Wintergreen

February 19, 2022

Life has definitely turned rosier in the Team Anderson household. Ever since the packing came out of Rachael’s nose it’s as if the fog has lifted. Conversation is cheerier, more animated and upbeat. She can walk around the apartment and navigate the stairs between its upper and lower halves without keeping her head tilted back, and I can quit being anxious for her fearing that she’ll have an accident because she can’t quite see where she’s going.

And I can be more physically affectionate than just safely kissing her on the left cheek or the top of her head, taking care not to bump into the unsightly packing handle protruding from her nostril and taped to her other cheek.

When I return from coffee I find her downstairs wading through her heap of belongings sprawled across the floor, starting in on the task of sorting out what can go back to storage and what’s a candidate for a trip to Barcelona. Overnight life feels fully back to normal, and it’s wonderful.

There’s still healing taking place up those nostrils so she’s limited to light activity, but that includes non-aggressive walking. Once the day warms up enough she heads down to the waterfront and walks south to Willamette Park and back, a relaxed eight mile trek that doesn’t strain her at all. As a bonus, she’s delighted to report later that her feet don’t bother her either. The enforced break has been good for the feet also, it appears.

So if she’s on the move again, I’ve lost my excuse for being a slug. I finally get out for a ride myself, though I’m not sure if a leisurely, slow paced 18 miler with frequent stops quite counts as a workout. I intended more than this though. I headed out Leif Erikson Drive with the idea that at its end I’d drop down to Highway 30, cross the Saint John’s Bridge and bike home along Willamette Bluff - still not much of a ride but at least closer to 30 miles.

It’s slow riding along Leif Erickson Drive, as it always is. Unpaved, barricaded from cars, and progressively quieter the farther you get from the entrance gate. I’ve come this way today curious to see if there are signs of spring yet, but it’s still too early in the year. Almost nothing is popping up out of the ground or budding yet, but it’s so amazingly green! I think this is becoming my favorite six mile stretch of road in town, especially since so many other pathways have been taken over by homeless camps.

On Thurman Street, the access route to Leif Erickson. Sights like this remind me that there’s still a lot to love about Portland and give me the hope that eventually this city will right itself. It still feels like the most likely place for us to return to when the time comes to settle.

Leif Erikson Drive - a six mile tunnel of green.

Everything seems to be capped or encased in moss and algae.

So something is coming to life anyway. I should come back here right before we leave town to see what’s changed.

Mutilated! This reminds me of the perforated husk of a dead staghorn cholla.

After six miles, Leif Erikson intersects Saltzman Road. I’ve biked out here several times in the past and then turned uphill on Saltzman, which after about a mile ends at Skyline Boulevard. Today though I turn right and drop down to the river, thinking it will bring me near the base of the Saint Johns Bridge. It doesn’t though, and looking at the map again this morning I learned something new about Leif Erikson - it continues on for a few miles more, eventually ending at Springhill Road. It’s Springhill that drops down by the Ross Island Bridge, not Saltzman. There are a few more miles of Leif Erikson left to explore!

Today though, it’s enough to see unpaved lower Saltzman Road for the first time, because it’s full of odd surprises. By the time I reach its end at Highway 30 though I decide it’s time to cut my ride short. It’s starting to get too late in the day and even with all my layers on I’m getting cold enough that I need to put my warm gloves. Rain is due to arrive later in the day, and looking north it looks like it could be coming early. Best to head for shelter and a warm shower.

I’ve never been down Saltzman Road before. I’m surprised by what a nice view it has of the railway bridge.

Interesting. There’s a sort of open air museum along Saltzman Road with a curious collection of junk and offbeat sculptures.

Along Saltzman Road. Like I said earlier, nearly everything comes with a layer of moss right now.

That clothespin is about six feet long. Keeping Portland wierd, I suppose.

Shattuck School, an elementary school opened in 1915 that’s now Shattuck Hall on the PSU campus. This is from a walk a few days ago but seemed to fit in well with today’s theme.

Today's ride: 18 miles (29 km)
Total: 2,289 miles (3,684 km)

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Bill ShaneyfeltI remember when those were black.

Times change. Back in Underground RR days, they were a symbol of safety to escaping slaves.
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2 years ago

Kathleen JonesGreat art along Saltzman. Thanks for the tour.
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2 years ago