One of the pitfalls of dating and meeting someone you like is the part where you want to demonstrate what a great gal pal you are by attempting to show an interest in the guy\u2019s hobbies and pastimes. This had led to me having a garage full of golf gear, tennis junk, and other sporty equipment I didn\u2019t really want to blow cash on. (Beware another potential pitfall: weight gain due to some couch potato guy\u2019s obsession with BBQ or chicken wings!)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s Summer, and I find myself dating a guy into hiking and photography. About four weeks into our dating it was time for me to gal pal up and go on a hike to scenic Tamanawas Falls<\/a>. It\u2019s a 3.6-mile hike listed as \u201cmoderate\u201d (whatever that<\/em> meant). But I read it\u2019s where Cold Springs Creek spills over a 150-foot lava cliff near the eastern base of Mount Hood. Groovy! The elevation gain on the hike was 560 feet. (\u201cIs that a lot?\u201d<\/em>) All I had to do was dig a pair of hiking shoes out of the back of my closet that had been gifted to me in 1994. Yay, I don\u2019t have to run and buy anything I will have to store in my garage if this guy bogues out on me too!<\/p>\n\n\n\n But I\u2019m scared. What if Mr. \u201cI-Just-Climbed-Mt-Saint-Helens\u201d is disappointed if I am not able to climb like a mountain goat? Not to mention I hardly know this guy and I am letting him take me out in the woods! (Chicken Wing guy fed me a steady diet of horror movies, so I KNOW what can happen in the woods!) So the night before my hiking debut, I take him to a party. After a few glasses of wine, the hostess laughs at the idea of me wandering in the woods, and informs \u201cHiking Guy\u201d that I am a City Girl. I am just thinking, \u201cGet a good look at this guy so you can identify him if I go missing, Girl!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Next day, off we go! I spent two days creating a stylish picnic lunch for us to dig into on the trail: my man-pleasing stuffed sandwiches (packed with a colorful array of meats, cheeses, and roasted veggies), Italian penne pasta salad, and a peach blueberry tart. For this first outing in Sasquatch\u2019s neighborhood, I decide wine waits until I\u2019m safely home! We drive for what seems like hours in his tiny loaner car. (He claims his Jeep is in the shop!) Not a great start for a foray into the woods. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Finally, we park and set out on what was a beautiful stroll through the forest! Tiny dogs and children seem to be making short work of the trail, so I think maybe I\u2019ve got this! I am feeling great enjoying tall green trees, the sound of flowing water, and cute log bridges. Occasionally I bounce ahead so \u201cHiking Guy\u201d could get a view of my booty in yoga pants. We stop for photography moments and enjoy a lovely picnic lunch on a rock by the cold mountain river. We talk about our hopes and dreams while we bond in nature. When we reach the base of awesome Tamanawas Falls, wow! I take a deep breath. I made it! That was easy! I passed the test!<\/p>\n\n\n\n But wait there\u2019s more! \u201cHiking Guy\u201d casually informs me that we will stop and take some photos at the base of the falls. Then<\/em> we will climb up a huge pile of wet moss-covered boulders halfway up the cliff and go behind the falls! What<\/em>?! Who IS this guy? He wants me to do what<\/em>? I calmly hide my terror and smile. He is attractive and one of only a few single guys in the Portland Metro area with a full head of hair, so I\u2019ll play along. It turned out to be quite easy. I scaled the boulders like a sleek agile cougar\u2026 mindful of the fact that his camera was sometimes pointed at me, so I had to make sure I looked cute! The payoff: a sense of accomplishment, an amazing view, and a romantic kiss behind the waterfall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We had a lovely hike back out. \u201cHiking Guy\u201d delivered me safely back to my front door in civilization like a gentleman. I was back at work the next day in my high heels without even chipping my glitter toenail polish.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And that was the first of many happy trails together!<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you would like to know more about Darcy you can find her on Facebook at https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/darcy.crane1<\/a>Spoiler Alert: I Live!<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Or email her at (darcydishes@gmail.com<\/a>)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":3913,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false},"article-category":[92,89],"class_list":["post-3912","articles","type-articles","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","article-category-health-and-wellness","article-category-travel"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/websites4demo.com\/magazine-new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/articles\/3912","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/websites4demo.com\/magazine-new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/articles"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/websites4demo.com\/magazine-new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/articles"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/websites4demo.com\/magazine-new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3912"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/websites4demo.com\/magazine-new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3913"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/websites4demo.com\/magazine-new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3912"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"article-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/websites4demo.com\/magazine-new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article-category?post=3912"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}