June 2022 Vacation Day 15, Oregon Attractions and Points East · · PAGE 38.

June 6, 2022:  We get on I-5 and resumed our cruising speed down toward Portland, Oregon.  I noticed the Motel 6 sign where we spent the night of June 5 in Kelso, Washington. We spent the morning today going over to Mount Saint Helens to see the 1980 volcanic eruption debris and related sights along the way.

Here is our first view heading south of Kelso on Interstate 5.  Our next target is 32 miles south from this location where I-205 splits from I-5 and we will begin our trek east.

This close encounter of I-5 with the Columbia River is less that 4 miles south of Kalama, Washington.  Oregon is on the other (WEST) side of the river seen in the image below.

Interstate 205 splits from I-5 north of Portland on the Washington side of the Columbia River.  This interstate 205 passes to the EAST side of Portland, Oregon and connects to I-5 south of the big city.  I just realized there is an Interstate 205 down near Tracy, California.

Now we see that I-205 route number here in the Portland, Oregon area with a Junction to I-84 and US 30 going East following the Columbia River.  That is our route for this afternoon.

I used my GPS database to find a Wendy's location when we reached Portland, Oregon on I-84.  We got into the drive thru land and discovered they did not have the usual items we order.  We departed here to search for another Wendy's and came up empty.

While we were looking for another Wendy's, I noticed we needed to get fuel after our trip to Mount Saint Helens earlier today.

We discovered this Arby's on a frontage road to I-84 near the Portland Troutdale Airport.  We had our usual Arby's order with milk shakes.  I watched some helicopters flying in the pattern of the airport and a few fixed wing Cessna trainers also.

This stallion statue was across the side street from Arby's.  We parked our car here to enjoy our meals.  We noticed all kinds of traffic was using this frontage road since the eastbound entrance ramp for I-84 is just beyond those trees near the center of this Google Earth image below.

There is much to see ahead along the route of the Columbia River.  This sign marks the end of Portland and the beginning of this National Scenic Area.

The sign in the image above promises scenic views.  Up to this point on the highway, there were trees blocking the view of the river.

The land adjacent to the river has been re-shaped to allow tourists to park their cars between the East and West travel lanes and catch a shuttle bus up to the top of Multnoma Falls seen in this image to the right side of the highway up high on the bluff.  This view is looking East.  There is plenty to discover about this double cascade of water falls using a Google search.

When I looked at the parking areas for the Multnomah falls area, I recognized a ground level view would not be complete.

Here is the ground level parking area and shuttle bus for Multnomah Falls as seen by Eastbound traffic on I-84.

The bright orange channel marker reminds us the Columbia River is the largest navigable river in the Pacific Northwestern United States.  A lot of barge traffic carries freight on this river along with River Boat pleasure cruises.  This image confirms how much the river has created this gorge over the millennia.  The speed limit for the highway is 65 to 70 MPH.  The passenger jet contrail shows the fastest transportation flying over this rugged landscape.

I have been capturing these mileage signs all through this trip that started in Florida back on May 23, 2022.  Here is another one next to the Columbia River in Oregon.

The Bonneville Dam opened in 1938.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bonneville_Dam  That Wikipedia article can provide more details.

Cascade Locks is a small town on the south shore of the Columbia River near a couple of dams on that river.

This is the second time I have been on this route.  The last time was May 18, 2004.  This is along Interstate 84 about four miles west of Hood River, Oregon.  This part of the interstate highway system replaced a classic portion of US 30.  

Oregon - May 18, 2004 going upstream on the Columbia River.

The Mitchell Point overlook in Oregon was CLOSED today, June 6, 2022 as Linda and I are retracing this route to show her the scenery along the Columbia River. 

This 2004 picture below is large enough to show all the details of the information sign about this location alongside the river, highway, and railroad.
 

Looking past the sign, this is what I saw.  That is another railroad on the opposite side of the river.

Now you know why I said "another railroad" since there is one on this side of the river and the interstate highway as well.  This view is looking west toward the Portland area (way down stream).

I tried to catch this logging truck in the picture, but alas, digital cameras have a bit of delay from the time you press the button before they actually take a picture.  It sure gives you the idea of just how close the railroad and highway are to the hillside of Mitchell Point where I am standing.

I zoomed my camera lens to maximum and got this picture of a train going East along the other side of the river.  Although I was on a business trip, I tried to enjoy the ride along the way to my technical seminar in Moses Lake, Washington.
This image is looking over my shoulder from the tourist sign.  It is the craggy peak that is Mitchell Point.

I took this picture as I was leaving the parking area at Mitchell Point.   It puts things in perspective for the viewpoint of all the pictures above this one on this page.  Look near the center of the fence at the far side of the parking lot and you will see the information sign shown in the first picture at the top of this page.

Mitchell Point is a good place to get out and stretch after a 1-hour ride from Portland, just because of the view of a dormant volcano that eluded me a few days ago.  No, it was not Mount St. Helens, but Mount Adams on the Washington side of the Columbia River.   And a good place to get that picture was from this city park.  The camera set the exposure for the foreground and the greenery of the park.  This exposure setting completely washed out the details of the volcanic peak which is in this picture, but only shows up in the picture below this one.

This photo is taken from the same spot as the one above, but the difference is that I pushed the zoom lens to maximum and got this picture of Mount Adams across the river in Washington.  At this point along the Columbia River, things are very lush and green from the Pacific moisture and the prevailing winds.  Wind surfing and sail boating on the river here is a great pastime.


The Hood River Bridge to the Washington side of the river is clearly visible from much of the town.  This viewpoint is overlooking the local newspaper office.  The town is named for the Hood River coming from the south, which empties into the Columbia River at this location.


It doesn't take very long until the land starts to become more of a desert domain as seen in this photo taken on I-84 further East along the river.

I came upon this river tug boat pushing some barges upstream on the river and had to stop the car long enough to take this picture.  It also shows the desert-like conditions that are becoming more a part of the landscape.


I stopped about a mile further up the road and found a good vantage point near the intersection of Oregon state route 74 and Interstate 84 to take the following pictures.  From this vantage point, I am standing beside a frontage road that is between the railroad and the interstate highway right-of-way about 17 miles west of Boardman, Oregon.


I was not the only one to stop at this location to check out the sights.   This is Wayne Swartzendruber of Hesston, Kansas.  He had been spending a few days in the Portland area visiting some relatives and had just started driving back to Kansas today.  He had recently broken his 35mm film camera and was interested in my digital camera and where I got it, etc.  This is the last image from May 18, 2004.


June 6, 2022:  Back to newer Google Earth images as we are going East on Interstate 84. 

This point along route I-84 the road is going south next to the Columbia River 80 miles East of the beginning of I-84 in Portland, Oregon where it leaves Interstate 5.

The town of The Dalles has its city center 84 miles from Portland, Oregon on Interstate 84.

Just East of The Dalles is this truss bridge that goes over into Washington State, and The Dalles Hydro-electric dam across the Columbia River.  As you can see from this Google Earth image, both of these structures are visible from Interstate 84.

With The Dalles behind us, the speed limit is now 70 MPH as we head for our hotel for this evening.

We are now 104 miles from the beginning of I-84 back in Portland, Oregon.  US 97 was our route through northern California, Klamath Falls and Bend Oregon from a few days ago.