• Dotti's Success Story
  
  
  
  
  
• Al's Corner
  
  
  
  
  
• Al's Essays on
  Weight Loss and
  Maintenance
  
  
  
  
  
• Al's Weight Loss Journey
  
  
  
  
  
• Our Alaska Cruise
  
  
  
  
  

MULTNOMAH FALLS
& ECOLA FALLS

May 30, 2014

The Coon Family Hiking Club
Official Hike

Time Start: 8:28 am
Time End: 12 noon
3.6 miles - 3 hours 32 minutes

Highest point: 1040 feet
Lowest point: 20 feet

Hikers:
Dotti Coon
Al Coon

Please visit our: Multnomah Falls History For lots of information on previous visits to this trail, and the geology of this scenic wonder!
The high temperature for the day was going to be 76° and, while horribly hot, anything over 75° is hotter than I like it to be, for a hike that is demanding. Actually, I would rather it be closer to 60°. So, it was important for that reason, to get an early start, and do all the heavy climbing before the air temperature rose too high. When we started our hike, the temperature was around 55°, and you can tell by the way we were dressed that it was nice and cool. We reached the highest point of our hike around two hours later and the temperature had risen to 60°, and we were still doing fine with that. From that point on, most of our walking was going to be downhill anyway, and the rising temperature would be far less of a problem for us. We hit the top of Multnomah Falls at 11:00am, and the temperature was only about 3° higher, and still well under 70. We got back down to the Multnomah Falls Lodge, around an hour later at 12 noon, and it was still only 65°; in other words, we beat the heat! But we had an even more pressing reason to get an early start on this day. The rock face of the wall which Multnomah Creek cascades down, decided it was time for another change. It was not as large as the rock that fell in 1996, but a rock came off the wall, and landed all the way over on Benson Bridge and damaged it. The bridge was closed to all traffic for a time, as they worked on it, but they opened it up about 10 days before our hike. However, even though it was opened more than a week before, they had the "Reopening Ceremony" the same day as our hike. When I suggested to Dotti that the weather was good, and it might be a good day to do a hike, I had no idea about this ceremony being scheduled. But we had heard about the bridge closing and so I checked online before we left to make sure it was open. That was when I saw the announcement about the ceremony at 10:00am. Oops! If I had seen that was going on, I probably would not have made the suggestion. But since we were getting an early start, we decided to go ahead and do the hike anyway, and we were both glad that we did!
	Dotti snapped this picture through our windshield, as we neared Multnomah Falls. I took the Bridal Veil Falls exit off I-84, so we could get over to the Columbia River Gorge Scenic Bypass Highway, and have access to the parking lot in front of the Multnomah Falls Lodge.
That parking lot is not only closer to the trailhead, but it is also a safer place to leave your car usually, because it is plain view of many people all day long, and anyone breaking in, would have an audience. We have never had anything happen to our cars at any of the trailhead parking lots, even the remote ones, but never hurts to be as safe as possible. The day was perfect for a hike! The sun was shining brightly, but it wasn't too hot. The Gorge was jumping with life, as every tree and bush, which loses its leaves in autumn, was sporting a full leafy covering. Green was everywhere, and we couldn't have asked for finer hiking conditions.
Normally, arriving this early in the day, especially on a Friday, the parking lot is empty, but today there were a few cars already in the lot. Still, there was no problem finding a nice parking spot. Looking at the lodge itself, it looks like it was built for heavy snow, with that sharp incline on the roof. This part of the state gets very little snow, and roof design is just for show.
Occasionally, the falls turn icy and the mist from the falls will freeze to the rock face all around the water dropping down the cliff face. It creates a beautiful "winterscape" to be sure. The number of inches of snow that land here is pretty small. (Now Timberline Lodge on Mt. Hood, gets plenty of snow to justify its steeply inclined roof! See Mt. Hood: Silcox Hut hike) The main atraction is of course the falls rising far above the multistoried lodge. Our goal for our hike was not only to go to the top of that falls, but to go beyond that and on to Ecola Falls, just like I did with our grandson Kai last summer. (See Multnomah Falls & Ecola Falls hike.)
	While I was waiting for Dotti to get ready, I was using the camera for some scenic shots and this little fellow came up right up to me. With all the people coming through here, the birds pick up a lot of dropped food and find a lot of people willing to drop something edible near them. I am sure that is what he was hoping for. Alas, I had to disappoint him, because I had no food to drop for him.
We rested our walking sticks by the same bench where in the next to last picture in the hike with Kai you will see him tying his shoes. It seems that hardly any spot along this trail can be seen, without triggering an old memory of previous visits and hikes.
	Turning my back to the lodge, I noticed that if I hadn't of turned in so quickly to park, there were spots open on the very end of the line of parking slots, at the the third, and the fifth spots as well. Parking was not a problem.
I can see Dotti's right arm behind the glass in the door coming out of the restrooms, elevator, and phone cubby hole. The elevator can come in handy for anyone heading up to the restaurant, but who doesn't want to, or can't, climb those decorative tiled stairs.
	Looking up from the stairs, there is rock chimney for one of the fireplaces in the lodge. As we will see along the trail, basalt building material is plentiful in this area. It not only falls down out of the rock walls of the Gorge, but it usually falls into small pieces, which can be used for walls of all sorts.
Here is my lovely Dotti, with the gift shop entrance behind here, and a banner spread out across the front of the lodge, which tells us this year marks the 100th anniversary of the opening of Benson Bridge for the very first time! That means in 1974, when Dotti and I walked the trail to the top for the first time together was the 60th year the bridge was in use! And this year will mark the 40th anniversary of our first hike to the top of the falls! (If at all possible, if we can make it, Dotti and I will be going to the top of the falls on September 28th, the actual 40th anniversary of our first date, and that hike we have treasured the memory of for all these years! But for sure, we have made one hike to the top this 40th year since our first one.
	Our white van is sticking out from behind the light pole. There are a number of cars in the line, and that was what made me turn in as early as I did, as we came from the direction the camera is now pointing. For a Friday morning at this hour, there were a lot of cars in the lot already. But still it wasn't too bad yet.
One more look up before we start the hike. It seems that my eyes are drawn up to get just one more peek at the falls. I never seem to get enough of the sight.
	The official starting point of the hike is this sign. Dotti is wearing her vest, which she was very happy to fit into. She has lost so much weight that she keeps surprising herself what she can fit into. When that vest went on easily she was very excited. It has lots of pockets to carry things on hikes and makes it so other containers are not required for her to carry, like purses or fanny packs, etc. She is not wearing sunglasses. Those are her normal everyday glasses, but they are incredibly good photo-gray lens. They turn almost black when exposed to light. They are way better than my photo-grays. And she has on her fingerless gloves, where her hand is covered by her fingers are free, which can help when handling a camera, or doing other things requiring dexterity with her hands.
I have on my coat, because it still felt cool out. Have my camera, backback and Dotti's water bottle hanging off a clip on my backpack. You will see in later pictures that I am also carrying my water bottle hooked on to the rear of my pants. Let the hike begin!
	The little espresso stand often does a lot of business. It is a relatively new addition. There is a snack bar behind it, which is built into the lodge building, and they serve good ice cream cones, but it has been quite a while since we have had one of them.
And here is the path to the falls. First it will take us to the lower viewing platform, and then up to the newly reopened Benson Bridge, and then up to the top of the falls, and beyond. These paths seem to call your name and you simply have to go and see where they lead. Even when you know where they lead, they don't stop calling to you.
	Here is the plaque on the end of the planter sitting in the trail as we started off on our way, placed there by the Daughters of the Revolution in 1916, in remembrance of the Oregon pioneers who braved the Oregon Trail to get here. Oregon only became a state in 1859, so it it had been only 57 years since then that this was erected. Lewis and Clark, and their Corps of Discovery, initiated by Thomas Jefferson, my favorite American of all time, had arrived here to see these falls in 1805, only 29 years after the birth of our country in 1776!
Moving around the plaque, we can see the steps leading to the lower viewing platform, and a bit of the newly revitalized and reopened Benson Bridge. The lamps at the top of their poles glow in a way that seems old, and warm. We were clearly on our way!
	Dotti is moving along well and ready for the hike. Here we go!
The train trestle and the Scenic Highway bridge both cross over Multnomah Creek, in the distance, and the Daughters of the Revolution planter box is just visible, sticking out behind the wall on the left.
	Here are the lower falls, all 69 feet of them. The Benson Bridge is unlike the way we have ever seen it before. It is bright shiny white, as if it were sandblasted down to fresh concrete. This is one more instance of no two visits to the falls are exactly the same.
Moving the camera upward, we can see the top of the upper falls, rising above the bridge and where we are standing.
	This view of the lower falls is a very popular one for visitors to the falls. When it gets busy, the space along that railing is usually jammed with people posing for pictures. This early in the day, we had the rail to ourselves.
Here I got low and shot upwards, so we could get nearly all of the falls in one shot behind my lovely Dotti.
	Dotti took another approach to getting the entire falls in, by simply backing up, and it worked well I think.
This is the newly opened Benson Bridge, and it looks sandblasted white, and brand new. The repaired section looks just like the rest of it. Right in the middle of the bridge they were planning to put a red ribbon for the opening ceremony. By the time we got up to the bridge, the ribbon had already been placed, and it was just a few minutes later. The guy was already on the way up the trail with ribbon in hand.
	The top of Multnomah Falls. We hoped to be standing up there, before too much longer, looking down from the viewing platform mounted right near the edge.
Dotti was very happy to be able to fit into this vest. It has a lot of pockets and should come in handy on our hikes, allowing her to carry things easily. She has her walking sticks and, since it was still cool out, she had on her gloves. Best of all is the beautiful smile she flashing. It is time to hit the stairs behind her, where the trail begins to the top.
	Up the stairs and looking back down, the falls are beautiful. I also like the warm feeling of the old style lamp that was still on. The bridge is whiter than we have ever seen it, freshly sand blasted and cleaned up, as if it were brand new. None of the tents or people were here on the lower viewing platform that would show up later. So many memories come to mind from this view. It is a very special place.
A great number of people who come to the falls make the trek up to the bridge. Many of them are not in terribly good shape, and so benches are far more common on this stretch of the path. The roof you see in the background is that of the Multnomah Falls Lodge, with one of its glass panels visible that gives an interior view of the falls to patrons of the restaurant.
	Dotti is pointing out the mileage sign and from this point the top of the falls is one mile away. The Wahkeena Trail is just a bit past Ecolo Falls, where we were going to top out on this hike. We didn't quite reach that trail but we came close, before turning around and then turning off to see the top of the falls.
Fortunately, we don't find a lot of dogs on this trail. On many of our hikes we have found hikers with their dogs, and the owners too often ignore the leash laws and let their dogs run wild, and you have to deal with them. Some are just friendly pups and not much of a bother, but others are a problem (I am always glad I have my walking stick with me when we encounter these ones) and their owners are very thoughtless people. Dogs are not a problem if they are on leashes and their owners clean up after them. I can't recall any bad experiences on this particular trail, and that might be because it is so terribly busy and that might discourage letting dogs roam free here.
	A second switchback and another bench is located here. We have taken many pictures at this location. Right now the vegetation is thick, but when the leaves fall, the view of the falls is very nice from here.
I turned around a looked at the first two benches again, down the trail now.
	And here is the bench with the view of the falls. Dotti was already getting ahead of me.
They have worked hard on this section of trail. Of course the natural beauty is amazing all on its own. The lush green leaves, beautiful trees and heavy moss covering the tree trunks. The fence is made from posts with some decretive carving, with a couple of chains running from post to post. It almost feels like the fence grew there on its own. The white sign, on the other hand clearly doesn't fit in. There is no way it just grew there. But in order to have the high rate of traffic this trail encounters daily, the warning signs are required. People will tend to tear things up if they are not reminded to stay on the trail. Having large numbers of people trampling through the vegetation will in time crush it and leave it, at the very least, uglier.
	Here Dotti was one switchback ahead of me and doubling back above me. If you can tear yourself away from that beautiful smile, you might notice the mossy wall, built from basalt pieces of rock, and the green everywhere. Beautiful!
I was standing at about the same spot Dotti was for the last photo. She has already made it past that curve in the path ahead. The asphalt on this trail is not the normal thing for trails in the Columbia River Gorge. Normally the trail is just plain dirt, or maybe mud on a rainy day. There might be roots crossing the trail, or rocks embedded into the surface. But this trail is special and highly used. So, they give it the royal treatment.
	The ascent is fairly large, and so they ease the walking by using lots of switch backs, rising a bit between each one. It is far easier than it would be if they tried to run it all up in a straight shot. As it is, many people are over-taxed in walking up to the bridge.
Another switchback ahead and Dotti has already cleared it and is doubling back on me again. I need to hurry to catch up.
	This gives you a feel for the rise of the trail that we were walking at this point. On the left is the ground we just walked and on the right is the ground stretching out ahead. Between is basalt rock wall, with moss growing freely upon it, as the natural environment is making this wall its own. Indeed, the basalt stones in this wall fell out of the side of the Gorge above and were ready to use. The top of the wall has been squared off by man, but the rest of it is pretty much as it fell down in a heap in a rock slide. Dotti is still well ahead of me, I need to get moving.
There she is! She has stopped to take a picture and that should give me a chance to do a bit of catching up. Just look at all the green. It is beautiful! I will be forever grateful to Dotti for picking this as our first date. What a girl!
	Another bench. As I said, a lot of out of shape people come up this trail, just to get to the Benson Bridge. These benches I image are like an oasis in the desert to a thirsty man! In front of the bench, helping to keep the raised ground from eroding away, is another rock wall. Behind the bench is a fallen tree, a very common sight in the woods, and it has basalt rocks beneath, which are very common sights here in the Columbia River Gorge. The trash can helps people to keep from littering up this beautiful land, whereas the deeper trails in the woods require you to be a good hiker and pack out your own garbage. Fortunately, most people do just that! Up ahead Dotti, once again taking a picture, is standing on a little footbridge, that goes over a small tributary to Multnomah Creek.
From the bridge, looking to the right, you can see the lower Multnomah Falls, with Multnomah Creek flowing over it, and looking down is the small stream heading over to join up with main flow. The vegetation is loving the water and the time of year, and it is making great use of it all to spread its life everywhere it can.
	Here is the bridge, and although the pain job looks different, it seems to be the same as the bridge that what here in 2003. There are the same number of support posts, with the same number of slats between them and the planking across it appears to be the same design. It looks like they used a brown paint over it this time and that is wearing off. But I don't see that old green beneath it, so they must have sanded it down really well before painting it. It looks like it is about due for a new coating of paint though.
Dotti didn't bring her good camera with her this time, because she wanted to focus (no pun intended) on getting the hike done and not lugging along added weight to slow her down. Unfortunately, a number of her pictures of me turned out blurry, but that's okay. At least you can see I was there. My pants are starting to get a little baggy on me, and while I have some weight to drop still, I have made some progress.
	See that pretty lady with the pony tail? That's my Dotti! Above her to the right is a rock catching fence. While this was not here in 1974, as I recall, it was up in 2003.
You can see they designed this to catch most of the smaller rocks that might roll down the hill. The really big ones could still run right over this, as well built as it is. And of course, if the whole hillside gave way, all you can hope for is that you are somewhere else!
	The newly opened Benson Bridge. As we came around the corner we saw the guy tying that red ribbon up in the middle. You might recall that the ribbon was not there when we looked up at this bridge from the lower viewing platform. But this was the doy of the official opening ceremony and they wanted to dress it up for the occasion.
This is the newly repaired Benson Bridge, all set for the opening day celebration. A rock had fallen out of the face of the cliff above and landed on this bridge. Here is a picture I took of the certificate that we got, along with a piece of the old bridge that was damaged. That is concrete that was resting on the bridge the very first time we crossed Benson Bridge in 1974! How cool is that?
And of course the lovely girl with the ponytail up ahead is the very same one I walked across this bridge on September 28, 1974, for the very first time. What a marvelous trip I had in store for my future, thanks to this marvelous lady. She was a bubbling over with sweetness, fun, and surprises! After knowing her nearly 40 years, she still never ceases to amaze me, with her ability to do the unexpected. And just think, three years ago, her first hip surgery had not yet happened! Here is what she looked like about that time: Dotti just before surgery. She was smiling, and looking lovely! She had worked very hard to get her weight down for the surgery, even though she was in agony. Just getting into the car was a huge ordeal. I had to help her lift her legs, because she could not left them herself, especially the left leg, because its hip was literally bone-on-bone at the socket. In my description of the time I mentioned the fact that we took this very hike on our first day and how much it meant to us to be able to do it again. Well folks, this is it! This is what our goal was in May of 2011, when Dotti was in agony and too crippled to walk to the bathroom with out a great deal of pain. Today, our dream was realized, as we accomplished something that seemed impossible in 2011. Today, Dotti walked all the way to the top of Multnomah Falls, and she even went farther than that! Dotti never gave up and here she is, not only walking across the repaired and newly opened Benson Bridge, but she is doing on two brand new hips, with her own repairs in place and functioning perfectly! This is a dream come true, and hope, turned into a goal, and finally reached today, three years later on May 30, 2014! Yeah Dotti! I am so proud of you!!!
	You can see that the trip up to Benson Bridge is worth it, even if you go no farther up the trail. The top of the falls is looking closer, and the design of the upper viewing platform is so well done that you can't see the railing or any indication that there even is a spot up at the top of the falls for looking down. In other words, they didn't mare the beauty of the falls in any way by mounting a nice safe place at the top for people to stand and enjoy the view.
The gnarled rooted tree next to the viewing platform stands to the left of the falls, spreading its wide branches out almost in blessing on all those of us below looking up to give homage to the falls. Even today, after so many visits to this lovely landmark, I am thrilled at the spectacle. And never, as long as I live, will the wonderful time Dotti and I had on our first date, going to the top of the falls, the glorious joy of the moment be lost to me. Dotti has given me many great gifts over the years. A wonderful life together, a wonderful son, and among the happy collection, here is this gift of a first date that few people can match for its novelty and unique form of fun. And like the other very best gifts, this one keeps on giving, over and over again. Indeed, not only have we been able to enjoy this with ourselves, and with our children, but with our grandson Kai and with our long term friends, and who joined us at our Dotti's Weight Loss Zone Conferences Three and Five. Yes we keep coming back, I admit it. On our hike listing you see that we are up to 5 Multnomah Falls hikes listed now. We also have two Wahkeena Falls Loop hikes which included dropping down past the top of Multnomah Falls and then going down the same trail to the bottom. Then we have 3 Larch Mountain hikes, which could have included this trail, but as it turned out the first one we didn't go all the way down to the bottom and the third one was a very short one just up to Sherrard Point. However, our conditioning was poor and it was a first hiking outing for Dotti after her surgery. She had not been exercising a lot at the time, so it was all we could do that day. The second one was a little crazy as we took two cars, and parked one at the bottom of Multnomah Falls, and then drove up to the top of Larch Mountain and walked all the way down to the bottom. We overdid it, and Dotti's knee swelled up afterwards, because she jogged down the last part of the trail, because it hurt her knee to walk. Our doctor told her afterwards, "Never run down something that you can't walk down without pain." It sometimes has been hard and painful doing this trail, but we love it still!
It was 8:41 am when I snapped this photo. That is 13 minutes after I took the picture of Dotti by the Multnomah Falls sign a the bottom. It was also about an hour and 20 minutes before the opening celebration would be starting. There are a few people on the lower viewing platform, but not very many at all. No tents, and no crowds yet. We beat the rush, at least on the way up. Multnomah Creek runs over to the right up against the rock wall, and through the green vegetation,
The light you see sitting at the rear of the lower viewing platform stands out against the dark green of the leaves behind it, despite the bright sunshine which is pouring through the Columbia River Gorge, lighting up the freeway parking lot, and the Columbia River and the northern wall of the Columbia Gorge, which lies in our state of Washington. The northern wall of the Gorge gets a lot more sun, since it has a "southern exposure" and therefore the Washington side of the Gorge has fewer creeks and waterfalls than the Oregon side, even though the rainfall is about the same on both sides. The sun dries things out to the north at least a bit.
	Looking down to the right from Benson Bridge, it shows how small the flow actually is that goes over the falls at this time of year. Multnomah Creek is calm and you never could tell by looking at it, that all that water had just had an "E-ticket" ride over the long drop of the falls.
Turning around and looking to the south, and up, we saw the top of Multnomah Falls. The water tends to favor the left side of the notch, but there is some flow coming over the right side as well. In the winter, when the rain is much heavier, there are many tiny falls that form along the rock face on the right side of the main falls, and the falls itself is far larger in flow. And the long term effect of the water is visible as a wide notch has been formed in the solid rock. Water and time have shaped the rock to suit their purpose.
	And of course our eyes are always drawn to this mark on the rock wall. A large chunk of rock once clung here, and in 1974, when we first came here together, the water would do a sharp jump to the side as it hit that rock. But over the years, water clung to that rock, and in the winter it froze into imperfections and cracks, and when water freezes it expands. The rock is cracked by this process and the imperfections are made larger, and the water can then penetrate even deeper, and in later winters it will freeze again and the cracks will widen more. And then one day, the cracks grew so large that the connection between the rock and the wall was no longer strong enough to support the weight of the rock, and it fell. Now the stream of water falls more nearly in a straight line than it did before, and the section of wall that was left lighter in color at the time of the break, has darkened to where it more nearly matches the coloring of the surrounding rock. Meanwhile, more cracks and imperfections are being worked on all the time in this wall.
Water dropping across rock. A simple concept, something that has forever caught the eye of man. Beauty, they say, is in the eye of the beholder. And in fact, it could be debated as to whether such a thing as beauty even exists at all, but rather is something created in our minds, through association of pleasant mental responses, or even memories, associated with some image presented to our eyes. Well, at this point, does it really matter?
We, as humans, accept the concept of beauty as valid. Whether it is a basic thing, a form, as Plato would have called it, existing by its own right, and apart from any observer, or it is only created anew, on the fly, as it were, by each new observer, that fact is that most agree that waterfalls are beautiful. Here at the very foot of the long drop of this falls, we see an uneven spread of water, in haphazard disarray. The crystal clear water which left the pool at the top has been churned into white spray, falling, sliding, misting and blown about, as though it were alive. The rock surface shows many imperfections. There is huge horizontal crack, a fault line, running across the wall, hinting at some future break away that will occur. Beneath that section of rock, is a cave, formed by water splashing up against the rock wall, and in winter freezing, and cracking the rock. Some falls produce incredibly large caverns behind their drop pools. The North Falls of the Silver Falls State Park Trail has a cavern that stretches far back underneath the basalt wall the water falls over, and the actual path of the trail runs far to the rear of this cavern. The distance from the water to the rear of the excavated volume is hard to believe. While this cavern appears tiny, with little room to fit inside, back in August of 1995, right after we moved back into the area from Massachusetts, both LeRoy and I went back under the falls into that cavern. They didn't have all the warnings and fences up that they have today, and we didn't have to work too hard to get down there. There was plenty of room to get in behind the falls without getting soaked. However, we had no idea at the time just how close we came to dying. Just a week or two later, on Labor day in September of 1995, that aforementioned chunk of rock broke free from the wall, and fell into the drop pool, just a few yards from where we were located. That rock was actually a 400-ton boulder, and fell 225 feet before it hit the rock bottom of the pool, and shattered into shrapnel of various sizes. There was a humorous side to this, in morbid sort of way, at least after the fact, because at the time of the rock hitting the pool, there was wedding group posing for photographs on Benson Bridge. It was reported that 20 people received minor injuries from flying rocks, and 16 of them were actually taken to the hospital for evaluation, including the groom, who was injured in a particularly unfortunate area of his anatomy. It was actually reported in the next day's Oregonian newspaper, that the bride stated for the record that the groom had still been able to bravely perform his conjugal duties. Okay, that got a laugh from the public, but since it sent water, and gravel sized rocks all they way to Benson Bridge, and caused injuries that far away, can you imagine what would have happened to anyone in that little rock tank behind the falls, with rocks ricocheting like bullets off the surface surrounding him? I don't think either LeRoy or myself would be alive today if that boulder had chosen to fall just a couple weeks earlier, while we were back under the falls. I had no idea how stupid we were to be there, until later. Most of the boulder remained intact and it is said to be the size of a school bus, and that should give some sense of scale to this photo.
	In this view, moving down a bit, to include the drop pool and the run off for Multnomah Creek, you can get more of a sense of the cavern behind the falls. The view is still blocked off by the mist from the falls, but the open area is visible. That boulder looks pretty small from this distance, but remember it was able to land there and still hit people with rock chips, who were standing where I was when I took this photo.
Dotti got ahead of me as you can see. She had already gone up that treacherous bit of slick asphalt that took me down on my back the last time I hiked this trail, with my grandson Kai. One thing this distant photo does is allow you to see how tiny people look at a distance that is no farther away than the rock boulder is. The school bus comparison is easier to visualize when you see how tiny Dotti appears.
	Moving along, and looking back at Benson Bridge, you can see how wet the asphalt is. When my feet went out from under me at this spot, there was gentleman sitting on that bench, who came running up to make sure I was okay. Fortunately, I was, but it sure was embarrassing.
This sign, along with many others, and a great deal of fencing all exist today, thanks to that chunk of rock you can see in the background. It looks a lot bigger from this vantage point, as we have gotten closer to it. The rock is covered in moss and looks like it has always been there. But looking at the rock wall behind, and the broken appearance of the surface tells us that things are always changing here, and it has not always been as it is today.
	I finally caught up with my lovely wife. And she happily waited for me. We have barely gotten started, but hike well begun is half done, to steal, and modify an old bit of wisdom.
I have made a point of mentioning how the falls and bridge have changed since our first visit in 1974, but I guess we might have changed ourselves slightly. In September of 1974, I was 23 years old, a Navy third class electronics technician petty officer, stationed on the USS Ozbourne DD-846 at Swan Island in Portland, and Dotti was only 17, just out of high school, and working as a file clerk in an office of engineers at Pacific Power and Light, in downtown Portland. As you can see, nearly 40 years later, we are no longer 23 and 17.
In 1974, we both had excellent vision and the only glasses we ever put on were sun glasses. I had light brown hair tending towards blond and Dotti had darker brown hair. We were both in good shape and took this trail in stride as only a minor challenge in 1974. Before our first solo date, here at the falls, we had two group setting "dates" where we got to know each other a bit. One was a volleyball game and the other an ice skating party, both put on by her church. So, I was already aware of Dotti's athletic nature. She could ice skate like a pro, doing tricks and scooting around the ice like she was born there. I could stand up and move around the rail without falling. But nothing prepared me for the first time we played tennis. Tennis was not my sport, and I had not played much of it, but even so, I am still smarting from the way she spanked on the court the first few times out. She was an exceptional tennis player. So, in case you were wondering, the old couple you see here were not always old and gray. But the fact of the matter is, that the nearly 40 years that have past since that first hike, were very special for me, and the pretty lady standing beside me here in this shot is a treasure beyond all price and the most wonderful lady I have ever met. She is my soulmate and best friend, and as long as I have her, I am content and happy, come what may. I hit the jackpot and I know it!
	The trail has to go up a long ways and to keep the grade from being too vertical it is built with a large number of switchbacks, like this one. Even so, the ground rose sharply from Benson Bridge to this little viewing area, and then continues to rise sharply off to the right, as it continues on its way to the top. This stretch of ground is always wet. The falls creates a perpetual spray that coats everything along this bit of ground.
After years in the Navy, where I dealt with wet decks, that rocked and rolled, I wish they could lay down some "nonskid" along this stretch, like they do on the ship's deck. You never want to fall on nonskid, because it will make hamburger of your skin where it hits. But, on the other hand, you don't fall on nonskid, if you pay attention, because it grabs your boondockers and gives great traction. Alas, this is not a metal deck, and it would be tough to get a truly nonskid surface here, but it would be nice.
This time I went ahead a little bit and looked back at Dotti at the switchback, with the falls behind her. From this point on, you hit the real trail to the top. A lot of people come to Multnomah Falls and only go up to the lower viewing platform, or up to Benson Bridge, and call it good, going back to their cars and driving on. But we were leaving all that behind and heading on up to the top.
	One switchback and we are already looking down on Benson Bridge from a distance. This trail climbs up in a hurry!
Looking even farther down, to the lower viewing platform, it reminds me of the time Dotti, who just had knee surgery, sat on those concrete steps beneath the Narnia-like lamp—right about where you see a guy standing and taking a picture—while I took our friends to the top.
As it turned out these pictures of Dotti smiling brightly and especially the one with Dotti sitting in my lap with the falls behind us, are some of my all-time favorites, despite the unfortunate fall and injury she had taken that required surgery to correct. September 3, 2002 Taken from Benson Bridge with Dotti waving. Zooming in on Dotti, also taken from the bridge. My lovely wife on my lap.
	We made it around the corner and out of the falls mist. Dotti is a little ahead of me again, you can just see her vest and red sleeves through the leaves.
We are getting up higher and the Columbia River and its Gorge is becoming more visible. We are seeing less shadow and more sunlight around us.
	This is a little photo-op area that is hard to resist. A section of basalt lost its adhesion to the wall and fell away, leaving a small cave just about the right size for Dotti and her hiking poles. It has been 18 minutes since we started our hike, and we are making progress.
The trail moves upward and that is a bit challenging, but it is dry and that is a lot nicer! And you can see ahead when we turn the corner the sun is hitting the trees. We are moving out of the rock grand hall that surrounds the actual falls, and out onto the side of the Gorge and the base of Larch Mountain.
	Turning around and looking back the way we came, you can spot that little "cave" where Dotti posed for the picture, and another chunk of displaced basalt standing watch over the trail from the side. The fragmented nature of the stone can be seen, as though disimilar things were forced together into a whole that was not quite right.
(This is a geological example of the political/military concept of "divide and conquer.") The reason basalt gives way to erosion much faster than granite, is quite clear from simply looking that this one example. It is made to fall to pieces, and ultimately, it will.
Dotti is already around the corner and I must catch up. The sunlight breaks through the trees in a haphazard manner, mixing light and shadow in interesting ways. Gnarled roots, forced to accept the imposition of the trail dig beneath it and run parellel to it, while a rustic wooden fence runs along behind the trees.
	Turning to look back down the trail once more, I am reminded that they have been forced to resurface this path many times over the intervening 40 years since 1974, and they have put up a fence of wooden posts joined by a double run of chain. But it is still the same in all the essentials. It is like they have repaired a broken stained-glass widow, or revarnished the pews inside a cathedral. The essence continues, even if the minor details vary a bit.
I love seeing Dotti's hair finally getting nice and long again, and it looks very cute in a pony tail. On our wedding day, June 10, 1976, I purchased a medallion for Dotti, from a booth near the base of the Seattle Space Needle. (The Space Needle opened in 1962, and so it was only 14 years old then. It is hard to believe that it is 52 years old today.) The medallion was made up of two hearts together and ever since that day, which seems like only yesterday, our personal symbol has been two hearts, and the necklace Dotti is wearing has two hears on it. Behind her, is the Multnomah Falls Lodge, where we started from, and looking quite distant already, but we still had a long ways to go.
	I know it is the same location, but I couldn't resist putting both pictures of Dotti in. I love them both.
While not in reality quite accurate, it is a mark of progress that we have made so far. When we came here in 1974, there were no such signs; in fact they are quite recent additions. For many years people were left to wonder, are we getting close yet? These signs at least help a little.
	We are now out of the shadow of the mountain, but we still are mostly covered in shadow, from the trees. As a general rule, when we are hiking, that is a good thing, because it helps to keep us cool. But wanted to catch Dotti in the light for the picture. It is amazing that just three years before I took this picture, Dotti was using an electric wheel chair to visit Silverwood Park in Idaho. She could barely walk, and was in agony every time I helped her to get into the car. And here she is today, walking up a very challenging trail, and with a beautiful smile on her face!
Looking up the path, we see a stone wall, built from the many basalt rock fragments, continually breaking loose from the mountainside, another relatively new addition, even though it is covered in green moss. The sun is rising higher in the east, behind the trees casting their shadows upon us.
	They work very hard to keep this trail up. The stone walls are not just decorative, but they hold back erosion. However you will note that the asphalt surface—and you can probably picture the sort of work it would take to lay down asphalt on such a steep pedestrian grade, where street machinery could never be used—has imperfections and "potholes." One of those was to play a part in our hike on the way back down, but on the way up, we hardly noticed them.
We were sharing the trail with a slower hiker than we were, and I had Dotti place her foot beside of it, to give scale to the photo. That is quite a large slug. And as it turned out, he was moving towards the rock wall. What he did when he encountered the wall, we never learned.
You may recall from our Ecola State Park Hike that Dotti likes to interface with the critters we come across on the trail sometimes. We found a salamander who didn't appear to be frightened by the attention. The fun (6MB) movie file shows Dotti with the salamander walking across her hands, and she plays treadmill for his little walk.
	Looking ahead, past the green moss covered rock wall, we were coming up to a junction, as well as another switchback. It is quite possible that this is actually more similar to the way it was in 1974, than it had been for many years. For a very long time, we came up to this switchback only to find the the trail off to the left was closed to hikers. But it is opened again!
This is the Gorge Trail #400. This trail runs for 35 miles, beginning at the Angel's Rest Trailhead and heading east from there, intersecting and and piggybacking on top of several other major trails, including Wahkeena Falls Trailhead, Multnomah Falls Trailhead, Eagle Creek Trailhead and on out to Gorton Creek (Wyeth) Trailhead.
	The view of the falls from this spot has changed a lot. In the DWLZ Conference Five, this was a great location for taking pictures with the falls in the background, as you can see here. But today you can barely tell the falls are back there behind all the vegetation.