I have to preface this post by saying that I was born in Pacific County in 1953, my mom was born in Pacific County in 1923, my grandma was born in Pacific County in 1894.  Her mother (Anna Lena) moved to Pacific County in 1890.  Anna Lena lived here the rest of her life, my grandma lived here her entire 90 years, my mom and I still live here.  We’re kind of fond of Pacific County!  I live on the beach side of the county, but my forbearers lived on the east side–not all that far from Falls Creek, where we just had our retreat.

This is the creek view right across from the gym where we did our sewing.

Our county is still 80% forest.  My grandpa was a logger here.  The native forests were mostly cedar–and in many places you can still see the old stumps from the first logging–even though it was probably a hundred years ago that they were cut down.

Lots of them have turned into “nurse logs,” providing a base for seedlings that have grown into magnificent trees of their own.

Even under this tree there was once an old stump.

If you look closely, you can see where the loggers notched out a place for the springboards.  These boards got them up high enough to saw through the trunk where the diameter wasn’t so large.

Even though our weather was very rainy, I decided to walk along the creek to the falls–about a mile.

It started out as an easy, flat walk.

There were so many cool trees along the path. like this one with THREE trunks!

And this one with two trunks.

I just love the little ferns that grow out of the trunks and branches of the trees.

At first the path was a one lane, gravel road.  It crossed a bridge and opened into a lovely meadow.

There was a tiny cabin there.

It must have been there a long time judging by the maple trees in front of it!

The trees were bare, but there was plenty of “evidence” on the ground that these were maples!

I was always told that if you were lost in the woods, you could find North by looking at the trunk of a tree.  There would be moss growing on the north side of the tree.  Well, here’s one of the maple trees.  Side 1.

Side 2.

Side 3.

Side 4.  Hmmm, I’m thinking this isn’t going to work for finding North.

This snag looked as though it could star in a horror flick!

The farther I went, the more rapid the creek was flowing.

Soon the gravel road ended, and it was time to start the climb to the top of the falls.

The trail was strewn with leaves.

And snugged the side of the hill.

The vine maples were so pretty with the vibrant yellow leaves.

Even though it had quit raining, everything was dripping.

The path climbed pretty steeply.  I could still see the creek below.

When I rounded this corner and reached the top of the nexts rise, I could really hear the falls.

The water was cascading over stair-step looking rocks.

But that was just the lower falls.

It was hard to get back far enough to get good photos, but you can see how much water was flowing here!

Here’s looking straight down from the top of  the main falls.

It was definitely worth the walk.  Twice, since I forgot my camera the first time!

Pacific County is a pretty good place to live!

Teardrops

Teardrop trailers are just so darned cute.  And we saw from new to old.

This one was quite old, although I don’t remember seeing the year on it.  The most amazing thing was the all the canvas “add-ons.”  There was a huge one in the back, and two on the side.

One of the side ones was tall enough so you could stand up inside.  It was a changing room!

All the comforts of home–just outside!

Isn’t this adorable?

Believe it or not, it was built in 1946!  Somebody has lovingly restored it.

Cozy sleeping quarters.

This one is also from 1946.  I love the wood on it.

Another beautiful restoration job.

This setup really brought a smile to my face.  I never saw anyone around it, but doesn’t it just remind you of an old miner’s set up.

Ah, he never found gold, but he’s liking the lifestyle–thinks he’ll just stay put!

Shiny Ones

Airstreams weren’t the only shiny, aluminum trailers at the rally.

This is a 1959 Streamline.

Even the inside was shiny metal–shiny PINK metal!

This cool trailer with the corrugated sides is an Airfloat built in 1952.

There were several Airstreams, including this 1951 Flying Cloud.

This 1950 Silver Steak Clipper looked like something out of a science fiction movie!

But the most amazing of all was this 1936 Bolus.

Talk about your space age look!  And it has a front entrance.

Just inside the entrance is the tiny little galley kitchen–all aluminum.

And here’s a shot of the living/sleeping area.

Two weekends ago, Bob and I went to Lynden, Washington for the Tin Can Tourist Rally.  Oh, what Fun!

There were lots of vintage trailers, like these painted ones!  This one is a Mercury.

Here’s an old Aloha.  Check out the pineapple lights!

Great space age detail!

I love the matching awning on this one.

And this one.  It’s a Shasta, a very popular brand.

This one was painted to match a vintage Ford Fairlane.

And how about this Pumpkin trailer!?!

This aqua beauty is a Masterbuilt.  I love the windows.

Here’s an Aloha with a Tiki theme.

It’s hard to beat sunny yellow, like on this Aladdin.

More tomorrow!

Who would have ever thought that neon signs would evoke feelings of nostalgia?  But lately I’ve been noticing them when I travel.  The town of Prineville, Oregon was full of them, like this Real Estate sign.

And this men’s ware shop.

Even the jewelry store had a cool old sign.

Mitchell, Oregon is just a wide spot in the road, but look at this cool hotel sign.

Bend, Oregon has been a boom town in the last couple of decades, but this old sign is still shining bright.

A few weeks ago in Fife, Washington, we passed this cool old sign.  I only saw the sign, but Bob saw the little hamburger stand.  When we went that was again last weekend, we decided to try the burgers.  Good choice!  They’ve been in business 60 years, and boy, do they have it figured out!

Nearby was this old motel.

You can tell I’m starting to obsess about these old signs.  Ah, well, another harmless addiction.  If you love them, too, send me photos of your favorites!

Bob and I were lucky enough to go to a Mariner’s game with my mom and dad recently.

We enjoyed a great meal in the Diamond Club first.

Even the Babe was there to greet us!

Mom and I are anxious for the game to start.

It was a great game.  The Mariners led all the way–and the Moose kept us cheering.

This was the view from our seats.  The best part was, we got a win!

Thanks, Mom and Dad, for a fun time.

On our way home last weekend, Bob and I stopped at Cabella’s–and what should be in the parking lot–vintage trailers!

There were members of Sisters on the Fly there with their camp trailers set up for us to visit.  How wonderful!

Here’s the Hillbilly Hilton.

Love the copper stove and the diamond plate back splash.

The Thermos as vase is inspired!

Doesn’t everyone want their own Camelot?

Bob was excited because it was made by Bell Manufacturing in Kalispell, a company he remembers well.

I love a woman who knows how to carry out a theme.

Check out this adorable aqua one.

Monica, are you drooling?

I’m drooling over the appliances inside.

And the detail on the dinette benches.

The sister of Camelot’s trailer has one, too, and she calls herself The Queen of Pamelot!

Aren’t the outdoor vignettes adorable?

Pamelot evidently subscribes to the Karen Snyder school of collecting–more is more!

Another aqua beauty.

After orange and aqua, my favorite color combo is pink and aqua.

There’s so much to like here–like vintage linens!

And more vintage linens.

A cowgirl at heart!

Why, yes, I’d love to join you for a hot beverage, thank you!

But then they had to go….

I think Lola may need a little sister!

Sometimes it’s easy to forget to look around us–at the beauty that surrounds us.

This is the view through the trees as you walk to North Head Lighthouse.

Then you round the bend, and there it is!

Once you walk past, you’re looking north at the bluff.

We walked to the top, and this was the view toward the Long Beach Peninsula from there.

And south to Benson Beach.

We walked back on the Lighthouse Keepers Trail.

A last peek back at the lighthouse.

Then past the light keeper’s house, which is now a B&B.

Yeah, pretty nice country we live in!

Last weekend I had a wonderful day of quilting fun and relaxation at the Pomeroy House Living History Farm.

Connie and Robin were there, too.  Really, that’s them in the photo below!

The old farm is such a wonderfully charming place for a quilt show.

I love how the put the quilts on the fences and buildings.

Luckily, the chickens had some shade–it was a very hot day!

Seeing these makes me want to drag all my quilts outside.

Oh, I’m glad I don’t have to wash like this!

Ah, more shade!

I don’t know if I took this picture for Bob because it’s a tractor or for me because it’s orange!

Oh, there’s Connie and Robin.  I knew I’d catch up with them again!

More photos of quilt to come–and all the aprons in the presentation!

Frank Lloyd Wright’s amazing design.

I’ve been fascinated with a house built over a waterfall ever since I first saw a special about it on TV years ago.  It’s not far from Pittsburgh, and I knew I had to make time to visit before returning home from Market.

The drive into the property was so beautiful.

And the first views of the house were stunning!  The house is a series of cantilevered levels built right over the falls.

This stairway descends from inside the living room down into a pool at the top of the falls.  Perfect for a morning dip!

Here you can see how the structure is tied into the rock hillside behind.

Everything repeated the horizontal lines.

We took the tour, but they didn’t allow interior photos.  I think you can get a sense of the place from these outside shots.