A Boring Independence Day

July 4, 2018

Boring

We’ve only got a few days left before leaving for Canada. Tomorrow night is our last night at our basement apartment on East Burnside, so we’re starting to break camp. It’s a complicated problem, sorting out what needs to go in the car with us to Canada, what we’ll store in the bike storage unit for easy retrieval when we return to Portland next month, and what can go into long term storage. With our track record of late, I’m confident we’ll screw something up; but hopefully we’ll be close and not have any critical errors.

First though, it’s Independence Day! We have an attractive agenda lined up: a bike ride out east along the Springwater Corrider, lunch on the waterfront, and an afternoon French film at Livingroom Theaters. We’ll do it all by bike, stopping at the waterfront at the end of the ride, and then biking over to the storage unit to leave them in a secure spot while we enjoy the film. Afterwards, we’ll bike home and spend the evening sorting out our gear in preparation for departure.

The ride is great. We’ve had excellent cycling weather all week, and today is no exception. It’s overcast and fairly cool when we set out, with Boring as our goal, 20 miles off at the end of the Springwater Corridor. There’s a bit of a headwind as we bike east and gently climb, which stiffens steadily as we ride. This often happens - if it’s breezy in Portland, it will be windy as we near the gorge though. We don’t mind though - we can look forward to a nice tailwind once we turn back to the city. In the meantime, we can pretend we’re The Grumbies, biking the wrong way across the windswept Great Plains and keeping a watchful eye out for tornados.

It’s a tradition! We always stop at this dewatering hole when we ride out Springwater.

I’ve never noticed that there are chestnuts growing along Springwater. You have to be here at the right time for them to grab your attention.

It’s overcast in Portland, but the view east to Mount Hood is surprisingly clear.

The Oregon checkerbloom is another flower I’m surprised I’ve overlooked until now. It blends in with the foxgloves, fireweed and peas that line the trail. Interesting that they’re all so similar in the color spectrum and grow in the same habitat.

At Boring we turn back west, and enjoy breezing back to the river ahead of our anticipated tailwind.

Strike that. The wind shifted, and is now coming from the southwest. We get to enjoy one of the rare days when we face winds both ways. Life’s not fair.

Lunch on the waterfront is as fine as expected. On a nice day, I think this must be about the best outdoor dining venue in town. We enjoy a nice chopped salad, grilled salmon, and a glass of Sauvignon Blanc as we enjoy the boats on the bay and the steady stream of walkers, strollers, bikers and boarders pass by. Occasionally, when the wind is right, we hear the sounds of the Waterfront Blues Festival drift by as well.

We have plenty of time until the film starts, so after we finish our meal we move down the waterfront a ways and sit on an empty bench closer to the music. We might as well pass the time here and listen to a band.

We quickly discover though why the bench is empty - we’re sitting near a religious zealot, holding up a hateful sign and scolding everyone within earshot. It takes me perhaps a minute to conclude I’ll not be able to stand this for the next hour, so we decide to bike off to the storage locker and then sit in Directors Park until the show starts.

Which is a good thing; because as we biked up to our storage unit (on the fifth floor of a parking garage), I realized I had forgotten to bring the key. With no safe place to leave the bikes, we have to head home. Fortunately we haven’t used up our time though - we still have an hour, which is time enough to bike the three miles home, grab the Jetta, and drive back downtown.

Are we really sure we want to get rid of the Jetta?

We make it back in time for the film, The Guardians, which is terrific but bittersweet - about my favorite mood in a film, I think. Set in rural France in World War I, it follows a family of women coping with the farm while the menfolk are off in the trenches. Beautiful, evocative photography, and an unglamorized view of farm life before the gas engine and the electronic age arrived. I think my favorite image from the film was when news comes that one of the men has been captured and is imprisoned in Mannheim. The grieving wife sobs that she has no idea where that even is, so they haul out the world atlas and with a magnifying glass pore over the map of Germany.

A great spot for lunch, when the weather is right. We’ll be staying a few blocks from here this winter, but we’ll have to enjoy the view from behind the glass then.

Independence Day

Last night we drove home across the Burnside Bridge, and were startled to see the Convention Center lit up in a bold red and blue pattern we’ve never seen. It’s for July Fourth, obviously. I decide that if it works out, maybe I’d bike back down to the river on the Fourth with the camera.

I go back and forth on this as we’re packing up at the apartment; but as sundown nears and we’re running out of tasks, I decide to go for it. I’m thinking I’ll also bike over by Tilikum Crossing to get a nighttime photo of the bridge in it’s summer colors.

When I start biking, I’m immediately disappointed - the sky to the west is a brilliant cherry red. There’s no good spot for a shot of it here, so I speed downhill to the river, trying to get there before the glow fades away. Nope - five minutes too late.

As I cross the Burnside Bridge I look at the Convention Center. It’s lit up, but it’s not dark enough yet to stand out. I decide to come back this way at the end of the ride, and head on upriver along the waterfront.

I head up river slowly - very slowly, because it’s the Fourth of July. Portland’s primary fireworks display occurs here, fired off from a barge in the river just south of the Hawthorne Bridge, in front of the Blues Festival. Both sides of the waterfront are completely jammed with spectators - as is the Hawthorne Bridge, which is closed off to cars for the event. It’s quite a scene, and not the easiest spot to be with a bike.

The fireworks are spectacular, and it’s exciting to see them in the middle of a mob like this, cheering with each new display. A great roar and burst of applause accompany the denouement.

Who wouldn’t be happy to have their picture taken next to a Rodriguez?

The Blues Festival is still going strong.

On the Hawthorne Bridge, waiting for the show to begin

Here’s another opportunity to experiment with the new camera.

The Convention center, lit for the Fourth

My town. We’re leaving soon, but we’ll be back.

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Mike AylingIt appears that you have solved your camera problem!

Mike
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6 years ago

Scott AndersonTo Mike AylingFunny you should mention that, Mike. A funny thing happened today - I downloaded a photo from the net to my iPad, and it was spoiled in the same way. I think it may be an iPad problem or the photo application, and not the camera. If it happens again when I extract from the camera, I think I’ll try clearing the download out and trying again.
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6 years ago

Steve Miller/GrampiesLes guardiennes was one of the offerings on Air Transat as we flew Amsterdam to Vancouver. But after all the time spent on the Sommes and near Ypres I found I wasn't up to watching beyond the first few minutes. I also avoided Dunkirk on the same flight. Wimpy.

Steve
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6 years ago

Scott AndersonTo Steve Miller/GrampiesI can understand your squeamishness. I decided against seeing Dunkirk myself. You’d be fine with this film though - it isn’t really a war film, but just set in wartime. All the action takes place back on the farm.
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6 years ago

Ron SuchanekI love the photos of our old stomping grounds. Great shots of all, especially the Blues Festival.
We have gotten in the habit of scrutinizing wind forecatss for obvious reasons, but our friend and riding partner said that we should just looked at the map, figure out which way we are traveling, and the wind will come the opposite way.
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6 years ago

Scott AndersonTo Ron SuchanekYup. My advice is that when you reach Portland, turn around and go back the other way to see if you like it better with a prevailing tailwind.
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6 years ago

Ron SuchanekTo Scott AndersonI'm not sure that's in the cards but I'll let you know.
We have run into a few eastbounders who were complaining as loudly as us aout headwinds so I wonder if there is a significant difference over all. John Meiners (CGOB) did wind speed and direction readings on one of his tours and found there was not a clear trend if I recall.
But if I had to declare based on our experience, winds prevail from the north.
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6 years ago