Neither my brother nor I were feeling ambitious the last day of my visit, so, rather than climb up Beacon Rock, we walked along a paved path below Beacon Rock, close to the Columbia River. This area was formerly the Doetsch Ranch, complete with home, barns, and farm animals. Now it is a day use area within Beacon Rock State Park.
Blackberries grow in a tangle in the adjacent fields. It was well past their peak season, but I kept a sharp eye out and found just a few that were still worth eating. It made my day! Those berries have a special flavor, but perhaps that's called nostalgia.
And there is Beacon Rock again, with Hamilton Mountain visible behind it. When I lived here fifty years ago, Beacon Rock was quite bare on top. Now there are tall trees up there, reminding me of a mohawk hairdo.
Little rabbits were scooting and jumping all along the pathway. This one was quite unafraid of us, so I was able to get a decent photo of his cute self.
If you would like to read the previous installments of my Columbia Gorge visit, you can find them here:
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4