Football in Tillamook

Today is Sunday and it rained most of the night and is still raining off and on this morning. A surprise after we had a sunny day yesterday. If fact it got so warm in the MH that we turned on the air conditioning in the afternoon when the temperature inside reached 82 degrees. In the evening, I pulled out the Weber and we barbequed chicken for dinner.

Today it looks like a good day to watch football.  Ty doesn’t watch football so he sat on the dashboard and glared at me.

Tomorrow we head for Florence where we’ll stay at the Elks RV Park.

Divine Lunch

Today we went over to Netarts where Darel and Falvia are staying. They followed us to downtown Tillamook for lunch. We ate at Deivine Hamburgers located in a large old brick building. The burgers were good, if not divine.

After lunch we were met outside by a light rain. We drove up to Fred Myers and picked up some groceries.  This time when we came out it was pouring. We drove on little farther and visited Tillamook Cheese Factory. Still pouring. Their parking lot on the left is closed due to some construction and it wasn’t possible to drop off close to the entrance. Not much has changed inside. The packaging lines were busy cutting big blocks in to bricks and stuffing the bricks into bags that were then vacuum sealed. We tasted the cheeses and found they are making a new one, pepper white cheddar. 

After the cheese factory visit we went back to camp. It continued the downpour the rest of the day.  We had planned to have dinner at the Elks Lodge but we were still full from lunch. We settled for some popcorn and TV instead.

PS: camera had a dead battery so, no rain pictures.

Travel Day to Tillamook, OR

Today we’re leaving our Washington State Park camp site in Cape Disappointment and heading to the Elk’s RV Park in Tillamook. We love this park in the trees and right next to the ocean. It has full hookups with 50 amps. The sites are paved, level and easy to back into.  No WIFI and cell service. Satellite service is ok if you choose the right site. We were in site 7 with ok service.

Ty is over in the edge of our site hunting. He liked this site also.

A view of our camp site before leaving.

We arrived in Tillamook at the Elks RV park just afternoon. The park is about 5 miles south of town and is fairly new. Each site had full hookups about half with 50 amp the rest with 30 amp. The sites are crushed rock and not very level.  Separated by a green lawn area. We had good cell and satellite service here.  We are also the only campers here.

Astoria Column

Another sunny day! We met Falvia and Darel for lunch at the Rouge Brewery in Astoria. The Brewery is located in an old Bumble Bee fish processing and canning site on the Columbia river, a mile or so east of Astoria. Debbie and I have stopped here every year on our way home and enjoy their fish and chips. This time they had two choices. Halibut or Tuna. The Halibut was seventeen dollars and the Tuna was twelve. I decided to try the Tuna, this was the first time I have ever seen Tuna offered and was interested in trying it, however when it was my turn to order, for some reason I ordered fish tacos instead, dam! No, I didn’t realize it until the waitress sat it down in front of me.

After lunch we explored the back of the restaurant, which is the old cannery. This was the first thing we came across, asking price $14,000.

Around the corner we found displays of the old cannery. Photos, canning equipment, cans, labels.

After lunch we drove up the hill to the Astoria Column. From here you can see 360 degrees around.

Inside the column is a circular stair case leading to the top. I walked up while Debbie waited. Look close and you can see her in her blue jacket standing on the granite tiles near the end of the pathway.

A view of the Astoria bridge over the Columbia river and the Pacific beyond.

Fort Stevens

We woke up to bright sun again this morning.  We got going and decided to call Darel and Flavia and find out where they were. They left Port Susan just before us and were also going to take their time down the coast. We were surprised to find them across the river from us in Fort Stevens State Park, Oregon.  We drove over and had a really good lunch with them. We then went together to the Fort Steven site.

Here is Darel followed by Debbie and Falvia.

Darel and I walked out to the gun battery.

Here is one of the 6 inch gun which were used at the fort to protect the entrance to the Columbia River.

A view back at Debbie and Falvia sitting on a picnic table.

These guns were outside the fort’s fortification all by themself. They were on each side of what appeared to be a helicopter landing pad. It looked like they would have made good targets for an enemy ship’s guns.

 

Sun not Rain

We woke up this morning to bright sun shine in Cape Disappointment. What was predicted to be a rainy day has started out full of sun!

We drove over to Long Beach, WA, about a 15 minute drive, to have lunch at a restaurant we found last year, Lost Roo.  Our drive took us by the fishing fleet of  IIwaco.

We had the fish taco, same as last year, and they’re still great.

Back at camp Ty was ready for a walk or maybe a tree climb if he finds the right tree.

Here he’s just posing.

Finally, at a cat’s pace, we make it to the beach. A giant sandbox.

Another posed picture. He’s actually getting pretty good at it.

Musical Sites at Cape Disappointment

We are camped at Cape Disappointment State Park. Last evening we watch as RV’s started trickling into the RV parking area which isn’t that big and for sure not that level. I’m glad we arrived a little earlier and were able to choose the best spot. Shortly the lot was mostly full. We had a good nights rest and a leisurely morning’s take-off.

On the drive here we passed through quite a bit of fog, sometime very heavy, but mostly it just shrouded the surrounding forest we were traveling though. It made the drive a little mystical.

We arrived a little after 1:00 pm and the ranger who checked us in allowed us to pick our site. I picked out a site which I thought would have a clear shot at the satellite and we proceeded on to our spot. Still time to catch the second half of the Raider’s game. Figures that the site I chose, the campers are late get out and are still occupying it. We tell them to take their time and we’ll just grab one a couple of spaces down. Debbie drives back the few miles to the ranger station at 15 miles an hour to officially change our site.

While she is doing the paper work I parked the Horizon. Leveled it up, connected to the power, water and sewer. Extend the tree slides and Ty takes up his position at the front door.

Before he goes out for a walk I want to set up the satellite and watch the end of the game. But after trying for some time, so long that Ty gives up on the walk, I can’t find a hint of a signal.

Apparently the trees along the side of the new site we moved to are blocking the signal.

We decided we could tough it out for four days without TV. Debbie worked on crocheting a baby dress and I used a slow internet. We made it about an hour of deathly silence before we started discussing the chances of acquiring the satellite by moving to our original site. Debbie made the 15 minute drive back to the ranger station while I reversed the above steps. Moved the Horizon over and then repeated the setup. Well the games over but we now have TV and Ty got a walk.

We’ll be here for four nights before continuing south.

Little Creek 2011

We are in the RV parking area of Little Creek Casino in Washington. We had a comfortable night in Mt Vernon. Up early and the wind was howling and the rain was coming down. Taking it slow I made a pot of coffee and flipped on the TV. Procrastinating, waiting for the rain to stop or at least slow down. We only were driving about two and a half hours today so we didn’t need an early start. I decided to wait until ten and then bundle up and face the weather. About 9:45 the rain and wind had stopped and I went out and connected the Jeep to The Horizon. Checked the surge tank installation. They did a good job of mounting and it didn’t show any sign of leaking.

Traffic was heavy, off and on. Tthe rain and wet road didn’t help make driving any easier. I used my new version of CoPilot for the first time. It really has some great new features and let us right to the casino.

We’re stopped and Ty is ready to go for a walk. I don’t think he can tell it’s raining by looking out the windows.

He is getting comfortable and going to hold out next to the door and his leash.

Finally it lighten up to a drizzle and we went out. He held out in the weather a lot longer than I thought he would, but after about 15 minutes, he was happy to get back into Horizon.

Tomorrow we’ll be heading down to Cape Disappointment State Park. It’s right across the river from Astoria, OR. We really like this park and plan on staying a few days. Debbie talked to a friend today and found out Daryl and Falavia other friends who left Port Susan earlier, were now in Astoria. Debbie called and left a message, maybe we can hook up.

Friday Night in Mt Vernon, WA

It was a dark and stormy night…. We are parked in the parking lot of Valley Freightliner spending the night before we head south for the winter. We arrived here on Thursday for our yearly MH service. During the service they discovered the surge tank was cracked and leaking slightly. The serge tank is plastic and is like a radiator reservoir in a car. O f course they didn’t have one in stock so we had to have one overnighted from back east and necessitated another night in the parking lot. Of course the tank has been redesigned, so the service manager said, and it no longer fit the mounting brackets. So the bracket had to be modified. We had hoped to leave here this afternoon but the job wasn’t complete until late afternoon so we elected to stay another night rather than fight rush-hour, Friday night traffic through Seattle. It is raining tonight but the wind has died down. If you want to see the wet parking lot you’ll have to check last years post as d no photo this time, but it looks the same. Still wet.

Tomorrow we’ll head down to a small casino near Shelton, WA.

Kayak Beach- Early Morning (for me)

Here is an early morning shot of our picnic shelter. Waiting for the other half of the group.  Lloyd and I already have our crab traps down.

Almost Complete

Remember the 5th wheel we’ve been working on? Here is a picture from the outside.

Here is a view looking toward Debbie’s sewing room. The wainscot is in and stained.

Looking back toward the bedroom upstairs. The LCD television dwarf's the fireplace it’s sitting on top of. Ready for football!

Sun, Beach and Crabs

Seven o’clock in the morning. After raining most of the night it looks like the sun is shinning through the trees on our road.

Debbie stands in the sun at Kayak Point County Park.  Lloyd, my ride out to the water, is down at the boat ramp launching his boat. He’ll motor back up here to the beach and pick me up.  My crab traps are in the foreground.

We’re on our way.  Lloyd is on the look out for crabs as he navigates to a spot to drop our crab pots overboard. Here in the Sound you can have two crab pots out and the daily limit for crab is five.

Well it takes about thirty minutes to motor out, drop our four crab traps, and motor back. Here Lloyd throws out a stern anchor to keep the boat in position while we wait for the crabs to fill up our traps.

Here is a view from our picnic shelter toward the pier and Lloyd’s boat.  It’s crowded with crab fishermen who throw their traps of the end of the pier. Our traps are a mile or so beyond the pier.  The big driftwood separates the rocky beach from the lawn and picnic area.

After a couple of hours its time to pull up the traps. They’re about 100 to 125 feet down to the bottom so pulling up them up is a workout. My first trap was completely empty. This is my second trap and it had three that were large enough to keep. Lloyd had two keepers in his traps. We dropped them down again and went back to the beach.

After lunch we went out the second time and pulled up the traps. I kept two for my limit and Lloyd got a couple more. Now its home to cook the crab and then we all met at Darryl's for a fire and gab fest.

Oh yeah. After avoiding the smoke for a while we moved up to the porch to eat crab. Notice that nobody pays any attention to me when I get up to take a picture!

Tomorrow we’ll be back to working on the 5th wheel restoration project.

Rainy Day

Thursday and it’s a rainy day here and on the cool side.  This has been an unusual summer this year so far. We have a day or two of sun and then the rest of the week is cool and rainy.  Far better than the heat wave the rest of the country is experiencing.

Tomorrow, Friday, the weather is suppose to clear up and we’re planning a trip to the beach at Kayak Point to try our hand at crab catching, again. It’s a county park about five miles away. It has a rocky beach, pier, boat ramp, lawn, fire ring and covered picnic tables. We get there early and grab one of the tables, actually there’s two under the cover.  Around a dozen people show up for crabbing, gabbing or picnicking.  This time I have all my own stuff. In the past friends have furnished everything for me to use. 

Ty is suffering in silence.  Cheer up Ty tomorrow is suppose to be better!

Soccer in Snohomish

Debbie and I went to seen my nephew Aaron’s son, Dominic in an early season soccer tournament. The first game started at 9:30 at the Snohomish soccer complex. I made the simple drive over more difficult by turning the opposite direction a couple of times but we finally circled around and came in from behind. The parking lot was almost full and we parked in the back row. The field was, of course the far one.  The game was already in progress when we finally arrived. The score was 8 or so to 2. Dominic played forward and we were treated to Dominic scoring a goal. He was one of the fasted players on the field.

Here Dominic it taking the ball down the field, something he did many times.

The game was so exciting I forgot to take more pictures. Maybe at a future game. Here Aaron his wife Diane, Tory and Dominic get ready to leave after the second game of the day.

My First Crabs

Monday morning about ten of us went down to Kayak Point for a picnic and a crab hunt. I went out with Lloyd on his boat and dropped my two crab pots. A few hours later we went back and checked them. I had 4 and Lloyd had two. The limit is five so we dropped the traps back in for a while and had lunch on the beach with everybody.

On the second pull we both kept one more each which made a limit for me of five.

When we left for Port Susan we borrowed a SS pot from our son Brad, who used it to brew beer. I wanted to cook my own crab this year. In previous years I have borrowed gear, traps, line etcetera and somebody cooked and cleaned the crab for me.

Here is my catch after cooking. 

 

We took our crab over to Darryl and Flavia’s  house where we met with everyone else with their crabs and we had a big feast. I need to remember to take more pictures.

First Crab of the Season

Thursday was opening day for crab season here in the Puget Sound area. It was also drizzling,  as in raining. Only one hardy sole went out in the cold and rain and was rewarded by a limit of crab. We were lucky to available when they were looking for someone to share a crab dinner with. Wow the first crab this season.

Debbie and Les Ann set up the table.

Almost ready as Les Ann pours melted butter into small cups.

The crab was great. Thanks to Rich and Les Ann for a great dinner.

Rotisserie Finished

Here is the rotisserie going strong. Seem you need to really tighten the prongs. I heard the chicken thumping and found the left prongs had slipped and the lemons and garlic fell out. I guess something like a rolled roast would have been better for a first attempt.

I re-aligned and an hour later it was done. Really good. We’ll definitely do this again. I have a new plan.

Ty Helps With the New BBQ

We’ve used the new BBQ for a while and it’s was time to try out the rotisserie. I’ve never used one before. First I had to install the bracket. Of course the brackets had to be modified to fit my grill so a ten minute job turned into an hour or so with help from Ty. I was so focused on the grill I guess he wanted to know what I was doing and jumped up to take a look.

We had to work out who was doing what.

The directions say here you put it on backwards.

Hey I see that screw you dropped.

A refreshing a sip of a Bloody Mary.

Tree climbing is great for reducing stress after helping with the grill.

He made it about half way up. He’s on the left side. After a moment he scooted down so we didn’t have to spend the night waiting for him to come down.

Coming up, rotisserie chicken!

Perfect Furniture

We wanted furniture that would fit the scale of the 5th wheel inside. We also had to get the furniture through the door. We discovered most normal furniture was way too big. By accident we found an outdoor furniture set, on sale. It included a small couch, a couple of rocking chairs and a coffee table. The size was ok and they were actually very comfortable.

We are enjoying them outside for the time being, until the interior of the 5th wheel is ready.

Ty is also enjoying the new furniture. Do Not Disturb!