After sitting around for the first half of the day, barely able to move from the slam I took last night skating, I was finally able to get myself together so I decided to roll out to the gorge. I've been wanting to get my first look at the damage left by the wildfires and hoped that the breaking storm would make for some dramatic skies. It was only about a mile or two passed Crown Point that I started seeing spots where the trees were changed to an ugly brown from the vibrant green we are used to seeing. As I progressed farther into the gorge it went from spots to entire hillsides. Instead of dense, thick trees I could see hundreds of feet into the forest due to the trees being stripped down to their trunks and a few branches. They were like skeletons. It wasn't far passed Multnomah Falls before I could see evidence of the fire reaching all the way down to I-84, and in some spots it even crossed over into the westbound lanes. I passed the trailhead at Elowah Falls, my most favorite waterfall, and could see the info station half burnt, and all of the surrounding woods completely scorched. It was heartbreaking.
I continued down the freeway to Cascade Locks passing scorched signs, cut down trees, blackened earth, and the smell of old stale smoke. As I rolled up I could see this ray of light beaming through the clouds and moving right up the river like a spot light. I jumped out of the car and hopped up on this brick wall right at the base of The Bridge Of The Gods and set up my camera. What I got was an image that showed me that, even though the gorge may be changed, it is still very, very beautiful. And it always will be...
