We are docked in The Dalles, Oregon – still in the arid part of The Columbia River but heading to the Gorge area – which receives over 70 inches of rain a year and has lush forests and even waterfalls. The tour today is to the Multanomah Waterfall. Sunrise on the Columbia is beautiful at 5 AM!

The tour bus drives us the 50 minutes to the Multnomah Waterfalls area. Very touristy but still worth a peak. Two years ago, we drove past it on our way to Hood River. LOL

At this time of year, the waterfall is a bit underwhelming but still it is the second tallest continuous waterfall in North American, 542 feet upper falls and 69 feet lower falls. There are hiking trails to the top. The amount of time we are given is not sufficient to hike to the top and back down on a Sunday with crowds. So we opt to go up to switchback #2 and then turnaround and explore the visitor center and (surprise) the gift shop.

A few more pictures of the area.

Funny when you walk over to the falls, you cross under a railroad bridge and we happen to cross when there is Union Pacific train!

And, of course, there is a visitor center, lodge-like with a gift shop filled with kitsch.

Back to the ship! Lunch and then on to the town of The Dalles. Keep in mind it is a Sunday so not much open. Temperature – 95 degrees!

Steve stays back on the ship and I venture into the ‘wilderness’ of The Dalles on a Sunday. First stop, the National Museum of Neon. Definitely worth a stop if you at all remember neon and not digital displays. The building is one of the many old buildings in The Dalles.

Inside is a 15 video about how a neon sign is made. Really quite interesting and I’m the only person in the theatre until the end when a young couple joins me.

The museum is run by a person who has spent 50 years of his life focusing on Neon Signs. He studied how neon signs are made, who invented them, what makes them unique over the last 100 years and he collected and collected. Truly a fascinating museum – definitely make the stop if you are in this area. Did you know not all “neon” signs aren’t with neon? Most are made with argon gas with glass coated with different types of phosphorus which creates the color!

Leaving the Neon Museum, I walk around the town of The Dalles. There is a Carnegie Library – yep, even this far away from New York – and there are the murals that they have noted on the city map. Somewhat impressive, but scattered around town and on a 95 degree day, I am not going to pursue all of them. Interesting what I find on the backroad way to the ship, the China section of town with old buildings and placards describing this history. The buildings in town are old and well-maintained so worth a picture or two. Every old town has a movie theatre too.

Back to cool down on the ship. We attend an excellent lecture about the history and lifestyle of the Native American people in this area. The ship pulls away from The Dalles and heads down the Columbia River. Looking forward to another day on this beautiful river providing a life to so many people through electricity, fish, recreational and cruising enjoyment!