Shipwreck & Mushrooms at Fort Stevens

Well I'm back online and the trip is complete but now I'll have a blog or two to catch up. I'll start at Fort Stevens on the northern Oregon Coast.

The first stop was at "The Shipwreck"

"The "Peter Iredale" was an oceangoing ship that was wrecked near the mouth of the Columbia River in the early part of the century. The wreck can still be seen at low tide. "

Unfortunately the tide was not very low but I managed to get some good pictures. These are a few of them.


A little later we came across the wildlife viewing bunker.


To my surprise it wasn't the wildlife but the mushrooms along the way to the bunker.

They were all over along the walkway to the bunker.

The bunker was pretty cool...


and the view was great.


So we headed back to the parking lot.


At the other end of the walkway I started off into the woods looking for mushrooms to shoot. The first one was a drab brown variety.

Then there were the more numerous orange and white variety.

This was the most unusual color combination.


I liked these inverted mushrooms that caught the moisture.


They were all over...

Bright and colorful.

This was the only mushroom of this variety a beautifully understated lavender on grey.

I thought this was the cutest.

Until I saw another with a wig of pine needles

Then we actually arrived at the Fort at Fort Stevens State Park. This is a lower bunker.

This is my John Ford -through the window- picture of Scrabble queen reading the information sign.

"Fort Stevens was the primary military defense installation in the three fort Harbor Defense System at the mouth of the Columbia River (Forts Canby and Columbia in Washington were the other two). The fort served for 84 years, beginning with the Civil War and closing at the end of World War II. Today, Fort Stevens has grown into a 3,700 acre park offering exploration of history, nature and recreational opportunities."

Inside the bunker you could see the ageing and that there has been nothing done beyond clearing it out and some over painting of graffiti. Still it was fascinating to see the stark age of the concrete.

The walls were very thick as can be seen here in the upper main fort area.

I'm not sure but I think the two pits like this one were where the huge guns were mounted.

Then it was back downstairs.

...and into another concrete cavern.

Fort Stevens is very picturesque but has another distinction.

"The fort was shelled during World War II by a passing Japanese submarine, which makes it, incredibly, the only military installation on the mainland US to have been fired on by a foreign power since 1812."

Scrabble Score ~

Scrabble Queen 336 - The Contender 362 I get lucky when I blog *wink* or only blog when I'm lucky

Quote of the Day ~

"Serve the classes, live with the masses. Serve the masses, live with the classes. " ~ John Jacob Astor

(born Johann Jakob or Johann Jacob Astor) (July 17, 1763 – March 29, 1848) was the first prominent member of the Astor family and the first millionaire in the United States. He was the creator of the first trust in America, from which he made his fortune in fur trading, real estate, and opium.

The town of Astoria (Originally Fort Astoria) was named after Astor and The Columbia River trading post at Fort Astoria (established in April 1811) was the first United States community on the Pacific coast. He financed the overland Astor Expedition in 1810-12 to reach the outpost. Members of the expedition were to discover South Pass through which hundreds of thousands settlers on the Oregon, California and Mormon trails passed through the Rocky Mountains.

Tomorrow - The other fort - Fort Clatsop and The Maritime Museum in Astoria.

Cannon Beach

Today we are camped at the Canon Beach RV Resort and one of the nice things here is a shuttle to the city of Cannon Beach.


Scrabble Queen patiently waited in the shuttle kiosk while I took some pictures.


We got off of the shuttle at the Midtown stop across from the CaNNON BeACH HoTEL ~&~ REsTAURaNT (well it looks good on the sign.

I snapped a quick shot at the front desk of the hotel.

We decided to have lunch at the Gower Street Bistro established 2004 (almost threeee years old). It's billed as a European-Style Charcuterie so I looked it up and here is what I found:

Charcuterie (from either the French chair cuite, cooked meat, or the French cuiseur de chair, cooker of meat) is the branch of cooking devoted to prepared meat products such as sausage and confit, primarily from pork. The practice goes back to ancient times and can involve the chemical preservation, or curing, of meats. Since charcuterie can greatly extend the lifetime of meat, it is a means of using up various meat scraps that would have otherwise been wasted. All cured meat Hams, whether smoked, air-cured, salted, or treated by chemical means, are charcuterie products. Sausage making is also part of charcuterie.

The main techniques of charcuterie include the standard kitchen repertoire of poaching and baking, as well as salting or dry curing, brining, air drying, and smoking with and without heat. The room-temperature treatments involved in air drying and cold smoking introduce a host of food safety issues, and so curing salts are often used to prevent the spread of dangerous pathogens, particularly C. botulinum, or botulism.

The French word for a person who prepares charcuterie is charcutier, generally translated into English as "pork butcher."

I liked the ceiling and the light above us.


I also liked the atmosphere which was informal but very pristine. It was a colorful place with a great waitperson and the charcutier had a pretty cool tattoo on her right arm.


After lunch we walked down to the beach past this propeller outside another eatery.

Then down a ramp past some seagulls...

and were welcomed to the sight of the Pacific Ocean and the Tillamook Rock Lighthouse.


Next we saw Haystack Rock and the Needles.

"Haystack Rock is a large monolithic basalt sea stack. I have heard it claimed to be the fifth largest in the world, but have not verified that. It is big and very scenic. The Needles are the two tall, narrow rocks just to the south of Haystack Rock."

No, this is not trick photography or digital editing, but me taking a picture with sun behind the object. I like the surreal quality, however, and it's one of my favorites.


This is a great place to photograph and I'm sure with better planning the pictures could have been better but I don't mind this time and I like the reflection.


If you look really hard at the tall rock you can see one of the Needles, slightly lighter behind it.


I'm sure glad I don't have a house on this beach. (not)


I liked this cool stairway to the beach.


The two Needles are the backdrop for all the people wanting to get a bit closer to the Haystack.

"The Rock" is the breeding home of four species of sea birds: Tufted Puffins, Pelagic Cormorants, Pigeon Guillemots, and Western Gulls. The gulls nest up high on the rock using exposed nests. The puffins nest in burrows high on the north and northwest sides of the rock. The guillemots nest down quite low in cracks and crevasses. The cormorants stick their nests to small ledges medium high on the south side.

Okay, I did do an artsy picture of some sand, seaweed and lots of sea foam.

There are plenty of things to do in Cannon Beach including a Lewis & Clark museum (after all this is near where the Expedition ended before they went back east

Scrabble Score ~ Scrabble Queen 332 - The Contender 343

Quote of the Day -

"Great joy in Camp we are in view of the Ocean,this great Pacific Ocean which we been so long anxious to see and the roaring or noise made by the waves braking on the rocky shores (as I suppose) may be heard distinctly." ~ William Clark (August 1, 1770 – September 1, 1838) was an American explorer who accompanied Meriwether Lewis on the Lewis and Clark Expedition.

Clark spent three years with Meriwether Lewis on that expedition and although technically subordinate to Lewis in rank, he exercised equal authority at Lewis's insistence. He concentrated chiefly on the drawing of maps, the management of the expedition's supplies, and the identification of native plants and animals.

Later William Clark was appointed a brigadier general of the militia and made superintendent of Indian affairs in the Louisiana Territory in 1809. He set up his headquarters for this in St. Louis, Missouri. When the Missouri Territory was formed in 1813, Clark was appointed governor. During the War of 1812, he led several campaigns and he established the first post in what is now Wisconsin.

The Klootchy Creek Giant

We started our next adventure driving north on Interstate 5 toward Portland ands took off to the north west on highway 26. We made one stop at the Whole Foods market (on the I5) and our next stop was Kooltchy Creek Park home of the Giant

Modern-day explorers can view a Giant Sitka at Klootchy Creek Park, Oregon. Klootchy Creek Giant - aka the Seaside Spruce- is a Sitka Spruce that stands 216 feet tall, measures 56 feet in circumference and has a crown that spreads 93 feet. That makes if the biggest tree in the State of Oregon and the biggest Sitka Spruce in the Country. The Klootchy giant has been named Oregon's first Heritage Tree, a program that recognizes trees for their connection to Oregon History.

The Tree is, perhaps, the oldest living thing in Oregon being born about the time the Magna Carter was signed in the year 1215

Part of the top of the tree has broken off recently so the tree is cordoned off for visitors safety.

This is one Magnificant tree.

Next to the Giant is another impressive split trunk tree.

I had Scrabble Queen walk under the arch to give a relative view of it's size.

Then I did the same.

It's hard to believe these giants may not be seen by future generations if cutting in the old growth forests continues. We left the park across this narrow bridge.


Scrabble Score ~ Scrabble Queen 320 - The Contender 355

Quote of the Day

"To no one will we sell, to no one will we refuse or delay right or justice." ~ Magna Carta

Snorkling from Isaac

Hi everyone sorry to say Dad can't do the blog today so I am taking over. We all went scuba diving at Great White Reef yesterday and I got this great picture of them having fun. After they recover from surgery (They say 3 years) I think dad will come back to do the blog.

JUST KIDDING !!!!!

Quote of the Day ~

"The most wasted day is that in which we have not laughed." ~ Nicolas de Chamfort (April 6, 1741, Clermont-Ferrand, Auvergne France April 13, 1794, Paris) was a French writer, best known for his witty epigrams and aphorisms

Tall Oak, Southern Ladies and a Rose

The saddest part of any visit with Aunt Vivian is when we have to say goodbye.

Vivian's trip this visit started with our visits to Peter, the tourist thing in "Old Sacramento" & The Capitol. Her next stop on her trip is to visit Nell who is the sister of her dear friend Mary. So we battened down the hatches and caravaned to Selby Ranch after parking the Musemobile at a Ticor facility across the street. Where Nell lives is a beautiful apartment complex among some beautiful surroundings and across this bridge.

It is also amongst some huge redwood trees.

When we arrived we were greeted by Nell and her son David. They are fascinating folks and very warm. Nell is a true southern belle with a great soft Georgia accent. David is a great guy to talk with ab out many things and does a great Huell Howser impression. I don't think you could find two more beautiful ladies than these two both inside and out they both glow.


Not only does David sound like Huell Howser but he also showed us some hidden California Gold pointing out this great old oak tree. Davis also pointed out that it is the second largest oak in California and no one knows where the largest oak is located. This picture is deceptive so I asked David and Scrabble Queen .....

... to stand in front of it - WoW!!!


So off we headed toward home stopping briefly at Garanzella's for a tasty lunch of Spaghetti (for the queen) and a meatball sandwich (for the meatball contender) yummy

I guess we cave become jaded about California wine since we live in Oregon wine country.


Finally we pulled into Redding and the Premier Resorts RV facility just in time to see this beautiful rose I wish I could send to Aunt Viv and Nell for brightening the day.

Scrabble Score ~ Scrabble Queen 356 ~ the contender 322

Quote of the Day ~

"The south produced statesmen and soldiers, planters and doctors and lawyers and poets, but certainly no engineers and mechanics. Let Yankees adopt such low callings." ~ Margaret Munnerlyn Mitchell (November 8, 1900 – August 16, 1949)

Margaret Mitchell was an American author, who won the Pulitzer Prize in 1937 for her immensely successful novel, Gone with the Wind, published in 1936. The novel is one of the most popular books of all time, selling more than 28 million copies. An American film adaptation, released in 1939, became the highest-grossing film in the history of Hollywood, and received a record-breaking number of Academy Awards.