We leave Mount Rainier to head south toward Oregon. Our eventual goal is Crater Lake National Park, but we stopped in Hood River, just across the Columbia River from Washington. If you have never seen the Columbia River, you have yet to feel the power that water truly has. The river, combined with the forces of the wind coming through the valley from the coast creates the most beautiful area.

I originally made the request to stop here early in our trip. We knew we needed a stopping point between Mount Rainier and Crater Lake, so this area seemed a good option. I had visited this area a few years back for a wedding, and fell in love with the PNW, the Columbia River, and the town of Hood River.

On our drive to Hood River, we drove a scenic route past Mount St. Helens. As many of you know, Mount St. Helens erupted in 1980, which is fairly recent. My dad always loved watching this movie about Mount St. Helens, so I knew this was something I wanted to see and send some pictures to him.

 

We continued on our way toward Hood River, eventually arriving in Oregon. This would be our 10th state on our journey! We stayed at Memaloose State Park, right by the Columbia River. The campground was clean and easy to navigate. Our site was pretty close to the highway, but for booking it sort of last minute, we expected this. It was INCREDIBLY windy in this area!

We parked the camper, and headed into town. There are tons of breweries in Hood River, which Scott and I enjoy trying. There were two that I wanted to visit, but we ended up only going to one of them (Scott was tired! 🙂 ) Full Sail Brewery is AWESOME! Scott tried the Atomizer IPA and I got a Blood Orange Wheat Ale. While mine was good, Scott’s was awesome! We bought a 6-pack on our way out the door! Plus, their food was amazing! It was nice to get somewhere and take a little break from camping and cooking!

 

Next, we head to Crater Lake National Park!