Celebrations

One of the nice things that has happened with our trip is that we have been able to be there for some birthdays.

We were there for B's. It has been more than four years since we got to be there for his.

We were there for C's. We have never been there for hers.

We got to spend it with W. Sorry, no cake or presents shown. I can't remember when we were last with him for his.

Now we got to celebrate our grandson's second birthday.

A Fun Extended Weekend

We found ourselves in Spokane at some of our friends who, long ago, lived in Yakima.

Since they had a 'swamp' in their back yard, Bob dug it up for them while Eric was at work. There was a drainage pipe, but it ended where the swamp was. So the guys dug a trench and extended it to the back fence.

Since they had it dug up, Susan decided to just put brick at the edge of the flower beds before they filled in the ditch. This would be a good time. So we made a trip and purchased brick to go with the stone she had for under the garden gate and trellis.
The brick follows the picket fence.The brick has some iron in it and is dark, ranging from burgundy to navy blue when it is wet. The surface is rough so it is hard to see where the bricks meet.This was our job.
However, once the guys were done, we girls were anxious to see what the stones would look like by the garden gate. So we went to work. Chipping cement.
Marking the area.
Then taking out the sod, dirt, and many, many rocks. It is a gravel bed.
We got the bed prepared and started to lay the stone with the help of Bob. It is like putting together a puzzle without exact edges.

About half way through we realized that we didn't have enough, so it was a dash to purchase more before they closed. Eric met us there, having finished at work. We got the stone and started to put more down when it started to rain. We decided that would be a good time to break and to eat the pizza their daughter had picked up for us.

The rain ended. A rain bow appeared.

We went back to work, and finished about the time it was getting too dark to see.

This is how it looked in the morning. We were happy with the results. There are even plant fossils on some of the stones. What a happy fun extended weekend.

Trail Verses Fitness Center

In all the years that we lived in Yakima, I seldom walked on the Green Way. (It was too far away.) Now, since we are less than a mile from it, I have been using it on the days that I don't go to the fitness center.

The other day, as I was walking, I was also thinking of all the things I could write about.

I could write about the nice breeze that keeps me cool that is perfumed with many wild roses growing along the path. These remind me of the wild roses that grew along the creek bank just outside our back door when I was a kid.

Or I could write about all the wild yellow irises that are blooming. We had wild purple ones on the ranch.

Or I could write about the many birds that I have heard and seen. To name a few: robins, quail, black birds,
and osprey. I have seen them, with their white chests, closer than this.
I have also seen a blue heron but wasn't able to get his picture.

I could also write about the mother duck trailed by six little puff balls.

Or maybe I should write about the smell of creosote as I walked under the train overpass, which reminded me of the smell of the docks in the San Juan Islands on a hot day.

Maybe I should write about the many ponds that are all along the green way where sometimes a fish jumps, reminding me of the irrigation ponds that my dad built and had to stock with fish for my mother's enjoyment of fishing.

I could write about how hot it has been and that the Naches and Yakima rivers are full, so full and swift that the kayak portion of the Gap to Gap race, held last Saturday, had to be canceled.

Maybe I should write about the great play ground that is located along the path. I think all of my kids played on it as teenagers. That was okay since it wasn't built until they were older. (That is my turn around point if I go south east.)

I could also write about the things that make me chuckle, such as the biker who passed me, wearing a lime green shirt. On the back was stamped, "Gang Green."

Or I could write about the two young twenty something year old kids, that I was following, who were carrying fishing poles, tackle, food and drinks from a parking lot to one of the ponds. It was obvious that the tall thin one was giving the other one a hard time. They were both wearing shorts, but the shorter one had on the kind that the kids like to wear down low, almost off their bottom. He was having a hard time keeping them up and would every now and then lift his knees high and to the side. One time he did set his things down and pulled them back up. I got closer, and they saw me behind them. I think he was embarrassed to stop again and pull them up, so he had a tight grip on the front of them. As I passed them I heard the one say, "Well, if you would wear a belt...."

Since I can't decide which to write about, I will just say that yes, the scenery and entertainment is better than the fitness center.

To The Barn

After around 17,000 miles the horse (truck) was glad to get back to the barn (Yakima), get the saddle (trailer) off, and have a good roll in the dirt. (Oops, my farm roots are showing). That was on May 9. It is still being used for some short jaunts but may get that rest for awhile when we get the car out.

We will be here for awhile taking care of some business. Then it will be on the road again to the Montana area. We will see where the wind blows. We will keep posting when something of interest or picture worth occurs.

Up the West Coast

Our next travels took us north. As we traveled, we saw a few interesting things. Here are a few of them.

While traveling through California we saw some more Joshua trees. They are actually a variety of Yucca. The Yucca root can come from these trees.

We stopped just north of Fairfield, California and saw a cousin of mine. We also stopped in to see a son-in-law's sister and her family. Our campground was in a beautiful area. There were lots of peacocks and peahens there. They are beautiful, but are they ever load.
We stopped in Grants Pass, Oregon and saw B's Aunt Annie, her daughter and son-in-law. After visiting with them we went to Annie's son's place. We had a great visit and dinner with him and his wife. The next morning our camper was a source of interest to four black tail deer who have chosen to take up residence on their few acres.

Another stop was south of Oregon City. Here we saw a niece and got to meet her future husband. Her mother and step father were also there. Our campground was along the Malolla river. It was a nice campground but we had a very noisy visitor.
The Columbia Gorge was nice and green. It is only in the spring that one sees this as most of the year the hills are brown. Another unusual thing was that there was very little wind. For those that may not know, the Hood River area is a favorite spot for wind surfers.
Maybe one of the most unusual things that I spotted was something that is not seen very often. Some books, mostly children's, have made reference to this. I feel that I was very lucky to catch this action, a tree walking to another spot.

Third Try's a Charm

The first time we tried to ride the balloon it was too windy. The second time it had mechanical problems. So we tried again on Thursday evening. W called and they said they were flying. So we hurried there.
The basket is a circular cage that is only about 3 feet wide. Note the frame above W and C.
The passengers have to be evenly distributed to keep it balanced. The balloon is on a cable. We were up at 400 feet for about ten minutes.

It also has some flaps with cords that can be pulled to let out helium. The flag shows that there is a little wind. They don't fly if it is more than 15mph.
After all that excitement, C was hungry and decided to eat a giant peach.

Waves

We decided to do some exploring. This time we drove to New Port Beach and went out on the peninsula. We took a lunch along and ate it on the ocean side beach. There was a good wind blowing and I thought it was pretty cool, but there were people playing in the surf. There were a few surfers out too, in wet suits.
This area is interesting. The west side is filled with boats. The peninsula is jammed with buildings and homes. If you have back door shore on the inside, your boat is tied up there, or there may be a string of boats on buoys there. At one time there was a wharf area with an amusement park. All that is there now is the Ferris wheel and shops. We had done some sailing with W in this area when we were out for his graduation.

W had recommended an area called Crystal Cove to eat and explore. So we went there next. Buildings were first built here in the 40's and 50's. It is still being restored.

We did some beach walking. The tide was coming in. There was good surf here but no surfers as there are lots of rocks. We picked up a few shells at an area that had lots of shells, most of which were the same.

I took a few pictures of the waves
and of one that almost got B. He did get sprayed while washing off a shell but I missed it.

There are some interesting rocks on the beach. These rocks are round and are about 6-10 feet in diameter. They are not sand stone like everything else around here and look like basalt. They are composed of black layers. Cracks run out from the center. W says that there has never been any volcanic flows here. There are several of these rocks here, some lying down, some on edge, some tilted. So what are they? Any ideas L, since you have had the geology classes.
Left upper, double click to really see.
the above one is still embedded in the surrounding rock.

What would beach pictures be without one of these,

or without some of these?

We did see some tide pools but W says there isn't much life in them because of the contaminated run off.

After walking the beach, we stopped in and had dinner at the place recommended by W. It was good food and nice to sit and watch the beach and waves while eating.