Newport, OR

My dear friends moved to Newport, OR about a year ago. They had lived in Camano Island, WA and I missed visiting with them  while I'm in WA, so this weekend was a perfect opportunity to go see their place and visit Newport....Roy and Teresa were busy with their Lions Club annual garage sale.

We took a quick tour of the Bay street Pier and drove over the bridge to Agate Cove lighthouse.

Here's Scott and Debby...They're such fun!

And the three of us with Agate Cove in the background

Those little white dots are seal pups-it was such fun watching them!

Westport

Westport is a small town on the Coast of Washington. Our friends Paul and Denise Roberts are workamping at  lovely park called "American Sunset", and Teresa and I thought it was time for a girlie road trip-so off we went! In this picture we're at Grey's Harbor, soaking up the lovely coastal fog......That's Paul on the far left, Teresa in the center and Denise on the right.

Here's the real star of the Robert's family-Duke! He's adorable and we considered a dognapping......

This is the Wesport Maritime  Museum. It  originally housed the U.S. Coast Guard. Westport had two razor clam canneries, and a thriving timber industry, and commercial fishing. 

Now, it's a sleepy little town that relies on tourism and non-commercial fishing. 

This lens was lent to the museum by the Coast Guard...they actually built the facility to house it! 

Iron Works

Roy is an accomplished artist. He takes ordinary iron/metal and makes the most extraordinary pieces for your lawn or garden. This is his latest effort-a chicken! It has detail you can't appreciate if you don't see it in person! He participates in a few shows-I think the next one is in Packwood, WA on Labor Day weekend.

This is a view of the spring forest.....

Have you ever seen an insulator tree? it sparkles when the sun shines (not too often inWA!!!)

Have you ever seen such lovely flowers?

Look closely-there's a hummingbird in the midst of the garden....

Yes, this is a giant ant-bet you don't want to see this in your house!

On the Road Again!

 I'm back on the road again! After a short stop at the girls' house to celebrate the 4th and get a glitch repaired on the motor home  (of course-it's Murphy's Law) I started off to parts North. I don't hurry anymore, so after a couple of days I arrived at Timber Lake day use park, where Gary and Cecile reside for the summer. Gary is working for PGE and as part of their perks they have a lovely fenced in area complete with another site for visitors-me! It's very spacious and very close to downtown Estacada, OR.

 This charming young lady is Gary's niece. She's 14 and visiting the Thompsons' for part of the summer. Her parents will join her in a few weeks. She's lovely-I'd forgotten how much fun it is to have a teenager around.

 One of my favorite activities is a fire-and Cecile provided two beautiful evenings. I remember when we all volunteered at the Headlands State Park in Mendocino-sitting around the fire was so entertaining!

 Now, I'm at Columbia Riverfront RV Park in Woodland,WA. Ray and I worked here for a winter season many years ago. It has new owners and they've made many changes-all good. The view of the Colombia River is so pretty, and there's lots of grassy areas to walk the shores.

I'm glad I stopped on my way to Stanwood, WA to visit Teresa and Roy. I'll be there Thursday....

Alaska!

On June 19th Jeanne and I set sail on the Sea Princess for a 10 day cruise to Alaska! We sailed under the Golden Gate Bridge (San Francisco) and it's been years but still a thrill... We'll be at sea for a day, then stop in Ketchikan.

 The Golden Gate...out of this world!

  Skagway has grown quite  bit since I was here (15 years ago). There's another side of the street filled with stores! Skagway sits atop the northern most point of the inside passage and made a perfect strating place for the miners seeking their fortune during the gold rush of the late 1890s.

 Cruising through Tracy Arms is a delight. I am reminded again that no camera can truly capture the blue in the ice flows....

 This is a totem park in nearby Saxton-Ketchikan is only a few minutes ride. There are an awesome number of bald eagles everywhere!

Miss E is Two!

Another special event-Miss E is two! We celebrated with family and a few friends at a place called Big John's- a combination pizza, buffet and lots and lots of arcades.... 

Miss E got some stacking balls-don't know if Miss C is dancing or helping....

But she sure is good at helping open the presents

Now, I'm off to Alaska! I'm going on a ten day cruise-sailing from San Francisco under the Golden Gate!

Graduation!

Graduation cames at all levels and this weekend we watched Miss C, her best friend Mr. P  leave kindergarten, and Long time buddy Mr. C graduate from middle school.

The Moms were so proud!

And, so was the rest of the family!

They were very patient with us as we asked for "one more shot" Their teacher had provided us with a great program. The kids sang four songs, complete the gestures! I hope someone filmed the whole thing.