Chapter 16, The North Pacific Coast

A few years ago my boyfriend, Bill, and I took a drive up Interstate 5 to visit some friends in Pasco, Washington.  When we had gotten to the Klammath Mountains I new we had driven into a different land from what I was used to.  I could see Mount Shasta in the distance, and the view around me was very lush.
 
Mount Shasta, www. fotopedia.com

We stopped in Gresham, Oregon to have lunch with some friends that live there.  Though they said that there was not much to see in the area, they took us to Multnomah Falls next to the Columbia River Gorge.  It was such a beautiful sight.  I learned that the Falls is the second highest year-round waterfall in the United States.  We sat on a bench that had a front row seat of the Falls and I could remember thinking what a gorgeous natural creation, and how fortunate it was for us to see it.  It was a different world from the life I was living in California.     

Multnomah Falls, OR, http://www.kevingong.com/

Pasco, WA is toward the eastern part of the state.  It was the middle of July and about 104 degrees. 
On our way back to California, we decided to drive west to Seattle and be tourists for a day.  We went to the infamous Public Market Center, home to Pike Place Fish Market where they throw fish to one another instead of passing them by hand.  This part of town would probably be comparable to Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco, sans the fish throwing.  The smell in the air was definitely similar, but I don't think Seattle seafood is anywhere near what they're cooking in the City. 

A worker on the receiving end of the fish toss, www.seattletimes.nwsource.com

workers in San Francisco's Fisherman's Wharf would not dare toss the steaming crabs to one another, www.dchamberlinarchitect.com

On another adventure trip, we had taken a 10-day cruise through the Inside Passage of Alaska.  Our ports of call were Sitka (AK), Juneau (AK), Skagway (AK), cruise around Tracy Arm Fjord, and Victoria, British Columbia.  We found all of the cities breathtaking and beautiful, but we especially enjoyed the capital of Alaska, Juneau.  We had scheduled an excursion to do a 9 mile bike tour of the city.  It was really an enjoyable way to do it because we got to go off-road and into trails/areas that were not explorable through automobile.  The tour ended at the Alaskan Brewing Company for a nice cold beer.  To do a bike tour of San Francisco would be great for the biking enthusiast.  It would also be a good way to see the City.  With such a hilly environment all of your muscles could be feeling the burn, and the reward would be the cool ocean breeze when you ride out of Golden Gate Park, and maybe a nice cold Anchor Steam beer.
 
port at Juneau, AK, http://www.vacations.com/