Onward to the North
The journey north through Oregon and Washington began with this first post and continued with a second installment. Here is the third dispatch of their adventure.
Arriving in Cannon Beach, Oregon, we wanted to keep up our record of not missing a meal and headed to restaurants in our area. We decided on one that was definitely dog (pet) friendly. It was fun watching the dog owners show off their lovingly cared for dogs.
Our next point of interest was Fort Clatsop, of Lewis and Clark fame. It was an extremely interesting stop, and we both recommend it to you if you are in the area. As we all remember (don’t we?), Lewis and Clark started their journey on May 14, 1804, and reached their final destination on November 14, 1805. They moved into the new Fort on Christmas Day of 1805 which was named for a nation of Indians residing nearby.
As we drove into Washington state, we kept our record of “being misdirected.” It was not our fault this time when we were going south when we believed we were going north. Even our faithful GPS “person” is not right all of the time. This was just after we passed the Dismal Nitch. (Lewis and Clark’s last campsite before reaching the Pacific Ocean.)
Our stop for the night was at the Lake Quinault Lodge, where Dick Feaster and his family had spent a few days before his departure in 1969 for his combat mission of 193 flights in the F-4 aircraft in Vietnam. This was a nostalgia stop for Dick F. which he was sharing with his three daughters via email. Those of us that have been deployed in harm’s way can relate to memories this evoked. Prior to the trip, Dick F. had contacted a niece living on Whidbey Island and asked if we could get together with her family while we were on this trip. Unfortunately, she said, they would not be home because she would be celebrating Father’s Day. That evening we were in the lounge of the lodge when a loud voice said, “Uncle Dick!” It was the niece and the rest of her family who were celebrating Father’s Day at the very same lodge. It had been several years since Dick had seen them. What a fortunate coincidence!
The next morning, we were off to the Hoh Rain Forest in Olympic National Park. “The Hoh Rain Forest is located in the stretch of the Pacific Northwest rainforest which once spanned the Pacific coast from southeastern Alaska to the central coast of California.” On the way into the park, we saw only one place to stop and get something to eat; and would you believe it, we saw Dick F.’s family a second time.
That evening we arrived in Port Townsend to catch the ferry to Whidbey Island the next day. We had a delightful room with a view of Puget Sound. “Up and at ‘em” early the next morning for the next leg of our trip to Seattle, lunch with Shelly Levinson (a former resident of PVE), and — Dick F.’s fabulous niece and her husband in the Tacoma area.
