A Wilderness Love Story

Last weekend, lovaaahhh boy and I wanted to get out of town (what a surprise). Shockingly, it was hot in Portland and so we headed in search of swimming. We packed up some things, hopped on the Ducati and sped out of town. Cruising along the Columbia river, we saw a sign for Washougal River and decided to check it out. A windy road led us to a pretty,deep swimming hole perfect for cooling off.

After our swim, we headed off in search of camping. We drove north a ways into the Pinchot Wilderness area (for all you hippies out there, this is where Rainbow Gathering was this year) and found a spot by a creek to camp out.

Camping with my boyfriend is always an intersting experience. He prides himself on taking as little as possible and on the bike this is necessary. Typically our camping trips involve one sleeping bag, maybe a tent, some sandwhices and a fire. This was no exception, we spent the night shivering, but it always makes for good stories in the end...and exhaustion ;)

Summertime

After a trip to the library to stock up on my weekly books and a stop at the bagel shop, I come home and open up my laptop. It's dead. My boyfriend says, "oh yeah, I spilled a cup of water on it". What?! Luckily, after some unscrewing and laying out in the sun and several hours, my laptop is back in full force. It did give me quite a scare though, it would have been really bad timing. 

On a completely random note, I love the dress in these pictures. I love summer when all you need is a cute print and nothing else. Quite honestly, I would go barefoot all the time if socially acceptable...I guess some of my hippie roots are appearing. And on another random note, does anyone else feel completely absurd posting pictures of themselves posing day after day? I do. And yet, I still enjoy it, almost like a grown up version of dress up. Ok, enough rambling. I hope everyone has a fantastic Monday. 

Good ol' Post Secret, you know me so well

Did I miss the memo that requested all bloggers begin discussing transitioning from summer to fall?

Ughh, seriously, I love boots as much as the next, but wishing away summer seems almost criminal to me. Give me sun, heat and swimming 12 months a year, please!

Incognito

I took a day off work today so I guess it was fitting to go in disguise. With glasses, a hat and my hair up, I could pass by my own family without recognition. I suppose I'm falling prey to Portland, what with the shades and the hat. Oh well, when in Rome.

Serenity Now!

 I was feeling a bit exhausted and so a day off was necessary. I bicycled out to the Lloyd Center Mall to pick up some things and this is what I wore, a common bicycle outfit. Comfortable, covers all of my bits while riding and gives a very very slight nod to style.

A Day In The Life: Bicycle Edition

 So I woke up on Sunday feeing a little rough and knew I had to get out of the apartment if I was going to have any chance of perking up. I made myself a protein smoothie that picked me up a little, packed some water and a book and headed out of town on my bicycle.

I road out of Portland on Mt. St. Helens Highway that's popular with bicyclists. You ride along train tracks, bridges and the Columbia. It's really quite nice.

I road to the Sauvie Island Bridge (about 11 miles out of PDX) and explored the little oasis. I really like the Island, it can't be more than 15 miles long but it is filled with lakes, farms and berry patches. I took a pit stop at the Bybee House (oldest on the island) where I met up with my boyfriend who drove. We had a picnic, found a blackberry patch and then headed off to a little lake. I didn't swim in it as shallow lakes creep me out with their murkiness but it was lovely nonetheless. All and all a nice end to my weekend.

Rainier

My BF and I embarked on yet another road trip recently. We initially planned to drive straight up to Seattle to visit his family, but the urge to avoid the freeway led us to take an extreme detour and pass by both Mt. St. Helens and Mt. Rainier.

Mt. St. Helens

Just woken up

 I really love road trips. I think that's one of the things I love most about the West Coast: plenty of room to roam.

Creepin'  

Surprisingly, this was my first time to Mt. Rainier. I must say, I was blown away. With our late arrival, the park was nearly empty. WE drove up the winding road and the views took my breath away. Wide open sky. Huge looming mountains. River beds washed white from the churning water.

Mt. Ranier National Park

Beauty

I love exploring new places in the Northwest. I've seen so much of it that I have a mental image of the region, with the parts I've been marked out. SOon I want the whole region crossed off of my "to see" list. 

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