Dipping my feet in the Pacific Ocean

We left Castle Rock and headed north and then west to the Elma RV Park, in of all places Elma, WA. It is an older park but well maintained and just full of beautiful flowers. It is about 20 miles to the coast.

We drove over to the ocean. What a hoot, we went through Aberdeen up to a small oceanside village of Ocean City. While there we called Mike and Linda who just happened to be in Ocean City, MD at the time. There is also an Aberdeen MD. The coast is covered with huge trees. It is the only rain forest in North America. We drove up the coast through Pacific Beach and on to Moclips. We then came back south to Ocean Shores which is your typical beach resort town. We stopped at Sharky's the big t-shirt place. The front door was the open mouth of a shark.

First dip in the Pacific Ocean

Bailey on the beach

Emily on the beach

Truck on the beach

Pacific Beach

Windswept trees

Sharky's

 When we went back to the campground it was very apparent that the rivers and streams are strongly tidal for quite a ways inland.

Tide coming in backing up the river

On another day we drove around the south of Grey's Harbour and over to Westport on the coast. This was a real town with a thriving fishing port. There was a Maritime museum and fish processing plants. We had lunch at a restaurant with a pirate theme. Now that we are on the coast I am having fresh fish at every opportunity. There is absolutely none in AZ. There were all kinds of seabirds everywhere.

This is the last guy who tried to skip out on the bill

The day before we left we drove up into Olympia as I just had to see Shipwreck Beads. They claim to have the largest selection of beads in the world. I can believe it from the size of the warehouse where the store was located. Their name came from where they started their business in a wrecked ship beached in the river.

Mt St Helens

We left Memaloose in a heavy rain. It was dark and the clouds hung low all down through the Columbia River Gorge. On a nicer day this would have been a beautiful drive. Visibility was limited.

Columbia River Gorge

Columbia River

Bonneville Dam
 

We got to Portland and drove across the river into Washington. We went up to Castle Rock and stayed at the KOA which was on the road that went up to Mt St Helens.

Crossing the Columbia River

The original visitor center was a few miles up the road. We were here about 25 years ago and this was the only center. The roads up to Mt St Helens were old logging roads once you got beyond the town of Toutle. There is a brand new road that has been built up higher and includes 5 new bridges. The old road was down closer to the river and pretty much wiped out by the large mud flows following the eruption. We drove the 52 miles up to the Johnson Ridge Overlook. There was a great film about the volcano and a day by day description from the first earthquake to the eruption.

Road to Mt St Helens

The Toutle River

West Side Mt St Helens

Crater from Johnson Ridge

On the way back down the regrowth trees looked like a bristle brush. They were all planted in rows and all the same age. When we were there before you still saw all the trees blown down in the same direction. The regrowth was only about 18 inches high. Close to Toutle there had been an old A-frame house that was half buried by the mud flows. It was still there but has been turned into a Bigfoot souvenir shop.

Trees Blown Down

Regrowth

A Local Native

Mt St Helens was a large recreational area full of lodges and summer homes. Spirit Lake was a summer destination for generations. The entire area has been declared off limits to everyone except volcano researchers by the NPS.

Mt Hood and Timberline Lodge

We took a scenic forest road out of Hood River and wound our way through fruit and berry farms. We drove up and up towards Mt Hood and the old Timberline Lodge that has been around since Roosevelt was president. They filmed "The Shining" up here. I looked around a bit but Jack was no where to be seen.

Approaching Mt Hood

Entrance

Timberline Lodge

Old way to get up to the lodge

They are still skiing up here and the lift is running.

On the way back down you could view Mt Adams as you were approaching Hood River.

While staying at the park we also walked around Hood River. It is a great little town with lots of emphasis on outdoor recreation and the big sport around here is wind sailing out on the river. They hold international races here. We also checked out The Dalles and went through their Discovery Center which had lots of information about the geology of thick basalt flows and then mud flows. The basalt walls along the river are very high and appear to be one lava flow after another for thousands of years.

To the River

We have left Bend and are heading north through Redmond and Madras. We got up to Moro to spend a couple of days at the Sherman County Park. We are in the center of windmill power here. They are all over up and down both sides of the Columbia River. Apparently wind power production has surpassed the hydroelectric production along the length of the river. This is also a big wheat growing area.

 

Windmills all along the river

We drove down to the river and crossed into WA. We were looking for some travel information but lucked out and only found wine tasting. The wines from this area are really good.

Approaching the river

Bridge over the Columbia

Winery

A little farther up the road there was a Stonehenge replica. This is the third one I have found out west. I'm not sure I understand the attraction but I love them.

Completed replica of Stonehenge

On a bluff overlooking the Columbia

Up at this end of the river it is a desert - very dry and little vegetation. I can only imagine what Lewis and Clark thought as they floated down the river.

 

Barge Traffic

We left Moro and headed downriver to a lovely state park, Memaloose. It is between The Dalles and Hood River. It is named after an island in the river where L&C observed the local Indians burying their dead. We haven't seen any ghosts, just beautiful scenery. Notice the change in plant growth once you get past The Dalles.

The Dalles Dam

Memaloose Island