Chasin' the Sun!

 

@ the beautiful Port of Kalama
on the Columbia River

Well, on this second day of Fall, we decided we just weren't done with our Summer letterboxing adventures! So, we packed up and headed back to Kalama on the Columbia River. There was a certain box that we were itchin' to nab. First the good news: we had a lot of fun following the clues, enjoying the refreshing breeze, and warm embrace of the sun. The bad news: even though we found the spot, there was no prize to be had. But, we were not too disappointed because just being out there was glorious. We were so thrilled to find the spot, we snapped a pic - sometimes just finding the hiding spot is reward enough.

Next, we strolled back to the 'bigger' watering hole and availed ourselves of my favorite cider - Trippy! During lunch we were treated not only to fabulous service out on the patio, but also by a huge freighter that steamed by and honked its horn to warn the sailboat and parasailers that it cannot stop on a dime. And, boy-howdy, the horns on those things are loud! It was pretty cool :)

I had to get a pic of this unique painting hanging in the restaurant:

get a load of that! Pretty cool, huh?

And then we were off to find a miniature Lady Liberty - and were treated to a wonderful drive through lush and turning leaves, residences, and outlooks over the Columbia and off into the distance to  Longview. And, this prize we found! Hurray!

By this time the hours were slipping away from us, and we decided to head north toward home. But, just getting a box makes me want to find more, so I jumped onto Clue Tracker (the app) and veered toward the tiny town of Toledo, the gateway to Mt. St. Helens (the sign said). And we did see the mountain - that is always a treat, too!

In Toledo we scored 1 out of 2 tries. I'm good though because there was some really awesome mural art in this tiny town. I had never driven through - definitely worth it!

this little guy has a secret!

We also tried for a box in a little city park that was a bit of a challenge to find. Unfortunately, we were not lucky enough to find the box, but enjoyed the waning sunshine in a park all to ourselves.

And with that, we turned our little red Kona-car toward the coast. We were treated to a fantastic sunset light show that pictures couldn't possibly capture. We were mesmerized the whole way home. And that will have to hold us until the next adventure.