After a good night's sleep we headed to the famous Astoria Column on the advice of Frank McClanahan, and so glad we did! Check out those skies! The Astoria Column is 125' high and was built in 1925 to commemorate the westward sweep of discovery and migration. It has 14 murals made in Italian sgraffito technique (etched concrere). They are amazing in their detail. I wish we could have laid them all flat to really be able to see them.
We climbed the 164 interior steps to the top for a 360 view for miles! It was gorgeous!!
Into the car for one last trip up the coast to Ft. Stevens State Park at the northernmost tip of Oregon. Clatsop Indians lived here for thousands of years and traded with folks from Asia long before Lewis and Clark arrived on the scene. They aided the Corps of Discovery during their winter stay, providing food for them. After the land became part of the US the Army built a fort and an extensive series of bunkers. From the Civil War through the end of WWII, more than 80 years, Ft. Stevens Milirary Reservation guarded the mouth of the Columbia River. There was a military interpretive museum and many of the bunkers are still in place.
Back down the coast to Tillamook - this time we did stop at the Blue Heron French Cheese Co. Wonderful place! Then back inland through the woods to Frank and Mary Margaret's in McMinville. Frank McClanahan and Jean went to High School together and Frank was in Boy Scouts with my brother, Alan. We had reconnected at a reunion about 5 years ago and have kept in touch since then. We arrived at their wonderful house mid-afternoon and just did some catching up. Great fun! It's really fun to reconnect with special people from way back in your life and this was an especially fun visit.
Mary Margaret relaxing after a days work!
Frank setting the table for dinner - yummy!
