Midnight Ride

Should we go, or should we stay? That was the question we kept asking ourselves for several days. For months we had been planning on driving down to the Columbia Gorge in Oregon, and hiking up Eagle Creek to photograph Punchbowl Falls, however, the weather was not being very cooperative. The weatherman said that it was at least 60% chance of rain, and up to a half an inch of rain at that ......so you can pretty much count on getting wet. But being adventurous, Ron and I decided to take a chance and go anyway. The plan was to drive through the night, park the truck at the trailhead for a quick nap, and then start hiking up Eagle Creek the 2 1/2 miles to Punchbowl Falls. So we left our house about 9:30 PM on Monday night, May 24th, and set off on another photographic adventure.

We got tired shortly after midnight so we pulled into a rest area and took an hour snooze. ( if you can call sitting up snoozing.........I think that Ron can sleep anywhere!) We arrived at the Eagle Creek Trailhead around 3:15 AM, filled out a Recreational Pass and parked the truck. I stretched out in the backseat of the truck and Ron stretched out in the front. We slept for a total of an hour and a half. It started to get light around 5:00 AM, so we rousted ourselves, ate a bowl of Shredded Wheat, put on our hiking boots, strapped on our camera bags and started up the trail.

When Ron has a goal in mind, nothing else matters! Today's goal was to get into Punchbowl Falls QUICK, take some photos before it either started to rain or the sun came out. The last time I hiked this trail was over a year ago .........and this year I was definitely out of shape. All the uphill grades seemed a lot steeper for some reason......it can't be because I'm getting older....can it? Anyway, Ron leisurely hiked into the falls and I panted to keep up.

Ron finally left me in the dust about the last quarter of mile, as he was getting anxious to get started. As I finally made it down the last steep incline to the creek, Ron already had his camera set up ready to go and had his water shoes on ready to wade out into the icy cold water. When I say ICY COLD, that is an understatement! Eagle Creek is basically snow runoff, so saying it was really cold, doesn't quite accurately describe it. Biting, stinging, numbing cold, would be a bit more descriptive.

You might be asking, "Why in the world would anyone wade out into an icy cold river to take a photo?" The answer is very simple: YOU CAN'T SEE THE FALLS IF YOU DON'T GET OUT INTO THE MIDDLE OF THE CREEK. The water seemed extra cold this year though. Ron wanted to try several different shots from different angles and with different lenses. He was in the creek over an HOUR......he finally came back to shore with his teeth chattering. Most of the time he was at least mid-thigh deep or deeper. I had to wade out to get the photos of him, taking the photos......but I only stayed in that icy water and long as necessary! I found some rocks that someone had built out into the creek so I was only ankle deep most of the time.

If you haven't seen this pristine area, it's difficult to describe. The spring green is breathtaking! The lush ferns and wildflowers are everywhere, and there are dozens of waterfalls on this trail. If you stay on the trail, you can only see Punchbowl Falls from above it.......but to get this classic shot, you have to descend down to the creek and wade out in the water. A lot of hikers will come down to the creek, but do not see the waterfall because they don't know you have to wade to the middle of the creek to see the falls. They just don't know what they are missing! This particular waterfall is one of our favorites.....it is located in a 'bowl' shaped rock enclosure, that almost feels like a cathedral with it's high moss and fern covered walls.

I'm trying to talk Ron into going back again this weekend, to take some more photos. I'm not real happy with how mine turned out, and want to try again, with a different lens and different apperature. (the three photos above are all mine.....the photo below is one that Ron took of me trying to balance on my rock pile.)

By 9:00 AM, we were frozen and we felt a sprinkle of rain, so we decided to dry off and start our hike back out. (I don't think that hiking downhill is any easier.....especially on the knees.) We met only two other couples on our way out who were on the trail, which is unusual.....it is a very popular hiking trail and most of the time has lots of hikers. By the time we got back to the truck, we were both pretty tired. We drove back to Troutdale (just outside of Portland, Oregon) and got some breakfast, then started our drive north, to home.

I remember trips we used to take when our kids were young, and we drove through the night.......it was always an adventure and lots of fun. Somehow we keep thinking that we can still do those types of things, so off we go......on the midnight rides. And can you believe that I'm trying to talk Ron into going again in a few days? Maybe we can't keep up the same amount of energy that we used to, but we can sure try......just think of all the fun we would be missing if we didn't!