Quilcene

Dean, Diane, Connie and I left Chimacum and headed south to Quilcene, Washington. If I had a license I could dig clams and hunt for oysters, Hood Canal Oysters are some of the best. We stopped at the headquarters for the East Olympic National Forest to get maps to the places I wanted to see.
Falls view Canyon Trail challenged us to walk about .1 of a mile of flat trail to get the shot you see above. Somehow we managed.



Farther south on 101 we took a steep narrow road that wound around Mt. Walker climbing 2.000 feet. From the view points at the top we were treated to views of the entire Puget Sound and Hood Canal. On a cold clear day you would be able to see Mt. Baker, The Olympic Range, downtown Seattle and Mt. Rainer. We could see it but not very well.
Lunch was the best yet on this trip; The Olympic Timber House Restaurant is five star for food and ambiance. Log Construction and rock walls sent us back in time to the days of lumberjacks and Miners. We came home tired from all that hiking but our tummies were full and happy.

 

Harry Beckes 7/15/96-7/27/11

Saying goodbye to an old friend for the last time is hard to do, but my little buddy had reached a point at which I decided to end his suffering.  He had kidney failure and cancer, and he was hurting.  I could feel it when I held him, he would involuntarily quiver.  A year ago he weighed over 16 pounds, today he was less than half that, just skin and bones.  He never complained and kept up the good fight but it was time.  Just a month ago he had caught a rabbit and brought it home to us, now he was having a tough time jumping up for his food and water.

He had just celebrated his 16^th birthday.  I remember bringing him home from the pet store, he was skinny and scraggly and Connie thought I had lost my mind.  Little did she know what a handsome, loving cat he would become.  I named him Harry after Harry Houdini; he was a great escape artist. Except for the sliding door, there was no door in the house that he could not open and he always kept us laughing with his antics.  When our dog Poco would walk down the hallway, Harry would jump out in front of him, looking like Kato, the sidekick of Inspector Clousieu in the Pink Panther series.  Every night he would warm my lap and my heart; I loved him very much.

Extremes

          Yesterday there was another sandstorm that raced through the Phoenix area with temperatures 110+, ugh! It sounds more like Afghanistan.

In order for that to happen in Western Washington, some dust would have to be found first, most dirt here is wet and has something green growing on it, especially since the Northwest is having a cold wet summer, so far, temperatures here range between 50 and 60 degrees. We have had about one day of sunshine about every third day or so.

You RV’rs still in Arizona had better dump your stuff and pull up your sewer hoses; what the hell is wrong with you? Have you lost your compass or just your way in life?

Port Townsend residents claim to have 500 resident black-tailed deer, they are everywhere. Some folks are none too happy; it’s hard to grow any food item that makes it to harvest. There is also a large herd of Roosevelt Elk and in the higher elevation are mountain goats. Predators include well fed bob cats, majestic bald eagles, wiley coyotes, rascally raccoons and several cunning cougars; last year, Jefferson County Animal Control had to put down seven of these beautiful creatures due to their wrong choice of diet (sheep, cattle, rancher, poodle), even a mountain lion has to watch his diet!  

Life in the slow lane

Summer time and the livin’ is easy (and very slow). This is not because of the heat but because of the rain, most here are hunkered down inside, staying warm and dry. If you are where it is hot, you stay inside with the A/C on, here, the fireplace is king.

Folks around here are in no hurry to do anything, a bit like molasses in January. CB and I have recorded our best blood pressure readings in years, it is kinda like being in hibernation. It is so nice to crawl into a soft bed, pull up the down comforter and snuggle together. We have been sleeping like that for 8-9  hours every night, Cara too. The quiet here is total save for the rain drops tapping on the roof, such a soothing sound.

Temperatures here are in the 50’s at night and the 60’s during the day. All that rain makes for lots of green, and leaves the air smelling clean. It hasn’t rained so long that we can’t get out and walk, it is totally flat so it is perfect.

There are no fast food places anywhere, but lots of neat little places with great food. Downtown’s buildings are just as they were a century ago, only the wares have changed.

 Built along the ocean makes for a backdrop of sailboats hoisting brightly colored sails billowing in the wind, against the greenish blue of Admiralty Inlet, which is the inlet to Puget Sound. The MV Chetzemoka (named after an Indian Chief), is one of the new ferries in the Washington State Ferry System and can be seen coming and going not far away. If you are very lucky, you may get a glimpse of a monstrous black steel hull rising from the deep, one of the several nuclear submarines that call Puget Sound their home. The other black thing you may see rising from the deep would be killer whales, always an amazing sight. Many sightseeing boats take people out to view them up and close, the crew can tell the names of each whale due to their markings, and which pod (family group) they are with; we have been and will be going again.

our site

Our large lot, surrounded by nature.Perfect! Got fresh berries, carrots and focacia bread at the local farmer's market.  Let's eat!

Totem Pole

More pic's from the Escapees park.

A lucky Totem by the club house.

You can hear a pine cone drop.

Chimacum Escapee Park

Anyone like living in a garden in the middle of a forest? This is it, the Evergreen Coho Escapee park is about as perfect as I could ask for. The cost of staying here a month is about what the RV park in Creed, Colorado cost for just one week!  You can hear a toad fart, that's how quiet it is.
Tonight is hot dogs, popcorn, ice cream and Bingo! What's not to like?

Port Townsend

 

The Fountain Cafe, is one awesome eatery. Just a block off the main drag in downtown Port Townsend , always close to full, mostly with locals. This is my favorite town, bar none. They don't believe in tearing down the old to make room for the new and improved, they celebrate the old and the heritage it represents.
In the 1860’s it was a busy hub for commerce, the tall ships came here to load and unload. Today the seagoing vessels are pleasure craft and the Port Townsend to Coupeville Ferry, the one we took from Whidbey Island last Friday.

Upchuck

 

Upchuck

This was the name of a restaurant in Wisconsin, the UP stood for Upper Peninsula and that brings us to the Upper Peninsula of Washington, Sequim, Port Townsend and Port Angeles being the largest towns ( too small to be called cities).
This part of Washington is both cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter, thanks to its proximity to the Pacific Ocean. This area is also in the rain shadow of the Olympic Mountains, meaning substantially less rain. Sequim (skwim for you non-natives) averages only 17” of rainfall per year; I think Seattle can do that in one month. In fact, Sequimians  boast of 300 sunshiny days per year. The sailors of old called this area “the blue hole” as in the only blue sky out of a lot of gray. Cold, yes, in January the coldest month averages 44 for the high and 30 degrees for the low. I guess that is what wood stoves are for; besides, we would probably be off pillaging in the lower 48 for a few months.
If we lived here we would have a small boat to fish for Salmon and Halibut, both plentiful. On the way out we would set crab pots in 20 to 30 feet of water in hopes that on returning we would have several Dungeness crab, the chances are very good since Dungeness Bay surrounds Sequim. A short drive gets us to Quilcene and Quilcene Oysters. My favorite way to eat them is raw with a little hot sauce and a small chunk of lemon rind, my second favorite way is fried; my mother would poach them in milk and eat them with crackers. Vikings do love sea food, I am partial to crab, eaten while still hot and dipped in melted butter and lemon juice, num num. I almost never order fish in a restaurant; I have been spoiled by having it just out of the water. Halibut is like lobster, Salmon done in wine, onions and grapefruit slices on the barbeque is sublime. I love to smoke salmon; the Indians had a good idea there. Anybody hungry?

Aye, aye Captain, full speed ahead!

CB and I met Fran and JC in La Conner, browsing in all the myriad stores; artsy things from a few dollars to several thousand. We love to look at the latest creations of those fortunate enough to be able to envision and make such beauty. Some are local craftsmen; La Conner has been home to artisans since the thirties. The local arts committee just held an auction and collected over $400,000, Wow!

I thought the La in front of Conner was French; I am happy to say it is not! John Conner founded the town in 1869, just four years after the Civil War, and named it after his wife Louisa Ann Conner. Several of the buildings are over 100 years old and of historic significance.

Lunch at Calico Cupboard was less than usual but still pretty good. We said our goodbyes and headed for Mt. Vernon, on the way we got a call from Dean and Diane; they had gotten a monthly spot at Chimacum, an SKP park second to none. Cb called the park and they said there was no one on the list and there were two sites available. Up early in the morning we headed to Coupeville on Whidbey Island, Deception Pass along the way was running fast and furious; white swirling froth had danger written all over it. My Dad and I went thru it with his boat on our way to the San Juan Islands, it can get very exciting; in the sailing ship days it was the cause of countless shipwrecks.

We were on standby for the 10:15 sailing, the best I could get on the phone was 1:30. Cara was on the dash of the motor home and the women in charge of loading the ferry took a shine to her, she let us on first. What a great ride, on the front row it was like we were driving across the water, Cara loved it, Harry was bored by it all.

Beauty to Boomer's

Drive from Burlington, Washington and you will be treated to flat farmland surrounded by majestic mountains, some capped with snow. The city of Bow has two cafe’s, if you take Bow-Edison Road for a mile, you will come to Edison that has a bakery (awesome) and a saloon, there used to be another café there but it is boarded up. Continue on Chuckanut Dr. and you will love the view, all the way to Bellingham; lucky people in homes with views to die for, high on a cliff overlooking Bellingham Bay all the way to emerald islands called the San Juans (they must have barrowed the name from California). We were driving down a street connecting a few waterfront homes when three deer posed for us alongside the road; these were bucks with large sets of antlers. I want to live here!
After we got our Trader Joe’s fix we went to Boomer’s, an institution here in Bellingham. Their combo is a cheese burger, waffle fries and a milk shake. CB and I both got combos with root-beer shakes. Suddenly we were teenagers again, hanging out at Mel’s; we hadn’t had root-beer shakes in forty years.

Happy Third of July

          I have seen my share of fireworks displays, but last night was the best I have seen; not bad for little La Conner Washington!

          We started the evening at my ex-Sister-in-law’s Skagit bay Hideaway. The consummate hosts, Kevin and Earlene, welcomed us to their stunning home on the water. Earlene, an architect, designed a masterpiece of stone, iron, concrete and whimsy. From the parking area you descend on a path that would be the envy of any landscaper; vivid green punctuated with dark lacey branches, among flowers of every description and hue. It almost makes you want to skip along. The house seems to appear out of nowhere, tucked into the hillside, reaching thru towering trees and resting some forty feet above the sparkling blue of Skagit Bay.

          Inside, high ceilings and walls of glass, take advantage of the breathtaking view. Walk out from the living room and you are suspended in mid-air by a wooden deck, itself a piece of art (built by my Nephew Tom). It took me back to my days of tree houses as you literally walk among the evergreens.

After Kevin made his basil martinis, we were ready for the Fresh crab, salad and crusty sourdough bread, all paired with a good white wine, or a cold coke.

It had started to get dark, so we drove in to La Conner. We had been invited to join friends on the deck of Hellam’s Winery Shop, on Swinomish Chanel. We were directly across the water from where they set off the fireworks. These were professional fireworks that were paid for by the local Chamber of Commerce and private donations. This was the best fireworks display I have ever seen; it went on and on with spectacular arrays of color and a cacophony of sound. The last one went off and covered the sky with a canopy of what I can best describe as flowing rivers of gold, it transported me out of my body and into that gold covered world; yea, it was that good!

As Connie and I drove home we remarked about how wonderful it was to have re-connected with someone who was so much a part of our lives, many, many years ago.