After several weeks of working long hours, Nancy and I both felt like getting away for a few days. Our daughter's birthday
gave us a good excuse to head south to Portland and then return along some of our favorite byways.

The slide show starts out with a shot of the bridge over the Columbia River at Astoria. Then some shots at Long Beach
and the sunset we enjoyed while at the NACO Park in Ilwaco. Next morning our travels took us to
South Bend (Oyster Capitol of the World). We stopped at the Willapa birding area and then up to 
Raymond and out to Chehalis along the picturesque highway 6. We stopped along this stretch to see some horses 
that were up to their midsections in daisies and other wild flowers. Nancy fed them carrots and took the photos...

We crossed I5 then traveled over highway 12 to Mount Rainier for the scenic train ride. The viewpoints from the train lacked
one thing: a view. Mt. Rainier was shrouded by a cloud deck as usual. But the 1.5 hour ride behind an authentic stream locomotive
made for an enjoyable afternoon.   We headed north along the west side of Rainier Park in hopes of getting some glimpses 
of Rainier on our way home. It was short (2 days) and sweet. 500 miles of mostly gorgeous countryside. Evergreen State Indeed!!!