Portland...bridges and other

[pdedse]

Bright and sunny today, so very inviting for a winter ride. Temps 43-45, but strong winds make it feel quite chilly.

First photo opp was from the James Gleason boat ramp near the airport. Not many private boats on the Columbia today, but dredges and tugs doing their thing with a plane landing at PDX.

You can take Marine Drive--which hugs the south side of the Columbia--right into Bridgeton Road--a neat area where there are some cool looking boats mored.

Street level view

That aerial view above corresponds to the red circle in photo below, giving you an idea of the size of the Columbia River.

Took me awhile to find the St. John's Bridge, which traverses the Williamette River, which bisects Portland and runs north into the Columbia. The red line shows me getting lost several times...

The St. John's Bridge

But the wind blowing off the water from the Columbia and Williamette Rivers makes for cold air temp, fingers were getting numb.

From the St. John's, took hiway 30 towards Portland, and then on to the 405 bridge to cross the Williamette again. Traffic slowed so it was a good time to snap a photo:

Brrr...once I get cold, can't get warmed up. Time to head home, nice 60 mile outing that was "just to buy some guitar strings, be right back".

 

[koehlerk_imp]

Your earlier post inspired me to get out today! Happy to see you were able again as well. =)

 

[Cormanus]

More great photos of Oregon!

 

[the Ferret]

Indeed

 

[GoldOxide_imp]

Nice pdedse. Good thing the strings slip into the breast pocket.

 

[Obleo]

I lived in Portland , 77,78 l absolutely loved the city. Lived off Division street not far from the river , they used to call it 5 corners . The people there appreciate the outdoor amenities available to them. I left with the idea that I would return shortly, but 42 years later haven’t made it back . Enjoy the sights.

 

[pdedse]

I lived in Portland , 77,78 l absolutely loved the city. Lived off Division street not far from the river , they used to call it 5 corners . The people there appreciate the outdoor amenities available to them. I left with the idea that I would return shortly, but 42 years later haven’t made it back . Enjoy the sights.

I arrived here in '99 from Arizona, convinced that it would be for 3-5 years, and then return to AZ...what year is it? Still here.

Well...forecast called for another beautiful sunny day, but with the rains returning tomorrow, the 25th. My plan for yesterday was to cross a bunch of the Portland bridges, but after doing a few errands, got lost, the cold hands--had to cut short the trip and only crossed two bridges.

So I thought I'd "finish" the ride today, get up early, be back before anyone noticed. I live in Gresham, so even tho' I've lived here 20+ years, I don't really go into Portland much and all the names of different bridges just get jumbled in my mind. I know my way around all right, I just don't know which bridge is which...Hawthorne, Ross Island, Burnside, Broadway, Steel, Sellwood...I hear the names, but I can't really tell you which one I'm on when crossing. One of them costs me $20 a year x 6 (2 motorcycles, 3 vehicles, one boat trailer), so I pay $120 a year as part of vehicle registration fees--I think it's the Sellwood bridge...but I'm not sure I've ever actually used that bridge. Need to remedy that.

I started out by 930am with temps in the high 30s. I was actually quite warm in the sunshine, but as soon as I neared the Clackamas River, the temps dropped and soon the fog blanketed the area. Well, shoot. River fog also foggs up the face shield. Still, maybe the fog would lift. But then when I crossed the Clackamas at Carver, I came across this:

So fog and a road closure. 10 minutes prior and my hands were toasty in the sun. 5 minutes in the fog and my fingers were losing their feeling. I think it was a sign to turn around and head back to sunshine and leave the bridges for another day.

But wait...there is the Bakers Ferry Bridge, not Portland, but close enough for my Christmas Eve day ride:

View from above:

I had to settle for the Boring area...Mt. Hood always makes it nice:

 

[Cormanus]

Lovely, pdedse. Riding in fog is the pits. One’s visor fogs but also slowly gets covered in tiny droplets of moisture. You have to ride slower than usual so the water won’t blow off. You gradually go blind which is a really fun way to ride!

Glad you had a good ride, though. Thanks for another pic of Mt Hood. It’s very striking.

 

[cooldrum_imp]

Pdedse, There's also the Fremont and Marquam bridges too. The Tilikum is just for light rail, bicycles and people to cross. Quite a few bridges connecting east and west. Merry Christmas!

 

[the Ferret]

Very cool ride pdedse. Man that's a lot of bridges in one city lol

 

[Obleo]

Yes, City of Roses, 7 bridges if I remember right.

 

[Tev62]

Great ride, great pics.

 

[pdedse]

Lovely, pdedse. Riding in fog is the pits. One’s visor fogs but also slowly gets covered in tiny droplets of moisture. You have to ride slower than usual so the water won’t blow off. You gradually go blind which is a really fun way to ride!

Glad you had a good ride, though. Thanks for another pic of Mt Hood. It’s very striking.

Totally agree, I had to raise the face shield and then the cold air blasts the eyes... it's striking the difference between the fog-enshrouded road closed area and the green bridge--same river, less than 4 miles distant from each other. One area probably had a good hour of sunshine while the other didn't. Even though it was 38-39 temps, 10 minutes after leaving the fog area, I felt that I was "warming back up".

Pdedse, There's also the Fremont and Marquam bridges too. The Tilikum is just for light rail, bicycles and people to cross. Quite a few bridges connecting east and west. Merry Christmas!

See what I mean with all the bridge names? I've heard mention of these, but I had to look it up and I found out the Fremont is the 405 and Marquam is I-5 bridge. If I go late at night, maybe I can sneak across the Tilikum on the CB.

 

[the Ferret]

We actually have a bunch of bridges in Cincinnati too, but I couldn't tell you which one is which. One of them just caught fire from a bad fiery wreck on the bridge and had to be hastily rebuilt

Watch the progress: Timelapse of Brent Spence Bridge repairs

 

[pdedse]

I love those time-lapse videos.

 

[pdedse]

Another chilly, sunny wintry day...better than gloomy, cold rain any day.

Arrived in Oregon City via Redland Rd from the southeast by 1pm. Little traffic. Found the OR City Arch Bridge and crossed it for the first time.

I love to see boats on the rivers! In the distance, hi-way 205 over the Williamette.

The Williamette Falls and hydroelectric power reservoir area

Made my way north on 43 towards Lake Oswego. Mt. Hood in distance.

Crossed the Williamette again using the Sellwood Bridge. Another bridge I had never crossed before. They tacked on $20 to DMV fees to pay for this bridge. I mean, it is a nice new bridge, but I've been paying about $100 every two years for some time, so I'm happy I finally got to use it.

Then the Ross Island Bridge, crossed back to the west bank of the Williamette:

And then I crossed both the Hawthorne and Morrison bridges, but I didn't see any good place to pull over for photos. Have to redo these two and include the Burnside, Steel and Broadway bridges.

I don't know why I'm on a bridges kick...I guess it's because I'm always riding east and southeast of Gresham where I live to beautiful foresty areas, so this is a nice change of pace.

 

[GoldOxide_imp]

Another chilly, sunny wintry day...better than gloomy, cold rain any day.

Arrived in Oregon City via Redland Rd from the southeast by 1pm. Little traffic. Found the OR City Arch Bridge and crossed it for the first time.

I love to see boats on the rivers! In the distance, hi-way 205 over the Williamette.

The Williamette Falls and hydroelectric power reservoir area

Made my way north on 43 towards Lake Oswego. Mt. Hood in distance.

Crossed the Williamette again using the Sellwood Bridge. Another bridge I had never crossed before. They tacked on $20 to DMV fees to pay for this bridge. I mean, it is a nice new bridge, but I've been paying about $100 every two years for some time, so I'm happy I finally got to use it.

Then the Ross Island Bridge, crossed back to the west bank of the Williamette:

And then I crossed both the Hawthorne and Morrison bridges, but I didn't see any good place to pull over for photos. Have to redo these two and include the Burnside, Steel and Broadway bridges.

I don't know why I'm on a bridges kick...I guess it's because I'm always riding east and southeast of Gresham where I live to beautiful foresty areas, so this is a nice change of pace.

... but you'll cross that bridge when you get there.

 

[Cormanus]

Nice, Au₂O₃. And more stunning photos, pdedse. If they’re levying you for the bridges, go and ride backwards and forwards across them till you feel you’ve got your money’s worth.

 

[pdedse]

Nice, Au₂O₃. And more stunning photos, pdedse. If they’re levying you for the bridges, go and ride backwards and forwards across them till you feel you’ve got your money’s worth.

Well, I guess I better get started because their fees are going to increase. Currently we pay $19 per year per vehicle and with the new year that increases to $56 per year, per vehicle. Motorcycles increase from $19 per year to $39. So I own 3 cars, two motorcycles and one boat trailer and that totals $302 per year. That's a chunk of change. I actually wrote DMV and suggested that they limit the number of vehicles any one family could be charged for, maybe set at 2 or 3, but I don't think they heard me. Like for other taxes, some of the services a given individual may never use, but I think I'll make it a habbit to cross the Sellwood Bridge more often--it is a fine bridge, earthquake ready now!

 

[Cormanus]

That is indeed a fistful of cabbage. Wow!