Travel Buddies

Picking the right travel buddy can mean the difference between night and day while on an adventure. Choose the right person and the trip is great.  You have good conversations, explore more and time flies with little to no drama.  Pick the wrong person and you can find yourself turning back before the adventure even begins.  Or even find yourself in a whole new realm of adventure filled with frustrations and hurt feelings. I've had my share of both over the years but mostly I've been fortunate to have good experiences when I choose to bring someone along with me and Cole on an adventure.

Jessie Honeyman Memorial State Park

Recently, I experienced polar opposite sides of that spectrum.  A few weeks ago, I took two different trips to the coast.  The first was a planned two night camping trip in Florence with a friend.  I was eagerly looking forward to cooler temps, exploring sand dunes and enjoying some beers by a campfire.  A couple days before the trip, the drama began and didn't stop until I found myself driving home early in 3 hours of silence because there was nothing left to say to each other. Shortly after that trip, I went on a day trip to the coast, this time in Northern Oregon/Southern Washington.  The trip was easy, fun and time just flew.  Before we knew it, our one day trip turned into a two day adventure with an over night stay in Port Angeles near the Olympic National Park.  It was completely unplanned for and completely fun, regardless.

These two experiences got me to thinking about past travel buddies.  Immediately I thought of Jim, an old boyfriend that was always up for an adventure.  Together we explored all sorts of things: trails, rivers, parks, camping spots, caves and so much more.  This is when I discovered my love of hiking which prompted me to make my photography hobby a high priority in my life.  He was also interested in photography and together we would spend hours snapping hundreds of shots that would probably bore the pants off any of my non-photographer friends.  After each trip, we would compare shots.  It inspired us to try new angles, and experiment more with our cameras.  I like to think it made us both better photographers.

Kalaloch Beach

One of our more memorable adventures is one in which everything went wrong.  We rented tubes and floated down the Sugar River in Wisconsin.  The river was low which made reaching our end point take a lot longer than planned.  The lower water level also meant that our butts scraped along about a hundred different rocks that hid under the surface of the water.  Each time it happened to me, I'd scream out in surprise -- terrifying anyone within earshot of us which made Jim laugh.  My waterproof sunblock didn't hold out for the length of our float and I ended up with a pretty good sunburn.  Somewhere along the river Jim lost his keys, leaving us with no way to get home, so we had to call friends to come out and help.  We handled it all with laughter though and we looked back upon that day fondly.  Sometimes when everything goes wrong is when you realize how right it is.

After everything went "wrong"

Sometimes I think preparing for a trip is less about things like gear, toothbrushes and maps and more about who you are with and the jokes and stories you tell and how resourceful you are along the way when faced with a difficult situation. I'm sure we all have people in our lives who either encourage us to laugh through the turmoil or who make even the best of circumstances the worst of situations. The next time you find yourself packing for your next adventure, my advice is to leave the Debbie or Doug-Downer behind and bring the Positive-Patricia or Paul.

For more photography from my nature-adventures, visit:

Kristin Roosmalen Photography on Zenfolio

Kristin Roosmalen Photography on Flickr

One Year an Oregonian!

“Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it.

Boldness has genius, power and magic in it.”

— Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Five years ago I first came across this quote and it instantly resonated with me.  There was no way to know that I would very soon be falling in love with the state of Oregon and thus begin my quest of calling it home.  It took hard work, a little luck and 2,082 miles of driving but it happened, I realized my dream, and have now been an Oregonian for an entire year. Oregon and the surrounding areas of the Pacific Northwest are truly magical. Most of my weekends are spent exploring and there seems to be a never-ending supply of places to go. I have explored mountains, rivers, coastal beaches, waterfalls, all kinds of parks, wilderness and so much more.

Throughout my adventures this past year, my favorites may have been on the Oregon coast. No matter how you choose to get there from Portland, the drive is remarkable. I’ve developed a specific playlist for the drive via Highway 26 that I begin to play as I ascend the Oregon Coast Mountain Range.  The songs narrate the twists, turns, ups and downs through the towering trees of the Tillamook State Forest perfectly. If no stops are made and you continue south onto Highway 101, Twin Rocks, Oregon will begin to play as you arrive in Rockaway Beach – home of the infamous Twin Rocks that were the icon of my Oregon dream for the years leading up to my move. Watching the sea grass sway in unison with the wind at sunset while the ocean waves crashed upon the Twin Rocks as an official Oregonian was a special moment for me. Sometimes I like to just sit on the beach and watch the world go by:  young and old couples walking side by side holding hands, women walking solo enjoying the solitude of the ocean, men playing with their dogs, families building sand castles and flying kites, kids running into the ocean waves and quickly running back out again as the cool water gets a little too high on their bodies for comfort, and surfers paddling out to find the perfect wave.

Surfer at Indian Beach, Ecola State Park, Oregon

I've watched perfectly blue skies slowly transition to a brilliant rainbow of ever-changing hues during sunset in Bandon before fireworks exploded, shaking the cliff I stood upon, high above the ocean on the 4th of July. I’ve climbed steep coastal cliffs barefoot in Cannon Beach as mud squished between each toe. I’ve gazed in awe while eagles swooped down over the ocean on Indian Beach and elk slowly munched plants in Ecola State Park, seeming to pay no mind as I watched.  I have to admit it was the best nature show I’ve ever seen. The fog seems to have a mysterious personality all its own in the Pacific Northwest.  The way it creates laser beam-like rays through the forest trees at Ecola State Park is unforgettable. I've visited an abandoned shipwreck that enjoys a second life on land as curious visitors pose alongside for photos at Fort Stevens State Park. I've seen Thor's Well suck in the cool, Pacific waters and Spouting Horn push it right back out in Cape Perpetua. I've seen the way lighthouses send out a beacon of light in the night, momentarily illuminating the way before passing on by only to come back around, again and again. I've stood high upon the towering edges of Cape Disappointment while deer bound through the grassy edge as if the possibility of falling hundreds of feet below to crashing waves were nothing to fear. I've watched clouds circle around the eye of a storm as it approached land in Oceanside before heading up to visit a tree shaped like an octopus at Cape Meares State Park on my 35th birthday. I've seen water glisten off sparkling sand while wind-rippled dunes stood nearby at Neahkahnie Beach. I've heard mussels snap their threads as I walked on by at Neskowin Beach. I've watched seagulls ride the wind like kites, sometimes gliding while other times they appear to float completely still in the Samuel H. Boardman State Scenic Corridor. Perhaps my favorite coastal adventure so far, I've fallen asleep to the sounds of the ocean after watching the sunset while beach camping on the central Oregon coast.

Paradise, Mount Rainier, Washington

The mountains and forests in the Pacific Northwest are truly enchanting. I've seen the most beautiful shades of moss, from velvety, emerald to shaggy, sea foam green, grow on everything that doesn't move, and even some things that do. I've stood on a fallen tree bridge over the Old Salmon River while crystal clear water rushed below over brown, orange, white and black stones before wading through the cool, mountain fed water while a family of ducks rode the rapids downstream. I was overwhelmed with child-like joy when a newt swam into my hand at Lost Lake, high upon Mount Hood. I've peered out from behind a waterfall at Silver Falls State Park and seen mist continuously swirl in the air through a meadow, like smoke rolling off a fire, at Tamanawas Falls. I’ve walked through the abrupt change of dry, hot summer air to cool, mountain air that hugs the river at Little Zig Zag Falls. I've seen the setting sun's rays as they cast shadows on canyon walls at Cottonwood Canyon and tumbleweeds roll over desolate roads that double as cattle trails near the Painted Hills. I've seen hundreds of caterpillars covering leaves, bridges and trails on a warm summer day in the Tillamook State Forest. I've seen a sea of green blanket the rolling hillsides of the Mount Hood Territory while driving up to Timberline Lodge as the peak of Mount Hood appeared, disappeared and then appeared again, over and over as I drove through the winding mountain roads. I’ve driven inside tunnels through cliffs that stretch to the sky and tower above in the Gorge as the Columbia River flowed by. I've stood on the perimeter of the devastation caused when Mount Saint Helens blew the year I was born.  Perhaps most brilliant of all my mountainous adventures was standing at Paradise upon Mount Rainier and feeling a connection with everything that has ever lived before, during, and after my time, all at the same time, as an unexpected rush of emotion overtook me.  I wonder if the same thing happened when John Muir stood in that very spot?

Washington Park, Portland, Oregon

Living in the epicenter of all this surrounding beauty, Portland, I’ve gazed over the entire city while Mount Hood stood watch from high above at Pittock Mansion. On clear days, I've seen multiple mountain tops in all directions while I simply just ran errands. I've seen sunlight break through the trees and shine a spotlight down to the forest floor as if to say, “this is your time to shine, little patch of earth” in Washington Park. Roses of every color line roadsides, parks, houses year-round.  For this mid-western girl, there is nothing quite like walking past a blooming rose bush in December while thinking of all my family and friends back home hunkered down for the winter to escape the snow and cold. I've watched moody fog creep through the West Hills in Portland during my early morning commutes to work, slowly obscuring everything it touches. I've taken in deep breaths of wood scented air after a light rain; even in the middle of the city, it smells like a forest. I've seen forest trees illuminated by the sun, highlighting every vein and outline of their leaves, gently move from side to side, creating a symphony of sounds in Forest Park.

The Pacific Northwest regularly overwhelms me with it’s beauty, mystery and wonder and I find myself thinking, how can this place be real? All my life, places like this only existed in movies and in books or in travel shows I used to watch.  Sometimes the beauty here is just too much to handle and literally takes my breath away.  I then groan with a sort of wonderful pain that starts in my chest and goes up to my throat because it’s just too much to handle.  At the same time, I just can’t get enough -- I  have found my home, my paradise.  The home that I never knew was missing, but always felt its absence.  The home that I, until stepping foot on the coast for the first time four years ago, never knew was waiting for me.  With so much happening in just my first year here, I eagerly look forward to the adventures awaiting me and Cole as we continue our journey, exploring and photographing the wild places of the Pacific Northwest and beyond.  I hope you'll continue to follow along!

In honor of my my first year as an Oregonian, I prepared the video below to highlight some of the most spectacular places I've been fortunate to photograph on my adventures.

More of my photography at 
Kristin Roosmalen Photography

Change of Plans

Several weeks ago, an old, out-of-town friend said she would be in Portland in early June and hoped we could spend some time together catching up.  That idea morphed into a 5-day road trip vacation, the would-be third of our Oregon adventures together.  We had planned to start our trip with a hike at Eagle Creek in the Gorge and visit to Bridge of the Gods before stopping at Cottonwood Canyon and then spending the night near Hell's Canyon.  The second day would be devoted to exploring the Wallowas in far eastern Oregon before moving on to the Painted Hills and Smith Rock on the third day.  We would explore the Central Cascade mountain range including driving through the McKenzie Pass and hiking to the Blue Pool on the fourth day and then end the trip on the fifth day at Silver Falls State Park.  It was the perfect road trip adventure!!  What actually happened though was something very, very different.  

Chanticleer Point

Day 1 - Wednesday:  While loading a weeks worth of supplies and camping gear into my car, I managed to pull a muscle in my back.  I loaded up on Ibuprofen and hoped that it wouldn't turn into anything debilitating.  We proceeded to stop in at the Toyota dealership for a quick fluid and tire pressure check before heading out of town.  We made a short stop at Chanticleer Point to take in the beautiful Columbia River Gorge and Vista Point view before proceeding to Cascade Locks to see the Bridge of the Gods.  We decided to pass on the Eagle Creek hike after reading that the parking area was known to have frequent car break-ins.  We kept going east on I-84 toward Cottonwood Canyon and decided due to the time, to just camp at their site for the night.  We set up our tent and enjoyed some food before our hike.  It was shaping up to be a glorious afternoon and evening for hiking and photography but before we could actually depart on our hike, my back started to tense up so much so that even standing or sitting was causing me extreme discomfort.  Realizing that I couldn't hike and that a night of sleeping on the ground probably wouldn't be the best thing for my recovery, we decided to head back to Portland for a good rest and we would come up with a new plan in the morning.  On the way home, we made a pit stop at Timberline Lodge on Mount Hood for a cocktail and snack. We got a great table but unfortunately, the clouds decided that we would not get to enjoy the view.  

Cottonwood Canyon

Day 2 - Thursday:  I awoke with my back not much better than when I had gone to sleep the night before.  We decided to take it easy in the morning and just watch a movie.  After resting more, I realized that even though I was in no condition to hike, I was probably up for some lounging on the beach so we decided to drive to coast and try out an unofficial beach camping spot I had heard about.  We carefully followed the directions I was given and were delighted that we were able to find the spot.  Finally, a victory for our road trip adventure!  We set up our tent at the base of a tall cliff and enjoyed the wind protection that the tent gave us while laying on our sleeping bags and watching and listening to the ocean waves.  As the sun began to set, we decided that before bed, we would move our tent up on top of a bluff to avoid any high-tide problems at 2:00 AM.  Even with the relaxing sound of the ocean and the mild weather, sleeping was difficult.  I may have managed to dose off a little here and there but mostly, I did not sleep.  

Beach camping on the coast

Day 3 - Friday:  At first light, shortly after 5:00 AM, we decided to pack up our gear and head into town to use a restroom and grab some hot coffee and warm food.  After getting our fill of both, we decided we would head north along the coast and stop and set up our tent at the first sunny beach spot we could find which turned out to be in Lincoln City. Our sunny spot didn't stay sunny long though.  A heavy fog rolled in and made itself comfortable for most of the day, taking our view down to just about twenty feet or so in front of our tent.  We tried to make the most of it and catch up on the sleep we were lacking but each time I began to doze off, Cole decided that he had something to say about absolutely nothing happening outside.  About six hours of that later, I decided I couldn't lay there any more and we packed up and headed back to Portland.  Once home, my friend realized that she was getting sick. Great.

Cole loves the coast!

Day 4 - Saturday:  We woke up Saturday morning and unfortunately, my friend was not feeling any better.  We decided to run to the Saturday Market so she could pick up some kombucha and then to Sauvie Island to pick up a boat load of fruits and veggies.  Unfortunately, none of these items were helping with her sickness so she opted to hang at home on my couch and rest. Since my back was feeling pretty good, I headed out with a friend to see a movie in Vancouver.  We never made it to the movie but did stop into several places for drinks and food before coming back to Portland to grab some sushi and drinks on NW 23rd.  

Neskowin Beach, home of Proposal Rock (not pictured)

Day 5 - Sunday: With my friend still sick and not up for any adventures and another hot day in the forecast for Portland, I decided to escape the heat and head back out to the coast with my friend from the night before.  We drove west on Hwy 6 and then south along Hwy 101, stopping at Proposal Rock to explore the beach and let our dogs run.  The little creek that normally is higher than I'd like to cross was low this day so we were able to easily cross and explore the other side of Proposal Rock for the very first time.  As usual, the dogs ran around like crazy and made friends with other dogs and people alike.  After a few hours, we decided to head out and continue south along the coast.  We made a food stop in Lincoln City and a coffee stop in Waldport before attempting to explore Driftwood Beach in Seal Rock.  In the rush to escape the heat in Portland, we didn't consider bringing sweatshirts and found the lack of sun, wind and 60 degree temperature to be prohibitive for beach enjoyment. We sat in the car in the parking lot and watched the ocean for a bit before deciding to fight the traffic and head back home to Portland.   

The view from behind North Falls

Day 6 - Monday:  This was originally set aside to be my recoup and prep for going back to work day but alas, my

visiting friend was finally feeling up for some hiking!!  I called up another friend to join us and we traveled along some winding, back-country roads to Silver Falls State Park, located a little over an hour south of Portland. Sadly, due to the 95 degree weather prediction, Cole had to sit this hike out. That did allow us the opportunity to hike a trail that would have been off limits had we had him with us so that was the only upside to leaving him behind. The park and waterfalls were as beautiful as their reputation boasted but the temperature quickly rose to an uncomfortable level and a little over two hours into the hike, we decided to cut it short and head back to the air conditioned car.  

Tuesday morning, I saw my friend off to the Greyhound station to continue her adventure to Seattle and I hopped on the Max to head back to a small mountain of work that awaited me there.  It was sad to miss out on all the fun things that were planned but I did enjoy the time away from work, the opportunity to spend some quality time with my friend and Cole, and even get a couple of decent photos along the way so it wasn't a complete fail.  I'm hoping my trip to Kansas early next month will go a little smoother than this one though.  

To see more of my nature photography, please visit my website here.

Catching Up

Times are busy for Cole and me in the land of Portland!  Here's some quick highlights of my adventures and happenings since my last post.  

TOUR GUIDE, EXTRAORDINAIRE! 

I hosted my third visitor from Wisconsin in the beginning of April.  True to form, I created an action packed itinerary for the occasion to highlight what I think are some of the coolest features of Portland and the surrounding areas.  

Day One

• Food Carts - What better first food in Portland experience than to hit the food carts?  We went to the giant pod near 10th and Alder.  I had a delicious kimchi quesadilla from the Korean cart and my friend had some steamed dumplings from another cart.  Both were generous in portion size and delicious.  
• Powell's - Any book lover must stop at Powell's while in Portland.  It's not too often that you get to go into a multi-level book store the size of a city block and then some.
• NW 23rd - Some great shops and cafes to walk to and explore line this street, all condensed within a few blocks.  I found the largest collection of bitters I've ever seen at The Meadow and picked out a nice bottle for my old-fashions and enjoyed some coffee and cute animal-shaped chocolates at Moonstruck Chocolate Cafe. 
• Portland City Grill - This restaurant is located on the 30th floor of a building downtown and has spectacular views of the city, Willamette River, Mount Hood and the Cascade Mountain range.  We enjoyed a glass of wine while sitting piano-side.
• le Bistro Montage - This restaurant came highly recommended by a friend and after learning that they send your leftovers home in foil-art, I figured we had to give it a try. The communal tables were not my favorite part but the food more than made up for it.
• Rontoms - After dinner, we enjoyed a couple of cocktails not too far away at Rontoms.  The open space, eclectic furniture, fireplace and music all made for a nice atmosphere to end the night.  

View of the Columbia River and Vista House from Chanticleer Point

Day Two

• Gorge - After reheating our cat and mouse shaped foil containers of food for breakfast, our first stop in the gorge was at Latourell Falls where after we did the short hike to the waterfall, we headed to Chanticleer Point for a spectacular view of the Columbia River valley and Vista House.  This is where I learned a had lost my cell phone.  Luckily, a good Samaritan found it and I was able to retrieve it at the Multnomah Falls visitor desk where they were so kind to leave it for me.
• Timberline Lodge - After my panic attack subsided from nearly losing my phone, we drove to the top of Mount Hood for lunch at Timberline Lodge.  As always, the food and rich wooden atmosphere was spectacular.
• Badgers Game - After sufficiently stuffing ourselves with food, we drove back to Portland and met up with the Badgers Meetup/UW Alumni Association at the Station on Alberta Street to watch the Wisconsin Badgers beat the Kentucky Wildcats and advance to the final game which called for victory donuts at Tonalli's and tacos at Sana Fe Taqueria.  

View of Cannon Beach from Ecola State Park

Day Three

• Ecola State Park - After a quick BK breakfast and grabbing a drive through coffee on Hwy 26, we went to Indian Beach at Ecola State Park where we were greeted by some elk on the side of the road.  After walking the beach a bit, we went over to the viewpoint to take in the spectacular view of Cannon Beach and Haystack Rock.
• Hug Point - After winding our way back through the beautiful coastal forest, we stopped at Hug Point where we explored the caves a bit and walked the beach.  
• Manzanita - We stopped in Manzinta for lunch at Left Coast Siesta and then did some shopping at a few stores including picking up some salt water taffy and a treat for Cole.
• Proposal Rock - We continued south and stopped to stretch our legs at Proposal Rock.  The tide was high so we couldn't do too much exploring of he rock since it was surrounded by water but it was a beautiful view nonetheless.
• Depoe Bay - We made it as far south as Depoe Bay before we decided it was time to head back to Portland due to the heavy rain. Once home, we ordered pizza for delivery and watched a move to unwind from the weekend.  My friend headed back to Wisconsin the next morning and I headed back to work.  

SIERRA CLUB PROJECT

Through a Meetup group, I learned the Sierra Club in Portland was looking for volunteer help on a project. They were putting together a team to help revise and publish a new edition of the 50 Hikes in the Tillamook State Forest book.  They are also going to include  the Clatsop State Forest in the revised edition.  My involvement in the project will consist of hiking the trails, taking photos for the book and possibly doing some writing to update the trail descriptions.  

WILLIAM SULLIVAN PRESENTATION

I was fortunate to be able to attend a presentation by William Sullivan at the Mazamas Center.  The topic was new hikes in Eastern Oregon and my-oh-my was it exciting to listen to him talk about his adventures and learning some of the history of the places he's gone to.  I was pleasantly surprised to learn he had more books that I wasn't aware of so my Amazon wish list has grown considerably since that night. The presentation came at a good time since I will be embarking upon another epic road trip adventure with a friend the first week in June. After seeing Bill's presentation, we will be heading east!  Stay tuned.....

PACIFIC PUG RESCUE

After running into two different people on two different days at the dog park who were fosters for the Pacific Pug Rescue, I decided the time had come for me and Cole to take that same step in our lives.  I completed an application and after my references and vet were called, a volunteer came over to do a home visit.  I'm happy to report that I have officially been approved to be a pug foster.  My first foster will come after attending their Fostering 101 class later this month.  So much puginess to look forward to!

MOUNT RAINIER NATIONAL PARK

View from Paradise, Mount Rainier National Park

I had another opportunity to travel to Seattle for work so on the way up, I made a stop at Mount Rainier.  This time, there was a lot more snow that my visit in fall.  I drove up to Paradise and then stopped at view points along the way as I descended the mountain.  It was National Parks Week and since the weather was beautiful and the entrance fee waived, there were a lot of other people to content with.  I'm happy to see so many people getting out and enjoying the National Park system but I think I prefer my park experiences with a little less humans.  





BANFF MOUNTAIN FILM FESTIVAL

On opening day of ticket sales, I purchased one ticket for each of the three nights of the Banff Mountain Film Festival World Tour at Cinema 21.  After having attended the festival in Madison last year, I knew what to expect: beauty and inspiration!!  All of the films focus on outdoor sports adventures, mountains, conservation and other naturey-things that speak to my heart and soul. The films this year were all spectacular.  I decided that if my budget will allow, I would like to make the trek to Banff, Alberta, Canada this fall for the annual nine day film and book festival.  Stay tuned....

Mount Hood and Portland as seen from Pittock Mansion

FOREST PARK

I did my first hike at Forest Park the other week.  The park stretches for seven miles in Northwest Portland and just a few hundred feet in on the trail you have no idea you are still in the city.  It's a wonderful place with many, many trails to choose from.  The other day I hiked one of the trails to Pittock Mansion which offers an amazing view of Portland from high up above the city.  



TIMBERS GAME

Another first, I attended a Timbers game.  Knowing nothing of soccer, but hearing good things about how fun the games are, I hoped my friend that I went with would be able to fill me in.  Unfortunately, it was his first game as well so we spent a lot of the game guessing at why some things were the way they were.  For instance, the group of guys in the corner of the field, off the game area, were doing synchronized movements together.  They sort of looked like a version of cheerleaders but I was informed later that they were probably just warming up.  The crowd was definitely a bit rowdier than I expected.  If the opposing team tripped up one of our players, the fans stood, yelled and booed in unison very loudly.  All during the game, songs were sung in unison as well.  I sense a theme here.

NEHALEM RIVER/OSWALD WEST STATE PARK

Surfer at Short Sand Beach

I attempted to hike my first trail in the Tillamook State Forest the other weekend. A beautiful drive, I was excited to hike the trail that ran for seven miles along the Nehalem River.  Sadly, once arriving at the parking area, my friend and I realized there was no trail head and that the gravel road was the trail.  The same exact road that cars drive down.  How can a road be considered a hiking trail?!? With our dogs in tow, we decided it wasn't our cup of tea.  To make the most of the day and drive, we decided to go to the coast instead.  We ended up at Oswald West State Park and hiked down to Short Sand Beach.  Once there, we let the dogs off-leash to tear up the sand while we explored.  There were lots of surfers, other dogs and even a waterfall.  All in all, it was a good turn of events.  

LOST LAKE

This weekend some friends joined me in a trip to Lost Lake in the Mount Hood National Forest.  After a two hour drive, half of which was spent on beautiful, winding country roads, we arrived at the lake.  The trail had spectacular views of Mt. Hood. The cool mountain lake water was crystal clear and filled with lots of little newts, one of which swam right into my hand.  Along the trail there was lots of trillium flowers and skunk cabbage to take pictures of.  On the way home, we drove through the magnificent Lolo Pass with an even more beautiful view of Mt. Hood's peak and the surrounding mountainside. 

View of Mount Hood and Lost Lake

Check out my photography website where you can see some of my favorite shots from my adventures!

Happy Birthday, To Me!

This year's birthday was bittersweet.  On one hand, I'm living my dream in Oregon, something I had hoped and dreamed for over the span of three years.  Everyday is amazing here, even on the days when I'm missing my friends and family back home in Wisconsin.  On the other hand, this was the first birthday in years where I didn't go out for dinner and drinks with twenty-plus friends.  What I did do though was go on a road trip to the coast with Cole and my friend, Renae.  I stopped to take some roadside photos on the way there, we ate lunch and dinner at two of my favorite restaurants and even watched a storm roll in from the beach.  That is exactly how I hoped to be spending my 35th birthday when I declared, last spring, that I would be moving to Oregon.

Storm rolling in at Oceanside Beach on my birthday

Nature's fun little birthday gift this year was to bless me with seasonal allergies, something that is completely common here to far too many people.  I'm lucky in the sense that so far, it's just a lot of coughing and not itchy eyes and runny nose.  It did come on in conjunction with another nasty cold, bringing my cold count to 4 since I've been here.  I guess you can say I truly am a nature junkie now since nature literally makes me sick but I won't let that stop me from enjoying it every chance I get and there's absolutely no way in hell I'm leaving Oregon.

I do find myself feeling rather alone here.  There's something to be said for having people around you who've known you more than a few months.  I ran into an old from Wisconsin by accident the other day.  It turns out both of us are living in Portland and neither of us knew.  For a moment, it was such a relief knowing that I had an old friend here, someone I've known for 15 years.  That was unfortunately short lived when I learned he would be moving to Tennessee in August.  I'm happy that he will be pursuing his music career, after all, everyone should know the joy that comes from following your dreams, but the selfish side of me wishes he would stay put a little longer.  I'm hoping we get to spend some quality time together before he moves away and I look forward to knowing someone who lives in Nashville, a place that has been on my "to travel to" list for some time.

At the Station after the Badgers won on Thursday. Go Wisconsin!!!

I have found that there is a good sized group of Wisconsin people living here in Portland.  I was lucky enough to discover the UW Alumni Association - Portland Chapter.  They gather for Badgers sports events and although I am not an alumni, they welcome all Wisconsinites to their gatherings. It's been fun meeting people from Wisconsin who live and love it here like me.  It's funny how something as small as where you come from can bond you so quickly with a stranger.  Or maybe it's just that Wisconsin people are so friendly?  Either way, it's been a welcomed turn of events and helps make me feel less alone.  

I have another Wisconsin friend coming to visit next weekend, the third of my friends to visit me here, and I'm looking forward to giving her the grand tour of Oregon, well, at least what I can physically cover in just two and a half days. I'm thinking we'll start on Friday with a hike a Silver Falls State Park, followed by dinner and drinks at a couple of cool spots in Portland for her birthday celebration. Saturday, we can start the morning by visiting the Saturday Market, then take a drive through the Gorge, stopping to see a waterfall or two, before driving up to Mount Hood, grabbing a bite and drink at Timberline lodge.  Sunday will probably consist of a drive to the coast, stopping to see and explore a few of my favorite places on the Northern coast.  Of course, this all depends on the weather and as I've come to learn, as in life, it can change so quickly here.  Check back soon to hear all about it!

Check out my new photography website here!

 

The Great Cupcake Debacle of 2015

Image from the Betty Crocker recipe for Boozy Bourbon Chocolate Cupcakes

The picture above was the expectation for my "Almost Birthday" cupcakes that I set out to make on Wednesday night.  I wanted to bring them into work to share with my co-workers on Thursday since I was taking off on Friday (my actual birthday) for a road trip to the coast.  The end result, and process leading up to it, went nothing as planned.

I had purchased all the ingredients on Tuesday night but I forgot to get containers to transport the cupcakes in so Wednesday night, after work, I stopped to pick up some containers.  Google told me there was a Walmart nearby my work but when I got there, I discovered it was a Walmart grocery store, not retail store.  Luckily, I found a Fred Meyer not too far away but the added driving made me a little later than I wanted in getting home to get started.  

I got started on the recipe around 7:00 PM. After carefully pouring the cupcake batter into each individual cupcake pan liner, I realized that I didn't put the bourbon in.  I proceeded to pour each liner's batter back into the bowl so I could mix in the bourbon.  Once all the batter was back in the bowl, a painstakingly slow and messy process,  I realized that the amounts of oil and water on the recipe were different than on the cake mix box.  Since the recipe said to follow the box directions, those were the amounts I used.  What the recipe actually intended was to follow the procedure on the box but use the ingredients and amounts from the recipe.  So now that my oil and water amounts were off for the cupcakes and I couldn't proceed any further.  Wanting these cupcakes to be perfect, I determined I needed to start over.  Not wanting to waste the batter, I poured it into a cake pan and made a booze-free cake.  I then headed to the store to pickup another box of cake mix, more eggs and some frosting for the cake.

I got back from the store with my replacement ingredients around 9:00 PM.  I proceeded to mix everything together correctly and poured the batter into the liners, again, and baked the cupcakes as directed.  In the meantime, I mixed the ingredients for the filling and the ingredients for the frosting. Neither went smoothly.  The frosting turned out too thin but the recipe said to add more powered sugar if this happened until it was thick enough.  I kept adding more and more and more powered sugar until finally, it seemed to be thick enough.  Then, I read that the filling needed to cool in the refrigerator for at least 60 minutes before I could put it on the cupcakes.  So around 11:00 PM, I cut off the cupcake tops in anticipation of putting the filling on top.

Unfortunately, the filling did not thicken as it was supposed to in that 60 minute period of time so I put it in the freezer for about 20 minutes, hoping that would help.  It didn't.  I kept checking back every 10 minutes or so to test the filling to see if it was getting thicker.  By 1:00 AM, the filling was still too thin to use so I decided to let it sit in the refrigerator overnight and put the cupcakes together in the morning before I went to work.

After walking Cole, I grabbed some ice out of the freezer so I could bring a glass of ice water into the bedroom with me.  When putting the ice cubes in the glass though, I noticed that the cubes were solid on the outside but watery on the inside.  I noticed the refrigerator wasn't making any noise. I opened the freezer and there was no cool air coming out or moving around.  The same thing was happening (or not happening, depending on how you look at it) in the refrigerator.  Realizing that my refrigerator was not working, I started to fear that not only would my filling not thicken overnight, but that I would lose all my food too!

I fired up my computer to get the after hours maintenance number from the property website but discovered that the website was down for maintenance. My panic mode kicked into higher gear and I called the number listed on the "down for maintenance" page but the woman who answered was of no help.  Apparently, she wasn't able to look up any numbers for the property either with the system down and made no attempt to offer any advice on what to do next. Luckily, after hangup up with her and calling the main number, I got the after hours maintenance number from the recording.  After explaining the situation to the answering service, they said they would have an on-call maintenance person call me.

Five minutes later, the refrigerator magically came back on.  It was a miracle!!  One minute after that with my cell phone in hand about to call the answering service back, a maintenance guy, visibly tired and irritated, showed up at my door.  After explaining that it was working again, and reassuring him it really was not working just a minute ago and that I wasn't crazy, he left, clearly irritated and I'm sure, thinking I was a complete moron. At 1:30 AM, I finally laid down to try to get some sleep.  The moment my head hit the pillow though, my month-long cough kicked into action and it was clear I would not be sleeping anytime soon.  After about an hour, I decided that maybe a hot shower would help calm things down.  By 3:00 AM, I was back in bed and was able to fall asleep, eventually.

At 7:00 AM, Thursday, March 19th, my alarm went off and I quickly ran to the refrigerator to check on my filling.  It was thicker than when I last checked but still not the consistency that I wanted it to be.  I had no time left and therefore no choice but to use it.  After putting the filling on top of the cupcake bottoms, I put on the cupcake tops and then piped on the frosting I had made the night before, which seemed like a decent consistency. Unfortunately, five minutes after putting the frosting on the cupcakes, I realized that it was starting to lose it's form and run down the sides of the cupcakes!!!!

At this point, I felt completely defeated.  With all my running around, hard work and lack of sleep, they still didn't turn out when all I was trying to do was something nice in sharing a treat with my co-workers.  All I could do at that point was bring them in to work and explain that they may look bad but assure my coworkers that they tasted good.  Everyone agreed, they were delicious!  And since no one knew what they were supposed to look like, no one knew how truly ugly they were. They just assumed that the cupcakes were covered in icing.  Yes, that's it, I meant to make icing, not frosting!

Below is a photographic journey through the Great Cupcake Debacle of 2015.  Next year, I'm buying a cake!!!

The ingredients

Battered is poured into the cupcake pan liners

What attempt #1 turned into:  a cake minus the bourbon

The cupcakes are cooling

The cupcake tops after being cut off

The cupcakes bottoms and tops

The cupcake bottoms with the filling on top

The finished product (container one) after 1 minute :) 

The finished product (container two) after 5 minutes :(

Kristin Roosmalen Photography is Officially Up & Running!

Proposal Rock, Neskowin Beach

For the past two weeks, I've been battling a pretty nasty cold, at least that is what I think it is.  It started on a Sunday and just kind of sneaked up on me.  A friend noticed before I did because of my voice. When confronted with her "are you sick" question, I had to pause and really think about it.  I had been so busy unpacking my eagerly-anticipated boxes from Wisconsin that I hadn't stopped to take a breather.  When I did, I had to admit I was feeling a little under the weather.  By the end of the day, there was no question about it, I was sick.

I went to work Monday morning and was promptly sent home and told to rest up and get better. After three days of rest and working at home, I felt a lot better and went back to work and finished out the week.  I was feeling so much better by Saturday that  I decided to take a low-key trip out to the coast and soak up the sun a bit on Sunday.  I didn't do anything too strenuous, just some leisurely walking on the beach and a lot of driving.  When I went back to work on Monday morning, my cough was a little more prominent.  By Thursday, I felt completely devoid of any energy so I worked from home in the afternoon and took Friday off to rest.  And rest I did, I ended up sleeping the entire day. Apparently my body knew what it needed and decided to take it.

Wanting to feel better as soon as possible, I committed to resting the entire weekend.  This was no easy feat since it was predicted to be sunny and near record breaking temperatures of 70 degrees in the Portland area.  There was so much hiking I had been looking forward to doing earlier in the week before my health decided to decline again.  Such is life though and I decided if I were going to be stuck inside at home, I was going to make the most of it.

I've spent the entire weekend diligently working on my photography website, a project in the making for weeks.  Well, at least in the sense of actually owning a website that just needed to be built.  The photography that goes into it has been years in the making and deciding which photographs to sell was no easy task. It required looking through thousands of photographs and trying to predict which ones someone would want to hang on their wall, let alone pay for.  Even after selecting photographs I think would meet both criteria, there was another step, editing.  This was definitely the most time consuming part of the process.

I am pleased to report that I do have a site that is ready to share, although a little more work is needed as far as refining some photos I want to include.  After that, the next step is marketing and there is a list a mile long of tasks that I need to do with that but at last, I have a place to share my best work that not only can be seen but also available for purchase by others who enjoy the wild places that surround us.  This way, they too can keep a little piece of it for themselves.

Click here to visit Kristin Roosmalen Photography.