A cloudy sunrise over the cascade mountain range as seen from our RV

What a beautiful couple of days this have been and what a welcome relief from the gloom and rain from Dayton!

The sun was out most of the time and the temperature warm enough to sit outside for coffee and lunch.

We're all set up. Water and electricity needed a little tweaking and we had to get one more length of sewer hose but we're all connected now. Esther even allowed us to tie into her direct TV  by means of some extra cable through one of the windows of the house so we can watch whatever we like!

All the comforts of home!

Every morning at 7.30 Ester and I have been joining a small group of people and dogs that gather in front of the house to go for a walk together. Known in the neighbourhood as 'The Walkers' they walk for about 2 to 3 miles, rain or shine, and visit along the way with some neighbours and their dogs, or sometimes only the dogs, during which stops all the dogs get cookies (and even cheese) from just about everybody!

Sadie must think she has died and gone to heaven! All these treats! It took her only one walk to learn that stops mean cookies and also figured out fast who has the best ones!

It's a great group of the nicest people, and dogs, and we have a lot of fun and interesting conversations each time.

But this week has not all been just fun and play!

We had promised Esther we'd help her with some bigger and smaller projects she had on her 'honey-do list' and as our first project we 'attacked' the kitchen.

Esther wanted a new fridge and cook top so I set out to research models, prices and stores while James started re-sanding, -staining and -finishing the cabinet doors that had gone dull and/or lost their finish over the years.  

Since the cabinets never had knobs we added those which I think will help greatly to keep them clean and the finish from wearing off.

While James went on to add baseboards to the kitchen and bathroom which for some odd reason  have never been installed, Ester and I cleaned all those high to reach places that are getting a little too difficult for her to get to.

The fridge arrived and was installed and the new stove top is ordered and to arrive on Saturday.

It already looks like a new kitchen! Very pretty!

On Sunday we took the day off and set off to tour the Island. We drove all around it in about 2 1/2 hours.

It was a beautiful day although a little windy and chilly but perfect for a nice drive.

Camano Island takes its name from an early Spanish explorer, and in the 1700s Europeans mapped and named many places in the area.

Two prominent Norwegian settlers arrived around 1850, Oliver B. Iverson (1845-1940) and Rev. Christian Joergenson (1847-1929) who in turn encouraged relatives and friends from Norway to immigrate and to farm or work in the logging camps which explains the many Scandinavian names of landmarks and even of families that still live on this island.

In Stanwood, just before the bridge that takes you to the island you have 'Viking Village' that boasts a restaurant and several little shops.

 

One of which is Uff da, established in 1981.

Uff Da" is a fun expression used by Norwegians and other nationalities. It's a polite expression generally referring to a mistake or an "oh darn" experience, or even a "whoops!" 

My fellow blogger Judy who is from Swedish descent once wrote about it in her blog.

If you have never read her blog you should certainly do so! It's very well written, has gorgeous pictures, is often very educational and very funny as well.

She recently went through quite some 'Uff Da'-days, so I was immediately thinking about her when I saw this shop!

This one's for you, Judy! Hang in there!

There is something for everyone at the Uff Da Shoppe, ranging from Scandinavian cookware to German Christmas ornaments, Uff Da University t-shirts and diplomas, Swedish electric candle trees...and much more.

We didn't go for a viking meal though, we had lunch at the local 'saloon' were a sumptuous, huge plate of nachos was accompanied by a few draft beers served in, as far as I could determine, were canning jars?

I guess it's adding to the 'rustic atmosphere'?

On the day we finally left Dayton, won't you have it, the sun was out and the flowering trees along the RVs pathways put on quite a show!

Not that I was complaining because it's always so much nicer to travel in good weather don't you think? Everything looks much nicer and it's a lot safer on the roads too.

It took us a while to get everything ready but we didn't have very far to go so we took it easy and also took the time for a relaxed farewell coffee with our neighbours David and Allison.

They're such great people, we really enjoyed talking to them and we've picked their brains all winter about Alaska since they both lived there for some time.

Their little dog Gus, a 'skipperke', kept us entertained with his youthful antics. Boy, did he have some energy!

At 12 pm we were finally on the road again and I had the opportunity to take a picture of our 'combination' which shows off te decals we put on the truck matching the RV. Doesn't it look great?

Traffic was light towards and around Portland and it wasn't long before we crossed the state border into Washington.

Our first, and only, stop of today was the visitor center at Mt. St. Helen's, about 5 miles east off the I-5 at Castle rock.

The 110,000 acre area around Mount St. Helen's is a U.S. National Monument called Mount St. Helen's National Volcanic Monument that was established on August 27, 1982 by U.S. President Ronald Reagan following the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helen's.

Exhibits at the visitor center include the area's culture and history, and the natural history and geology of the volcano and the eruption, including the recovery of the area's vegetation and animal life. The Center includes a theater, a gift shop and outdoor trails.


After watching the very impressive video about the blast we walked the beautiful trail through the wet lands that surround the Center. A series of wooden bridges guide you over the water and provide you with a beautiful view of the mountain.

It was a little too early for the waterlilies to bloom but if you look carefully at te middle of the right picture this little frog made use of the leaves to soak up some sun and a little farther the 'skunk cabbage' was in full bloom.

Traveling farther North we abandoned the I-5 and followed the 12 and 7 that wind their way through the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie Natl. Forest.
This Forest contains many scenic and historical points of interest. Mountain tops gradually rise from 5,000 to 6,000 feet (1,800 m) on the south end of the forest to 7,000 to 8,000 feet (2,400 m) in the north. Two tall volcanoes, Mount Baker and Glacier Peak, tower thousands of feet above the adjacent ridges and are visible most of the time (if the weather allows for it).

The Forest is home to more glaciers and snow fields than any other National Forest outside Alaska.

The road, although windy and one lane only, is in very good condition and the truck had no problems pulling us up and down.

Around 5 pm we arrived at the Alder Lake campground where we set up camp for the night.

It's a nicely wooded place with big sites, spaced well away from each other.

Since it's still 'off season' the sites with a lake view were closed but we didn't mind too much, our space was nice and quiet and we enjoyed a beautiful evening 'in the woods'.

A perfect time to bring out the creamy goat cheese brie Allison gave us as a goodbye present and some delicious humus with pine nuts. No need to cook and very yummy!

The next morning brought another beautiful day and we continued our way north through the beautiful forests and lush pasture land until we arrived at Seattle where we caught up with the I-5 again.
Although traffic was a little more busy it was an easy drive and after we passed the city we had some lunch and gave Esther, James' aunt, a call that we were almost there!

Camano Island, where she lives, is a large island in the Possession Sound portion of Puget Sound, located in Island County, Washington, between Whidbey Island and the mainland, about 50 miles north of Seattle.

Esther has a beautiful 5 acre property on the East side of the Island, big enough to accommodate our RV and truck and than some!

This is our new 'set-up' and will be our home base for about a month or so before we leave for Alaska.

My camera doesn't do it justice but the view of the Cascade mountain range and Mt. Baker (10,778')  is spectacular!

OK, what's wrong with this picture? Well, not really this picture because it's actually quite a good one, but figuratively speaking....?

Right. It's April and we're still here!

Because all the rain we had,.. really...rain, ....what rain....?..... James couldn't finish Dougs yard yet so we decided to stay another week although the forecast, and the sky, still don't look very promising.

Since we now had some extra time on our hands we took one last road trip on Sunday.

We went to Silverton, about 20 miles south-east of Salem, and visited the Silver Falls State Park. It's the largest state park in Oregon and amongst a gazillion walking, biking and horse trails it has an 8.7 mile trail called the Canyon Trail that runs along the banks of Silver Creek and by ten waterfalls from which the park received it's name.

Four of the falls allow the trail to pass behind them as is the case with the park's most visited one, the South falls, a 177-foot (54 m) cascade that you seen in the pictures.

We braved the rain for about an hour to walk part of the trail and look at 2 of the falls. Because of the wet winter there was a lot of water coming down these beauties.

The walk along the river was beautiful. I'm always amazed by all the moss growing on the trees in this state.

In my continuing hopeful search for spring I found this little patch right outside the RV in the neighbours site. Instant moodlifters!

But the ultimate spring feeling this week was brought on by visiting the local feed store. Looking for flea 'stuff ' for Sadie and Merlin, yep, the first ones are showing up allready, I walked the isles towards the back when hearing the faintest peeps coming from some big feed bins with warmth lamps hanging above them.

Aaaawww!!! Soooo cute!!!

Saturday was crunch day for James at Doug's yard. The weather was somewhat cooperating while they planted most of the front yard and finished up the back yard.

Doug even managed to get some hours, and plants, in!

And again we woke up to snow this week!

This time it broke all records since 1954 or so when it was the last time it snowed this late in the season ‘on the valley floor’ as they say over here.

The only one that still really enjoys this seems to be Sadie, who jumped and rolled around in it as usual. The rest of us just wants to go home…or something like that considering we actually are ‘home’ off course.

As a neighbour put it: “ Weird idea they have about spring up here”.

But as fast as it got cold as fast it got warm again! Two days later it was 68 F and we're drinking our sunday morning coffee outside in the sun.
Merlin thinks this chair is his 'personal lounger' which he takes rather litterary.





James spent the sunday welding an extension to the exhaust of the generator to bring the fumes outside the truck and to strap it permanently in the back so we can use it from there. This way it doesn't take up space in the RV.
He got to use his handy whench to lift it. So nice to have these toys, eh....tools, I mean, tools!

As a reward for all his hard work I made him one of his favorite dishes, Nassi goreng with sate!
This is the Indonesian version of fried rice accompanied by satay (skewered chicken in this case) with a spicy peanut sauce. In the Netherlands, Indonesian cuisine is very common due to the historical colonial ties with Indonesia and everyone has it in his or her culinary reportoir.
In fact it is eaten every wednesday on board of the dutch ships and landbased stations of our Royal Navy. It's a tradition dating back from somewhere in the 19th century when dutch ships were stationed at what was then called 'the dutch-indies' to protect the colony.
It is m,m good!

I’ve kept my eyes on these flowering cherries and they are finally coming into bloom now. I wanted to have a sunny shot of them but it looks like that is not going to happen for another week or so and I’m afraid the rain and hail will leave nothing for me to take a picture of if I’ll wait, so here they are.

These are just your very common garden variety of ornamental purple leafed plum cherries. But aren’t they gorgeous? They make me smile every time I see them.

                                                           

A lot smaller but just as effective for making me happy are these little cuties. Now if you’re a gardener you’re not calling them cute, I know, you’ll call them pesky little weeds, but I think they’re pretty.

They’re fig buttercups (Ranunculus ficaria) also called Lesser celandine. Now I like that last name the best because I read that it comes from the latin chelidonia meaning swallow : it was said that the flowers bloomed when the swallows returned. How cute is that?

Now Ranunculus is latin for "little frog (off course, who wouldn’t know that?) and this probably refers to many species being found near water, like frogs. Well, to call this particular place on earth ‘watery’ would be the understatement of the year so no surprise there I’d say.


 

The small river next to the campsite has turned into a very wide and fast flowing one turning brown from all the mud it takes from its banks and bottom.

Lots of trees along the banks are now partly submersed in the water.

James is still doggedly plowing through the mud in Doug’s yard, through rain or shine, snow, frost and hail or freezing wind. You have to give it to the guy, he doesn’t give up easily!

He finally finished paving all pathways and the patio and created some pebble ‘streams’ along the borders. He brought in some more of the bigger rocks to tie the rocks of the waterfall and the wall to the rest of the garden.

At the top tier in the backyard he planted some espaliered fruit trees and added more bushes to the lower ones.

It doesn’t look too spectacular right now but after some years of growing out it will be very beautiful.

In the evenings James somehow finds the energy to work on his ‘computer repair skills’ in the hope to soon start his carrier as a computer technician.

Merlin seems to think he needs all the help he can get.

As beautiful as this looks, can you believe it, it snowed this morning!
And that after 2 beautiful days of 64 F just two days ago! I was so happy, I brought out my shorts and reclined outside in my lounge chair for a couple of hours. It was heaven!

And now this. They’re even predicting snow and rain for the rest of the week all the way to next Wednesday! I swear, I’ll never come back here in the winter! Oregon, you’ve done me in!

That being said, spring IS happening, LOOK!









                                                                    

I’m ashamed to say I’m stil not doing much, although I did pick up the socks I’m trying to knit, already for a year or so, and at least figured out where I was and where to go from there.

I’m reading Dan Brown’s "The Lost Symbol" on my Nook. That is, I was almost done and than my lending period ran out! I hate it when that happens because now I have to wait until it is available again. I’m the only one on the waiting list in Houston so that’s not too bad because in Newberg I’m 26^th in line(!) but still it’s annoying. The problem is that I download several books on my Nook that all have a lending term of 14 days and than I’m unable to finish them all! Oh well.. I must say it’s more difficult than I thought to use my reader for library books. Not only for this reason but also because I’m not able to get the books I really want to read that easily. There are huge waiting lists for the ones I can get and many that I have on my ‘to read’ list are not even available as e-books.
So, while waiting for Dan Brown's I'm reading "Sold" by Patricia McCormick. It tells the story of a 12 year old nepalese girl sold into slavery and taken to India to be forced into a life of prostitution. It is heartwrenching but beautifully written in verse-style. I am stunned by what is occurring to thousands of unsuspecting 13-year old girls in this part of the world. Not a story to lift your spirits but certainly someting that needs more public attention

As you can see I’m also trying to work out some sort of itinery for when we leave from here, which is actually rapidly approaching! If all goes according to plan, and we all know about plans…., we’re leaving on the 26^th. We’re thinking of heading straight East along the Columbia River, doing some sightseeing around Pendleton and Baker city, than head north into Washington and somehow go north-west from there to Seattle.

I can see that by going this way we’re going to have to cross the Cascade Range one way or the other and I see passes of 3- and 4000 feet on the map. I bet there’s still snow up there and I’m not so happy about that. In order to avoid it we might have to follow the 5 all the way up which is not the most attractive way to go.

I’m well past the 9 days I gave myself to take it easy and recoup from my flight but have a hard time getting back into my old rhythm. Maybe because I never really had one lately, I guess.

Anyways, I don’t have to work for the time being and have all the time in the world to do all and any of my hobbies to my hearts content but I just don’t feel like doing anything at all.
I do watch a lot of TV, which I never did, and am just flabbergasted by all the crap that’s on there but at the same time fascinated by these weird shows like ‘hoarders’... oh my god,’ink’ .... unbelievable…they actually do this to real people, 'weird obsessions’...... someone addicted to drinking gasoline…are you kidding me..?
I just can’t stop watching!

The weather doesn’t help much either of course. I don’t know if I can do this rain any longer! That’s probably what’s ailing me come to think of it, a severe case of cabin fever!

I have noticed that going outside to walk the dog greatly improves my mood, even when we get wet so I might have to go a little more often. I probably just need a lot of fresh air to blow away this lethargy!
I also do need the exercise since I gained 7 pounds (!) between the stress of leaving for Holland and than being wined and dined on everywhere I went when I was over there! I feel big and ugly! Doesn’t help either.

Oh well. At least I did manage to shoot some uplifting pics of spring in the making during one of those ‘airings’.

Than last Sunday we went to Woodburn to shop a little in the big Outlet Mall they have over there. Like that was so not going to make me happier! I’m a terrible shopper, I hate it with a vengeance, but I really could use some new clothes.

Well, I used to like Bass and Van Heusen for their great prices and awesome sales but they have gotten as greedy as everybody else and have gotten very sneaky in their sales tactic!

To give an example, a simple, but cute, T-shirt would be priced for around $19, maybe $29 for a real cute one and than they would give you say 40% off and sometimes another 30% on special weekends. Great deals, like I said. Now the same simple shirt is originally priced at $59!!!!! Are you kidding me??? For a T-shirt!!!

Oh Yes, than they put it on sale for the same 30-40% off but that is still more than I want to pay !! Even less so because I feel totally scammed!!

In the end I did buy a nice jeans-shirt and a cute blue shirt with little bows on it at Eddie Bauer, I had my Latte at Starbucks and we really enjoyed some Chinese for lunch (I’m going to diet tomorrow, honestly).

The weather turned out beautiful and we payed a visit to the ‘Dutchies’ in St. Paul who are slowly settling into their new home. Since a lot of their stuff was packed away in a container for almost 3 years they have a lot of fun unpacking and discovering things they forgot they even had!

To get to ‘their’ side of the river you have to take this little ferry to cross the Willamette River.