A
difficult
night,
but
a
pleasure
to
stay
here
anyway,
backtracking
via
Oak
and
the
frontage
road
to
the
freeway,
then
south
on
5,
the
rest
of
Cowlitz
County
along
the
Columbia
River Valley
ultimately
leaving
Washington
for
Oregon.
Marek has
warned us of
crowds afoot in Portland, and
we avoid most by taking the Broadway Bridge (1913),
designed by Ralph Modjeski (1861-1940),
who also designed the
Ben Franklin, 1926
Tacony-Palmyra, 1929
San Francisco - Oakland Bay, 1935
(as opposed to Ralph Matesky, 1913-1979, a composer known for his pedagogical string works; or
Ralph Spoilsport and Johann Amadeus Matetsky from the Firesign Theatre's second album How Can You Be in Two Places at Once When You're Not Anywhere at All, 1959)
But
surely we digress
in the Pearl District
rendezvousing with
Marek and
Jair at the
Lovejoy Starbucks
for
a
nice
get-together.
The rain returns as we head back to the car for
goodbyes, and
off we go
across town,
onto
405 and
ultimately the
main drag
again,
down
the
increasingly,
welcomely
rural
central
and
southern
Willamette
Valley,
with
views
of
various
relatively lower Cascade prominences to the west, and Coast Range to the east,
beyond
Mt Tom,
Rock Hill,
Spores Point,
Coburg,
Eugene,
Cottage Grove,
over Divide, between the Coast Fork Wilamette and
Umpqua
drainages --
the world looking increasingly Californian,
despite the clouds
and
rain beginning again
in
Rice Hill,
along
the
ridges of
Roseberg,
myrtlewood
(California laurel)
creeping in,
Round
Prairie,
California and
Boomer Hills,
Myrtlewood
and
Riddle,
Canyonville,
Canyon
Creek
Grade,
Quines
Creek,
Glendale,
Stage
Road
Pass,
a
first-ever stop
in
Wolf Creek,
Smith Hill Summit,
Sunny
Valley
(not quite today),
Sexton
Mountain
Pass,
Hugo,
Grant's
Pass,
Rogue
River
Valley
State
Park,
Table
Mountain,
Medford,
Barneburg
Hill,
Bear Creek,
Phoenix,
Talent,
Ashland,
more
petrol
at
the
viewful
junction,
up
Siskiyou
Grade
near
Mt. Ashland,
over
the
Summit,
still more ominous
weather,
but at last back in
California,
Hilt,
Henley,
Hornbrook,
Klamath
and
Shasta
Canyons,
Anderson
Grade,
the
down
slope
towards
Yreka,
more
precip,
the
broken
land
of
Shasta
Valley
Buttes,
towering
clouds
and
a
rainbow,
another
scenic
stop
near
the
Airport,
followed
by
Weed,
surmounting
Black
Butte
Summit,
then down past
Mount Shasta
to
Dunsmuir,
Castle
Crags,
Sacramento
River
Canyon,
Delta
Peak,
Vollmers,
Lakeview
Ridge,
Salt
Creek,
Brian Mountain,
Gray
Rocks,
Lake
Shasta,
Gate,
on
the
way
to
Redding,
all
the
paradoxical
peaks,
Sacramento
Valley,
Anderson,
Cottonwood,
the
Lookout
Ridge
Divide
down
into
Red
Bluff
and
with
views
including
Black Butte,
Orland,
the
Hoodoo
Hills,
Willows,
more
Coast Ranges,
Sutter Buttes,
Maxwell,
into
Yolo,
the turnoff on to
505,
Dunagan
and
Zamora
Hills,
Esparto
overshadowed
by
Rocky
Ridge,
Berryessa Gap,
Winters,
Vaca
Mountains,
English
Hills --
whew!
to be
home!
On the 75th day of summer, high down 9 to 81 (ABCA of 81-84-90-81, last 4 days)...
Kalama, 62
Portland, 63
Roseburg, 60
Ashland, 56
Redding, 76
