19-22 Jun: Just south of Portland, we visited friends and former Mainers Dan & Linda. Linda worked alongside Amy way back when Amy and I first met in 1976. Dan has taken up watercolor painting in retirement, and we were very impressed with his mastery of composition and technique. They showed us around the beautiful rose garden in Portland (“the Rose City”) in full bloom, then took us to a gourmet ice cream shop downtown.
While in the area we hiked Mt. Tom Dick and Harry (great view of Mt. Hood) and biked a section of the pleasant Banks-Vernonia rail trail. As we headed north on our way to Washington, we drove over a high ridge with a good view of Mt. Saint Helens. Active logging in this area has produced some large clearcuts that are covered with wildflowers as the vegetation begins to re-establish itself.
