Green: the Hoh Rainforest

FORKS, WA - - If you receive a lot of rain and / or misty, foggy days you're sure to have a lot of green in trees, moss, ferns and water plants.  That's what the Olympic National Park Hoh Rainforest is all about.
     The temperate rainforest features massive sitka spruce and western hemlock trees...some 300' tall. And moss, moss, moss everywhere.

Labor Day long Weekend

FORKS, WA - - One of the problems with having a 'wandering' vacation is that if you don't plan right you can run out of places to stay.  Labor Day Weekend is a great example.  We're on the Pacific coast of the Olympic Peninsula. This is logging country.  Consequently, towns and campgrounds are on or relatively near the Pacific.  Most parks take reservations as everybody wants to be somewhere on a long 3-4 holiday weekend.  You can see our problem.
     Fortunately, we've found a Forest Service campground (Half price for surly seniors) with some openings.  At $10 per, we blocked in 4 nights. Known as the rainy-est spot in the US ...not volume, but some spitting precip nearly every day...the USFS features big trees, lots of moss and (so far) a relatively quiet crowd.
     We're about 3 miles from Rialto Beach which is a gathering ground for driftwood.  Not the 'wimpy' size we had at the Dungeness Spit...these tree trunks are Big

.  And could tell plenty of stories from their travels.
     Forks derives it's name from the confluence of three major rivers in the area.  It was much easier than having a 'logging' name and then changing it...like Stumptown, MT which found it much easier to attract visitors/tourists by changing to 'Whitefish.'
     There are plenty of  drive-thru coffee stands (No Starbucks...Yah!), good breakfast restaurants; a fairly good supermarket and a nice library.   All the good things.
     And so we have a nice place to wait out most of Labor Day Weekend and get updates on where Hurricane Dorian aims to hit/brush  the Florida Coast.

Cape Flattery Lighthouse

The lighthouse is no longer in operation

A container vessel just entering the Strait of Juan de Fuca

CLALLAM BAY, WA - - The container vessel and the fog aren't a very exciting shot...but it's a good example of how close we are to Canada.  That's Vancouver Island, British Columbia in the background.  Also, I'm standing in the front yard of our motel. 
     Now, the lighthouse...Cape Flattery Lighthouse...to be exact.  The structure, built in 1857,  stands on Tatoosh Island. The lighthouse and fog horn were used to guide vessels into the entrance to the Strait of Juan de Fuca.
     It is the most Northwesterly tip of the contiguous US (lower 48 states).  The island is part of the Makah Indian Reservation and was named after a Makah chief.
     The structure is de-commissioned and has fallen into disrepair.  It will require over $2million to restore. 

Dungeness Spit driftwood patterns

The 'spit'

Rocks

Could be some blue sky coming

SQUEM, WA.

Shadow portrait with driftwood and waves

ON DUNGENESS SPIT -- DUNGENESS NWR, SEQUIM, WA - - The dateline says it all...except we've got sunshine!!  More 'woodie' photos to come.

Greetings from Sequim..on the Olympic Peninsula

SEQUIM, WA - - Greetings from someone who has had an 'engine' tuneup.  The follow-up visit to the cardiologist was pretty normal: any pain?;  shortness of breath?; does it hurt anywhere?; take your meds; take it easy;  we hope you live long enough to make it home.  Oh,yeah...eat healthy.   RIGHT.
      So here we are on Part Two of our vacation now trippin' around the Olympic Peninsula.  As soon as we find 'spectacular' we'll post photos.
     Skwim is how they pronounce it here.

I'm back...after a break for a valve job...on my heart!

BREMERTON, WA - - Nothing ruins a vacation quicker than chest pains in the middle of the night.  Not to be deterred, I waited for a second opinion and endured the pain (not quite as bad, but still a wake-up call) a second night.
     It was (reluctantly) off to the emergency room.  After what seemed like hours of testing...which was really hours of waiting between tests...it was off to the real ER.  Bremerton is building a new hospital which has a satellite ER which we had gone to.  Now, it was more waiting to get an ambulance ride to the older hospital and more waiting for a room... a total of 14 hours from the initial ER entry until my butt finally got put into a cushy hospital bed.
     The next morning (Friday, 8/16) it was give more blood;  have blood pressure taken; CaT scan and then an angiogram.  The results were back quickly..."You have a blocked artery in your heart.  We can put in a stent to correct the situation...right now if you are ready.  Being no stranger to the slice and dice / poke and prod of hospital procedure I said yes.  The alternative wasn't worth thinking too much about.
     I got discharged Sunday afternoon "all repaired" as long as I take it easy.  No problem, the love of my life is very good at keeping me on the straight and narrow as I weave and wander about.
     So now we wait for a follow-up visit from the cardiologist who preformed the procedure and then it's back to wandering around the Northwest.

On a sunny day in Anacortes

Cap Sante Marina.  Our campsite is center-right...on land

A Pacific madrone tree

A snowy Mt. Hood (11,289')...center right

For long stays we erect our shady shelter

ANACORTES, WA - - It was foggy nearly all day on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.  Today, Friday, there wasn't any fog ...just cloudy skies.  Not real good for photos.  So, we go back to Monday's activities and a bit of sun.

How about a brew?

ANACORTES, WA - -  One local brew-pub has a label display of some of their current and former product.  If I was into fermented craft liquid
this might be a likely stopping point.
     If you're wondering why the photo is at an angle it's because there was a highlight from the sun in the (better) straight on shots.

Always look both ways before crossing

ANACORTES, WA - -

Colors at the art fest

Fidalgo Bay...early morning

ANACORTES, WA - - The sun breaks through the early morning mist.  (Click on the photo to enlarge and see the great blue heron at the end of finger of land in the water.)

Say Their Names

ANACORTES, WA - - Among the many superb art projects and nearly 300 artists on display at the 58th Anacortes Arts Festival was one very sobering project made more relevant by Saturday and Sunday headlines.  "Say Their Names"
     The nearly 10' tall cairn contains over 970 ceramic rocks displaying the name / event / date / and age of an individual killed in 84 mass shootings in the US.
     Sadly, the number of shootings and victims continues to rise.

Little guys need love...and pollen, too

Nice parking job!

It almost looks like it's parked at the end of the street.

Lots of work going on in Dakota Creek Industries shipyard

A closer look at the Tanerliq

Early stages of construction on US Navy harbor tugs

There's also a floating dry dock for smaller vessels

ANACORTES, WA - - The Dakota Creek Industries shipyard is always a source of interest for me.  This year it appears as if the yard is building / retrofitting more vessels than we've seen in previous trips here.
     The eye-catcher is the Tanerliq (meaning black bear in Alutiig).  The ship escort / rescue and oil spill response tug was built in Anacortes in 1999.  It is stationed in Valdez, AK along with sister-ship, the Nanuq, and 12 other tugs.  The mission is simple: protect Prince William Sound in case of another oil spill like the (1989) Exxon Valdez.
     Also in the background of photo three is an 'oil skimmer' owned by Shearwater Corp.  This tug-style vessel has a scoop-like bow.  In short, this device skims the floating oil up and it is suctioned into the interior of the vessel.
     The just-beginning construction are the (two of 4) hulls for the (YT808) Navy Harbor Tugs.  The four are designed to preform ship handling duties on a full range of Navy ships.
     Dakota Creek Industries is a complete ship building and repair facility for steel and aluminum vessels of up to 450'.  It was founded in Blaine, WA in 1975 and moved to Anacortes in '77.