Hood River

By the time we were done with our hike to the top of Multnomah Falls, we were hot, hot, hot and hungry, hungry, hungry.  That meant we had to change our plans a little and go to lunch first.  That meant a foray into Hood River.

When we arrived, the first thing we noticed was that the roads were narrow and congested.  Parking was at a premium, so when we saw the Full Sail Inn, Don told the group to go to the restaurant and he would find a parking spot.  No sooner had everyone disembarked but a car in front of us pulled out of its place.  Now usually an RV would not fit in a car space.  But when that space abuts a loading zone and it is a Sunday, an RV fits just fine.  We prayed we would not get a ticket.

The brewery was quite extensive, and although we would have loved a tour, we were too hungry to consider it.  Instead we took the first table for 10 they had.  The good news was it did not take long to get it.  The bad news is that it was outside.  That is not normally a problem, and we did not expect it to be, but since it was a deck with a cover on a hot day, it was simmering.

The food was worth the sweat, however.  I had a marvelous Reuben sandwich, made with their homemade sauerkraut.  Having made sauerkraut myself, I know how tricky it is, and this was a very impressive concoction.  Don had a turkey sandwich with an apricot chutney that appeared to take first prize, but I would put my Reuben up against it.  He also had one of the brewery beers, and he liked it enough, he purchased a six-pack to take home.

We had just enough time to visit the Bonneville Dam.  I wish we had had more time, but next time we will.  The fish ladders were so interesting.  I had no idea lamprey eels live in the Columbia River and that the lamprey is really a fish and not an eel.  The story of the construction of the dam is as interesting as any dam story I have read (ha, ha!), and although we did not get to go through every exhibit, we certainly got the gist of it!

By the time we were done with the dam, we were pretty darned tired.  Over 14,000 steps and 151 flights of stairs was enough for us.  We dropped the crew off at their hotel, went back to the RV park to do some laundry, and finally about 9:30, we had digested our lunch enough to go to McDonald's for an ice cream cone.  Not a great dinner, but a yummy one!