So my bride says, "I would really like to drive along the scenic Columbia River Gorge."What would you do? Keep in mind we are cruising in a 36' land yacht. My first resource said, "we had to back the bus up 10 years ago along that route, but I am sure it is better today." Hmmm...
A call to the visitor center landed to the sweetest lady you could ever expect. "No, I don't think you would want to take an RV along the route. But here is a number of a guy at the water fall, he might have some more insight."
Well, the guy at the water fall said, "Tour buses and semis come through here all of the time. There are only a couple tight sections."
Yeh, yeh, I know, we have insurance and all. But I have to tell you, it can get a little crazy driving the big rig from time to time. But, this is my wife, this was her wish and a true man never lets them see him sweat.
I can't really describe the tightness of the road. The closest thing that comes to mind to compare this stretch of road to would be me trying to squeeze into my high school letter sweater. I am sure it would work out fine, but there would definitely be some rough edges.
The beginning of the road was narrow. Then about 2 miles into it and friendly sign warned that the "road narrows ahead." Hmmm...
Not only did it narrow ahead, but it got more and more curvy as well. There was an incredible view point about 10 miles into this episode, but there were only 2 bus parking places and they were already taken, so all I had to do was wind all the way around the view point. I am pretty sure we did a tight 360 degree turn if not a 720!
Surely this was the final of the "couple tight" spots. Oh nooooo. Multnomah Falls is such a beautiful sight, it attracted hundreds of people at the exact same time we arrived. But, if you approach the falls from the west on the Historic Route 30, there is a narrow section of a pass about 200 feet long that would fit a car each way. Once the lane emptied, I made a run for it. But the cars on the other end, assumed there was room for a car and an RV.
Many body parts tensed up at this moment. I am pretty sure Connie could touch the cliff wall to our right. I was as close to it as I could get without rubbing the mirror on it. I kept inching forward hoping other cars would assume they could wait until I left the space. But, several rocket scientists thought the 20 second delay of me passing them was too much time to waste.
Once we cleared the 4th car in this section, I proceeded to the bus parking and RV restroom for a quick change of my shorts.
The water fall was incredible and the return to I-84 was a welcome moment in the trip. Oh, by the way, if you would ever like to see this incredible fall, you can actually park at the viewpoint on the interstate and walk to it without taking the scenic route.....but what kind of man are you anyway?
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