Yesterday we met a bunch of friends for a birthday brunch.  A good friend of ours turns 50 this week, and a ton of people showed up to mark the occasion.  Afterwards, on a lark, I decided it was a good day to visit Multnomah Falls, out on the Columbia Gorge.  It took us for ever to find parking out there.  I forget that Multnomah Falls is one of the most popular tourist spots in Oregon.  And I think pretty much everyone was there yesterday. 

Anyway, I’ve been to the Falls maybe a dozen times in the (almost) 18 years I’ve lived in Oregon, but never hiked up to the top of the falls.  Being that it was such a brilliant day, and the kids had been inside way too long, we decided to make the hike.  It was well worth it!  What a view.  It’s certainly not a hike to be undertaken lightly.  It’s only about a mile, but it’s very steep.  However, once you get up to the top, there’s a viewing platform that’s built out over the top of the falls (with a very stout railing) so you can see all the way down.  There were quite a number of wild flowers blooming already.  It’s definitely spring around these parts. 

I was reminded of just how much I like hiking.  I’m thinking the kids are big enough that it’s time to start dragging them around the woods on a more regular basis.