Downtown

Moving from Minneapolis to St. Paul, it's wierd to differentiate "Downtown." Now, of course, when I tell Adam I'm heading downtown I refer to somewhere around Kellogg and Wabasha, rather than Hennepin and Nicollet.

Today I rode downtown on my bicycle in an urge to be close to the river.

Playing around with my glasses, the skyline, and some water drops

flowers around the neighborhood

Moved into a new apartment in St. Paul, near Como Lake/Park/Zoo. Come across a lot of vibrant flowers in the neighborhood the past couple of days.

Our Little Mouser

Speaking of kittens.... A few months ago, in the middle of the night, Kali was scuffling around on the floor making lots of noise and waking me up. She was sniffing around in a specific spot and I reached out to see if I could feel what it was in the dark. I touch Adam's backpack and thought maybe he had left some food in their that Kali wanted to get at. I nudged him awake and asked him he had; he mumbled something and fell back asleep. 

Kali kept it up for a while. Annoyed, I sat up in bed and reached out again for the bag intending to hide it from her for the night. As I did so, I felt tiny little feet race across my arm and across the room. I screamed and woke up Adam, who was concerned the aliens were finally here.

Since then, Kali has been sniffing out the little guys all around the basement. However, we're unsure if there are several milling about or if there is just one or two because she seems incapable of killing them. She simply chases them around until she can corner it and get it in her mouth when she promptly finds the nearest person to show it off to. She then drops it at their feet and bats it around for show until someone takes pity on the poor mouse and brings it outside, full of little kitten bites all over it's tail and body.

Last night, she was up to it again.

kittens in trees

wyoming sunset

 

Almost home.

storms

Outside of Lusk, Wyoming on our way to South Dakota we hit a big storm cell. Swirling clouds and rain falling so fast and thick that we couldn't see through it. Upon my insistance we turn around and head towards the last little town we passed to see if we can wait out the weather. As we drive back out of the rain, a group of horses ahead on our right suddenly take fright and stampede away. "Where are they going?" Out of the hail, we found out. Immediately after asking the question it begins to fall, golf-ball sized right onto the windshield. 

idahosunset

 

Originally planning on heading north into Wyoming towards the Grand Tetons, we're both terribly homesick and have decided to head straight east.

Disapointed, because I was very much looking forward to both the Grand Tetons and Yellowstone, I know my heart will only be half there, while the other half wanders towards home. 

We should be back within a week. For now, I'm enjoying the sunsets.

soda springs

 

Shots taken in Soda Springs, Idaho as a storm quickly rolls in.

lava springs

 

We took the scenic route through Lava Spring, Idaho on our way towards Wyoming. On Main Street there were teenagers lazily walking down the middle of the road with big yellow and orange inflatable tubes tucked under their armpits. They were all heading in the same direction, so we followed them slowly through town. At the end of the road was a small gravel parking lot where a weedy path led down to the river.

We watched a group of kids walk down the path, jump into the water and onto their tubes. Adam immediately got giddy and pleaded to go. I relented. We drove back down mainsteet at one of two stands renting out the tubes - $3 per hour per tube. We got two and followed the footsteps of the drunk teenagers in front of us. We should have took more notice of the stratches and bruises on the others.

The water was much faster than we had expected, and filled with sharp rocks on the bottom of the shallow bed. Immediately we both hit our butts on one jutting up too high. 

Adam quickly got ahead of me as the current took him. Around a corner he warned to get to the edge, away from a bubbling rapid but I was too slow and the water plunged me into it. Cold and shocked I swam as fast as I could to the outer edge to regain my composure and jump back on the tube that was already fifty feet ahead of me downstream. Luckily Adam caught it in time.

Damn. And only half way done with the trip.

First sights of Idaho

Multnomah Falls

We left Portland early this morning via Interstate 84, with the Columbia River and Washington state running parallel as we began heading back home.

We stopped about 40 miles out of Portland at Multnomah Falls. A 620 foot waterfall split up into two parts (the upper falls dropping 542 feet), with a footbridge that crosses above the lower cascade.

There was a path leading up to the bridge, lined with flowers and miniature waterfalls from creeks that ran through the forest. 

Standing on the bridge, it's impossible to stay dry, especially today when the wind was at work. My camera, myself, and Adam were soaked. Although I look distressed about it in this picture, it felt great and the roar of the falls made me linger longer.

Portland Farmers Market

Visited the Portland Farmers Market this morning, down by Portland State. So many vendors with lots of greens and honey and flowers and potted plants and musicians and nomzy food. <3333

river leading back into the ocean

Heading up to Crescent City and the California State Line. One last picture of the coast before we start heading inland to Portland.

redwood nat'l park

 

Foggy and rainy. I'm glad we brought rain gear. I dream of leaving the paths and getting lost in the mist, amongst the trees and ferns.

video from the coast

redwood coast

We jumped over to the 101,  Redwood Highway, constantly tempted by signs luring our car to drive through massive Redwoods. I refused on moral grounds. 

Due to strong wind and rain we spent the night in a hotel in Eureka, California. We got there late, but the front desk offered to leave the pool open for us if we wanted to take a swim. Despite the rain, we were eager to jump in. Heated, with a half wall seperating the indoor part of the pool from the outdoor, it felt good to float on my back while water from the thick clouds fell from above.

Eager to upload pictures on a decent internet connection, I didn't sleep as much as I should have. Seems to be the trend when we finally get a big comfy bed, our night in Vegas being a prime example. Nevertheless, we woke up early to low hanging clouds and a mist. Unpetrubed we jumped back on the 101, up the Redwood Coast to Redwood Nat'l Park.

We stopped just south of Orick, parked our car, and walked down to the beach.