Going Home

 Once again we're on the move. Our job in Oregon ended and we were anxious to travel back to the town we consider to be our "home", even though "our home is where we park it". We had no trouble moving in the slides, unhooking the water, sewer and power hoses, and hooking up BigTruk. A couple of the residents of the park in Fairview, and one employee, came to say good-bye and to wish us well as they saw us preparing to leave. In the last few days 4 people have given us money to help us on our way! What a surprise, and what welcome gifts! People are good. We needed to stop by the Tire Factory in Gresham and get a minor valve repair as well as having the right amount of air pumped into each of the 12 tires on the 5th wheel and on BigTruk. We felt happy as we left rainy country and traveled into sunshine.

We had a scary time a few miles past The Dalles. Mr. Keith told me, over the walkie-talkie, that the orange fuel warning light had gone on. We were positive we had 70 gallons of diesel on the day before our departure. Our thoughts were that maybe someone had stolen our diesel during the night. We were near Biggs Junction so we carefully pulled into a Pilot Truck Stop and got in line. Mr. Keith turned off the motor till time to move up, and when he restarted, suddenly the gauges shot back up to say we had 61 gallons of diesel. Big sigh of relief! Back on the road we went, and happily crossed the bridge into Washington. The photo above shows us traveling down the highway into the Ellensburg valley.

We stopped for lunch and a potty break, for us and for the cats, somewhere over Satus Pass, then continued on. Before we got to Tonasket I saw the awning for the bedroom slide shoot up in the air and begin wildly flapping in the wind. Oh, no! That awning was just installed in October! We didn't stop because I could tell it wasn't detached, just unrolled somehow. We will get that fixed while we're in Wenatchee.

Here we are heading towards the Columbia River and the beautiful Vantage Bridge. We usually travel over Blewett Pass to Wenatchee, but we were unsure of the snow conditions, and we wanted to try the less mountainous route for a change. Later I figured out mileage and discovered the route through Vantage and Quincy is about the same, within a mile, as the route over Blewett Pass. Good to know!

We were so happy to pull into East Wenatchee about 5:00. The sun was still touching the foothills and the gorgeous, snow covered Cascades. The Columbia River was glowing with a reflection of the sky.

Setting up at the First Fruits Produce Market went smoothly. We love being right beside an orchard, though at this time of year the trees are bare and have just been pruned. We've stayed here a couple of times before, once for about 5 months in the winter of 2009 and again for 5 days last October. Our dear friend Bob has put in a 50 amp hookup for us. We are thankful to God for a safe trip and for this wonderful place to park for the next 2 months! We have family to visit to our heart's content, as well as the many friends we've missed since we've been workamping. Though we've made many new friends in our various places of employment, we always have to leave them when the job ends. Old friends warm our hearts and we are glad to be with them again.

Fort Vancouver

 I haven't blogged for awhile because of illness and weather preventing us from getting out. We did have one short trip over the river to Fort Vancouver. When I lived in Vancouver from 1968 to 1983 we visited the Fort many times. It was always a favorite place, so I wanted to take Mr. Keith there to see for himself. Here he is, posing by this massive cannon. Hey, Mr. Keith, you're supposed to stand behind it, not in front of it!

 In 1818 the United States and Great Britain, locked in a struggle for control, agreed to share access to the fur rich Oregon Territories. In 1825 Britain sought to anchor their claim by moving their Hudson's Bay Company headquarters to the new Fort Vancouver, on the banks of the Columbia River. Dr. John McLoughlin was instrumental in settling the area, which eventually became Oregon, Idaho,Washington and British Columbia. The company moved out in 1860, the era of the beginnings of the Oregon Trail settlers. The Fort burned completely to the ground in 1866. In 1947 archaeologists began digging up the remains of the foundations, and in 1966 reconstruction of some of the buildings was begun. The large house in the picture above was Dr. McLoughlin's residence and the hub of the social life at the Fort.

 This Blacksmith Shop is well equipped and quite accurately duplicates the original shop. The volunteer blacksmiths here have mastered the iron works projects very well and do a good job explaining how it used to be, as closely as can be discovered.

  Mr. Keith always loves to pose in the old outhouses. I can't break him of that habit! This one was next to the Blacksmith Shop.

 The 1845 Bastion was built to protect the fort against threats and to fire salutes to arriving ships. It was three stories high; the top floor held eight three pounder cannons. In my reading, I don't find any evidence that there were Indian attacks or other enemies of any kind.

Officers Row is above the actual old Fort and is a tree lined street of great beauty.
As part of a national reorganization, the U.S. Army returned the headquarters of the Department of the Columbia from Portland Oregon to Fort Vancouver in 1878. Several new buildings were constructed on Officers Row, including this 1886 Queen Anne style home for the Department Commander.  The most famous Commander to live here was Brigadier General George C. Marshall, who lived here with his wife Katherine from 1936 to 1938 while he was in command of the Third Division's Fifth Brigade and directed the region's Civilian Conservation Corps camps. Mr. Keith and I hope to return for a more in depth visit to historic Fort Vancouver when the weather is warmer and we can spend more time exploring.

Wenatchee WA to Fairview OR

It is always with sadness that we leave Wenatchee and family and friends there. Here we are, looking at the mountains ahead towards Cashmere and Blewett Pass.

We can't keep up to the speed limit while climbing so here we needed to pull off to let the line of vehicles behind us go by. The morning was a little foggy on Blewett Pass, but the scenery was as beautiful as always with the fall colors beginning.

We made it through Ellensburg and headed up the hills between that university town and Yakima. That's quite a climb, too. If I remember correctly, Manashtash Ridge is about 2600 feet in elevation, rising quickly, but there are two lanes both sides.

Safely through Yakima and the Yakima Indian Reservation towns of Wapato and Toppenish, we are going on towards Goldendale.

Approaching Satus Pass we drove through miles of scorched and dead trees. It's always so sad to see the devastation caused by forest fires.

At a rest stop for lunch we were treated to this magnificent view of Mt. Adams. We also saw the tips of Mt. Rainier and Mt. St. Helens from this vantage point, but Mt. Hood was hiding today.

On the road again — surprised to see that since our last trip through here several years ago, windmills have sprouted up all along the ridge leading down to the Columbia River. I love these huge windmills. They look so imposing and powerful, and somehow, friendly. We also saw large numbers of them marching up the ridges around Ellensburg.

Our first view of Oregon, the cliffs on the other side of the Columbia! We are ready to begin the steep incline down to river level at Biggs Junction.

I wanted to snap the sign saying "Welcome to Oregon", which I did, but I was disappointed that it doesn't show up in the photo unless it is enlarged. (Click to enlarge.) It's right above the 5th wheel.

The Columbia River Gorge is breathtaking, all along the way. I-84 runs right along the river the whole way till it reaches the metropolitan areas. We were getting excited, knowing our journey was almost over.

Home at last, at least for many months. Our site is pretty, right there on the end of the row. The Portland/Fairview RV Park is the largest in the Northwest and kept very nicely. We will like it here! There will be many day trips we can take from here as we explore this awesome part of the world, giving me lots more blogging material. Stay tuned!