Continuing home

Heading on from Redding, we headed toward Chico. We moseyed around Paradise that had been fire devastated a couple of years ago. Even though there was very little evidence of burned buildings or trees, there were still a lot of mail boxes on streets where there was no home to receive the mail.

We were supposed to head next to South Lake Tahoe. But, because the Caldor fire was heading toward South Lake Tahoe, and many highways in the area we would have to drive were closed, we decided to head to Carson City instead. Despite the detour, we headed to Soda Springs and another crossing of the Pacific Crest Trail. Because of the air quality do to the fires, we decided not to het out of our vehicle and hike in the smoke.

Despite our passion, we had never visited the Whispering Giant in our current home state. On the way to Carson City, we managed to find Wa-Pai-Shone in Idlewild Park in Reno. While we had been in Reno many times, we had never managed to see this Whispering Giant sculpted by Peter Wolf Toth.

We also had fun in that Idlewild Park hosts Food Truck Friday. Each Friday during the summer, a vast number of food trucks show up to entertain the locals. We didn’t sample any, but did enjoy the spectacle.

Talk to you soon.

Continuing our way to Vegas

Although we had been there before, how could you miss a chance to visit Crater Lake National Park. We learned that the PCT actually ran through the park. On the first day we dedicated our time to circling the lake on the rim road. Just about every pull out was awesome! We literally circled the lake and saw it from every direction. We even chose to return the next morning to see what the lake looked like in the morning. Sadly, the lake cruises were not running – you could only go in the lodge with a mask if you were staying there – the Covid impact was huge.

We did find both the spots where the PCT crossed roads in the park. The Woman interpreted what she read as that the PCT ran around the lake. However, it turns out that the PCT goes nowhere the lake. What she read was that most hikers on the PCT choose to hike around the lake, even though that is not the actual PCT. One through hiker that we bumped into at the junction of the PCT and the Rim Trail that goes around the lake. He said that few, if any, through hikers actually follow the PCT through Crater Lake NP – they just routinely divert to the Rim Trail, and meet back at the PCT later.

After Crater Lake we headed to Chiloquin Oregon. In Chiloquin is Train Mountain. In 1987, Quentin Breen decided to build 7 ½ inch gauge track so enthusiasts could display miniature rail engines and cars that were still big enough to ride. After he passed, the enterprise became a non-profit organization with members keeping and expanding the original mission. Today, the site has over 36 miles of track which allows the old white guys to literally play with their trains by driving them daily! We went on a ride and thoroughly enjoyed it.

Next we headed to Redding, not for any particular reason but it was in the right direction and about the right distance. As we approached Redding, we caught sight of Lake Shasta. A decade or two ago we visited Lake Shasta, formed by the Sacramento River and the Shasta Dam. At the time we visited, it was impressive, in a lot of ways like Lake Mead. However, today it looks far more dismal than Lake Mead, if that is even possible.

Talk to you soon.

Making our way back to Vegas

As we left the Seattle area, we hugged the Columbia River Gorge just to take in the views. We had already visited Multnomah Falls years ago, so we settled for a drive by view. In Hood River, we checked out the Hood River Hotel, built as a wooden hotel in 1912 – later a brick addition expanded the original many times. We visited the historic depot of the Hood River Railway and saw some of the original wooden cars. Lastly, we visited the Columbia Gorge Hotel, built as a luxury retreat in 1921. We got a bonus when we discovered that Wah Gwin Gwin Falls (also known as Lullaby Falls) is on the hotel’s property – one we had not previously seen. Wah Gwin Gwin means rushing waters in native tongue.

We headed to Cascade Locks. Built in 1878, the locks bypassed the rapids on the Columbia River at this point, allowing better riverboat travel. Built in the 1930’s, the Bonneville Dam raised the level of the river sufficiently that the locks were no longer needed. However, the lock foundations are still where they stood when opened.

One of the reasons we headed here is that the Pacific Crest Trail crosses the Columbia River here. We hiked the trail both North and South for several miles, and paid the toll to drive across the Bridge of the Gods, opened in 1925 to allow Oregonians to visit Washington without having to travel to the Pacific. A campground for PCT through hikers was established near the Cascade Locks. We checked there each day to see how many through hikers there were, and there were a lot. Sadly, we missed by a day or so Pacific Crest Trail Days in Cascade Locks. As we hiked other sections of the PCT in the next few days, we heard Trail Angels mention that PCT Day in Cascade Locks had depleted the number of through hikers they would see.

We then headed to Sisters Oregon, a personal favorite location. The PCT travels North/South just about 15 miles West of Sisters. So, we caught the Volcanic Loop Scenic Highway and managed to find two places where the PCT crossed highways. Not to mention, but we hiked both North and South from each of these crossings. We did tend to avoid the sections of the PCT that went directly across lava flows – yuck!

Talk to you soon.

One last family fling

 

Before we left town, we headed to downtown Seattle for one last family fling. We headed to Pier 55, and boarded our ship for our hour-long harbor cruise. Again, the weather was perfect, and the views of the ship yards and downtown Seattle were spectacular!

Right next to Pier 55 is The Frankfurter – recommended highly by the narrator of our harbor cruise. Nick had been saying over and over how he wanted to get a Seattle Dog while he was in town. The locals didn’t seem to know what we were talking about, and we learned that the locals refer to them more as Seattle Style Crème Cheese Dogs. They are a hearty skin on dog smothered with crème cheese, and all kinds of grilled peppers and onions – yum!

We headed back to Pike Place Market to grab some lunch, and so Nick and Val could see the infamous gum wall. We learned that Pike Place is the oldest continuously operating farmers market in the US, having started in 1907.However, the gum wall is a far more recent addition. Thousands of visitors have deposited gum wads all over this wall. As we left, we learned that the market is happy to supply you with needed materials – a gumball machine stands at the foot of the alley!

We learned that the very first Starbucks coffee shop opened across the street from Pike Place Market. It was 1970 and the beginning of history. You can get some coffee at pretty much every food venue in Pike Place Market, and you can get it pretty much immediately. But if you would rather stand in a line that winds halfway down the street, you can get a cup of coffee from the first Starbuck ever.

Next, we made our way to Pier 59 and the Seattle Aquarium. There we defied CDC recommendations and mingled in large crowds indoors – we were masked of course, but the CDC still frowns on our actions. The Aquarium was well done, and we got to see lots of marine life. The best were the animals we had seen so predominantly when we were in Siberia, like Puffins and Guillemots – it really brought back some really nice memories.

Well, our week with the family had to end sometime, and we will make our way back to Vegas. However, the images of Seattle will be planted in our minds for some time to come.

Talk to you soon.

The fun goes on

Nick and Val had never been to Mount Rainier National Park, so we decided a road trip was in order. I thought that I had understood that seeing Mount Rainier was as rare as seeing Denali, but it turns out I was incorrect. On just about every day, we have been here we have gotten some misty views of the peak. But today was spectacular – absolutely clear as a bell!

Crystal Mountain Ski Resort is just outside the National Park. However, from the top of the ski runs, you get an awesome view of the National Park and the mountain. Fortunately, they have a gondola that services the ski hill in the winter that they open to tourists in the summer. We could not have picked a better day even if we were clairvoyant.

When we stopped in Yakima Washington to visit the Woman’s friend Annie, we had stayed in an RV park in Naches WA. Naches is where the Schneider Springs Fire has erupted, and is currently engulfing over 4,000 acres, although Annie and Rocky in Yakima are out of harms way. But from the top of Crystal Mountain, we could see why the reports we are hearing daily is that the fire is uncontained.

When driving from Yakima to Redmond we went through Chinook Pass, specifically because we knew that the Pacific Crest Trail wandered through that pass, and there was a parking lot at the pass. Sadly, we went through on a weekend and there was no chance of parking a motorhome with a towed vehicle. Luckily the pass was only about 10 miles from the entrance road to Crystal Mountain, so we made a side trip to give the Woman her needed PCT boost of adrenaline.

We rented a car so we could get all of us in and made a road trip to Leavenworth Washington. Founded in 1892 as a result of the construction of the Great Northern Railroad. Originally a lumber town, it turned to tourism in the 60’s and essentially recreated a Bavarian Alps village. We walked all over town, took in the Alpine structures, visited a few shops and had Bratwurst and Bavarian beer for lunch. Fun was had by all!

On the way back to Redmond we went through Stevens Pass.

Googling the drive and things to see, the Woman had learned that the PCT passed through the town. So, we did the only logical thing – found a couple of underpasses that crossed the highway and began our search. It didn’t take long at all to find the trail on the North side of the highway, but I have to admit we never did find the trail on the South side.

Not too far further along US Highway 2 we came upon an information sign for Deception Falls. We didn’t know how far it would be to hike to, but figured we would give it a go. It turned out that you could hear the falls from the parking lot, and the stroll to get there was only a few hundred yards. The falls, made by Deception Creek, weren’t the most impressive falls we’ve seen by a bunch, but for next to no invested effort, they were a pleasant addition to our road trip!

Talk to you soon.

More family time

Just for the fun of it, we grabbed a ferry to Vashon Island. It was only a short ferry ride, but the experience was what we were interested in. We had big hopes of seeing some whales on the way, but didn’t even see any dolphins. But the breeze was nice, and the views of Puget Sound were awesome, even if the trip was uneventful.

We cruised the island and marveled at the real estate prices – immense! We hit a few shops, and then we stumbled on a light house we had never been to. Point Robinson Lighthouse was built in 1884 to help the ever-growing maritime traffic in Puget Sound. We had seen this before, but it was cool to see that you could stay overnight at the lighthouse keeper’s house. There were actually 2 units here you could stay in.

Karen and Albert are moving to a more suburban setting in the Seattle area, the town of Mukilteo. We stopped by to look at her new apartment complex, and grab some lunch at a very well-known and highly popular restaurant on the water, Ivars. Only a block from the restaurant stood the Mukilteo Light. Built in 1905 it served much the same purpose as the Point Robinson Lighthouse.

That night we headed to T Mobile Park to watch the Seattle Mariners play the Tampa Bay Rays. The Park was fabulous except that it was packed – here’s us in front of Ken Griffey Jr. Sadly, I learned about the new extra innings rule recently implemented by MLB. If teams are tied at the end of the 9^th inning, each team goes into the 10^th inning with one of their men on 2^nd base. This is the stupidest rule I have ever heard of – baseball is dead to me!

Talk to you soon.

Family time!

We took advantage of spending family time with Karen and Albert. Nick and Valerie took a week off from work and flew to Seattle to join us in fun and games. Our first stop for fun and games was the infamous Seattle Space Needle. We hopped right into the elevator and headed right up to the observation deck.

Built as an attraction for the 1962 World’s Fair held in Seattle, this 605-foot observation deck was state of the art at the time it was built. The space age theme is everywhere in the structure, as Yuri Gagarin had just successfully been the first human in space in April 12, 1961. Since then, many much taller structures have been built, many of which we have visited. It turns out that now, even the Stratosphere Tower in Las Vegas is taller than the Space Needle.

We then headed to the Chihuly Garden and Glass Museum. Born in Tacoma in 1941, Dale Chihuly became world famous as a glass sculptor, and ultimately chose to locate his biggest collection of work in his home state. Although many might think he had a special relationship with Las Vegas due to all his works located there, his heart was always housed in Washington.

We next hit the Museum of Pop Culture. The Museum is housed in one of the buildings originally built for the World’s Fair, and contains displays focused on popular cultural exhibits. There were lots of guitars played by famous bands and individual artists. We breezed through an exhibit of dresses and clothing from famous Disney films, which Karen totally loved. It was nice that Chris Cornell, guitarist and lead vocalist for Soundgarden and Audioslave, gave us a warm welcome at the entrance.

We hopped on the Seattle Monorail, also built for the 1962 World’s Fair, and wended our way to Pike Place. Although all of us except Nick and Val have been here before, you can never get to much of this multilevel building full of interesting shops and restaurants. Only here can you see 50-pound salmon flying through the air as the are thrown by the guys working the iced display cases to the sellers working the crowds. Somewhere new to all of us was lunch at Lowell’s. Opened in 1957, great food is coupled with outstanding views of Puget Sound and all the activities going on there.

Despite what we have always believed, apparently it isn’t totally impossible to catch a glimpse of Mount Rainier. It seemed like most everywhere we went today – including from the top of the Space Needle – we caught some really clear and beautiful views of the mountain. While hidden much of the time by clouds, Karen tells us that views like these are not as rare as I had believed.

Talk to you soon.

More PCT

We found that in Bellevue Washington, we would be less than an hour’s drive to Snoqualmie Pass. At the Pass, the Pacific Crest Trail crosses a ski resort. So, as always, the Woman wanted to head there and knock off a bit. When we got there, we found the entrance to the PCT heading North.

I

t was right under an I-90 overpass – knowing hikers had to get under the freeway somewhere, it was an easy guess where it would be. However, several inches of water and mud sent us to the trail heading South, which was nowhere to be found. We dodged our way around equipment clearing the last of the snow from the roads and made our way up a gravel road. Huzzah! At the end of the gravel, we found it – and it was mostly dry – bonus! So, we knocked off another 2-3 miles of it. It was a grand day!

When we leave Kona in the RV to do a little sight-seeing, the first thing he does as we leave is jump up into the passenger seat and watch us as we leave. While we have never set up a camera to prove it, we think he just sits there staring out the window until we return. We think that, because each time we drive up to the coach on our return, there he is staring at us from the passenger seat!

Talk to you soon.

Famous local resident

When the Woman was searching things of interest in the Seattle area, she learned that Jimi Hendrix was buried in Greenwood Cemetery in Renton, one of the many suburbs of Seattle. Born in the Seattle area, he was buried in this cemetery because his mother, Zenora Rose, was buried here as well.

Being only about 10 miles away (half hour drive in Seattle traffic) we headed to see his memorial. It was huge! The Purple Haze influence was everywhere. A massive guitar was the centerpiece, surrounded by stone etchings of Jimi Hendrix playing his beloved music. It was a fun visit we would recommend if you’re ever in the area.

Talk to you soon.

More Lewis and Clark

Near Hermiston we discovered Hat Rock State Park. On the Columbia River, the nearby formations were documented in the logs of the Corps of Discovery Expedition. The formations are basalt, basically cooled and hardened lava from volcanoes that were active centuries ago. As the basalt is so much harder than the material that formed the volcano cones, the cones have eroded away just leaving the basalt columns.

Mentioned in Lewis and Clark’s journals, hat rock is a particularly unique basalt formation. The fashionable headwear for men at the time was a beaver skin hat. With a broad brim, the center of the hat was not unlike the look of a formal top hat. Lewis and Clark penned the name “Hat Rock”, and it stuck.

The actual Oregon Trail passed very nearby Hat Rock State Park. We

stumbled upon it several times as we made our way across northern Oregon on our way to Yakima Washington. At many of the stops we were able to see the actual ruts made by the wagon trains as they made their way West to their new life. It was weird to stand in the actual ruts, and see them stretch as far as the eye could see in both directions. 

Nearby we visited perhaps the best example of unbelievably successful web-based advertising. The City of Echo Oregon was founded around 1880. On the Umatilla River, it would eventually become the primary route for the Oregon Trail, brining thousands of eager Americans to the Western lands opened by Lewis and Clark. The Lower Crossing Camp where wagon trains crossed the Umatilla River was at Echo, where Fort Henrietta was built to protect the pioneers on the Trail.

The town of Echo is on the National Register of Historic Places. A dozen buildings in the town are also on the National Register. However, when we were there, there was one café that was open, and no other retail businesses whatsoever. We walked around the entire town, read all the informational signs on the historic buildings, and visited the site where Oregon Trail travelers crossed the river. In all, that maybe took a half hour. But, if you Google the City of Echo, you would expect it to be just an awesome place to visit – nice work!

Talk to you soon.

Further North

We continued North making our way into Oregon. As we got nearer to the Idaho border, we wandered into Rome Station. In the 1850’s, William F. Stine discovered nearby geologic formations that he believed were reminiscent of the ruined temples in Rome Italy. Understandably he named the formations the Pillars of Rome. While we only caught a glimpse of the formations by taking the Equinox on a side road off Hwy 95, we did score a find.

Just a bit up the road we were able to find the grave of Jean Baptiste Charbonneau. Charbonneau it turns out was the youngest member of the Lewis and Clark expedition. The son of none other than Sacagawea, as a newborn infant, he was carried on her back through the famous trek from St. Louis to the Pacific Ocean in 1804. Meriwether Lewis and William Clark referred to him as “Pomp” which gave the name to Pompey’s Pillar, a National Monument we have visited. It was great fun to visit this on our journey.

Talk to you soon.