This isn’t especially that good of a picture. The muddy water is ugly, and the buildings are worn and old.
No, what’s important in this photo is the historic significance of this very spot. The city of Oregon City was built just down river of the falls as a Lumber Mill. It was a natural stopping point for travelers heading up the Willamette River due to the waterfalls. Dr. McLaughlin who was chief factor the Hudson Bay Companies Columbia River operations based at Ft. Vancouver in Vancouver Washington moved here in 1846. Steamboats heavily traveled the river usually using the locks to the right and behind the building which still exist. But Steamboats did go down the falls by accident (and on purpose once,) several times, and even up the falls a couple of times.
The falls actually haven’t changed that much in the last hundred years. It looks like some sort of wall was built around the rim. As can be seen in this old post card even the building on the right has been significantly added to, and it actually still generates power. The Locks still exist and are in use, but no where near as often as they use to be. The Lumber Mill grew into a quite large operation, and was finally shut down in the 1990′s due to the economy. Dr. McLaughlin’s house was moved from the down town area to a place over on the bluffs over looking the falls and is now a (supposedly) haunted history museum.
Click
here for more sizes.
tags:
bay,
boat,
City,
company,
dam,
Dr.,
falls,
fort,
House,
hudson,
lock,
mclaughlin,
oregon,
power,
ship,
vancouver,
Willamette
The last week or so has seen some snow. Being at 500 feet it’s quite rare for us to see snow in the Portland Area. So last Saturday I was determined to get some pictures of the snow.
At first driving up to Multnomah Falls was getting disappointing. The snow flurries stopped about fives miles away. But suddenly within half a mile it started coming down hard. So, from my favorite vantage point I got this gem.
Click here for
larger size
On the way back through the West Hills, we took a quick detour to the Oregon Zoo. Amazingly it was open, but rather wet to go see much. I did manage to get the Mountain Goat directly inside the entrance.
Click here for
Wallpaper Size
The next day though we decided on a different tact. Off to the Beach! Sunny and 45 degrees, in other words perfect weather. But first we had to head into the Coast Range. Which at 1600 feet had plenty of snow, but few places to pull over to take any pictures. Luckily there is a rest stop dedicated to the Sunset Division. A bridge crosses a small river to the interpretive loop which talks about Steam Logging practices in the area.
Click here for
bigger sizes.
Keep in mind that it’s nearly 100 miles away, and completely different mountain ranges between the first and last picture in this set. The kicker is, we made it to the Coast, the sun was shining and we had a wonderful day.
tags:
1024,
1600,
background,
bridge,
center,
coast,
falls,
goat,
highway,
Hills,
interpertive,
interpretive,
logging,
loop,
mountain,
Multnomah,
oregon,
portland,
range,
river,
steam,
Sunset,
Wallpaper,
Water,
west
I love this view of Multnomah Falls. It feels more majestic and awe inspiring to me from this angle instead of closer up where you can see the bridge and the lower falls. I still have to point upwards to get it as can be noted by the light in the corner.
Click Here for Bigger Sizes
tags:
1024,
1600,
autumn,
background,
colors,
falls,
leaves,
Multnomah,
oregon,
photo,
picture,
Wallpaper
The Columbia Gorge remains one of my favorite areas in Oregon. No doubt just like everyone else. I’ve spent hours there hiking and taking pictures. The area is quite serene and of course beautiful.
This waterfall is one of my favorites. It’s an unassuming widening in the road. Very few people even stop there. The walk to the falls is short and not that exciting. But 30 feet from the road you’re transported into a whole different world.
Click here for larger sizes
tags:
1024,
1600,
background,
brown,
columbia,
falls,
gorge,
gray,
Green,
Multnomah,
pavement,
Sheppards Dale,
walkway,
Wallpaper,
Water
