I made a bold proclamation today: Oregon is the prettiest state I’ve seen. I’m sure there are others in contention (including Michigan!) but Oregon has been a beautiful surprise to me.

Multnomah Falls from the road

For the holiday weekend, we decided to do a bit of a “staycation,” especially since we’ll be heading back to Michigan in less than two weeks. We have a huge mental list of places we want to see around here, so it is easy to stay busy. On Sunday we decided to take a day trip to the Columbia River Gorge.

We first experienced the Columbia River Gorge on our road trip into town when we first moved. Columbia River splits Oregon and Washington, and along the sides are mountainous rock formations – it’s almost like a wooded mini-Grand Canyon. One popular feature of the Gorge – and a quick 30-minute drive from home – is Multnomah Falls.

Multnomah Falls is Oregon’s tallest waterfall, 611 feet of icy water. Eager (and unexperienced) hikers like us can take a two-mile paved trail to the top. Jeff, Cooper and I huffed and puffed up the 700 feet of elevation, the trail full of wicked switchbacks. It was amazing how many people joined us! Tourist stop for sure.

After the Falls, we made a quick stop at the city of Hood River, the wind surfing capital of the world. (Also located in the Columbia River Gorge.) It’s the home of several breweries including Full Sail, which produces Session, the one beer you’re sure to find in our fridge. We had lunch at Big Horse Brewery, hit the Full Sail Tasting Room, and then went down to the river to check out the wind surfers and kite board surfers. Even though it was only in the 50’s, there were hundreds of surfers in wetsuits gliding across the river. How they don’t run into one another or snag lines, I’ll never know.

We capped off our gorgeous day trip with ice cream cones from a local shop. Perfect day!

The beautiful Multnomah Falls

A trail view of the Columbia River Gorge

The switchbacks on the trail

The top of the falls! 700 feet high

The three of us at the lookout at the top of the falls

The city of Hood River, on the Columbia River

Jeff watching the hundreds of wind and kite board surfers in Hood River

Rainy weather coming in the Columbia River Gorge

Bonus photo: Look at this sunset over the Willamette River!

Other bonus photo: The Rose Festival has begun!