Vancouver, WA

I told them they could get anything they could carry and it was hilarious to watch an eleven year old, a five year old and a three year old try to lug their huge pumpkins out of the field to the hay wagon that would take us all back to the parking area.

Later, a short drive or streetcar-ride away the Portland Aerial Tram whisks you up to the top of Marquam hill, treating you to a picturesque view spanning from downtown, across the river and all the way to Mt. Hood.

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tion I had never been to a Sonic before? They have two back-to-back order boards for walk-ins but no directions for how to order, or at least I thought I looked all over the board…even tried out the little credit card looking thing that said Sonic Card and had four touch pads with all the arrows pointing up. If I had looked a little closer, I would have noticed that there was a BIG red button that said something like “push this to order” right beneath that strange card slot. When I finally figured out how to give an order, they couldn’t understand my name…no I didn’t say “Mighty Mouse.”

Since I visited the labyrinth on Mill Plain, I’ve wanted to try another one. I heard some time ago that there is a labyrinth at a Hazel Dell church, and I found it! Here’s the sign at the north end of the parking lot; pointing out the path that leads down the hill.
Don’t [...]

Saturday I visited the Fulton Community Center in Portland for a Contra Dance. Click here for several definitions of contra dancing. What kind of music is played for a contra dance? Most of the tunes are either jigs or reels, but there are usually a few schottisches, marches, and waltzes thrown in for good measure. The evening is traditionally ended with a waltz. More…

Most contra-dance bands consist of from three to five musicians, usually a guitar and a fiddle, and often also a piano, an accordion, a mandolin, a bodhran (a wide, flat drum), or a whistle. Many musicians play two or more instruments and change around for different tunes.

What an adventure today! A visit to a labyrinth. This labyrinth is behind the Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church just off Mill Plain, and it belongs to the church. Nice big adjacent field isn’t it? It would be perfect for kids and dogs to play in, and I’m happy to see the two benches to rest on, if the walk gets tiring.

Before we go to the fort itself, let’s stop in to the Visitor’s Center, up the hill from the fort on the corner of E Reserve and Evergreen Blvd. The visitor’s center is free, and there’s lots of information here about the history and archeology of the fort. There’s a gift shop, too, [...]

The garden at Fort Vancouver is a heritage garden, meaning that it contains plants that we would have seen here when the fort was in operation in 1845. Notice the arch over the entrance to the garden and the snowball bushes on either side of it. Snowball bushes are European, and would have [...]

It was a beautiful day, the sun was shining, “Layla”, Mistie, and I were heading out for our next “big adventure” the eastern part of the Burnt Bridge Creek Trail. Located south of Burton Road on 90th Avenue, which becomes 92nd Avenue just before the turnoff at 19th Circle. There is very little parking here, maybe enough for five or six cars. Our end destination, the playground, was at the beginning of this part of the trail, which was great since it served as a