Mt Rainier

Today was rainier - and yet it was perfectly clear and sunny...ba-dum--cha. Sorry, a very poor joke. The weather here continues to be perfect (weird for this part of the world) and Mt Rainier is a national park southeast of Seattle. It is advertised as the 4th highest peak in America outside of Alaska. I wonder how Alaska feels about being excluded like that, however, Rainier is magnificent. It is a snow and glacier covered volcanic cone that stands way above all the surrounding mountains. Mt St Helens to the south probably gave it a run for its money until it lost it's head in a bit of a tantrum so now Rainier stands proud and tall and all alone. At this time of year the wildflowers are in full swing and there are pretty cascades in every gully. The mountain itself is just one part of the magnificent views which last for a jawdropping- breathtaking-mindboggling 360 degrees.

And then in the evening, back in Seattle, the alien spacecraft has arrived...

Seattle

Seattle is definitely a city I could live in. There's water on all sides and mountains on all sides - very pretty. They tell me it rains a lot but I haven't seen a cloud for weeks so I'm not sure I believe it!

I was a REAL tourist today and did a duck tour - the vehicles that are buses and boats in one. It was very tacky but lots of fun. The city is full of weird 3D art which makes it really interesting for photographing, especially when the background is sparkling blue lakes and snow-capped mountains. The best sclpture I've seen is a giant troll living under the freeway bridge - what a clever way to beautify an ugly space. There is also a music museum where the building exterior looks like one of Jimmy Hendrix's smashed guitars. It's right next to the Space Needle so it's all pretty out of this world!

Portland Parties

It has been another fun-filled weekend in Portland. Friday afternoon happy hour turned into an all-nighter on the terrace at Andrea's apartment. Saturday involved brunch and a hen's party then Sunday was a trip up Colombia Gorge (the Columbia River is the border between Oregon and Washington) and dinner at an amazing Peruvian restaurant.

Today I'm off to Seattle to hopefully have a couple of days of detox!

Mt Hood

In the absence of Andrea who ditched me for a week of fun in San Francisco, I have taken over her group of friends in Portland. Wednesday evening was kickball, in which we had a resounding victory, then dirnks and more drinks with great people.

Thursday I convinced Erin to take me sightseeing to Mt Hood, which is a beautiful snow-capped mountain that is the main feature of the Portland skyline. We had lunch at Timberline Lodge, a ski resort that is still operational now, in the middle of summer. After eating way too much we felt the need for a hike so did a 7mile round-trip to Ramona Falls. A nice walk through the forest in the shadow of the mountain.

Back in Portland I was whisked away by yet more friendly people for another baseball game, complete with beer and hotdogs, where the Beavers had a resounding loss. I did have a victorious evening though, because I sucessfully (I think) explained the rules of cricket to 2 American lads!

Oregon Coast

I'm covering the compass from Portland so today went west to the area between Astoria and Lincoln City. The Oregon Coast is beautiful with sandy beaches, rugged rocks, temperate rainforests, sandunes and many quaint towns and villages. Much of it reminded me of WAs southwest but with more habitation.

The weather was overcast and very misty but with an air temperature of 60F, I had no intention of finding out the water temperature so the greyness actually added to the beauty. Given the moss growing on tree branches and the ferny forest floor, 99.9% of days here must be pretty damp.

Mt St Helens

A short drive north of Portland today into Washington State to visit what remains of Mt St Helens. It is 30 years since it blew itself up so it is the same age as me! It is a pretty amazing sight. It is still doing the tiniest bit of smoking but is half a caldera with the missing half spread out in the valley below, having avalanched off or exploded out of the side. Mt Adams sits not far away and still has its cone top so it's cool to see what St Helen would have looked like.

The devastation that the eruption caused to the surrounding forest is also mind-blowing (or literally tree-blowing), even after 3 decades. 45 metre tall forests just disintegrated and all that remains now are stumps as far as the eye can see.

Portland

I've spent the weekend with my Mexican friend, Andrea (AKA Bubba) who was at Grace College at the turn of the century. We played a lot of sports against one another and also, briefly, rugby together. Andrea is a marketing guru for Nike and for anyone who knows her, is coming to Australia again this summer.

We have combined some fun Portland activities with a lot of alcohol consumption so it has been very like college days. I have had my first Kickball experience (baseball without the bat), a real baseball game of the Portland Beavers and I am now a solid BEAVER BELIEVER! An international beer festival (like the Soiree of yesteryear) a tour of the wine country (beautiful - and the wines weren't bad either) and lots of other eating, drinking and being merry.

Portland is a pretty city with lots of green spaces and tree-huggers. Bicycle paths abound and right now the weather and temperature are perfect for life in the outdoors. Andrea has gone to San Francisco this morning for a conference so I have a couple of days use of her car to see some things outside of the city. There is a lot to see and do within a couple of hours with beaches, mountains and rivers all over the place so I shan't be idle.