I woke up early AF this morning for no particular reason. I did go to bed shockingly early; so I guess that could be considered a “particular reason”. So, I’m a liar
But 4:30 am came and seeing as it gets light absurdly early out here, I decided to get up and enjoy the mist. It was GORGEOUS. I knew it was the end of the spooky weather so I wanted to take in as much of it as possible.
To fully enjoy it, I did early morning laundry, but rather than move the van or do anything remotely efficient, I walked everything down one by one to the small closet laundromat attached to an inn famous for pie. I couldn’t tell you- I’ve never been inside. But that’s what I’ve heard.
So I walked down the dirty clothes first. Then slowly strolled back up, got the detergent. Another trip for the quarters. I was really milking it.
By the time the gas station had opened so I could get my coffee, and the wash was done and ready to be dried, it was time for my kitchen interview. It went essentially the same as yesterday’s retail interview. “You’re already hired, we just wanted to meet face-to-face”. They were a little bummed about my having busy weekend days tied up with the retail gig, but said they could make it work regardless.
So, fuck yeah. A couple days over a week in this area and I locked down two jobs for the rest of the summer. It’ll give me some wiggle room and time to figure out what’s next.
I was pretty excited about finalizing the jobs and freshly washed laundry, so I said fuck it and drove to Hood River. Why? I dunno. I like their skatepark and I always hear the town is cool. I’ve been here like half a dozen times and literally only gone to the skatepark. (I’m not complaining; it’s a fucking amazing park)
The weather changed almost immediately. About five miles from Hood, the misty rain turned to sun, and the dry roads signified that it had been that way for a while. I had no hope of being able to skate beforehand, but now I realized hey! I get to skate Hood River! (For those who don’t know, wet ground is a skateboarders worst enemy. Both for slipperiness and damage to board components)
Nestled just uphill of route 84, at the junction of 30 which will take you to Mount Hood, lies Hood River. It’s one of several beautiful small towns on the Columbia Gorge, a truly fascinating body of water separating Washington and Oregon. Of all the places I I’ve been, the drive along the Gorge is one of my favorite drives in existence. The way the gorge is carved out amongst giant ridges and unique rock formations.. it’s something else.
So I put the one familiar place in town into the GPS- the skatepark. The sign says I can park until 10pm- perfect. Some online research showed that they are super strict on overnight parking/car camping in town, but I went into the Walmart down the street and despite the discouragement online due to a large number of”No Overnight Parking” signs, the woman at customer service gave me the thumbs up. Just as long as I was out by 6 am. So I decided I’ll park at the skatepark until 10, and then move over to the loud Walmart parking lot.
I set off on foot to explore the small town. Hood River has a population of roughly 10,000(I saw conflicting numbers and took an educated guess), and has a small, vibrant downtown area amongst residential hillsides. It gives off a very small coastal vibe, despite being decently far from the actual coast. On the other side of the highway, you’ll find the gorge, and a large amount of people enjoying said gorge.
Originally known as Dog River(why would you ever change it?), Hood River is apparently the “Windsurfing capital of the world”- something I was unaware of until walking down to the water. it was pretty alarming how much windsurfing was going on, and then I saw a sign that confirmed, yes, it had claimed that title.
I spent a good amount of time down by the water, taking in the views and mingling with the kiteboarders and windsurfers. I walked out on a peninsula known as “The Pit”, which seemed to never end. By the time I got to the end I could’ve swam to Washington.
I visited a little coffee shop aptly named Dog River Coffee. It was a really cool place and had incredible coffee; the only downside was the group of elderly men sitting at the table next to me having a very loud and very problematic conversation. Interesting mix of people out in these parts.
I continued walking around downtown before heading back to the van to charge my phone and see how busy the skatepark was. It was fairly empty, so I had a nice evening session before it got too dark. It was my first time skating since breaking my ribs, so even though I was being overly cautious, it felt really good to start getting my legs back under me.
The retail job starts Friday morning so I think I’ll do another day here. Why not. The parking situation kind of sucks but I’m sure I can probably sneak in one more night at Walmart. Or get some local tips. iOverlander has a pinned spot on the other side of the bridge crossing the gorge that is apparently beautiful; the problem is I like to walk around after I park and there’s no pedestrian access for the bridge. But I do want to see it.
Feels good to be experiencing something new. Feels good being by the water. Feels good starting to skate again. Things are looking up and each day I’m feeling better little by little. We should all try to find things that make us a little bit better. Even a tiny bit. Much love friends
