.as if I were in Holland...part 1.

One of my goals in life is to go to Holland and ride a bike through the rolling fields of tulips.  Tulips are my ULTIMATE favorite flower, there is something so magical about them. I still remember the first boy who bought me tulips, Ben, because he said something that hurt my feelings (after 8 years together my husband FINALLY bought me some because he hated that there was that one guy before him who bought me tulips!).

In April, I had an unexpected early day off and nothing to do. I  knew the Tulip Fest was happening near Portland and that I really(really) wanted to go. After consulting the calendar and realizing that I go now or forever hold my peace, I packed up my camera gear and jumped into the car. An hour later I pulled into a gravel parking lot filled with mini vans and joined families galore at walking the vast fields of brightly colored tulips.

.Mt. Hood is always watching over us. 

I spent 2.5 hours in the heat, walking up and down rows upon rows of beautiful flowers. I took my time so I could appreciate the unique colors and shapes. Sometimes, I even stopped to smell the flowers and take it all in. There was a set of fields located in the back, far from the first popular fields that not a lot of people wandered over to. I would stand still and just listen to the loud hum of bees and bugs buzzing around me while I watched the groups of people in the field plot over. I thought to myself, if all those people would just stop for a moment, they to could experience this amazing part of nature. But alas that doesn't happen much, people stopping to take in the WHOLE experience, we are always moving on to the next thing that we can accomplish.

I took hundreds of photos that 2.5 hours....seriously, over 300 photos!! I have whittled it down to a "few" of my favorites.  Since I don't want to overwhelm you with photos in one post, I will have another post to share the last bit of photos with you!

Mt. Hood Scenic Railroad

One of my goals this month was to explore at least three different things in Portland/ Oregon. I didn't waste any time by jumping on the good ole fashion railroad to take in the scenic Hood River area located in the Columbia Gorge.  Dave and I drove an hour in the rain to get to Hood River and board the train. The whole drive there, I was nervous it was going to rain all day long and put a damper on our adventure. However, in good old Oregon fashion the sun came out and shined during the excursion and started to rain again when we got back to our car!

.i love the colors of the train cars. 

The cars we traveled in were mostly from the 1920s - 1940s. You could turn the seats to face others or have some privacy, which was nice (and reminded me of train we would take from Newcastle to Sydney, Australia). You could also walk between cars and get yourself a snack or beverage, if you didn't bring one with you. 

We rode the train for 1.5 hours to the small town of Parkdale, OR. Parkdale is located only 40 miles from the base of Mt. Hood and I'm sure its a sight to see on a clear day. On the way to Parkdale we saw orchard after orchard, making my mouth water thinking of all the delicious fruit this summer. I can't wait to do the Fruit Loop!! The conductor of the train taught us how farmers kept their orchards from frosting over as well as knowing the difference between cherry trees and pear trees (pair trees have rough bark, cherry trees have smooth). AND around 80% of the orchards in the Columbia Gorge are pear!

When we arrived in Parkdale we explored the orchard before grabbing some lunch. After the rain we truly enjoyed walking around the small town in the chilly spring air. We took our time taking pictures everywhere in town before grabbing lunch from the local grocery store. We found the perfect spot to relax and eat before the train blew it's whistle for us to board again. 

All in all we had a fabulous day on the railroad, taking pictures, and having a quick little adventure. Plus the drive from Portland to Hood River is beautiful in itself. We went in early April before spring had officially sprung, I recommend for others to wait until middle of April or later so you have more color outside your train window. 

Dave and I got our tickets through Groupon, but you can also find more information on the Mt. Hood Railroad website. 

.Munson Falls.

We discovered this beautiful spot on our trip to the Oregon coast, but it was so beautiful that it needed it's own post. Dave and I were driving down the highway heading into Tillamook for some Christmas Day chinese food when I saw a sign for the falls pointed towards a small dirt road, of course I didn't hesitate to turn off the main road. We drove up a one lane, dirt road, laying beside a  corn field as we made our way down the road slowly turned into more pot holes than road. We almost turned around but thankfully we pushed forth because this is what was waiting for us at the end of the pot holed road...

It was a moss covered fairy tale wonderland.  We pulled into a small circle parking lot, parked and then jump out of the car to explore. We didn't have to walk to far before we were blown away, becoming speechless by the beauty that surrounded us. If you follow the path you come to a beautiful waterfall that makes you stand in awe. This was one of the most beautiful places I have been. It seriously is in my top five...and closer to the top than the bottom!!

If you ever are in Portland. Jump in a car, head to the coast, and view this beautiful natural treasure when you are there! It's just right outside Tillamook,  you can take a tour of the Tillamook Cheese Factory and then walk off all that cheese at the Munson Falls!!

.Walk About.

When the sun is shining and both Dave and I are free for the day, we look at each other and say, "Let's Go!". Where we are going, we don't know. We just walk down to the TriMet station, get on the train and let the day take us. We usually grab some food at a food cart, eat in a park, and then spend the rest of the day walking down different streets, exploring this wonderful city. Here are some photos from our last walk about:

.We saw a bridge and walked to it. When we got closer we started singing, 

"Under the Bridge" by Red Hot Chili Peppers. 

.A thing I love about the Pacific Northwest is ALL the classic cars

you find on the road. I drool over every single one of them.

.Broadway Bridge.

.Picture of a bridge through a bridge...i thought I was clever. 

This is the Steel Bridge taken from the Broadway Bridge.

.View of the Fremont Bridge from Broadway Bridge.

.Imagine if the guy had a camera in his hand..the ultimate old time selfie.

.urban hunter - found a deer and shot it with my camera phone.

.i thought i was clever...again.