Surprise!

Since I can be rather anal retentive about things sometimes, Tim enjoys not telling me any details as to what his plans are for us.  This past weekend was just that.  I went up to Portland to visit Tim again having no idea what was in store for me.  I tried to relax the best that I could and went with the flow and boy was is worth it! 

Taking practice swings.

On Saturday morning we rose early and Tim instructed me to dress in comfortable clothing and sneakers before we headed out.  My guess was that we were going hiking and/ or camping, but as we pulled into the golf course I realized that I was wrong.  I was being thrown into a 9-hole, par 3 golf course with him and a few of his friends after only going to the driving range once.  I was a little nervous at first, but Tim and his friends were really relaxed and where there to help.  I had a couple holes that took me over 10 swings to get it in, but several times I only needed 5 or 6 swings to reach my goal.  Tim and his friends informed me that I was better than they were on their first time.  I have come to be fond of this rather relaxing, yet strategically intense game; it is just me and my target that matters when I’m out there and I can’t wait to see myself improve!

After a round of golf, we headed off to the next surprise which was tubing down the Clackamas River.  Floating down a river was something that I have never done before and as I got in my tube, I learned that this trip would be three hours long - much longer than I expected, but I slathered on my sunscreen and prepared for the ride.  The Clackamas River is a rather calm river, but is certainly not devoid of excitement.  There were occasional rapids that we went through that threatened to flip me over, but always bestowed a refreshing splash of water to cool me off.  It was great to relax and chat with Tim’s friends for a bit.  Even though I was fond of the experience, it was a little too passive of an activity for me and I think something more action packed such as kayaking or rafting down a more tumultuous river is much more up my alley. 

Mt. Hood and its reflection in Mirror Lake.

The next day, I got to decide what we were to do, so I told Tim to put on his hiking boots and we headed towards the Mt. Hood wilderness area.  Mirror Lake is one of the most popular hiking destinations east of Portland, and upon arriving, I am now privy as to why.  The Mirror Lake hike is an easy three mile round trip hike to a small lake at the base of Mt. Hood.  Upon climbing 800 feet from the trail head off of the main highway past vibrant wildflowers and through a dense coniferous forest, a pristine, deep blue lake opened up to us.  We walked around the lake and were enticed by the sight of Mt. Hood and its almost perfect reflection upon the still water.  We took a few moments to rest and internalize the beauty of our view before heading back down to our vehicle and then to head home for the start of the work week. 

Tomorrow, Tim will be coming down to spend a weekend with me in on the coast where I will get to surprise him!  Stay tuned to see what I have in store for another one of Sara’s Oregon Adventures.