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aced@clackamas.edu
Wednesday^ June 6, 2012
The Clackamas Print j
W ildm an denounces
‘Digital Age’
By Isaac Soper
Arts & Culture Editor
W e call ourselves adults, and
by that, we don’t allow our
selves to have fun. I’m a man,
therefore I have to drink coffee
and watch the news instead
o f playing. Frankly, that’s
B.S., which does not stand
for Bachelor o f Science. W ith
finals coming next week and
summer vacation just around
the comer, it is just about time
for all o f us to kick back and
Have some good old fashioned
fun. Let’s go outside and find
our passions, lets remember
when we were kids and imag
ine again.
I can’t even count how
, many hours I’ve spent watch
ing the screen o f a television
when I could have Been doing,
literally, anything else. I work
'in a movie theater, so that
^doesn’t help much either.
• W ith the new onset o f
warm weather (which will
probably be as consistent as
usual in Oregon), I really want
to take advantage o f m y sum
mer break. It’s my new goal to
attempt to stop watching mov
ies before I go to bed, which I
do on a regular basis. It’s not
that I think that Hollywood
is brainwashing the nation
(though they might be), it’s
just that I’m sick o f throwing
away hours every day that I
could be spending living life in
the daytime.
D o you know why time
feels like it goes by so much
faster when were adults
opposed to when we were chil
dren? It’s because we don’t live
in the m oment like we used to.
I remember being a kid and
spending every waking minute
o f every single day playing and
enjoying life.
Yes, we all have to work,
and most o f us are tired when
we get home from our afore
mentioned job. If you’re tired,
go to sleep. If you can’t sleep,
read a book, do yoga, meditate,
have a conversation. D o some
thing that is going to increase
your, life experience, opposed
to melting your brain into a
mix o f garbled mush o f Axe
deodorant commercials and
sports statistics. I’m not saying
that sports are bad; I just think
it would be a better use o f our
time to actually play sports
opposed to watching them
from the comfort o f our living
rooms. La-Z-Boy shouldn’t be
a goal to strive for.
I realize that I’m not going
to convince anyone to change
their lifestyle, but it’s a neat
idea. Maybe I can give up
the instant gratification o f liv
ing vicariously through Denzel
Washington’s on-screen char
acters; I’m going to try at least.
This will be the last tale
o f the Wildman. I’ll be head
ing to Oregon State University
in the fall to study forestry,
which will be the start o f a
new adventure altogether. If I
could leave anyone with some
“wisdom,” I wpuld have to say
“question everything.” By that
I don’t mean be a conspiracy
theorist, or some jerk who
asks “why?” after everything
that someone says or does, but
instead, ask yourself.
The biggest change that I
am trying to make right now
is to always ask myself why I
do the things I do. W hat is
the purpose? Recently I asked
myself why I watch movies,
and the only logical answer was
because I was tired or stressed
and it was easy. I don’t even
have to go to Blockbuster to
rent movies anymore, I can just
download them. Some days, I
just want to smash m y laptop
into a million pieces because
it is such an easy avenue to
waste so much time, but as I’m
starting to realize, as with most
things, it is a tool that m ust be
used wisely, not mindlessly.
If we allow it to, this sum
mer is going to speed by, just
like the last one did, and at the
end o f it, it’ll feel like it was
only days since we were last in
school opposed to months.
Enjoy some Frisbee golf,
go on a hike; try something
new. I really want to try caving
(spelunking). Go out and help
someone in need. Blow up
your TV, as John Denver once
id let’s all go outside.
we’ll meet again some
day, maybe even on the trail.
Let’s pretend, even if it’s just
for a little while, that we’re kids
again.
S
Pete’s ÍTátif Tavern
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Starting
The “weeping walPAsjuslo^e o f the manyheduiifUTscehe'fhikers can enjoy along the two and a h a lf
mile hike called the Horsetail Falls Loop located in The lovely Columbia River Gorge.
Horsetail Falls abundant with beautiful scenery
the Sarid^RiveY ^at Troutdale
leads you to the west end o f the
highway.
To add even m ore to the
A g re at n ational trea tour, it can be fun to stay on
sure i s o n ly 45 m inutes away 1-84 and drive past M ultnom ah
from Clackamas C om m unity Falls. A few miles further is
College, the C olum bia River the Ainsw orth State Park exit;
Gorge. It is a U.S. Scenic área t a k e a right onto the. Historic
with, easy access via 1-84. 'In Highway and travel pack for
a 44 mile stretch there are" a a ¡closer view o f M ultnom ah
total1’ o f .77 waterfalls on the Falls. M ultnom ah Falls ’ is the
O regon side. A third o f these m ost.visited natural attraction
would be extremely difficult to irii O regon With about two and
access, however that leaves a a half m illion visitors per year.
reat num ber o f waterfalls th at Another- couple miles will bring
ave well m aintained trails lead you to H orsetail Falls Loop
ing to them and m any that w hich plunges 176 feet down
you c&n actually drive right up to its roadside pool.< I t i s well
to; A: fon and easy hike in m arked w ith a large U,.S. Forest
the Gorge th at takes- you past Service sign and there are park
three waterfalls is the Horsetail ing areas on both sides of the
Falls Loop Hike. T his is’ along road. T his is the trailhead.
A fter enjoying this lovely
the H istoric C olum bia River
Highway (Historic Highway), falls and its grand mist, follow
as are m any other falls and the path to the east side and
begin the 2.6 mile hike. In. a
trails.
T he H istoric Highway trav short distance you will take the
els up the gorge just south of Horsetail Trail Loop (#438). It
1-84. '■ It’s a beautifully scenic is largely uphill for the first
w inding two lane road w ith h alf mile, b u t m ade easier w ith
dense forest th at overhangs in well-m aintained trails an d h alf
m any spots. Several waterfalls a dozen switchbacks th at serve
and scenic overlooks can be to reduce the steepness. There
viewed while traveling dowri the are spectacular cliff walls, flora
road including H orsetail Fálls- and fauna along the way. T he
Loop. T he1 highway is accessible switchbacks have old stone
a t several points. H eading Up retaining walls covered w ith
By Brad Hein eke '
P h o to E d ito r
Name: Horsetail Falls Loop
Location: Columbia River
Gorge
Type: maintained'dirt’trails
Length: 2.5 miles
Difficulty: easy
Equipm ent: boots (if- it’s
wet),-water botde
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reWf s ^ m a ^ arid flowers.
A t about half mile is Ponytail
Falls H ike where the trail passes
behind the fallsin alarge cave
like. area. Along the trail in
another quarter mile there is a
short side path to a -very dra
m atic view point o f the gorge
and large ponds dow n below.
Take caution in this area, espe
cially i f youngsters or pets are
along, as there are sheer cliffs
along the edge.
C ontinuing
on a short distance the trail
hugs along the “weeping wall,” a
moss and fern covered rock wall
w ith sprays o f w ater em anating
from and dripping dow n it.
A short distance further brings
you to a walking bridge across
the creek at M iddle O neonta
Falls. Looking dow n the creek
you' can see the cliff walls o f the
narrow O neonta canyon and
glimpses o f the Colum bia River.
H iking further, the trail
intersects w ith O neonta Trail
(#400.) Take a right and follow
it b a c k d o w n t o the highway
where you will take a right and
travel a h alf mile back through
the now restored O neonta tu n
nel to complete this scenic loop.
A drive back to Portland via the
H istoric Highway w ith a stop at
the Vista H ouse at Crow n Point
and you’ll enjoy, a day th at you
won’t soon forget.