Ran, Rain, Go Away...

Yeah, I know…the Pacific Northwest in the spring is known to be rainy, but we’ve been having day after day of constant, on-again, off-again rain and we’re getting tired of it. We did manage to get a few hours of sunshine in while we were exploring the Portland OR area, but the rain came right back again before we even had a chance to dry our umbrellas. We spent several days in Portland, operating from Base Station Mia parked in front of the home of our friends, the Grants. Portland is a lovely city (did I mention that it’s rainy though?) with urban charm and hustle-bustle, but without the madhouse feel of LA or San Francisco. It’s environmentally chic, without being excessive. Bicycles are everywhere, as are recycling bins. And coffee bars.

We enjoyed a night out at a Moroccan restaurant, replete with belly dancers and floor cushions to perch on. Visits to Chinatown, Old Town Portland, South Park, City Center, Union Station and the Pearl District revealed the old style charm of the city, with new and vibrant buildings mingled with the old. The landmark Powell’s Bookstore, Voodoo Donuts and the 24 Hour Church of Elvis are some of the local cultural highlights and must-sees. A trip across the Columbia River to nearby Vancouver WA revealed the fascinating, rebuilt outpost of Fort Vancouver, originally a fur trading post for the British Hudson’s Bay Company and later an outpost for the US army.

A side trip to the State Capitol of Salem (another rainy day…) added to our roster of capitol visits and it was fascinating to compare to the others. Oregon has a part-time citizen legislature that meets for six months every other year. The building is not nearly as ornate as many of the others we’ve seen, and the exterior design resembles a nuclear power plant containment building, except for the large, gilded pioneer statue on the dome. While in the area, we also visited the Evergreen Air and Space Museum, which houses the Spruce Goose (a HUGE one-off wood cargo/ troop plane built by Howard Hughes for WWII and flown only once) and a retired-but-still-menacing SR71 Blackbird spy plane, the fastest plane ever flown. There was also an impressive collection of other military and civilian aircraft and space memorabilia.

Heading northwest from Portland, we made our way to the coast again and further explored the Lewis and Clark connection. Their epic expedition, commissioned by Thomas Jefferson in 1804 to look for a northwest water passage to the Pacific from Missouri, ended at the mouth of the Columbia River. We visited Fort Clatsop, where Lewis and Clark wintered upon completion of their exploration, and got a good overview of their 18-month westbound odyssey. Their journey makes life in Mia seem pretty luxurious by comparison, even without that espresso machine. Nearby was Astoria, Oregon, a town established by John Jacob Astor in an attempt to dominate the fur trading industry.

Crossing into Washington and heading up the Olympic Peninsula, we discovered why the lumber industry is so much a part of the Northwest. I’m thinking maybe they should rename the Olympic peninsula the Weyerhaeuser Peninsula from the number and expanse of lumber forests bearing their signs. Clearcutting is still done in abundance, but a noticeable PR effort emphasizes the “responsible” forestry practices in place to ensure renewal of the resource. And lots of lumber trucks to be seen, not unlike the woods of northern Maine.

The Olympic Peninsula has several rain forests where it remains constantly wet due to the humidity and the height of the tree canopy, which keeps the sun from reaching in to dry things. Besides the rugged, spectacular coastline, there are some breathtaking lake and mountain views that rival Lake Como in Italy for beauty. It’s a similar beauty to Oregon and Northern California, but with its own unique quality.

 We started watching the National Parks video series by Ken Burns, which prima Susita generously loaned to us. In just about a month, we’ll begin our National Parks assault, starting with Yosemite back in California. We can’t wait for the warm weather to arrive and the parks to unfold before us. We’ll soon arrive to the Seattle area, where Mia has an appointment to have her Quartzsite fire damage repaired (see Jan 14 blog). Assuming all goes well, she should be as good as new when we pick her up in a few days.
 
Bye for now...gotta go back out in the rain…  Bob