Vacation Day 2: Smith Rock

We spent Sunday night at the bivouac at Smith Rock State Park in Terrebonne and woke to a beautiful sunrise over the rock. It's hard to take climbing pictures on a two-person trip. But here are some I snapped at camp and on the hike to the Student Wall section where we spent the day playing.

We celebrated and cooled off with half-priced Sonic Slushes!
:)

Lazy summer vacation... yeah, right!

Brad doesn't sit well... he needs to be moving. And if he's going to take time off work, it's gonna be for something good. So here's a rundown of our last week, a nice, quiet, relaxing summer vacation:

Sunday: Bridge Pedal. Rode 30 miles.
Monday: Camped at Smith Rock State Park. Rock climbing.
Tuesday: "Rest Day" - Explored lava tubes, lava butte.
Wednesday: Backpacked to Green Lakes.
Thursday: Attempted to climb Broken Top.
Friday: Home to rest!

The Bridge Pedal is one of my favorite events of the year. Downtown streets, bridges and freeways are closed to cars so bikes can take over. Tens of thousands participate, and it's just like a big party. Brad, Eryn, Dad and I did the eight-bridge option, which crossed the Hawthorne, Ross Island, Marquam, Burnside, Broadway, Fremont, St. Johns and Broadway (again). A marching band, giant dancing pickle and free treats greeted us at the finish line. SO FUN!

:)

Bulo Point, 7/31/09

We just had our annual camping trip to Timothy Lake with lots of friends. It was hot in the valley and nearly as hot on Mount Hood, so we spent lots of time hanging out in the lake and trying to stay cool.

But on Friday, Jacob, Lindsey, Brad and I drove to nearby (sort of) Bulo Point for a little rock climbing. We almost had the place to ourselves as we worked two different routes.
:)

Spectacular colors

For my June birthday, coworkers Sue and Andy gave me gift cards for Lucca and Garden Fever, a restaurant and a nursery at NE 24th and Fremont in Portland. I'd been saving them, and tonight we went shopping and then enjoyed a yummy dinner of spaghetti for Brad and sturgeon for me. We parked next to this amazingly brilliant rose bush. It was so stunning that I had to snap a few photos. Unfortunately, they don't begin to do it justice.
:)

Weekly Wednesday #4

This week's Weekly Wednesday took us to Lincoln City for some back-to-school shopping. We drove down Tuesday afternoon and settled in to our yurt at Devil's Lake State Park.
This was supposed to be easy:
But Eryn almost had to sleep on a taco bed:
S'mores with Reese's Peanut Butter Cups!!!!
Breakfast:
We shopped and shopped and then met Uncle Don and Aunt Cindy for lunch at Mo's. The Arizonans winter near Phoenix and summer at Lincoln Beach, Ore. Can you tell we're related??
Then we had to stop for treats!
I brought home these for Brad:

We each loaded up on new clothes and had a fun beach adventure :)

Weekly Wednesday #3

Instead of driving to Seattle and sitting in 100-degree weather to watch the Mariners last week, we decided to spend our Wednesday at the cool coast.

Eryn, Mom and I drove to the Tillamook Forest Center on Highway 6 for a look and a hike. We climbed the fire lookout, posed with Smokey Bear and watched the film about the Tillamook Burn and the replanting effort (my grandfather helped plant those little Douglas firs in the '50s!).
Across the way is the Wilson River Trail, a 20-mile path along the river. We took a left and headed toward Wilson Falls. We stopped at Cedar Creek for a cooldown.
After a while later, we decided it was too hot to keep going. So we turned around and looked for a perfect swimming hole. We found it - a little hot tub right on the shore!
After changing from our soggy sneakers, we drove into Tillamook for sandwiches at the Blue Moon Cafe.
My grandparents were spending the week at their home at Oceanside, so we drove out for a quick hello before getting the all-important ice cream at the Tillamook Cheese Factory. It was cool, cloudy and misty - a perfect way to cool off!

:)