Eagle Creek

I really do just want to hug all of these AMAZING ancient trees.  This was our last stop on our way back to Park City.  I had visited Eagle Creek once before, but Chip had never been to see the legendary Opal Pool and the ancient forest.  We figured this was his chance.  So, 5 hours inland toward home, we stopped to do this 7 mile hike.  It was wet and made for what felt like a REALLY long trip home, but was totally worth it.

I mean, seriously....

Ha!  Skip a smoothie in the ancient forest?  Why would we do that?  Full circle here- same cups that we picked up the second day of our trip at the hotel....made it all two weeks and came in very handy. 

Opal Pool.  When it is warmer, people do a lot of cliff jumping into this beauty. I did a small option last time I was here.  Not this time.  Not even Chip.  It was tempting though. :)

Owen loves the big trees too. 

And Ru, all geared up for the rain we hiked through.

SO grateful for a successful adventure. No visits to the hospital, no car troubles, and no sleepless nights despite a bit of moving around.  Lots of great visits, delicious food, awe inspiring eye candy, and oodles of memories for Team DuRoss. :)

The Coast

We hit the coast and set up camp at Ft Stevens- a little bit of a big campsite, but beautiful and we could hear the ocean from our site, so we loved that.  Well, turns out, for calm and serene sleeping purposes, it didn't matter that we could hear the ocean because both nights we stayed here, it poured...I mean POURED...unlike any rain I have ever slept out in/through before...and literally ALL night. Hours and hours and hours of rain.  I peaked my head out at one point to check for some big ark we should be hopping on or something. This was mostly cool, however we did wake up several inches deep in water.  We managed to stay dry inside somehow..., probably because our tent was brand new and the seams were well sealed.  Needless to say, we had to move our tent for night two to a drier spot, and, we bailed on night three of camping and headed to the beach house early.  Yup, we are hardcore. :)

This is us before the rain.

This is our tent in a lake-like puddle.  This picture really doesn't do the situation justice, but will remind me forever of the torrential downpours we survived.  

Astoria, OR and their really cool bridge.

Nothin better than homemade clam chowda on the coast when the weather is cold, rainy, and foggy.  Yummmm

Bug with a bug.

Seaside, OR- swings on the beach.  Brilliant. 

We did get a few breaks in the weather during the day.  Thank goodness.

Hung out and played by the old shipwreck for awhile.

Ahhh...sun and warmth. :)

And, back to cold and rain, but, we are on the way to the beach house here so we don't care!  Everything is fine when you have a warm and dry place to lay your head.

Incredible moss next to my incredible girl.

Love this shot of Owen's new hat that he and dad picked out at the Astoria farmer's market. Sure to be a favorite this winter.

Yahoo! We made it to the beach house and met up with our good friends, Kyle, Emily, Jonah, and their newest addition, Hazel.  This is the sign marking the path from the road down to the beach.  It sounds more dramatic than it was.  It was a little steep, but mostly just a gorgeous short jaunt through the rainforest before busting out to the sand.  I thought I should hang a copy of this picture in my office.  Ha! :)

Kyle and Jonah.  As you can tell by the clothing, it was cold, and raining, again.  It kinda makes the Oregon coast, the Oregon coast, so we enjoyed it. Check out the video. :)

link- http://vimeo.com/76744146

Cold and rain did not keep our kids out of the water.  They could not get enough.

The Newport Aquarium is not a site to be missed if you are ever in the area.  It was incredibly fun for kids and adults alike.  

Buds. :)

Total awe.

The surf was only okay while we were there, but when you are usually land locked, no one complains about mediocre surf and a sunny day.  Ruby and Owen thought the conditions were perfect.

A sweet hike from Devil's Punchbowl, past some tide pools, and down to the beach.  PS- getting four kids to pose for a picture and remotely look in the same direction is a HUGE accomplishment.  

Biking on the beach- awesome.

This was really fun, until a sneaker wave came in and surprised this solo mama.  The short story is, I ended up with two crying and wet kids. Whoops. 

Emily and Hazel.  We miss these guys already- this was much needed time to reconnect and catch up.  Love you all!

Now, we head home, but not without one more quick stop on the way....

Portland

Portlandlia is a favorite show of ours lately.  And, it is spot on.  There are so many unique things about Portland that seemed even more evident to us after leaving than I think I was aware of when we were part of that community.  We spent all week saying, "..that is so Portland".  Great to walk down memory lane and totally enjoy all the adventures this city has to offer without any regrets about leaving as well.  Good times.

Our first stop- Saturday Market where we enjoyed at least four awesome different musical performances including a cello duo.  We bought the CD and it was the soundtrack for the rest of the week.  Picked up a crystal that now casts rainbows all over our house each morning and an air plant...coolest thing ever.  Hope I can keep the latter alive and well in Utah.

To see the music and some dancing click here- https://vimeo.com/76744147?utm_source=email&utm_medium=clip-transcode_complete-finished-20120100&utm_campaign=7701&email_id=Y2xpcF90cmFuc2NvZGVkfDBlZWQxZjkxMjc0NTc3YzU2N2IyY2RiNjU5MDE4N2JkNjI5fDE1NDAxMjY2fDEzODE1NTAyMzU%3D

The artwork all over Portland is amazing.  They paint buildings, roads, and telephone poles with reckless abandon.  I don't understand why other cities have not done this as well.  It makes all these ordinary things extraordinary.

Speaking of extraordinary, the food and drink options (Nicolas's, The Jade Tea House, Pinestate, HUB, and Stumptown)  are endless and as much an adventure for the tastebuds as the endless artwork is for the eyes.

Fried chicken and egg on a biscuit.  Yes, please.

Forest Park, our sanctuary.  It was as spectacular and overwhelmingly awesome as I remembered it.  We each got out on a run on the endless storybook trails that wind through this incredible piece of rain forest.  Ahhh....I miss you already.

Made a quick visit to the neighborhood we lived in the longest while in Portland- Ladd's Addition.  The roses were still going off and our "little castle" reminded me of so many things-struggling to get pregnant, getting pregnant and all that that entailed, and then the journey and experience of growing TWO little beings inside me.  I was almost full term when I left this place.  Nuts.

We got to explore Portland in a way we never had before....now through the eyes of two and a half year olds.  We went to the Children's Museum, which was awesome (play grocery store, vet office, clay studio, build-it center, and dino exhibit to name only a few things) and found the coolest city fountain that mimicked (in high speed) the ocean tides going in and out.  The kids could swim in it and grasp in a physical way what a "tide" was.  So cool and great prep for the next part of our trip.  

Who doesn't love a doughnut?!...Especially when they are rotating in a display case and have things like Tang, bacon, and a variety of sugar cereals on them. VooDoo Doughnuts.  Yummm.

Biking and Portland are synonymous.  We borrowed this kick-ass bucket bike from Nicki and Ben.  It is dutch made, and I could go on and on about how cool it is and how much sense it makes...if you live in a flatish place.  I pedaled Ruby and Owen home and up a slight hill.  I don't think Chip thought I was going to make it, but I did. Barely.  At any rate, it was perfect to ride down the river side trail from their house into downtown and across some bridges.  The other cruiser bike we borrowed from them was sick as well.  Can't believe I don't have a picture of it.  

A Pedicab, why not?  Took one through downtown to our favorite book store.  It really is the perfect speed to see a city.  

We stayed at a friend's house the last night in Portland.  This is so Portland... She lives on one of the corners of "Share It Square".  Pictured below is a treehouse play house where there are toys that any kid can stop and play with for a bit.  There is a take-it and leave-it library on another corner and free tea and coffee for whomever cares to indulge on another corner (picture of Chip below).  Oh, and, ps- they painted the street again, cause, why not?!  

Alright, the city was A BLAST but we are ready to leave all the people and traffic and get to the coast.  Mother Ocean, here we come!