Cold and clammy Kalama

by | Oct 13, 2025 | Uncategorized

Our first stop on this seven-night cruise is the Washington port of Kalama, billed as the “gateway to Mt. St. Helens.” 98% of the people on board were scheduled to take an afternoon trip by “luxury motor coach” to see St. Helens’ crater and stop by the visitor center. When Kathleen and I saw the weather (having visited Mt. St. Helens numerous times before), we decided to stay on board, and I could finish yesterday’s post. The other four members of our group decided to go ahead and go, as they had never seen the mountain before.

Unfortunately, the weather was not ideal. In fact, for most of the morning, it had been pouring. When they headed out just after lunch, they had high hopes that the clouds would be below them at the summit, but instead, they found themselves in the clouds rather than above them. As my brother Steve said (in a text from the “luxury motor coach”), “We got a nice bus ride.”

But later in the afternoon, while the buses were up in the clouds, the sky cleared for a little bit here in the port city of Kalama, so I got a chance to get off the ship and walk to the new Marketplace building, the port’s Interpretive Center and all the way into town without getting very wet from the passing showers.

This means I took some great photos (at least I think they are), especially one that showcases a very unique feature of our ship. When we sailed up to the Kalama dock, for some reason, we did not stop there. Instead, the captain went a ways down the bank and shoved the nose of the ship directly into the side of the river bank. Then, the front of the bow lifts up, and that’s how we got off and on the ship yesterday. I know it sounds strange, but here’s what it looks like in a photo I took after exiting the ship myself.

After exiting out of Harmony’s bow and getting up to the bank, there was a very nice walkway that took me all the way down to the entrance to the Mountain Timber Market. Think of this as a kind of mini-mall full of cool little shops and other attractions to entice travelers like me to spend some cash. I took a few pictures of this part of the walk that I can share.

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If you are ever driving south on I-5 and need a break, this would not be a bad place to stop. Really, a super building with lots of great shops, not to mention that totem pole.

After visiting the Market and listening to the great music, I headed further towards downtown. I shot a few more photos of the very nice park-like riverbank. There was an outdoor totem pole, a very nice hotel, and, of course, the river itself.

From the hotel, you can stroll past the marina, climb up three rickety, swayin’ metal stairs, cross a bridge over the railroad tracks, then come down even more rickety stairs to reach downtown Kalama. The town—more of a highway-side village—was mighty quiet on a Sunday afternoon. I was looking for a birthday card to send to a close friend, and honestly, the only option available was the local supermarket, which, it turned out, had a surprisingly fine selection of birthday cards. As I mentioned, downtown is really charming and quaint, so I’ve included some photos to give you a sense of the place.

After finding that birthday card, a funny magnet to act as a gift and some cool Christmas ornaments, it was back to the ship for me. On the way, what else? A few more photos to share.

One mystery I would like solved is that the last photo in that group was taken from a very nice pier that would have fit our ship perfectly. We know that because we drove by this pier on Monday on our way to Portland, and one of Harmony’s sister ships was attached to that pier. It would have made it a lot easier for all of us to access that Marketplace as well as the port’s Interpretive Center. No ships were docked there all day, so I have no clue why we didn’t use it.

That about covers Kalama. We had a great day with some very nice food and drink, which I will cover in another post.

There’s nothing greener than Washington state. They have the most beautiful vegetation on the planet. And the water is so clean.   —Fabio Lanzoni

 

Cars, Planes, Waterfalls and of course…More Food!

by | Oct 9, 2025 | Uncategorized

Yesterday morning, we headed out to the Columbia Gorge (after a hotel breakfast that left much to be desired) to visit Multnomah Falls, Vista House, and Hood River. Then it would be back to Portland for some outstanding Greek food for dinner.

Multnomah Falls is about 25 miles due east of Portland in the Columbia River Gorge. That’s about all I can say about it, other than it is a waterfall, it’s pretty, and it’s fairly accessible. I will let some pretty pictures do the talking. Don’t forget; if you click the first shot, you can scroll through with your arrow keys or by swiping. And PLEASE…don’t look at my photography on a phone. Please…

After our waterfall experience, we drove about six miles back down the Gorge to drive up to Vista House. This is an old structure that perches on top of a very high point along the Columbia River and offers amazing views in both directions. I took a few shots there, and then we are off to Hood River.

Our next stop was at the Cascade Locks, where the original locks were built to allow steamships to bypass the rapids on the river. Took a couple of photos there as well.

About six months ago, my son Josh told us that he and his wife had visited Hood River and were really impressed. To the extent that they felt they could actually live there. For an urban lover like my son, that says a lot. So we had to go investigate. It turns out to be a pretty cool town. Our first stop was the pFriem Brewery, where we grabbed a delicious lunch. Here’s what we had.

When we emerged from the brewery, we were looking directly at the river. One of the things the Columbia is famous for is wind and windsurfing. Got a few photos of that as well.

One of the biggest attractions (but you have to look for it) is the WAAAM. That stands for Western Antique Airplane & Automobile Museum. My son also enjoyed this, which surprised me as well, until we drove up (it’s above the city by the airport) to see it. WOW! That’s all I can say. If you even slightly like cars and airplanes, this is the place you have to visit. Here are too many photos I took there. I can promise you that for every one you see here, there are five or six more I didn’t post. There are captions on my favorites.

If you aren’t into cars, feel free to skip ahead to dinner. Many of you know I have a thing for hood ornaments. I just think they are art that has been lost. So when I see good ones, I have to photograph them and add them to my collection. Here are the ones I found this time. No captions. Just the art of the hood ornament.

After we left WAAAM, it was a long drive back to Portland on the Washington side of the river so we could end up in Vancouver, WA, where I need to check in with my doctor for a quick follow-up test related to some issues from the radiation I had in March. No big deal. Everything’s better now.

That night, we had dinner reservations at Eleni’s Philoxenia, a highly-rated Greek restaurant in the Pearl District. We can see why it’s well-regarded. It was amazing—fantastic atmosphere, great music, superb service, and some of the best Greek food I’ve ever had. And I love Greek food.

That about covers our Wednesday. Portland is still awesome and we can’t wait to sail up the Columbia Gorge and see it from the water. Stick with us. That happens next week. Tomorrow (earlier today as I write this) we went out to the Oregon Coast.

Sometimes in L.A., we get accused of being superficial. I feel like Portland’s the opposite, in that there’s a greater depth of character, and sense of self.  —Ruben Fleischer