Wheeeeeeeee!!!!

Mt. Hood Summit: Isn't it pretty?

Erik and I have made a tradition of having a lil' mini-adventure every year on Labor Day.  Last year I kidnapped him and we drove to the beach, had a picnic, walked around Cannon Beach (the town), bought salt-water taffy to share, and drove home.  It was a blast, and a great way to kick off a new year.  

*Side note:  do you ever stop thinking of August/September as the start of a new year?  Even if you're not in and don't have anything to do with a new school year starting?  I don't think so.*

Anyway, this year I was trying to think of a fun adventure to go on, and I really wanted to do something cool, since Labor Day was really the only day off Erik and I could spend together this whole month, and it's right before his birthday.  I had one plan that I really wanted to do, but the stars apparently did not align to make that one happen, so luckily I had prepared a Plan B.  :)  Which we implemented half-way through the day when I realized Plan A wouldn't work.  (I would tell you what Plan A was, except that we still might do it sometime, and in case Erik happens to read this, I still want it to be surprise.)  

Anyway, we hopped in the car and headed out on our adventure.  It was a BLAST!!  All Erik knew was I had told him to wear jeans and a sweatshirt and we would be back later in the evening.  We took the total scenic route and drove through Hood River and up to Mt. Hood, and it was BEAUTIFUL!!  It was kind of gray in Portland, but as we got into the Gorge, the clouds went away and it was glorious.  :)  We kept driving and driving (and I'll admit, as it WAS  Plan B, I only sort of knew where we were going), and finally (after a brief stop for some directions and one little turn-around) we reached our destination:  the Alpine Slides!!

Apparently, and unbeknownst to me, Erik LOVES luge and bobsled and those kind of sports in the Olympics, so he was SOOOOOOO excited when he realized what we were doing.  (I didn't tell him, and he was a great sport and went along with the surprise.)  There is a whole adventure park up on Mt. Hood in the summer with bungee jumping, go-carts, ziplines...I had no idea.  But our destination was the Alpine Slides, so we bought the tickets and headed toward the ski lift. 

Soooooo excited for his first ride on the Alpine Slide!

You ride the ski lift for a reallllllly long time, which was awesome, then you get off, walk down, and the sleds are waiting on the slide track.  They had 2 tracks, one for beginners and one for "experts," so we decided we'd start off easy.  It was soooooooo much fun!!  You can control how fast you go, so at first we were kind of chickens, but eventually we were zooming along as fast as we could.  The slide is over half a mile long with lots of twists and turns, and it is seriously a blast.  

A brief video tour of the Alpine Slides from the ski lift.

We paid for two rides, so up the ski lift we went again, enjoying the scenery and each other on the way.  I haven't been on a ski lift in forever, so it was a great part of the adventure, too.  On our second ride, we decided to go for the gold and try the expert track.  Erik made me go in front that time, and I bet him he couldn't catch me.  (He SWEARS he caught up to me several times, but I don't believe it!  Besides...I waited for him at the beginning so it would be fair.)  We both flew down the track and it was equally great the second time.  

After the slides, we realized we were both starving, so we headed up the hill to a restaurant Erik had seen where he thought his friend works...turns out he was right!  His friend Johnny had just gotten off work and was walking home, so we chased him down and said hi, then Erik and I headed back to the restaurant for some dinner.  We ate outside (it was chilly, but so beautiful it was totally worth it!), and the food was delicious.  By the time we finished, we were kind of freezing, so Erik treated me to some of the best hot chocolate EVER (seriously, they put toffee pieces on the top, so they melt into toffee deliciousness...mmmmmm....), and we headed back down toward Portland (this time we went the short way).  

Overall, it was a FANTASTIC day, a great way to end our summer festivities, and an awesome beginning to a new year!  :)