June 7: Lookin’ at Klickitat

Sometimes when life is especially challenging, sharing a meal with a loved one is the most helpful medicine of all. Today’s loop to Goldendale for lunch with my best friend and then home via Klickitat Canyon was full of mesmerizing mountain, valley, and river views – just what the doctor ordered.

Heading east on highway 14 this morning, I carved my way back and forth along the banks of the Columbia River, admiring vistas of the sheer brown rocky cliffs to my left, double tunnels bored through the mountainside ahead, and far-reaching water panoramas reaching out into the horizon.  

With the sun on my back and blue skies above, I savored the sight of snow-capped Mount Hood in my rear-view mirror while barreling between buttes and plateaus topped with short brittle yellow grass.

Turning north on highway 97 towards Goldendale, I caught my first peek of Mount Adams in the distance, rising above the patchwork quilt of green and yellow fields and farmlands in the foreground.

After a wonderful meal with Michelle, I headed west on highway 142 out of town, relishing the comforting feeling of ice-covered Mount Hood towering above me to my left and the beautiful snowy peaks of Mount Adams rising into the sky on my right.

As I made my way down to the Klickitat River, the road narrowed, the middle line disappeared, and traffic ceased to exist, giving me peaceful moments of solitude with which to appreciate all the natural beauty around me.

As I wound my way along the shoreline of the Klickitat back towards Lyle, I lifted my visor and focused on living in the moment, enjoying the coolness of the breeze blowing off the gently flowing water, the sight of the purple and yellow wildflowers blowing in the wind, and the feel of the wind in my face. What a beautiful day on the bike.