Past Events: Northwest Z Silver Creek Falls Cruise - Apr 25, 2004
by Terry Hintz
The word is out, we had a resoundingly successful cruise. Great scenery, lots of cars and a lot of sunshine were part of the ingredients for this trip.
The gathering began about 9:30 at the Chalet Restaurant in Brooks, just west of I5 exit 263. The sun was shining all over the Willamette Valley this morning as some of us chowed down for some eggs, pancakes and the like. We managed to secure a nice corner of the restaurant as we drank our coffee and did a little introductions with a few of the cruise guests.
I was not prepared for the number of members and guests we attracted to this event. I had to enlist help from Clint and Gregory at the start. I was really kept busy filling out name tags for all of the guests. Clint helped by passing out the itinerary and directing the members to the board with the pre-made name tags. Gregory naturally fell into the task of 'announcer'. He made sure everyone knew the general plan for cruisin.
We headed out about 10:30 with a total of 22 Z cars! I am sure this is a record we are going to have to work at breaking! The rainbow of colors and models was quite stunning. Just a mile from our starting point, we found a roadside turnout that accommodated all of cars. The Silverstone 04 Roadster, manned by Gene and Joyce Kidd was one of three Z350's joining the lineup.
The early spring weather was ideal as we wound our way east. The Mt. Angel Abbey was perched on a hill just to the north of our route, making for a nice view of the area. Just before noon, we arrived at the Marquam Hill Winery. The free wine tasting was enjoyed by many of the members, while others managed to engage in that favorite pastime --Z car braggin! Mike N was showing off his new wheels, while others took a closer look at Britton and Dorcas's LeMans Sunset 350Z.
As we drove into Silverton from Hwy 213, we attracted a lot of attention. While the lineup of 1990 Nissans dominated, the uninitiated viewer was certain to have recognized the Z car caravan from the half dozen 1970 models. What a colorful sight we made!
Our next picture op was from inside the Silver Creek Falls Park.
The sun followed us through the lush greenery into this graceful winding countryside. Lance took the challenge to new heights -literally. He wanted to make sure he had the picture angle just right. We all held our breaths as he climbed the embankment to snap this shot.
Winding our way south to Hwy 22, we saw several vineyards and Christmas tree farms. While the walkie-talkies are not perfect, they did help us. Heading east on Hwy 22, we had to pause to allow some of the other traffic pass. We had to say farewell to Doug and Colleen at this point, as they headed to a 1st birthday party for Carson.
The air became quite warm as we climbed towards the Santiam State Forest region. The Detroit area attracts a lot of vacationers in the summer months. Since we were early in the season, the traffic was better than expected. The rest stop just past Mill City was a welcome sight. A little time to stretch our legs and a call ahead to the lunch stop was definitely in order. Mike and John pulled into the stop beside each other. This is a shot you are sure to remember --the Electric Purple and the Deep Purple-- WOW!
A great view of the Detroit dam was glimpsed as we headed to our lunch stop.
Cedar's managed to accommodate our crowd in the lounge area. We had friendly service and a nice time to visit in this charming chain saw art restaurant. After a little break, we began to notice how much sun was caught by having those T tops off! Ouch. Maybe we need to pack sunblock next time?
The day had flown by and several folks elected to head home after lunch. You can't blame those that were heading back to Florence, Astoria, Eugene, and Vancouver just after 3:30. As we hit milepost 49, along Hwy 22, we were down to 11 cars. One more picture opportunity was found at the new Detroit Ranger Station. Lance and Wendy posed with their cars nose to nose. Another good shot was captured of the cars with their driver's. Hey Ryan, why are we getting a shot of your backside? Something to do with the view is better from that side?
Lineup from left to right: Britton, Bob, Mike N., Vickie B., Lori, Rhonda, Ryan W., Gregory, Lance, Wendy, Mike H.
Great cars, great weather and the best people made this a super cruise. I wish we could do this again next week. Looking forward to more fun this summer.
