Rocky Butte

June 15, 2025

This was a day with a lot of moving parts. The first for me was a trip over to Caffe Umbria - but not the one in our neighborhood that I usually go to. For some reason I decided this morning to bike south a mile to the other Caffe Umbria, the one in the cultural district (a block from the performing arts center and the art museum) that I've occasionally gone to in the past when we've stayed in that part of town.

Well, I know why I went actually - I was curious to see if they still serve the savory scones I used to like before the local shop stopped offering them. The other store doesn't either any more unfortunately - and they don't deliver your coffee with a square of chocolate either like the local one does, so I'm not likely to make it a regular part of the rotation. Still though, I really enjoyed the somewhat longer, refreshing ride up Broadway while the city was still quiet. And it's apparently the scene to see and be seen at if you're a fan of blue Beach Boy Pendleton shirts.

Caffeinated and the day's post done, I coast back down Fourth Avenue and through the Chinatown Gate just past nine and then Rachael and I start planning out our day. Some of the other moving parts to deal with: I have to take the Jeep back to the airport before six tonight; and I want to throw my Bike Friday in the back on the way to the airport and drop it off at Clever Cycles for its pre-suitcase/pre-Europe overhaul; and while I've still got the car available I want to make another run over to the storage unit to drop off some more crap and look around to see if I can find either of Rachael's two wrist straps, both of which have unexplainably gone missing since Rachael's bike ride three days ago; and I want to keep an eye out for the GoPro, which has also gone missing just since yesterday. And she's going for a walk somewhere of course. And we both need to make it back in time for our 5:30 dinner reservation at Eleni's Phyloxenia.

So that's the lay of the land. Together we come up with a solution that feels perfect - what a team! I take the first step by proposing that rather than her just taking another walk starting from home I could drop her off somewhere on the east side on my way to the airport, maybe at Mount Tabor, so she could get a change of scenery and terrain. After I draw up a route for her consideration though she stares at the map and asks about Rocky Butte as an alternate idea. I take another cut then, coming up with a route that starts at Rocky Butte, drops down to Mount Tabor, and then continues home by way of the Ladd Addition and the Hawthorne Bridge.

That's closer, but not perfect. Could I nudge it just a bit to include the restrooms by the Mount Tabor reservoir in case the ones at the top aren't open? Nudge, nudge. Aah, perfect!

So we have a plan and I head off to the storage unit, drop off some stuff we don't need, bring back some that we do, and find one of the two missing wrist straps - it apparently got thrown in by mistake in the last storage unit run two days ago. The other one, the one that she just bought a few days ago, is still an unsolved mystery though.

I drive back to the apartment, reach over to pick up my rucksack when I'm leaving the car, and by chance look down on the floor on the passenger side. It's the missing GoPro, a black object on a black surface. That's one of my banes, something I'm trying to train myself against. Black on black just disappears for me now, and it's how I lost my Garmin three days ago when it disappeared on the black passenger seat. That was so frustrating - we looked everywhere in the apartment that we could think of for two straight days until we finally gave up and ordered a new 1040 (only $499!) from Amazon. Probably an hour after Rachael placed the order I found the Garmin on my way home from coffee. Fortunately the new one is returnable, so suddenly we've got almost $500 more than we thought we did.

That done, we load my BF into the jeep and head off to Clever Cycles, drop it off for them to do their best with it when they can fit the work in, and we continue on to Rocky Butte.

Without taking a ride up to the top of one of the downtown skyscrapers, is there a better viewpoint in town than Rocky Butte? Not that I'm aware of, there's not. Just south of the river and the airport, its prominent, isolated volcanic plug, the remains of one of the cinder comes of the Boring Hills. In in the past was the site of the Rocky Butte Jail, now happily long gone; but the butte is still crowned by a small, elegant park created in the 1930's as a WPA project. And on a clear day, the views of Saint Helens, Hood, and the Columbia River are stunning.

And when we walk up, Rocky really is stunned. The butte is a bit out of the way but I've probably biked up here a half dozen times over the years and know what to expect. Rachael though thinks she's never been here and thinking back she's probably right. Maybe once years ago we came back to town together this way, but I'm not sure.

This may be the first time we've been up here together. Better commemorate it.

There's more than one object of beauty up here today.

So we're up there quite awhile, looking out in amazement and wonder in all directions. And then she's off on her walk, and in a bit of a hurry now because we stayed on top so long that she's worried about time if she's going to get home before our dinner reservation. She stops for a few quick photos along the way (and at that rest stop I stitched in at the last minute, I assume), but otherwise she just quick-steps her way home and arrives with. Half hour to spare.

I'm in no rush though so I stay at the top for a while longer, watching planes fly in from upriver and trying to remember if Mount Adams is visible from here on a clearer day. It's definitely not today though, because the first major wildfire of the season is out of control over by Rowena, clouding the sky and threatening homes on the outskirts of The Dalles.

And after that I spend another fifteen minutes watching in amazement and frustration with the Canon out and ready as a swarm of about fifteen dragonflies endlessly circle out across the grass. But will any of them ever stop and land somewhere so that I can get a shot of one? Not that I could see.

If Adams is visible from here on a clearer day, it would be right in the direction of the vulture or the jet coming in for a landing.

It's hazy over here from the fires also, but Saint Helens is near enough that we still get a decent view. Note that from here you can't see Rainier peeking over her left shoulder like you can from Council Crest because it's almost straight behind her.

Finally I give up and limp my way off to the hill and back to the car. From Rocky Butte it's a very easy drive to the airport, and I just drop off its north side and turn up 82nd. Dropping off the car is painless, and afterwards I take the Max and then the streetcar back home, arriving about a half hour before Rachael does. We'll be without a car for the next two weeks and then pick up another one when it's time to move to our second stay.

Walking home from the streetcar stop I do a double take at first of this view of the Fremont Bridge and the Centennial Mills water tower because they've reversed positions. The bridge is actually to the left of the tower.

Eleni's is eleven blocks away from our apartment. That's well farther than I care to walk until I get my new knees so I bike over, lock up the bike at a safe spot in front of World Foods, and wait for Rachael to arrive. We enjoy our usual fine meal, but tonight there's a bit of drama when a shirtless street person waltzes in the door and heads back toward the kitchen where he plans to get some water. He doesn't get there though, as there's a tense standoff with some verbal and nearly physical tussling when a big, beefy guy confronts him and blocks several evasive actions. Finally the guy gives up and slowly retreats to the front door, shouting curses and threats as he goes.

I've never seen this brute of a man here before and wondered if they'd had to bring in a bouncer for episodes like this. It's not that though. This is the main chef, temporarily setting his food duties aside to put on his security hat for a few minutes. When we leave we leave our usual generous tip, but then I tell our server to give the tenner I threw on top to the security crew, with our thanks.

Somehow it seems just right to have this play out beneath the acrobats from Knossos.

I was happy enough with my vegetarian pasta with olives, peppers and kassari cheese until I saw what she had.

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Today's ride: 6 miles (10 km)
Total: 1,207 miles (1,942 km)

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CJ HornSorry but I cannot help be glad you have to cool your heels in PDX for awhile. Great photo journalism happening here.
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