Columbia River Gorge and Multnomah Falls, Oregon

I wanted to see the coast (when do I not?), so with the weather being inhospitable in the far northern mountains we decided to make tracks south and west.  We left Idaho behind, darted through the corner of Washington, and headed for the southern coast of Oregon as fast as we could (legally) go.

We drove until late, late...following the interstates (which is something we rarely do), just trying to put some distance between us and the stormy weather.  When we crossed from Washington into Oregon, we traversed a rather large river and then followed alongside this river for the remainder of our drive that night.  We finally stopped to grab some hotel rooms in The Dalles and called it a night.

While we were sleeping, the storm was creeping up on us and the heavy clouds were back.  There would be no Mt. Hood sightings on this day...however, we DID get a surprise when we got our first glimpse of that river we had been following in the dark.  The Columbia River is not only huge, it is beautiful!...

In this case, I think the clouds only added to the beauty of our soggy drive through the pass...

Another thing that the rain makes even better?  Waterfalls!  The Columbia River Gorge is full of waterfalls.  We decided to stop and visit the tallest one in the state of Oregon, Multnomah Falls...

When we got there, the rain was coming down pretty good.  Like, wear a poncho and keep your head down or get soaked, good.  So...we just enjoyed the view from afar...

...we had no ponchos, not even any umbrellas, and no desire to hike in the cold rain to be honest...

We took a slow drive around the area, popping out of the dry car just long enough to take a few pictures of the scenery...

that moss <3!

Pictures from inside the car?  No bueno...

Back on the road and into Portland...

We had planned to stop at a famous donut place in Portland (you probably know the one), but then we got to thinking about the name of their store...what that name actually IS...and decided that it isn't something that we wanted to support.  Not even for a donut. 

Next stop, Grants Pass!