Seeing Portland and
Environs From the
Air an Outdoor
Sport for the
! 1
Visitors of
Tomorrow
By Henrietta L. McKaughan
rpAKE in the Guardians of the
. Columbia! Mount Hood,
Mount Adams and Mount St. Hel
ena! Sightseeing car of the Tour- '
1st Aero service leaves In five min
utes! Come and frolic on the gla
ciers of three mountain peaks and
be back in time for dinner!"
Thus shouted the hoarse voiced
airplane man through his mega
phone. The plane rapidly fills
with tourists, garbed in complete
aviation uniform rented at the sup
ply building for the trip.
"Tickets, tickets," said the guide.
"Everybody ready?" asked the
pilot, corkscrewing his neck
around.
"All ready!" shouted the guide
who had just inspected the strap
ping process.
The plane ran crazily over the
field and rose majestically ovfer
the city of roses.
"These beautiful illustrated
booklets I have for sale at $1
each," said the guide, producing
an armload of them. "They show
each point of interest over which
we will "traverse on this after
noon's journey. By following the
book carefully, , you can see for
yourself each picture that it con
tains." The tourists were ready to be
interested.
Oh-h!'
exclaimed
a sweet
young creature as she
got her
book. "Aren't the pictures pret
ty?" "Below you," yells the husky
guide, "lies the city- of Portland.
Tou will find it on page 7. Half
the party craned their necks over
the side ot the car. the other half
fumbled in their books for page
7. That silvery thread Is the
Willamette river. The wider
streak is the Columbia."
"Where?" queried a freckled
faced lad to a stoutish red headed
woman at his side. "I don't see
any thread."
"Be Btill!" commands the R. H.
W. "There It is," as she pointed
to Terwilliger boulevard.
t "Still looking below you," bel
lows the guide, his voice sounding
above the whir of the engine, "you
will see the ..winding' highway of
the Columbia river, once far famed
t as the . most scenio ; ride In the ;
Northwest, until airplane came In- .
to use. In your books you will
find it on page 16."
"John," protests a firm-jawed
woman of a meek faced man by
her side. "We're in the wrong end
of the car. I can't hear a word
that guide says and I won't know
what to look at."
"Straight before us," yells the
guide, "you will see Mount Hood."
Every tourist looked. "Until the
development- of the airplane,"
cried the guide, "nobody reached
ft icy summit except by climbing
by foot with most painstaking ef?
fort. As a result, but few Mazamas
ever set foot upon the snow fields
and glaciers of the far famed
mountain that lies so close to
Portland's door. Through the
vastly expensive engineering feat
of our company the up-to-date
landing field was constructed on its
summit. You shall all be able to
walk about on Mount Hood, 11,225
feet above sea level, by he real
de luxe method of mountain climb
ing. Blankety blank million dol
lars were spent on leveling off the
summit of the mountain, which
was heretofore too rocky to per
mit an airplane landing. The feat
was one of the biggest engineering
projects in the country. Having
leveled the,, mountain, our next
problem was ' to make the terra
firma solid enough to land. We
at first considered skids. So as to
enable us to land in the snow, but
later developments developed a
floor, which our regularly em
ployed workmen keep swept clear
of snow during the summer
months.
"Off to the south you will see
Mount Jefferson, and beyond, the
Sisters. We will now land. Ve
will spend 15 minutes on Hood,
so that aa many of you as wish
may get out and walk around.
This is the place to send your post
cards home. There is a wonder
ful selection over in that building,
and a postoffice branch, so that
you can mail them right at the
'top of the world!'
'"See that dilapidated looking
shack over there. That was erect
ed by the forest service in lilt
for the purpose of watching for
forest fires before airplane patrols
came into . use. ' They, packed all
their materials up on their backs.
and for many summers Elijah
Coalman lived there all alone. It
was a lonesome place then, and
cold, too. He hadn't the heat
piped up from Crater Rock then
as we do now. They say Coalman
had nothing but an old coal osl
stove. He would be somewhat
surprised at the buildings and
facilities of all kinds we have up
here now.
"Here we are. Now everybody
get out and buy their postcards."
"Ma, are we going to get out?"
asked the freckled faced boy.
"No," declared the red headed
woman. "We're only here for a
little while and we'll just keep our
seats. You must not exercise in a
high altitude, anyway. You might
get the nosebleed."
"Ah, now," begged the f. f. b.
"Everybody else's getting out."
"You'll stay right here," de
clared the r. h. w. "See, this pic
ture shows us just where we are."
"I simply must get out," said the
sweet faced thing.
"I must be able to tell my
friends I walked around on Mount
Hood."
"Now's our chance,' whispered
the firm-jawed woman to John.
"We'll get a seat nearer the guide
while everybody is out. I don't
enjoy things unless I can hear the
guide tell what they are."
The tourists bought, addressed
and mailed their postcards, posed
for an official photographer with
each of them holding a snowball,
and then took their places in the
plane.
The plane ran off the mountain
top.
"Ahead of us in Mount Adams."
yelled the guide.
"Which one?" queried the freck
led faced boy.
"Shut up," commanded the red
headed woman. "Can't you see,
that round topped one there?"
pointing to St. Helens
"Upon the summit of Adams you'
will find equally modern facilities
as you have found on Hood.
Through the airplane have our
Northwest mountain peaks under
gone a development never dreamed
of in the early history of the re
gion. ' We will -spend a few min
- utes upon Adams as well as St.
Helens.';. At each place you will
have opportunity- to buy - souvenir
postcards of the mountain's most
noted glaciers and. other scenic
features. ,
"Do you see that monument
there? That is te mark the ar
rival of Dee Wright, who per
formed the then-supposed wonder
ful feat of riding up Adams on
horseback in the year 1918."
The plane settled down on
Adams and the passengers clam
bered out and purchased some
more postcards.
"Isn't this just too cunning for
anything," cooed the fairer half
of the newlyweds, clinging to the
arm of her stalwart companion.
"Just look at that halo over Mount
Shasta," pointing the while, at
Mount Rainier. "Doesn't that
look just like a lovely new hat?"
It was time to be off for Mount
St. Helens. The tourists settled
comfortably back in their seats.
"Where are we now, John?"
asked the firm-jawed woman,
turning the pages of her book
frantically.
"I don't know. I can't seem to
find it in here," said John. "Oh,
yes, we must be about here," point
ing on a map which the book con
tained. "Because Adams was the
mountain we Just left, you know."
Within a few minutes the plane
v nosed down over St. Helens,, and
again the passengers flocked out to
buy souvenir postcards. The guide
nonchalantly smoked a cigar. His
voice was getting tired.
"Oh-h, wouldn't you Just love to
live up here in the clouds?" sighed
the newlywed.
"Ma, where's that other plane
going?" asked the freckle faced
boy. "Gee, it's heading toward
that other mountain. " Are "we go
ing to that mountain, ma? Say,
ma, why don't we go that moun
tain?" . ,
..' - That mountain 'Is Rainier, cald '
the guide, turning half around.,
We take it in on our longer ..trip,
which costs just twice I as much
and lasts all day. . On that trip, we
l have lunch'at our-fine new Top-ol -
.... ' " - ' s ''il ; gr
the World Inn' on Rainier, and
then soar south and take in all the
largest peak In Oregon." : 'Q.
It was time to be off.
"My. -but I'm hungry.' said. the
weet young thing, as they headed
.... Portlandward.
."Doesn't lt give 70U an appe- '
i tite to; fly though. I, hope they
:-"''.:i.hav"-omethJng good to eat at, the
hotel-tonight. '