Did a large procession wave their torches as my head fell in the basket?

Sunday on the trail. This is Fairy Falls, a small-ish one on the Wahkeena creek, and admittedly not a very good shot of it. You should be able to see more rocks in the water- the water cascades down little staircases, it's very pretty, but the shots that captured the details in the water did not capture the scale of the thing, so I posted the one with people in it. I did a painting of this waterfall before, but it refuses to be photographed. I don't make a habit of painting, but it was a little like taking a poop, somehow: I don't feel like I had a choice. It was fun I guess, but not my thing.

Seriously, it flatly refuses to be photographed. I've tried it in all sorts of light, all sorts of camera settings, and I just can not capture the colors. I used a lot of purples and blues, and the result is apparently a combination of "too dark" and "too shiny" for a good picture. Not that I'm comparing myself to Rembrandt (!!), but if you've ever been able to compare his originals to photographs of them, you might get the idea. The subtleties of his darks just don't come through in photos.

Anyway, the trail we hiked on Sunday is probably my favorite Gorge hike. It's about 5 miles, maybe a little more, and the first part is a long climb up lots of switchbacks, but it's so worth the trouble. You climb up the Wahkeena creek basin, hike a little near the top of the Gorge, and then come down along the Multnomah creek basin, stopping if you want at the top of incredibly beautiful and tall Multnomah Falls. It's a great waterfall hike- one around practically every corner. Breathtaking. There is nothing quite like being surprised at finding yourself at the top of a very tall waterfall.

In 1919, Congress established Grand Canyon and Lafayette (now Acadia) National Parks.

Then in 1932, Johnny Cash was born.

In 1935, radar was first demonstrated.

And in 1986 Gwen Wilson, 47-year-old mother of four, went to the bathroom after returning from shopping and doubled up with pain on the floor. Suddenly she gave birth to a 5lb 6oz girl. This was the second time she had not realized she was pregnant. 'I just thought I was overweight both times,' she said. By coincidence, husband Howard was downstairs telling the other children about the unexpected arrival of their sister Helen 11 years previously, when they heard their mother scream upstairs. Then she called down: 'I've done it again!' (thanks to Fortean Times for that bit o' news).