Hiking Group THE MARCH 22 hike will be either Lacamas Lake or Steigerwald Natural Wildlife Area, depending on the status of the camas flowers. On January 25 six hikers braved the beautiful but cold weather for a three-mile hike in Oxbow Regional Park, a park few, if any, of us had ever been to despite being longterm Portlanders. The trail was well maintained and varied in aspect, from riverside to woods, climbs and descents; the picnic sites we passed were clean and inviting for a warmer day, while the river was a rushing, cold stream enticing to the steelhead anglers. On February 22 four hikers, having previously scouted the scheduled Salmon Creek Greenway, instead walked the sevenmile, 1,200-foot elevation gain Wildwood Trail loop from the Japanese Garden entrance to Holman Park, with beginning and ending of the loop at a hiker’s house in Northwest Portland. This Wildwood segment climbs from the Garden to the Arboretum, descends a bit to the Barbara Walker Crossing across West Burnside, then ascends to the Pittock Mansion and down to the Audubon Society, at which it descends to the Witches Hut. Surprisingly for the clear blue sky, it was not a four-mountain day: only Mt. Adams and a bit of Mt. Hood rose above a lower level cloud cover at the Thurman Street bridge viewing area. —Tom Dieterich 3 The RAPS Sheet March 2022 RAPS Group Reports Book Group THE RAPS BOOK GROUP gathered on February 15 via Zoom to discuss Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer. We were a small group, several members having conflicting duties that afternoon. Braiding Sweetgrass offers big ideas, and we had an animated discussion. The author is Native American, and she wrote of the basic attitude that the individual needed to be grateful to the earth, receiving its gifts with appropriate thanks and never taking more than needed. The contrast with modern industry and farming methods is evident. The book also contained descriptive chapters about the attempt to destroy the Native American culture. By the end of the discussion we were an indignant group, ready to do something, but pessimistic about undoing the damage to the earth. We will next meet on March 15 and discuss The Sentence by Louise Erdrich. She is an author the group has enjoyed, and we are looking forward to this new book. She also is a Native American author, and we expect some of the same philosophy. However, there will be differences; this novel is set in a Minneapolis bookstore in 2019-2020 and is a ghost story. We are eager to read and discuss it. The RAPS Book Group meets on the third Tuesday of the month. Though we traditionally meet in members’ homes, we are currently meeting via Zoom. All RAPS members are welcome to join us. —Joan Shireman Bridge Group I SEE BETTER TIMES ahead, but I am not sure when we should restart playing RAPS bridge in person. The omicron spike is in a steep decline. Per capita case counts are still much higher than they will be when we arrive at the new normal. COVID-19 cases in Multnomah County do not seem to be declining to a “moderate risk” level. In fact Multnomah County is currently at an “extremely high” risk level. We will watch that risk level and begin bridge sessions when the risk drops down to “moderate” or maybe just “high risk.” We need additional players; do you want to join us? I would like to hear from any interested RAPS members, or others you know who might want to play in our group. The RAPS Bridge Group does not require RAPS membership; your friends and relatives would be welcome to join us. Please contact Steve Brennan, 503-889-0146. My email address is: the.steve.brennan@gmail.com. —Steve Brennan Front to back: Cilla Murray, Mary Lane Stevens, and Tom Hard at the Barbara Walker Crossing on the Wildwood Trail, February 22. Left to right: Larry Sawyer, Nancy Chapman, Cilla Murray, Mary Lane Stevens, and Tom Hard at Oxbow Regional Park, January 25.
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