the very beginning of the trail you are greeted by beautiful and lush clover fields.  We tried to find a 4 leaf clover but were unsuccessful :( 

Spider, oh my!

On the climb down a girl was perched on top of that tiny rock, pretty bold of her!

Columbia river meeting the ocean. 

Lushes. 

The very top, all the hikers stop and have a snack here while they take in the gorgeous views and the expanse of it all. 

If you are ever in Northwest Oregon, I would definitely recommend this hike, it's pretty rigorous but the view at the top is breathtaking.

-Diana

We Were Liars

I love actual books and the gorgeous covers and the feel of the pages but I hate clutter so I read 95% of books on my ipad or kindle.  Just a preference, I guess, what about you?  How do you like to read your books?

Sunday in between errands I read the book We Were Liars by E. Lockhart and oh my goodness I could not put it down.  The car ride with my husband to and from places was dead silent because I was so into this book.  It's a super quick read, it's only about 200 pages, so depending on how fast you read it may take you 2-4 hrs.

I decided to read this book because it was recommended by booksandquills on Youtube, she is fabulous and seriously makes any book sound so interesting and cool.

Check out her review of the book below:


So if you ask me what this book is about, I'll tell you it's about a girl who turns into a sea monster. That is all, now go read it!

-Diana

Rooster Rock

The Rooster Rock trail is on Highway 20 going into Santiam Pass. A long time ago, there used to be a fire lookout atop Rooster Rock, the tallest crag in the area. The lookout is gone now, but you can still find some of the torn-apart ruins scattered around the base of the rock. I also did my very first climb ever at Rooster Rock!

Hiking the trail itself is quite a workout (I think so at least!) but I like to do it every year. My favorite thing about this forest is how un-busy it is - you can usually feel pretty alone in the woods there. I was also hoping to see the rhodies in bloom, since I missed it last time!

Unfortunately today, although the weather forecast said 20% chance rain - which almost always ends up meaning sunny and gorgeous - it ended up pouring rain once I reached the top, so there wasn't too much to do except come right back down! On the plus side, that ensured it wasn't terribly hot. So it was still a good hike!

Rhodies in bloom!

 

Plenty of slugs hiking (sliding?) the trail today!

Another hiker!

Some interesting tiny orange stuff!

Although Rooster Rock itself is tricky to capture in a picture once you reach it,
Hen Rock can be seen near Rooster Rock.

Reward for reaching the top!

It started raining hard!

Forest fog

A deer sighting!

Glad to have made it back!

Tuesday Links

Here in our college town it's finals week, so it feels somewhat dead compared to normal. If you're busy studying hard, why not take a break and check out these fun things? :D

Large-scale advertising? I'd love to take a tour of these places! They look so whimsical.

Glamour photos of chickens. I thought it was going to be a funny video from the title, but apparently it's a thing!

29-story Tetris! Did they have really loud sound effects too though??

Ladies in a carriage...or not? What a clever low-budget Chinese movie idea, ha!

Could you survive this traffic? I'll take traffic lights any day!

Dog Mountain

My husband and I have really gotten into hiking lately.  My husband hates working out and has a bad knee so working out together usually involves me running while he rides his bike behind me.  It's silly and I always get mad at the end of my run when we says he is tired...when clearly I was the one who was working hard!  Our first hike was Multnomah falls and since then we have been doing a hike every weekend and we love it! It's such a great activity for us to do together and to explore and get the most out of this beautiful state we live in.  This week my goal is to invest in some good hiking boots!  Anyhow, this weekend we hiked Dog Mountain with my friend Leslie.  

Dog Mountain is located in Washington and offers a beautiful view of the gorge.  During this time of year the wildflowers at the top of the mountain are in bloom and it literally looks like a scene from the sound of music.  The hike wasn't super long (3.8 miles up and 3.7 miles down) but it was extremely steep so it did require some endurance.  Also, the top of the mountain was quite windy and dusty since you don't have the shelter of the trees.  The very top has a great spot where you can picnic and have lunch with a gorgeous view of the gorge.  It was such an incredibly beautiful hike, even though it was tough getting up there it was so worth it!  Hope you enjoy the pics my husband took!

"The hills are alive, with the sound of music....."

This picture is my favorite, do you see Mt. Hood in the background?

Have a great Monday everyone!

-DD