A month of months

A walk through Mt. Tabor and neighborhoods.

It was one of the longer ones in the book, and we walked 7+ miles.

I've done this walk more than once, and I still can't remember what I learn each time.

Things I "learned" this time:

• The water in the resevoirs - when they had water - is between 35 and 50° F (1.6 and 10° C), colder than the Pacific off the Oregon coast
• "Portland's water system is among the few in the nation in which the water meets federal standards without being filtered. Other major cities that share this distinction are New York, Boston, San Fransisco, and Seattle." What? NY? Really? Does she really mean NYC or upstate? How did she find that out?
• The same guy that carved Mt. Rushmore - Gutzon Borglum - sculpted the statue of Harvey Scott on the top of Mt. Tabor

We walked almost 5 miles, as opposed to the 3.75 indicated. Not sure how that happened. We started in Willamette Park, which I didn't even know existed, and walked west up through neighborhoods, parks, and a community garden. The fall colors were beautiful and it was lovely to discover these hidden gems in between two major roads and an interstate.

SW Miles Place is at the southern end of Willamette Park and looked to me like a street full of old-Portland holdouts - lots of interesting house additions and neat junk in yards, with a brand new giant 4-story house? building? squeezed in on the corner. Many houses here were originally houseboats that were further upriver and set adrift in floods in the 1890. They were collected by the owners downstream and tied to oak trees on the western bank. They squatted for a few years, then bought their land from Ladd Estate Company, of Ladd's Addition fame¹. One house has an oak tree about this close || to the side of it.

Despite the great views, I took no pictures this time, just enjoyed the walk.

^{1 I recently learned that Ladd's Addition was originally meant to be an all-white neighborhood, unfortunately. I highly recommend listening to this talk by Walida Imarisha about "Why aren’t there more Black people in Oregon?" She travels around Oregon to small towns and gives this talk. I learned a lot.}

Yesterday provided amazing weather for a hike through another rich part of town.

Fun things I learned:
I felt amazing afterward! Like, a little euphoric.  I need more hiking in the sun, is what I learned!

The plots of land in Portland Heights originally sold for $250 - no one wanted them because of the mudslides. When the trestle cable car was built (Up 1000ft with a 20% grade! Aaaaah! Over a ravine! Aaaah!), the price jumped to $10k within 30 years.

The library on the PSU campus (Millar) was built in 1968 with a curved front to accommodate an 1890s copper beech tree, which has edible nuts!

The Simon Benson house was moved to the PSU campus in the late 1990s and Benson was a beloved philanthropist who was responsible for the Benson Bubblers (public water fountains) in 1912 to provide an alternative for citizens who may visit a bar to have a drink. There are a lot of recreation areas that are part of his legacy.

And, ugh!, the diagonal paths through the park blocks were put in in 1905 to discourage local kids from playing baseball there. Ugh! Grownups.

Not a fun thing - the Ladd mansion carriage house has been torn down.

Alexander Kerr, who invented the Kerr Economy Canning Jar, lived downtown. After his wife Albertina died in childbirth, he donated his his house to a society that sheltered abandoned children.  The Albertina Kerr Centers now help emotionally disturbed children and care for teens and adults with developmental disabilities

Goose Hollow used to have a pond with actual geese in it in the 1800s.

At the end of SW Mill Street, the stairs up to SW Vista are gone, along with the building they used to be next to. We had to turn around and go back down the 153 steps and back track a little. Also not fun. But, exercise!

Fire is required for Sequoia cones to open and release their seeds.

One of the houses on the walk was just ridiculous and beautiful - built in 1934 for the Bowles, designed by A. E. Doyle whom they sent to Italy "to soak in its architectural ambiance", it cost $750,000 (which translates to $7.5M today) to build, has gold and silver leafed walls, a fur vault, and sterling silver water fixtures. It's on the National Register of Historic Places which means it has to be open at least one day a year to the public. Future plans!