one more thing about hood river

I forgot to mention the coolest thing about Hood River. We saw several dozen people windsurfing and kite-boarding out on the Columbia. It was extremely windy when we were there -- thus the wind-surfers. For those not in the know, windsurfing involves a heavy contraption that looks like a surfboard with a plastic sail attached. When the wind is right the windsurfers can really haul ass, just like a sailboat.

Kite-boarding seems to be another animal altogether. There's a big kite or parachute-like contraption that the boarder holds in his hand. The kites were flying hundreds of feet in the air. Then when the wind is right, the boarder steps into something like a snowboard and skims off across the water. The advantage of kite-boarding is that the boarders can jump in the air, do flips and tricks. It looks a lot lighter and more fun, but who knows.

Another key piece of equipment appears to be a wetsuit. It's damn cold out there, with whitecaps on the river and the wind blowing hard.

One last cool thing about Hood River is the Full Sail Brewing Company. Some day I want to take a tour of the brewery. It's one of my favorites, especially their special seasonal brews that they put out in 22 oz. bottles. "Nugget Ale" is my favorite.