Before you head up the trail, take a good look at the right here. That's the Multnomah Falls Lodge, and it has been standing
here since nineteen twenty-five. A Portland architect named Albert Doyle drew it up, and here's the detail I love: it's built of native stone,
laid up rough by hand, and they worked in every single kind of rock you'll find in the whole Columbia Gorge — all of it, right there in these
walls. A hundred years of gorge weather, and it hasn't budged.
So step inside whenever you like. Down on the lower level there's the gift shop, and a snack bar if you just want a coffee and a little
something sweet for the trail — plus a Forest Service desk, where a ranger can answer anything I can't. And up the stairs is the restaurant:
white tablecloths, a big stone fireplace, and tall windows that frame the falls while you eat. They've been serving folks a meal in that room
since the year the doors opened.
Warm up, fuel up, and then come find the water.
