The Gorge and Beyond...

Wednesday was Columbia River Gorge, Bonneville Dam, Fruit Loop and Mt. Hood Day. You guessed it, we didn't get to Mt. Hood. But we did have an awesome time.

We started along the Columbia River Gorge, and stopped at a few waterfalls - see Multnohma Falls in the picture. Note the little bridge. No, I didn't go on the bridge, as evidenced by the other picture of me looking incredibly tense.

It was then on to Bonneville Dam...well actually the fish hatchery. Pretty cool! There were HUGE salmon in the tanks, as well as trout, and Herman the Sturgeon who was ginormous.

After the fish hatchery, we stopped in at Full Sail for a drink and swag, and then went to see a guy at Wyeast that Chris knows from the AHA Conference. He was really great, we had a beer with him at his office, and got a bunch of swag there too.

We then just stopped at one place on the Fruit Loop. Bought some pears, we'll see if they are good tomorrow when we are home. OK, here is the deal. We do not do well with drive, stop, wander, drive, stop, wander, lather, rinse, repeat. So while the Fruit Loop might be awesome for some, that kind of vacation ain't good for us. So we hopped back in the car, and headed back to Portland.

Drank a Pliny (did I mention we got 6 more), packed, went to a later dinner, and passed out. Today we head for home...

Post Script...Beervana

We went to Henry's 12th Street Tavern. They have over 100 beers on tap, and focus on mostly local awesome beers. We were able to use the Kincaid's Gift Certificate that N&J gave us for Christmas - THANK YOU!!

Here is the rundown on the beer we had:

Chris #1: Ninkasi Believer Double Red Ale
Patty #1: Walking Man Homo Erectus Imperial IPA
Chris #2: Firestone Walker Union Jack IPA
Patty #2: Rodenbach Sour

I am going to go either throw up because I'm so full, or pass out. Probably I'll pass out either way.

Moo.

Did I mention we stopped and said hi to these nice cows? It's good luck, you know.

Wait, you say? What about the four Pliny?

So on the way home from Pacific City, Chris started calling liquor stores to see if they had any Pliny. We called "Cork" and they were open until 7:00 and they had some. So we plugged it into the GPS and started speeding. The GPS set our arrival at 6:53.

I dropped Chris off on the corner at 6:56, and he ran in and was told that there was a limit of three per customer. Seriously. I told you this was the best beer ever.

After haggling with the guy we ended up with four. Chris didn't know if I was going to come in, so he wouldn't let me get the three that were due me since he "begged" the guy to sell him four. I think it's bunk, but whatever. One of us has to be the nice one in this marriage. Tomorrow we will seek out another six at the other Cork location. And maybe a few more on Thursday - I'm just saying it's an option.

Ah well. It's now 8:00, and we are trying to decide what to do for dinner. I'm drinking diet coke out of a champagne glass and eating the Tillamook cheese curds (they squeek!). If you ask me? That would be enough of a great end to a great day.

Tomorrow - off to the Columbia River Gorge, Bonneville Dam, and the Fruit Loop, and maybe Mt. Hood. You can see our track record for fitting it all in. I'm looking to score some pears to ship home!

No crab, four Pliny

Well, we didn't make it all the way down to Newport. We left the hotel and spent almost an hour driving around trying to get to a liquor store that had Pliny. Many of the streets were closed due to construction and when we got there, it wasn't open until 11:00. GOD DAMMIT. We then stopped to get a bagel for breakfast and we were on our way to Cannon Beach.

Let me just say this - if you ever pick a spot to retire, or vacation, and you want to see the ocean, Cannon Beach is fabulous. It was absolutely beautiful. We walked down the beach - me in my bare feet trying to not get a pants full of water - and walked up to Haystack Rock (see it in the background of our picture). It was a good setting for another signature self portrait.

After Cannon Beach was Tillamook - yep, you got it, the cheese factory was visited! Um, this you can skip if you come here. We stood in a line and got 6 cheese cubes as tasters, then you could buy all of their cheese at their store. We got curds, which were great, and then got an ice cream cone. I will say that it was some of the best ice cream I've ever had - I guess when you are actually INSIDE the plant it works out that way.

After Tillamook, we did the Three Capes Scenic tour - apparently there are lighthouses. After seeing the first one, I never did see another one. And it was all windy and shit, and since we didn't have a great map, someone in the car was getting a little freaked out. Hmmm...I'll give you a hint, it wasn't me. After an argument about the GPS versus the stupid map in the Oregon Coast guide, we realized we were going the right way to get to Pacific City and Pelican Pub.

Pelican Pub. What should I say? First, and I mean this literally. Not the literally people use for hyperbole, but LIT-ER-AL-LY. It took longer for the waitress to take or order than the time between when we ordered and the food came out. The food was remarkably UN-remarkable. Chris said the beer was solid. All I know is that I was accosted by so many bad smells I wanted to hurl. I think the Pacific Ocean just smells bad. Or at least it does in Pacific City. At that point it was 4:15 and we decided to just head back to Portland.

So. No crab.

OK, let's focus on the positive...

OK, I'm going to get over the sore throat and focus on what a great day we have ahead of us today!

We are driving down the coast, stopping at 4 or 5 towns to walk around on the beach, see the site, look at lighthouses, and eat at Pelican Brewpub in Pacific City. We are going all the way down to Newport, and we'll stop at Rogue, and I'm going to eat crab if it kills me. I didn't do that when we were in Delaware two years ago, so by God I'm doing it on this coast.

I'm psyched to use the new camera lens when we are at the lighthouses and at the beach. We'll post the pictures and you can be the judge.

Well, we're off in a few minutes, and the first stop is at The Cork, a liquor store where we are going to buy all of the Pliny the Elder they have. I spied about eight bottles in their back room. C&J - we're coming over Friday or Saturday with it!!

Remember what a wise man once said...you can't drink all day if you don't start in the morning.

Really?

Woke up this morning with a sore throat. Getting a cold. GOD DAMMIT.