CAMP LAKEVIEW -- Graham, Washington -- The drive into Washington was the most beautiful day of traveling so far. Marley plotted a brilliant course that avoided the crazed congestion of the SeaTac I-5 corridor entirely, instead weaving through the backcountry along Route 12 hugging the base of Mt. Rainer. It was awesome.
While Idaho and most of the Oregon we saw was lunar, bare and boring, Washington has been full of life, green and breathtaking. In some ways it reminds me of Sicily, Rainer like the ever-present Mt. Etna, always a point of reference somewhere on the horizon. The neatly rowed vineyards and rolling orchards, too, reminded us of Sicily. Thankfully, the drivers are better here, though.
Best of all was reuniting with Chris and Shannon. Chris lived with us in Sicily. He was still a boy then, but very much a man now. And Shannon is the perfect spark for him, and he for her. They are a great pair and instantly bring laughter and brightness to our lives. One of the things Chris and Shannon told me when they got married two years ago was that they never want to lose sight of their goofiness. I couldn't think of a better life strategy. All the better considering he's an Army special ops guy and she's a Vassar grad. Not surprisingly, they show no sign of forgetting that goal.
Case in point: It didn't take long for Noah to warm up to them, almost instantly engaging "Aunt Chris" and "Uncle Shannon." Don't ask me how things got switched around in Noah's head but Chris and Shannon immediately embraced their new titles with absolute verve.
And so we have bedded down in the shadow of the great mountain of the West Coast at a lakeside campsite about half an hour from Chris and Shannon's house. Marley will audit a class at Mars Hill tomorrow while the kids and I go exploring. If nothing else, it will be nice just not to have to drive anywhere.
As a side note: Thanks to all of you who have written or called regarding this morning's post. It was hard to get it down in words, feeling a little like opening up a vein. I appreciate the words of response and encouragement and insight. We are indeed fortunate travelers.
1 comment:
Scott Davies here--
As one born and raised in Oregon, you have obviously missed the green portions of Oregon. Both Oregon and Washington share very similar geography--
The Cascade mountian range runs north & south thru both states and is the watershed for each. West of the Cascades, you find lush, green fields, towering evergreens (when you are in a parachute, coming down among 200' Douglas Fir trees, they truly seem immense)--anyway, the Pacific ocean drops all its moisture on the west side of the Cascades. The eastern slope of the Cascades is high alpine enviroment with Ponderosa pine, etc and as you move east, it becomes more high plains and high desert.
So, if you want to see green and lush, travel south on the coast highway US 101, the entire Oregon coast is breathtaking.
See you in about a week.........
Scott
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