Walker Lake is very interesting as it has lost 140% of its volume over the last century.  Signs mark the various levels and years.  It is an ongoing fight to get or save water so this lake does not disappear.  With my Golden Age Pass, I paid $3 for a nice overlook campsite with a sun shelter.  Two RVs with WIN (Wandering Individual’s Network) stickers were down from me.  One other RV shared the campground.  There are also free campgrounds along the lake.  I sat and watched the sunset reflect in the lake.

            Nearby is the town of Hawthorne, Nevada, that includes an Army Ammunition Depot, Testing Range, and Military Facilities that includes 178 buildings and 2,427 igloos.  Last year when I drove through there, I couldn’t figure out what all the weird buildings were.  All became clear when I drove into a little park in town that explained all.

            Maggie’s Restaurant also provided a great breakfast.  The highlight though, was that it had free WIFI and I could catch up on my e-mail while eating that great breakfast.  I knew it would be a long day so I took my time.

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Continuing through Oregon, I filled up with gas in Lakeview because Oregon stations still pump the gas for you and with a little prompting, they also clean the windshield.  Why does it feel that as the years go by and we pay far more for everything than we ever did, that we get fewer services?  Hmmm.

            They recommended stopping at Jerry’s for breakfast.  The clientele was a mixture of Good Ole Boys, farmers, go to churchers, and travelers like me.  I wish some of these places would replace their booth seats.  As I get shorter, I’m going to have to start asking for a booster seat!   The food was delicious and $4.95 plus $1.69 for coffee wasn’t bad.  It is a great time for watching people and hearing snatches of conversations.  One fellow wore a NRA hat and was fully bearded with twinkling eyes and his mustache danced as he chewed.  But I was soon on my way…one fuel up, one fill-up, and one passing house.  I was ready for NE CA.

            Goose Lake in CA and the Alkali Lakes in NV, all had very little water in them.  Pyramid Lake had enough to look pretty.  This route from Lakeview, OR, on, is quite desolate with very little traffic except for near the little towns.  The countryside, though lonely, is still very interesting with high points, valleys, rocks, and the road curling through it all.  There was a tremendous beauty in the very isolation of it.  Finding that very rare bit of shade was nice for a break but it was way too hot to sit for very long.

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Continuing the trip from WA to AZ, I often pulled into campgrounds just to see if they were filled and what they were like.  I find the most delightful ones in national forests and state parks and most of the time they have very few people in them.  I realize part of the problem is that RVers either do not have the equipment or the desire for dry camping.  The current bushes rarely provide electricity.  I’m afraid if we don’t use these campgrounds they will be closed.  A handful of them were in very poor condition even tho volunteers were in attendance.

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            During the day before I met Rebecca, I went east on the OR side of the Columbia River Scenic Area.  In years past, I have always had a MH and sometimes a tow car, but I have almost always driven Historic Hwy #30 as opposed to I-84.  I can’t believe I did that, and actually I don’t recommend it with an RV.  It is extremely narrow in some spots.  Obviously it can be done as buses take people that route but it is intimidating unless you are a really, really confident driver.  The scenery is magnificent with lots of stops for falls, Wahkeena, Bridal Veil, Horsetail, and Multnomah, among others. Hiking and photo opportunities abound.

            It is hard to see very much of the river from either side as trees have grown up and river sights are pretty much limited to parks or hwy pull offs.  I crossed back over the Bridge of the Gods heading west to meet Rebecca and checked out Beacon Rock, prominently mentioned in Lewis and Clark’s journals.  Lots of history on both sides, and during the right time, you’ll see lots of water activities.

            After leaving Becca Friday night, I drove through Portland (less traffic late at night) and slept a few hours in the rest area south of town.  Bright and early I was enjoying the sun-swept scenery along I-5.  As Interstates are not my favorite running grounds, I turned east/southeast on #20 at Albany.  Never drove that road before.  What a beautiful morning for a first time.  It took me past a lovely little covered bridge near Cascadia and into the mountains at Santiam Pass and beyond to Sisters and Bend where I hit #97 which I have traveled many times.

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I left Creston and eventually turned south on Hwy #17 through the channeled scablands of eastern Washington beside Lake Lenore and its huge basalt cliffs.  It is fascinating country with a fascinating story.  After one of many times crossing the Columbia River, I left Yakima and headed west along Hwy #12, one of my many favorite roads.  “They” had put some new bridges in, messing up one of my Boondocking spots but since the whole route is beautiful, I forgave them.

            Many stops for photos later, I rounded a corner to see Mt. Rainier reigning over all.  Clouds obstructed a lot of it but the rounded top peaked above.  That view is always startling.  I took R#25, a forest service road, along the east side of Mt. St. Helens.  It, too, was hiding a lot of its beauty behind clouds, but I remembered it from previous trips.  Continuing south along Rs #51 and 30, it was a beautiful and colorful fall day.  My eyes were keeping close watch on the gas gauge.  I thought I had plenty but it was getting closer and closer to the empty mark when the Astro finally pulled into Carson.  There just ain’t much out there ‘cept beauty and trees.  No cell phone service nor gas stations.

            Sunset and the Bridge of the Gods across the Columbia River came at almost the same time.  It is always fun to meet up with Bill and Shirley Boyce at their cozy house in Portland but Bill had offered to put a small vent in the roof of the Astro.  Thanks to Bob at RV Parts Outlet in Portland, who seemed to have all the installing paraphernalia, Bill had it all installed by late afternoon.  This quick time frame included cutting into two of the ribs and using some old vent parts to complete the job.  This was sooo needed as I reached the desert.  At some point I’ll need to hang a battery-operated vent for a little more comfort in the high heat.  Bill & Shirley left this week for an RV adventure somewhere.  They hadn’t tossed a coin yet when they pulled out of the driveway.

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            Driving across the prairie toward Spokane was a vision of early autumn.  The wheat fields at harvest time were golden against the dark clouds which brought the much needed rain.  I’ve enjoyed their storms and rainbows before returning to the dry desert.

            I’ve spent the week asking how-to computer and cell phone questions of my daughter who is in a generation that actually understands this stuff.  Just adding phone numbers to the cell phone encouraged me to make only new friends who had short, uncomplicated names.  

            During our drives around the area, we saw an abundance of mule deer and turkeys (the feathered kind) and on the boat ride, a buzzard up close.  A bumper sticker declared, “A closed mind is a wonderful thing to lose.”

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 Reader Bill Boyce commented on my Livin’ Uptown blog entry the other day with: 

“Hi Charlie, Your Yooper-ness is showing. Out here in the Great Northwest that would be a "fork-ed horn" not a two point buck. Otherwise, great stories, great photos to go with them. Bill “

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Friend Grace and I tossed her camping gear into the Astro and took off, bent on adventure, if not mayhem. After hiking the Logging Bridge Trail in Sequim, we received a personalized tour of the wildlife museum by an enthusiastic docent.  We were shown via a hummingbird who had given his life for our knowledge, that like many humans, they have forked tongues to catch their prey.

We admired the magnificent colors of mountain-surrounded Lake Crescent and continued on to Hoh Humm Ranch, a 200-acre, generational, historic, family-run llama/ cattle/goats/guinea hens/sheep/ B & B farm with a few Sitka deer, dogs, and cats.  The family cat promptly pooped and gagged outside our second story door.  With a house full of noisy young people we weren’t sure whether or not we were sharing quarters, I was skeptical.  The young people disappeared, the cat recovered and apologized, and we met interesting guests from many places, and for a more than reasonable $45 per night, were served two breakfasts enormously large and enormously delicious.  We enjoyed our stay, our friendly hosts, and it was convenient to the beaches and a few “roads less traveled.”

We visited the World’s Largest Western Cedar with a height of 178’ and a diameter of 19.4’.

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A doe living in the neighborhood has her tongue constantly hanging out like it has a wire holding it in that position.  She seems healthy but a friend said she wouldn’t live long. Locals claim she has lived in this neighborhood for years and always has babies tagging along.  A whole herd came by the window last night, a four point buck, a two point buck, a couple of does and two sets of twin fawns.  The fawns are losing their spots.  Time is marching on.

You haven’t lived until you’ve walked the Uptown Street Fair and listened to the Pt. Townsend Summer Band.  Tents were filled with unusual crafts, paintings and photography. Fish tacos, sausage, and biscuit hamburgers tempted the palate.  While tourists attended, I felt that most of them were neighbors just out for the day enjoying the sunshine and laughter.  The kids loved the on-site craft creating and sidewalk pastel sketching.

From itty-bitty babies to grandmaw and grandpaw, people were dressed up in outlandish clothes and wigs of bright green, purple, and pink.  Their eclectic and colorful parade was two blocks long and included a huge unicycle and a group of belly dancers shimmying their way along with bangles and beads  Everyone marched in front of the Uptown Theatre which is less than a half block from my room. 

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It was Jefferson County Fair time last week.  Grace and I wandered through the photo display for inspiration, talked to the horses in the barn, ate a yummy Elephant Ear (Almost as good as the Berrien County Fair in Michigan, and listened to the great music and singing of the group, Dukes of Dabob.  I love fair time and it brought back a lot of good memories.
You do not go much of anywhere from Pt. Townsend without running into water so your life is scheduled around ferries.  Saturday Grace and Lynn and I caught the 9:30 ferry to Whidbey Island for the huge amount of $1.30 each as walk-ons.  On the other side, we caught the free shuttle that dropped us at the Coupville Arts and Crafts Festival, a great combination of interesting 170+ artisan booths, a variety of entertainment, and of course, the inevitable food vendors. We welcomed the warm, sunny day.  We haven’t had all that many of them and this one was perfect. 

Lynn and I went scrounging through three of the local second-hand stores yesterday.  I hadn’t intended to buy anything but you know how that goes, I bought a huge vase I’m going to have to wrap VERY carefully to get it back to AZ in tact.  In the process we saw this very interesting truck with all kinds of “stuff” glued to it including a whole lot of bottle caps.  Each to his own I guess.  God bless until next time.

Web site:  www.full-time-rver.com

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