Plummeting 620 feet from its origins on Larch Mountain, Multnomah Falls is the second highest year-round waterfall in the nation.  The feeling of being alive and experiencing the sights and sounds of these magnificent falls were almost more than words can describe for me.

We hiked to the very top.  It took us a couple of hours and I discovered just how far I had to go on my quest to better health.  In other words, I wasn't in as good a shape as I thought I was.  It was a hard climb and a bit dangerous even though there was a paved switchback path to the top but we made it and it was so worth it!

We also spent time hanging out at the swimming pool at Coley and Fawns apartment complex.  Fawn and I went shopping for some paintings for their apartment and I helped her with decorating tips.  I even made a floral centerpiece especially for their dining room table.

On Coleys birthday, I got up early and blew up balloons scattering them all over the living room and dining room.  We didnt get a cake since I wasnt sure of the plans for that day but I gave him a card and a couple of gifts.  I think he enjoyed the fuss I made over him.  It was so great to just hang out with him. One day while Fawn had to work, Brian, Coley and I drove to Silver Falls State Park, a beautiful park of 10 waterfalls, which you can hike to on an 8 mile moderate loop trail (the Trail of Ten Falls). We did some hiking and exploring.  We found some excellent waterfalls too that made the hike well worth the effort.  One of them was so neat because we could literally follow the trail behind the waterfall.  The tropical feel to the hike reminded me a bit of Hawaii.  I really love the lush green plants especially the ferns.  They were everywhere along the ground and were the most remembered plant I saw other than a huge a Sitka Spruce tree preserved in Klootchy Creek Park, just a few miles from Cannon Beach, and is among the many huge firs and spruce trees but it is the "World's Largest Sitka Spruce."   It is more than 216 feet high, almost 16 feet in diameter and the circumference is 56 feet the crown alone is 93 feet, and thought to be over 750 years old, the tree is pointed out by a sign along the north side of the highway.  Coley, Fawn, Brian and I held hands but still could not encircle the entire thing.  We saw it on our trip to Cannon Beach on Coleys birthday, July 1^st.

On July 1st, we decided to take a trip to the ocean.  We drove to Cannon Beach, Oregon, where they filmed the movie The Goonies.   The Goonies Vacation - This website is a tribute to the Goonies Vacation short film, and shows lots of Astoria locations that can be seen in the film.

The Haystack Rocks were well worth seeing and the most photographed natural scene in all of Oregon. 

Our trip to visit Coley and Fawn was the best trip Ive taken except for our experience in 2000 when we went to Hawaii.  I fell in love with Portland, Oregon.  We went to the ocean one day where they filmed the movie, The Goonies, in Astoria on Cannon Beach.   One day we drove along the Columbia River on the scenic highway and took in hikes and photos of multitudes of waterfalls.  We hike to the top of Multnomah Falls http://trips.stateoforegon.com  and enjoyed the variable beauty of lush, green foliage.  I was very surprised at the terrain that changed often. 

We spent a couple of days on the Columbia River in a boat that Coley borrowed from the Coastguard for leisure activities.  On July 3^rd, we went tubing and water skiing.  It was scary and fun at the same time.  Here we were speeding down the Columbia River with beautiful Mount Hood in the background and some big old barge comes down the river too.  Of course this was on the fourth of July and everyone was out on the river with their boats and camping along the shoreline waiting for the fireworks to go off that evening.  It was very, very busy and I was a bit scarred.  I like something more like a quiet lake.  Brian actually skied; Coley tried to learn but never actually made it up; Fawn went on the tube pulled by the boat; I stayed in the boat and photographed or videotaped it.  I had planned to water-ski too but when I saw the activity on the river, I changed my mind.  I had tried to ski once at Council Grove, Kansas on the reservoir when Mick and I were young but I never made it up.  I would like to learn but Im not even trying unless I have a week to try instead of a day and Id prefer a lake.  Brian is good but he even said it was difficult and he uses one ski. 

We had to many bad omens telling us to get off the river that day.  The first time we put the boat in we almost sunk.  I guess the last person who used the boat didnt put the plug back in and it started taking on water.  Pour Coley was on his own because Brian went to park the trailer and Fawn & I were using the restroom.  I know he was scarred to death about it.  When Fawn and I arrived back at the boat to load up our gear, we found Coley and Brian pumping out water. 

Then we finally got underway and discovered the pump to blow up the ski tube did not fit so Brian had to blow it up manually.  Fawn went first then Coley.  We took a lot of safety precautions on everything we did, especially since Coley is in the Coastguard and he is Mr. Safety.  I still was uneasy about it I guess I am willing to admit that Im afraid of the water.  I just like swimming in pools and fishing in lakes.  I have gone tubing down the river here at home but only twice and I was scared each time.  Its not that much fun when you worry all the time as you are doing something.

Anyway, after that experience the guys decided to try skiing but the water was pretty choppy with so many people on the river in boats, I didnt want to try it.  Then the tow rope broke so we were done for the day.  So we tried just cruising up the river. On the way back we decided to take a different channel and started running aground on a sand bar because we had taken on so much water in the shell of the boat.  We were worried that we had ruined the propeller of the motor so we called it a day and headed in.  There were so many people we could hardly dock the boat and then the guys had to jockey for position to line up the trailer and get the boat out. 

It was very frustrating and the holiday traffic was horrendous.  That evening we went to a Mexican restaurant on the river.  It was really nice and very relaxing after such a crazy day.  Everyone got a little too much sun but it was an experience to remember.