Skamokawa
I took most of these pictures last summer, when we went to Skamokawa. It is a tiny rural village in Wahkiakum County, Washington. It is on WA 4, beside the Columbia River and only about 28 miles from our home in Kelso, WA. Like most little towns here, there is a cute little white frame church; a general store; a post office; a restaurant and a few homes. Skamokawa also has a historical museum and a covered bridge. It is a local center for Kayaking and fishing.
(Public Domain)
The homes range from small to large farm houses to cabins. The population is about 450, but you certainly cannot see where they all live. Skamokawa also has a nice campground where we joined up with my daughter and her husband, to try out their new Hobie sailboat.
Rhododendrons thrive in the northwest and come in so many gorgeous colors. They are everywhere, especially at this time of year and they stand out like jewels against the green background.
Pirate with stick & Quest fishing.
Spirit with Laura
Moonrise
Pirate, Quest, Kevin & Laura
Dog with 8 legs.
"Throw it!"
Spirit watching the river
Quest watching the sunset.
Back to our camping spot for iced martini's and snacks before dinner.
We are so lucky! Laura is an amazing cook and she enjoys it, even when we are camping. Kevin is a master of the barbecue and all I have to do is help with clean up. We usually finish up by sitting around the campfire and maybe toasting some marshmallows. Since this camping trip, Kevin has a new barbecue. It is a pellet barbecue and uses various flavors of wood pellets. The ribs he cooks are amazing, not to mention the steaks and anything else. He even grills veggies sometimes - what a treat.
We were camped next to each other on this trip. I fed the dogs and I took them for a walk down by the river, in the moonlight. What an awesome view. A little earlier, standing on the sandy bluff, seemingly out of nowhere, in almost total silence a huge ship moved past us toward the setting sun. My dogs love to watch things with me. We just stand very still and enjoy deer or whatever happens to pass us.
Spirit was the best at this. Quest still gets excited and tries to talk to the elk, or what ever we are enjoying. Pirate is undecided yet and sometimes I can count on him to just watch, silently. I am wondering how Journey is going to act. He was watching a deer the other morning, from our deck. He just occasionally made quiet little "woofs". They were barely audible to the deer. It is hard to teach them to be quiet. Spirit just seemed to know. One time he was laying in front of our patio screen door and by not making a sound, and keeping very still, he was able to lure a squirrel right to the screen so they could touch noses. I think he just enjoyed it because he would do everything possible not to scare a creature away. That squirrel came back again and again to visit with him.
The dogs love sitting around the campfire with us, then later I put them to bed in my RV while we finished a game we were playing in the Airstream. In a little while I went to my RV. I just happened to look outside as I was pulling the shades. There were about six deer moving between our vehicles. This time I did not share them with the dogs as I wanted to be sure of the silence so I could enjoy. I would like ot have shared them with Spirit but I was afraid I might wake the other guys.
I am pretty much of a night owl, so I stay up reading for a while. I get to see many night creatures this way. Once in Yellowstone a Bison was standing so close to my window it was like a blackout and I did not even know he was there. I just kept hearing breathing and what I later realized was the sound of him chomping on grass. Eventually he snorted a little. He was so close to my window and so big, he was totally blocking the available light of the moon. When I realized he was about 8-12 inches from the RV and that he was the blackout I really caught my breath for a minute. I snapped off my reading light, and just carefully slid the window open a little wider. I could smell his coat and hear the rhythmic sound of his chewing and his breathing. If it had not been for the window screen I could have softly touched him. But it is probably best that I didn't try.
We stayed at Skamokawa for several days and it was so relaxing. We sailed in Steamboat Slough and across the river where we circled some islands, always keeping an eye out for ship traffic. They are huge and you cannot tell how fast they are moving when they are coming toward you.
It was wonderful. Further up in Steamboat Slough we were becalmed and we used the peddles. With two people pedeling we really move. It is very quiet and we were able to watch otters, egrets, hawks and eagles. A Great Blue Heron had built a nest on top of a huge signal pole and squawked at us for coming too near. What a gorgeous place. Back to the camp ground for lunch and to let the dogs have some fun.
We can visit here for a day or spend a couple weeks. It is about 35 minutes from home. I love the northwest. Sometimes I just drive to a little park a few feet from the river and park for the day. We walk and have a picnic and just watch the river traffic, wondering where they are going as they head out to sea.
One of my favorite things to do is pack up on a rainy day. With some hot soup simmering on the stove and a view out of every window I always end up wishing I had packed to spend the night. Not counting Oregon, which is just across the Columbia River, we have the entire Olympic peninsula to explore. No poisonous snakes to worry about as we had in California.
One of the things I like best are all the little towns and villages I can visit for a day, or two. Oregon is especially loaded with them. The Oregon coastline is one of the most beautiful anywhere, rivaling even Big Sur, in California. I can lose myself with my camera, in the fishing towns. I never tire of exploring them.
On the west coast, the further north you go, the more dog friendly it is. Dogs are normally welcome at any outside cafes' They are even allowed in some indoor cafes. I have not found out exactly how they get away with it, as I don't want to question it. But just as our Home Depots allow dogs, I have found out that some of the same stores down south do not. We are careful not to abuse the trust as I really appreciate having my dogs able to accompany me.
