A Sunday Drive In Oregon - part 2 - Hood River Valley

One Sunday last April I woke up and looked out the window. The sky was clear. I opened the window and it was actually warm outside. It was a beautiful day!

So, I decided to take a Sunday drive. That's one of the things I like about living where I do. I can take a Sunday drive and see so much!

After visiting the snowy flanks of Mount Hood, I dropped down into the early Spring weather of the Hood River Valley. Fruit orchards are the way of life here.


Most of the pear orchards seem to have a view of Mount Hood.
 


In the community of Mount Hood the country store has a view of the mountain, too.



Just across the highway from the store is the Mount Hood Schoolhouse, built in 1914.




The valley can get breezy. So rows of trees are planted along the edges of the orchards to form windbreaks.




Not only are there acres of orchards, there are lots of interesting barns.
The boards leaning against the trees are for propping up the limbs as they become heavy with fruit.


Up on the sideslopes of the valley some barns stand on stilts.




Behind this barn, stacks of crates wait for the Fall harvest.




A row of migrant worker houses stand next to this barn.




And what good are fruit pickers without ladders?



On the way up to Panorama point for a good view of the valley I found an orchard with espaliered trees. It is a way of getting more fruit per acre.




At the top of Panorama Point I was able to look back over the valley and see just how many orchards there are. This photo only shows a small part of them.



After enjoying the view for a bit I went back down to the highway and took a right. That took me down to the the Columbia River. I followed the Columbia down to Bonneville dam, home of my next stop, the Bonneville Fish Hatchery.