January 12, 2023 - Salem

 

Title: January 12, 2023 - Salem
Hike Info : Description : Animals

Hike Info:

Type: Walking

Trail head: Andrea and Lawrence’s house

Trail: Streets and parkway

Destination:  None

Actual Destination: Minto Island 

Distance: 5.6 miles ¹

 ¹Computed from Google Maps

Sherri at Capitol

Description:

I heard Andrea this morning quietly getting herself ready for work around 6:30. Then slept a bit more until I heard Lawrence doing the same thing around 7:40. I finally got up at 8:15 and went into Lawrence and Andrea’s meditation room. There I read and had my quiet time until 10, when I went down to find Sherri was awake and having breakfast. So I had mine. Sherri seems content to listen to Victor Hugo’s Les Miserables this morning. So I joined her in reading my Crime and Punishment.

Strange Tree

It was not until we had lunch did we start moving. Most of the predicted dry time of the day had already passed when Sherri and I left their front door. But we will go ahead and walk until we either feel like going back or the weather tells us to return. Our plan is to walk around downtown Salem, maybe find a garden path or two and then return in an hour-that is when the rain is predicted to come.

Noble Wave

We head to Mill St and take it to 12th St. We immediately note the difference between Fresno and Salem drivers-Salem drivers stop for pedestrians, even if we are on the curb. This will be a new experience for us. Lawrence notes that walking through Willamette University can be enjoyable. But when we look to see where there might be good walking areas, all we see is buildings. So we continue down 12th to State St.

Ducks on the Willamette

We only go a short distance down State till we hit the Capitol grounds. We know the actual building is closed due to seismic retrofitting. But the grounds, even though small, are interesting. Particularly some mystery trees which look like they have tied themselves into knots. We walked down a green mall to Center Street. They do not have the various fountains running-wonder why since there are now a few drops on my head. We head west on Center and then staircase up a ways before getting to RiverFront Park.

Minto Island pathway

 

It has started to lightly sprinkle, but we have our rain jackets so we are OK unless it gets to be a downpour. We cross Front St into the Park. This is where we were after eating in August. We listened for 15 minutes to a band then, but there is no band playing now. Just the grounds keepers and a few people like us walking around.

Sherri wants to go by the Willamette River, which we do. There is a stern roller boat called the Willamette Queen. Looks like it is a floating restaurant as there are only meal times when you can board. After admiring it, we continue on going up the river until we get to the bandstand. There is a bridge and I ask Sherri how much further does she want to go? She is still OK to continue on, so we cross the bridge. Later on I found out from Andrea that the locals call this the Taco Bridge. Take a look at the picture.

 

 

 

Gary on same pathway

This puts us onto Minto Island. This is where the Minto-Brown Park is located, but the eastern end is some sort of conservancy. Lots of grassland, looking pretty soggy in the Winter. Mallards are all around. The path looks pretty new-no cracks in the surface. We walk on it for a while until we come to a line of trees. By this time, it is time to turn back.

We headed back the way we came to RiverFront Park. But we climb up to the bandstand and then circle around to the parking area. The bathrooms are open, so we avail ourselves. There is even a dry picnic table for us to rest at for a few minutes. Then we are off, going down State Street all the way to 12th, passing by the Capitol again. Looks like it is not just the building getting a makeover, but the landscaping along State. Sherri eyes it towards the work we did to our front yard. I think it got her seal of approval.

 

 

 

World Peace

We then cross 12th and follow it up to Mill St. My legs are feeling a bit heavy towards the end. But we arrive at Andrea and Lawrences, only a bit damp, feeling good about our walk. When I plot it out on Google Maps, it looks like we went about 6 miles. Much more than what we were planning on.

We go back to reading and relaxing. Andrea comes home from work a short time later. Lawrence fixes us some chili beans for dinner while Andrea goes out for a run. Filling and tasty. Then we read most of the evening. Pretty low-keyed. Bed time is a bit after 9:30.

 

 

Animals