Three Days to Seattle and some Bighorn Sheep...

Three Days to Seattle and Some Bighorn Sheep

Typical Montana north of West Yellowstone

I left Yellowstone with a sense of anticipation.  I was ready for something beyond National Parks.  I was primed for some social interaction with long time friends.  It would take three days to get to the Seattle area with two nights spent in Interstate 90 rest areas.  Heading north to Bozeman, Montana was a dramatic drive with roadside scenery without compare.  Sheer cliffs loomed above the highway and when viewed up close you could see the drill marks from the blasting during the road construction.  These are the kinds of roads I dreamed about when I hatched the idea of full-time traveling.  The roads are not without hazards, though, and as a cautious driver I crept through hairpins and watched out for "Caution:  Falling Rocks Ahead" signs.  I am the only person I know who has actually seen a falling rock hit the side of the road.  Fortunately for me there was a rock guard erected to stop it from rolling onto the highway.  Since I drive much slower than the normal traffic I look out for "Pullout Ahead" signs so I can safely allow the traffic built up behind me to pass.  Sometimes they honk in appreciation, but mostly they just accelerate out of sight.


So, have you ever thought of someone and the phone rang and it was them?  Have you ever thought of an actor and turned on the TV and that actor was the first person on the screen?  I think we've all had these kinds of experiences in our lives.  Mostly we ignore them and at other times we chalk them up to "coincidence", right?  Well, I was deep in the mountain canyons of central Montana and I thought how there was one animal I had always wanted to see, but hadn't, a bighorn sheep.  I rounded a few more turns in the mountains and, VOILA, two full curl rams were standing on the side of the road behind a rock guard.  The slope behind them looked to be unclimbable, but I knew better when it came to bighorns.  I would have stopped to take a pic, but it was a particularly inconvenient place to stop.  I was able to hit the brakes and slow down, though, which extended my viewing time to about 5-7 seconds.  They disappeared as quickly as they had appeared.  The coolest part isn't that they were less than 20 feet from the roadway.  The coolest thing was that I had the premonition. 

I don't know how much mountain driving you've done in your life, but it is exhausting.  Again, with the toad I'm about 60 feet long and dropping a wheel onto a shoulder just isn't an option.  After about 6,000 miles over the road behind the wheel in this motor home I've gotten a lot safer.  I just hope all the scary moments are now behind me.  When I finally arrived at the I-90 junction I was ready for some "straight and level flying", so to pilot speak.  Drives like this are inspiring with their scenery, but also mentally exhausting just keeping it between the lines.  Thankfully I've got a mind that can focus and I've got physical skills that keep me out of the worst trouble.

Crossing into Idaho from Montana is an exercise in energy management, if you're driving a big rig.  The sign read, "7% Grade Next 6 Miles".  Accurate?  Sure.  More importantly I'd be on a down slope descent for the next 30 miles coming off the Continental Divide.  When I was shopping motor homes there were lots of choices from all the manufacturers.  The basic choice, though, was either gas or diesel.  The biggest difference isn't the fuel they use, but the brakes on their respective chassis.  All diesel pushers typically have heavier drum brakes versus disk brakes for gas rigs.  I was sternly warned off disk brakes if I was going into the mountains out West.  Disk brakes will heat up and actually glow cherry red at night and sometimes burn up the entire motor home if not allowed to cool down.  The burned out hulks of the least fortunate can be seen in RV graveyards in every state.  The long grade in the "Pan Handle" mountains at the border with Idaho was certainly a lesson in energy management. 

The mountains got steeper and taller the closer I got to the Continental Divide.  Note the hog-backs.

At the base of the longest grade is Coeur d'Alene lake and city.  It's a picturesque lake and quite beautiful, but all I could think about while passing through was how severe the winters must be.  I don't mind chilly and sometimes even cold weather can be ok, but when the weather dial is turned down to "deep freeze" then I'm not your boy any longer.  The lake is really long and narrow with a few large marinas along the shore.  The water appeared gin clear and I could only imagine how cold it was.  The Idaho panhandle passes quickly and before I knew it the GPS voice was announcing, "state border ahead" in its best feminine voice.  

Eastern Washington is big on agricultural.  The corn I saw was over seven feet tall and most of the prime land, at least what I saw along the Interstate, is irrigated.  If memory serves it's the Columbia River valley.  It's the most fertile looking area I've ever seen.  Crossing the bridge across the Columbia River was a transition from valley to mountains.  Washington's mountains are beautiful and really dramatic.  I never realized just how dramatic until I got there. The last night on the road to Seattle would be spent peacefully in a Rest Area on I-90 east of Snowqualmy Pass.  

I called my friend, Hugh, and he insisted I could park in his driveway because he had "plenty of room".  Pulling into North Bend was not without its own drama, though.  I missed the turn to Hugh's road and had to find a place to do a 180 turn around.  I rubbed a few bushes, but the Post Office parking lot was adequate to the task.  Most everything you do in a vehicle like this is an ordeal.  I wish it wasn't, but it is.  The goal when negotiating in-town streets is to not have to disconnect the toad in order to back up.  

North Bend, WA is about as beautiful town as you can imagine.  Nestled against the base of 3,000 foot mountains you half expect to see Sasquatch walk down main street.  If green is not one of your favorite colors you'd do well to live elsewhere.  Once again on track to Hugh's he talked me to his house via cell phone.  Good thing, too, because finding his place isn't the easiest thing.  Driving through his neighborhood I was fine so long as there were two lanes.  When two became one then I became a little concerned.  The speed limit was "10 MPH" down the last stretch, so I crept along and just for grins blew my air horns to announce my arrival.  Hugh's expression went from his normal grin to dropped jaw in seconds after realizing what was coming down the street and into his driveway.  

I rubbed some limbs, but with Hugh's extension ladder and snippers I made it through.

From the moment I arrived at Hugh's I was made to feel welcome.  I was inserted into his routine and his family unit, which includes two dogs; Ladybug and Bob Barker and one of the sweetest women I've ever met, Carol.  It wasn't long before I felt like a member of their pack.  We had such a great time I kind of shattered the 3 day rule and stayed in their driveway for 11 days total.  We told ourselves the rule didn't really apply to guests who had motor homes.  I'd end up at the Blue Sky RV Park at exit 22 for the balance of the month I'd stay in the area.  

This was the view out front of windshield.  Perched on the top tier at this RV park I was looking out across the tops of the trees.  The mountains in the distance were only visible for a few minutes.  Everything you've ever heard about Seattle and its rain is true.  The weather was clear the first five days and then the wet came.

Much of what I love about traveling is renewing friendships with my oldest friends.  I was most happy to see Michael Waldrip again and to finally meet his parents at their home in Kent.  That was a meeting long overdue as Mrs. Waldrip has been reading the Chofu forum for as long as there has been a Chofu forum.  Michael's father has a hobby of collecting pigs, which were proudly on display at his front door.  When he shows off his pig collection it's a real process because he has over 7,500 pigs.  When I walked up to the front door I immediately recognized one pig.  It was one I had sent him about 12 years ago.  The pig was hand carved from mahogany over in Jakarta, Indonesia.  And because it had markings like a saddle we called him our British Racing pig, but on their front porch it appeared to be more of a guard pig.  It's the little things in life that matter most, eh?

The pig on the pedestal is a pig I bought for Mr. Waldrip back in the late 1990's.

 Michael's mother isn't in the best of health.  Looking a bit like a deer caught in the headlights she's not used to posing for pics and resists the process.  She admonished me for taking even this one pic. Michael, his father and I ended up at an all you can eat Asian buffet that was spectacular.  Prime rib?  Got it.  Crab legs?  Got 'em.  Sushi? Dem Sum?  Desserts?  It was all there and I practically needed a wheelbarrow to get across the parking lot to my car.

All the meals shared with Michael, Amy, June, Hugh and Carol were wonderful and not an ounce of weight would be lost on this leg of my journey.  Not to mention the meals Carol made everyday were thoughtful and healthier than I normally eat.  Lastly, on the subject of food, Hugh and I used to eat lunch together and I never knew quite what it would be.  Hugh is big on having fruit for his lunches.  If it was simple fruit that was one thing, but if it was fruit mixed together in such a way as to resemble a pie then we were all smiles.  So, on more than a few occasions we had berry pie ala mode for our lunches.  Life was certainly good at Hugh and Carol's.  

When it came to pie I hung close to Hugh.  His idea of a pie lunch was 1/4th of the pie with a little vanilla ice cream.  Have I mentioned just how much I enjoyed spending time with Hugh and Carol?  Carol's crust is to die for, btw.

Amy and June are two of my favorite people these days.  They welcomed me with open arms and I filled them with chocolate.  We now have a great friendship and understanding.  I love hugs and the attention of women friends and they love chocolate.  I don't know how Amy does it, but she limits herself to a single chocolate truffle per day.  Not all my time was spent with chocolate craving women, though.  There were a few outings around the Seattle area with Hugh and Carol and one with Michael, too.  I've been to the Pike Street Market, which is where I saw the chewing gum wall and bought a long sleeve shirt.  And with Michael I went to the Museum of Flight at the old Boeing Field.  It was particularly nostalgic for me because my father flew B-17's from that factory air field over to Great Falls, Montana during WWII.  That's where the bombers were fitted with all the armaments for war, not to mention the Norton bomb sight. The museum was nothing short of amazing.  I took a few pics.  

Modeled after Leonardo's sketches and simulations of birds in flight.

Wright Flyer replica.

This was the space walking simulator and the object was to "dock" without running out of fuel.  I got close, but no cigar.

SR-71, but this one is unique.  It's got an early technology drone on its back.  The idea being that when the Blackbird is close to a hostile airspace then it could deploy the drone for further surveillance.  They were disposable.

Intake on a MIG-21.

Flight suit of a MIG driver.

F-4 Phantom

Phantom engine on dolly.

Having some fun - pic by M. Waldrip

My father could have been one of the pilots taxiing out for take off in this photo.

The old assembly line at Boeing.

It's a shame that technology presses forward at faster rates when we're at war.  The B-52 was the backbone of the Cold War fleet of war birds.  They were pressed into service in Vietnam the only combat they'd see until Iraq.

I remember the lines of B-52's at McCoy AFB in Orlando back in the 60's.  And intimidating sight, to be sure.

This is an actual Norton bomb sight the most closely guarded secret of WWII and key to success over all theaters of combat using B-17's and B-29's.

P-40 War Hawk

ME-109 from the Nazis.

P-38 Lightning

P-51 Mustang

P-47 Thunder Bolt

F-4 Corsair

Link trainer - the first spin simulator.  Called the vomit comet by flight cadets.  Many a cadet bailed out with vertigo.

Hugh was somewhat resistant to having me take pics and video, at least at first.  He finally warmed up to the idea and I documented some of what goes on in his shop.  What I could not document were the smells and sounds.  The alderwood has a strong smell and the sound of Hugh's radial arm saw is close to a jet engine.  I managed to put together a few pics for show and tell here.  I'm not posting a lot of pics of Seattle mostly because I didn't take a lot of pics.  Seattle was more of a personal break for me and I was respectful of my friend's privacy.  There are people in all our lives who are special to us and I must say my list has grown since I visited Seattle.  Is there anything more special than spending quality time with good friends?  I've always said the most important thing I ever did in my life was to build Chofu.org.  The investment is now paying off for as I move around the country I get to visit with my oldest and dearest friends in just about every state in the Union.  Moving forward in this life of miracles and wonder my greatest treasures are my friends.  

Hugh working on one of his custom furniture frames.  It was a joy to watch a master at work.  When Hugh is working there are few wasted movements at all.  He is very practiced and expert at everything I saw him do.  It was great to be around the smell of sawdust for a change.  And he's got a took for just about every task.  It's impressive.

Ottomans to go with the chair order.  Hugh never sees the completed furniture only the frames he builds from customer supplied drawings.  The one thing abundantly obvious to me was the sheer sturdiness of what Hugh builds. 

Hugh on his radial arm saw.  Note the hearing protection he's wearing. 

Hugh's compressor.

Bob Barker.  Bob is a most soulful pup.  He's also lanky and clumsy running into us at play.

Hugh eventually acclimated to having a camera stuck in his face in the shop.  I let him work and he let me take pics and video.  I'll be posting the videos to YouTube once I get them edited.

This is a very specialized machine that drills 2 holes at the same time.  Hugh is able to space those holes to his specs.

I must say it was kind of amazing to watch raw wood eventually become furniture frames ready for padding and coverings.  Hugh says, "a knot here and there doesn't matter because my work will eventually be covered up with fabric.  Made sense to me, but I still say Hugh is a perfectionist, knots and all.  There is a curious odor present in Hugh's shop that I just couldn't put my finger on.  I guess it was just all the sawdust and stacked wood.

 When I learn how to edit video I'll be updating this post.  Sign up as a "follower" and you'll receive automatic email notices of updates.  I've got four followers.  Who's going to be number five?