Columbia River Sunset
I was on a road trip on my way back from visiting Wyoming and driving back towards Washington State and one of my stops was this place, the Vista House, or rather, the viewpoint that looks back at the Vista House on the Columbia River in Oregon. I had just driven almost 7 hrs straight when I pulled into The Dalles in Oregon, in 100-degree weather. I was completely exhausted when I drove into a hotel there. I checked in, cleaned up, and laid down for a moment on the bed, feeling the lovely coolness of the air conditioner. I was drifting off to sleep from being so tired when I realized, “Oh! I have to go now to that place to catch the sunset, or I will need to stay another day and night!” (which was not in my plan) I forced myself to get up and drive for more than an hour down the highway, and up a steep winding road to the Women’s Forum Viewpoint just in time to catch the sunset’s golden glow on the Vista House Rotunda and the Columbia River. I drove back afterward in the complete dark on an unfamiliar curvy highway with nighttime road construction, glaring headlights of oncoming cars, with hundreds of bugs hitting my windshield making it crazy hard to see, stressed, and so, so tired. It felt like it was taking forever. Finally, I arrived back at the hotel, fell onto the perfectly cool and comfortable bed falling fast asleep. It’s not always easy being a photographer.
I was on a road trip on my way back from visiting Wyoming and driving back towards Washington State and one of my stops was this place, the Vista House, or rather, the viewpoint that looks back at the Vista House on the Columbia River in Oregon. I had just driven almost 7 hrs straight when I pulled into The Dalles in Oregon, in 100-degree weather. I was completely exhausted when I drove into a hotel there. I checked in, cleaned up, and laid down for a moment on the bed, feeling the lovely coolness of the air conditioner. I was drifting off to sleep from being so tired when I realized, “Oh! I have to go now to that place to catch the sunset, or I will need to stay another day and night!” (which was not in my plan) I forced myself to get up and drive for more than an hour down the highway, and up a steep winding road to the Women’s Forum Viewpoint just in time to catch the sunset’s golden glow on the Vista House Rotunda and the Columbia River. I drove back afterward in the complete dark on an unfamiliar curvy highway with nighttime road construction, glaring headlights of oncoming cars, with hundreds of bugs hitting my windshield making it crazy hard to see, stressed, and so, so tired. It felt like it was taking forever. Finally, I arrived back at the hotel, fell onto the perfectly cool and comfortable bed falling fast asleep. It’s not always easy being a photographer.