Journal page 3

Now, besides all that "sicky" stuff, and not being ones to look a gift horse in the mouth, Jim and I took every opportunity while we were there to travel around and look at various parts of Oregon.

You see, on our most recent trip before this one, the weather was beautiful for mid-January, and Jim was absolutely amazed at all the outdoor things that could be done in mid-winter, in what he considered gorgeous weather. We had been talking about a place to retire to, since he can no longer do the things he's been doing in Alaska. Too many years on a rough snowmachine have done irreversible damage to his back, and arthritis has taken care of the rest.

After that trip, he was convinced that Oregon was the place to retire to. My children are there and his daughter is nearby in Arizona, and in central Oregon we would be within reach of the southern Oregon beaches, which we love, the desert, the mountains with all their fishing lakes, and a number of gold prospecting areas in Oregon and California.

We spent just a few days shy of two months with our good friends Jim and Creagh Williams, who were wonderful hosts and friends. We had our own room, and the loan of a car! It was very kind of them, and was a treat for us. Creagh and Jim both love to cook, and do a lot of it, and it was all delicious. Creagh is somewhat of a gourmet cook with an old-fashioned flavor, and they went out of their way to make our stay as pleasant as possible.

We'd taken our cat Missy, at their invitation, since we didn't know when we'd be returning home, and they also made her feel at home, although she and Ricci, their dog, had to come to terms, which they did. They also kept Missy while we traveled around. Creagh has bird and squirrel feeders encircling their entire house, so Missy was kept busy hopping from one window to another, practically breaking her tail as it switched against the walls as she watched all the wildlife. Creagh's brother Dale and his wife Betty also made us feel very much at home, as did their other friends.

We have now crossed the Oregon Cascades on almost every road possible, and each one is breathtaking in its beauty. We had good weather for the most part, only hitting one snowstorm as we crossed over Mt. Hood one day. We had the opportunity to discover new out-of-the-way areas I was not even aware of, although I had been through a lot of the area many times. In that small area are many diverse climates and sceneries, and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. We've decided that we'll move to La Pine, where they all are, which is in the Bend, Oregon area, although higher, and heavily forested in pines. It has a climate not dissimilar from Fairbanks, although milder, and we'll rent there until we decide exactly where we want to live. We really did not find anything that we could choose over another. They all have good features and bad ones, and we'll just have to wait to see what things have the highest priorities for us at the time.

On the next page I have included a few of the photos taken on these trips. The chef is Jim Williams, and he is making a "slew" of fried chicken in a turkey fryer... four at a time, for a crowd of us. It was wonderful!

There is also a photo of the birdfeeder right outside the kitchen window that was a favorite of Missy's, with a bunch of cross bills feeding. The photo of three deer was not taken many miles from their home, and the scenery is fairly typical of the area.

The family photos are of our granddaughter Callie Mae, her brother Stevan, mom Alana, great dane Rajah, and Shitz-su Buzz. Rajah is only 10 months old, and weighs 170 lbs. He is such a clod he's adorable, and he's very protective of Callie.

There are just two taken at the beach. One is of a sign, typical of those in every little wayside where you can pull off and visit the beach now... something new this year. Each of the smaller signs is crammed with prohibited activities while you are there... better keep your hands in your pockets! The other is of the wayside itself, a very pretty little place for a picnic and walk, and typical of the Oregon coastline.

There's also a picture of Cory, our grandson, with his first sturgeon! Ten years old now, he got to go sturgeon fishing with his dad (for the first time) the day before we arrived, and this was just one of four that he caught. He was pretty hyped up over it. He was the top fisherman on the boat.

Jim and I love to travel, and we love to take back roads when we do. We checked out homes, log cabins and fishing camps around lakes, homesteads in the back of beyond, a big high valley of meadows and ranches encircled with snowcapped mountains behind Crater Lake, and small towns of all kinds. New ones, old ones, company towns, and dying towns. It is all interesting to us, and was a great opportunity to get rid of a lot of stress associated with the real reason for the trip.

March 10, 2003
Two Rivers, Alaska

Marcie Foley

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page updated August 1, 2003