Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge is not far north from Portland. We drove the 4 mile auto tour. There's a fee box where you deposit the $3 entrance fee. I asked the lady at the kiosk if she has any change. Answer is no, even though she was really nice. So, put $5 in the envelope. The auto tour was nice. Not as many birds as I hoped (probably should come back in 2 months). Apart from various ducks, we saw some swans and deers, about 4 herons, about 4 Nutria.
The entrance near the NWR headquarter leads to Cathlapotle Plankhouse. Not open in winter. The big house looks nice under snow. The bridge over the rail track also looks nice.
Drove to Catherine Creek to see Grass Widow. Too early. There were a few small ones blooming already. It was pouring around Hood River, just a few miles west. The Hood River bridge has increased toll 100% too to $2.Stopped by Multnomah Falls on the way back. It's still fenced in. Despite of all the rain, the waterfall is only half of its normal size.
