At 0530 hours the National Geographic Sea Bird is sailing toward The Dalles. The still dark sky is studded with stars and the waning gibbous moon stands in the winter circle of stars above Orion. At 0730 hours we transit The Dalles lock and stately Mount Hood, a classic stratovolcano and the highest point in Oregon, comes into view. Soon we are alongside the dock at The Dalles. As we disembark we are greeted by the “floozies” and a sheriff, local citizens in period costumes, boosting their community and greeting visitors. After meeting the floozies more than one of us came away with lipstick on his cheek.
Soon we are aboard comfortable motor coaches bound for our morning destinations. Our first stop comes after a drive up the Historic Columbia River Highway to Rowena Crest—a high point with a spectacular view up and down the Columbia River. Our second stop is at the Columbia Gorge Discovery Center, a fantastic museum of history of the Lewis and Clark expedition, the Oregon Trail, geology, the great Ice Age floods, and more. Outside is a well-planned area featuring plants described by Lewis and Clark.
From the Columbia Gorge Discovery Center we took several options: hiking back to town with Darcy, our wellness specialist; bicycling back to town with Sue, our expedition leader, and Linda, our naturalist/photo instructor; a nature walk with Grace, our geologist/naturalist; and photo walk with Rich, our National Geographic photographer. We went our separate ways, each of us enjoying our special activity and meeting back on our dear ship for a delicious lunch.
The afternoon found us back on our coaches and headed east for Maryhill Museum. Maryhill is located on a grassy, basaltic hillside overlooking the Columbia River. It is a mansion built by Sam Hill, railroad tycoon and entrepreneur. The museum holds amazingly eclectic collections, from exotic chess sets, to the largest number of Rodin sculptures in America, to one of the finest of Indian basketry, to ancient tools carved from basalt rocks. The spacious grounds, well-groomed with broad lawns and tall trees, are intriguing with large and strategically placed sculptures. From Maryhill we could look across the river and see the tracks of the Oregon Trail from where the pioneers first saw the mighty Columbia River.
From the Maryhill Museum we drive a short way to the Maryhill Winery, the 2014 International Winery of the Year. Here in their beautiful tasting room overlooking vineyards and the Columbia River and with Mount Hood in the background, we sample their best wines. We linger here as long as possible, enjoying the wine, the ambiance, and the camaraderie. Back aboard our evening ends with an astonishing presentation by Rich Reid on his timelapse photography.
