3not5: Where Were You in 1988? (Part 2)

 I prefer to be on the sidelines rather than in the middle of a crusade.   Yet if everyone sat out this game we would lose homes and the county would gift us with a 5-lane highway.  So began about 16 months of intense work within the community and county.

Briefly, the county plan was to build a full-width (98 feet) 5-lane Bethany Blvd. through our 9-neighborhood area with a design-speed of 45 mph.  Without sound walls.  Without landscaping.  Sidewalks kissing the road.  Without a stoplight along the way.  Houses would be torn out.  3not5 asked for a 3-lane road more in character with the neighborhood, one that would fit within the narrowest point of the existing roadway (68 feet).  Keep in mind that no one wanted the road to stay "as is."   We all wanted a new road that looked exactly like this:

The 3not5 steering committee whittled down to 12 of us who worked extremely well together.  Just about every talent needed was covered between us: a printer with his own press, computer nerds, a graphic designer, a carpenter, an Intel manager who served as chairperson, researchers, a journalist, a retired traffic engineer, the president of a local retirement community, gifted speakers, a fundraiser.  We established a web page, passed out notices, circulated petitions, marshaled the press, made scads of phone calls, sent thousands of emails, created displays, researched local laws and ordinances and the value of trees, solicited contributions, testified before the county Board of Commissioners, organized neighborhood meetings, wrote letters, canvassed door to door, joined local advocacy groups, and spent oodles of hours strategizing. 

In yesterday's post I mentioned that for over 20 years the county put off questions and concerns about Bethany's safety and future, telling us it was too early to express opinions or discuss improvements.  At the first public meeting (March 2010), over 400 people turned out (thanks to 3not5's hard work), which is about 395 more than usually turn out when county road projects are unveiled.   The meeting was staffed by planners, engineers, county reps, one Board of Commissioners member.  I knew we were in for a long-term battle when several of the staff repeatedly answered citizen concerns by asking, "Where were you in 1988?"   You see, the 5-lane plan was officially adopted back in 1988, and as far as the county was concerned, we should have spoken up then, and it was just too dang late to change the plan now.  No matter that every citizen inquiry and concern over the decades was rejected because the issue was 'not yet on the table.'  We were trapped in the Twilight Zone.

That phrase, "Where were you in 1988??" kept our committee laughing through the difficult depressing times when we were buried over our heads in our effort to keep up the fight for a 3-lane Bethany.

Part 3 tomorrow

3not5.org (Where Were You in 1988??) Part 1

For 27 years we have lived in the same house, one block away from Bethany Blvd., a poorly designed, hazardous 2-lane road, which is the main north-south route in our area.  It had been a narrow dirt/gravel country road until not long before we moved here, and it appears that the county just slapped asphalt on top of it without regard for a safer design.  The road is lined with deep drainage ditches and telephone poles, and its curves and hills dangerously limit sight distance.  There's a hump in the road outside my neighborhood which has caused plenty of accidents, including a number of Friday-night rollovers involving teenagers attempting to hit the hump at high speed to become airborne.

We have known for decades Bethany would eventually be improved and widened, and over the years many neighbors have expressed safety concerns to the county and requested temporary safety measures to be installed.  We were always told the same thing:  sorry, the road is not yet slated for improvement.  As an appeasement to one of my calls about 20 years ago, the county installed a couple of intersection signs which did zero to make it safer for us to exit our neighborhood.  Some years later the signs vanished one day, never to be seen again.

In late 2009 there were frequent sightings of county employees in the area, like ants at a picnic, so again I phoned the county for info and was put through to Matt, who said that yes, the road improvement was finally scheduled and there would be a county-sponsored open house in early spring 2010.  At that time county officials would hear and log public opinion on the future design.

But in early 2010 I received a forwarded email from Norm, a community activist friend of mine, which was originally authored by Matt.  In it, Matt outlined county plans to acquire a house in my neighborhood that was in foreclosure.  Reading between the lines it was obvious the house was going to be in the way of the project--a 5-lane "highway"--and subject to demolition.  Yikes!  That meant that all 70 houses that backed up to Bethany were in danger, and 9 neighborhoods were about to be emasculated.  Norm mobilized and enlisted about 20 area residents for the first meeting of what eventually came to be known as 3not5.org (http://3not5.org/wordpress/ ).  Meaning, "build 3 lanes, not 5!"  My life as I knew it was about to become hugely complicated!!

Part 2 tomorrow

The Kindness of Strangers

Popular opinion claims there is little goodness left in the world, that everyone is out only for himself, that there's an ax murderer hiding behind every tree and a child molester hanging out in every public restroom.

We have had some experiences lately that show good folks are still with us.  Here's 3 of them:

Craig was injured in a bike spill last month coming down a rural mountain road 20 miles from home.  His tire blew making his bike useless.  I was out of town so not available to rescue him, and he had forgotten his phone anyway.  A stranger stopped to help whom Craig asked for a ride into the nearest town (Banks).  The stranger was on her way to work so she called her husband to come help Craig.  The man drove Craig all the way home.

 A few weeks ago I loaded up the car and headed for Idaho with Daniel.  I didn't realize until stopping for gas that the trunk was not shut tight.  I now know it can appear shut when it's not.  When we arrived in Idaho the computer bag holding my laptop and camera was not in the trunk.  I thought perhaps I left it at home but Craig couldn't find it in the house.  Later that evening he received a call from a Comcast employee, who had found a computer bag in the middle of Ridgetop Lane a block from our house.  His son got into some program in the computer that provided a phone number, he contacted Craig, then returned the computer and camera the next day.

Last week I was doing a baby shower for a woman having her 5th child, and some friends donated $$ for a large group gift.  The woman has no car and either walks or takes the bus.  On Craig's List I found a used but in-almost-perfect-condition double jogging stroller for her, for $100.   In the course of conversation I  mentioned to the owner (Lisa) a little about the woman's difficulties.  The next day there was a message on my phone from Lisa saying she was going to give me my $$ back as she wanted to donate the stroller to my friend.  Wow.

Oregon's Garden of Eden, or, My Ideal Birthday

We are among the luckiest people when it comes to enjoyment of the outdoors--the Garden of Eden is practically in our backyard!   Known as the Columbia River Gorge, it is a land of steep cliffs sliced by plunging ravines, all laid down by flowing lava several millennia ago.  Ice age sculpting left its mark, and now hikers delight in the rushing rivers, pounding waterfalls, enchanting old-growth firs and cedars, all softened by lush leafy greenery.

In 1922 the Columbia Gorge Highway was completed, once known as "the road that could not be built."   After the road went in, trails and campgrounds were developed to give the newly mobile a destination.  I haven't had a moment to reference Trill's diary, but it wouldn't surprise me if Ruby and Trill (Craig's grandparents) stopped here on their 1924 trip.

Eagle Creek Trail  is one of scores of hiking trails that wind through hundreds of square miles.  On my birthday weekend Craig and I backpacked up the creek, and here is some of the beauty we experienced.

First, here we are heading out from the trail-head.  Craig carried a pack too, by the way.  Mine weighed 30 lbs., his was 40.  He got to carry the tent!

 

Not a great shot, but you're looking at spawning salmon in the creek.  They leave the Pacific, swim up the Columbia River, mysteriously find the stream of their birth, lay (or fertilize) their eggs there, then die.

Eagle Creek trail-head  sports several Depression-era structures built by the Civilian Conservation Corps.  Pretty good-looking for being almost 80 years old.

 

About 1.5 miles up the trail is the first waterfall, called Metlako Falls, named after the Indian goddess of salmon; height: 100 feet

 

Just under 2 miles in, Lower Punch Bowl Falls, 12 feet high and 30 feet wide

 

And Upper Punch Bowl, 33 feet high; some of you will recognize this falls.

In the summer it's busy as grand-central station here, being a favorite destination for nearby Portland residents.  I have spent many happy hours here myself.

 

About 3 miles in, Loowit Falls (another Indian name); it drops 60 feet into a perfect pool, which is slightly hidden in this photo.  Some burning hot summer day, I'll figure out a way to get down there to soak in that little pool.

Eagle Creek Trail crosses the creek several times over on bridges like this one at the 3.3 mile point, called High Bridge.

The trail is pockmarked with volcanic basalt rocks; hikers are happiest when they wear sturdy boots.

Lunch at 4-Mile Bridge.

Grand Union Falls, about 5.5 miles in; 45 foot drop.  A mile before this one is Schoonichuk Falls with its 55-foot drop (sorry no photo).

And at 6 miles in, the grand-daddy of them all, Tunnel Falls: 130 foot drop into a small pool; look closely to see Craig standing on the cliff edge.  No worries, there's a steel cable drilled into the rock here (and in other key places on the trail) for hikers to grab.

Here's a video of the falls showing its entire length:

 

The tunnel that takes you behind Tunnel Falls.

Twister Falls, about an 80 foot plunge here; counting the upstream series of smaller falls leading to this one, there's a drop of 140 feet in about a hundred yards.  The trail in this area is called "the vertigo mile."

Seven-Mile Falls plunges 40 feet into a pool.

Trail hazard--a shattered cedar blocking the way.   Speaking of hazards, this is a dangerous trail.  In some places it is extremely narrow with drop-offs of over 100 feet straight down.   Hikers periodically go over the edge to a sad ending.   Once a friend tumbled over the edge and by the grace of God a skinny vine maple stopped her fall.  It seemed to happen in slow-mo and the other 3 of us could not react fast enough to catch her.  We laid down on the trail and reached down to grab her as she clawed her way back up.

 

Our cozy camp for the night at the 7-mile point.  We dropped our packs here, then hiked another 1.5 miles up to the next creek crossing, just for fun.

 A special Saturday morning camp visitor!

FYI, there's a miracle plant everyone calls "natures TP", in case the need arises.   Soft as Charmin (just make sure you use the right plant . . .)

The end of a wonderful couple of days!   After 17 miles of hiking and 2000 feet elevation gain, we deserved a treat, so we went to the little drive-in burger joint in Cascade Locks, and got a "small" soft ice cream cone, which was about 6" high.

NOTE: all photos were taken by us except the one of Metlako Falls.

Happy Spring or Summer!

It has been a long-haul winter and spring/summer has finally unveiled itself. Friday was in the 70s, Saturday in the mid 80s, and there’s no going back to the 40s now. Maybe.

I do love rain, but 47 inches of it in the first four months of 2011 was a little much. It isn’t the rain itself that I mind, but you can’t put your garden in when the soil is like dense chocolate fudge, or thick chocolate milk. The seeds will rot in the ground, and you'll be mud up to your ankles. 

That much rain makes hiking difficult, not because you can’t hike while it’s falling. You can. And I do. But many of the trails are turned to deep mush in those conditions which limits where you can safely go. The Eagle Creek trail, for instance, would be out of the question when it’s one long gooey mud-pit. If you slip and fall there, it’s a long way down the cliff to your funeral.

A week ago (May 28) Craig and I went up to Portland’s lovely Rose Garden. It was the eve of the beginning of the annual month-long Rose Festival, and the thousands of rose bushes are usually in full glory this time of year. We stood up at the top surveying the gardens spreading below, and there was NOT ONE ROSE to be seen. We strolled through the rows of bushes. The buds were tight as a clenched fist. Then we saw it—one bush sporting one fully open flower! It was a salmon-color rose bucking the trend. A few other buds on the bush were partly open. And that was it. When we got back in the car we noticed the temperature was 49 degrees. On May 28.

 A view of a small corner of the Rose Gardens May 28, 2011.  The flowers in the foreground are rhododendrons, which normally are in full glorious bloom around Mothers Day.

 

The Royal Hats

Don't know about you, but I'm not much of a hat person.  Unless it's a wool cap that keeps my ears warm in the snow.   Which doesn't count, doesn't even belong on the same planet as these beauties.  This is just a sample of hats seen at the ROYAL WEDDING (of which I saw nada live because of driving home from Idaho).

To see the rest, click here.

 Get a load of Princess Eugenie's 'scrambled egg' "hat"!  Is it falling in her face or is that how it's meant to be?? 

Don't sit behind Sophie if you're there to see the ceremony.

Ditto!

When you're connected to royalty you can get away with the ridiculous. . .

UFO approaching!

Something's out of balance here . . .

A Life Saver

On his weekly Saturday morning bicycle ride, Craig tangled with another rider. Both went down hard to the left, both were momentarily knocked unconscious. Craig's injuries consisted of a broken left hand, cut right hand which required stitches, one cracked vertebrae, some facial scrapes and bruises, and scraped knees. His left ear is swollen and black and blue, and his hearing in that ear is diminished.

The purpose of this post is to pay homage to his bicycle helmet. Besides the visible shredding it is cracked in several other places. It was worth every penny of whatever he paid for it.