Day 25 July 07 2010

We had a full day today. As George said we started off with free pancake breakfast, went back to RV and gathered all we needed for the day. We first stopped off at Skipanon RV Repair to get help with hot water heater and after expaining we were sold the parts we needed. On to the Columbia Maritme Museum, this was very informative and lots of hands on things to do and see. I did not remember all about the Columbia River being the graveyard of the Pacific because of all the shipwrecks at the head of the river where it meets the mighty Pacific Ocean. Toured the ship, Columbia which is classified as a lightship and is listed with the lighthouses. There was a trolley that ran in front of the museum and along the Columbia River. It was a dollar for round trip if you did not get off. We took it and it was also very informative as the conductor pointed out a lot of historic places and happenings we would not have known. We then had lunch at Bowmasters and drove around taking pics before returning to camp to fix hot water heater. He put on the new parts and sure enough we have hot water on gas setting. Yea. We then went to Ft.Stevens Historical Park. This was used during the world war II when the Japanese tried to not only bomb Pearl Harbor but also the continental United States. The bunkers and all the cannons and remains are kind of eerie feeling to know how close they came to doing it. We then went to the beach to see the wreck of the Peter Iredale it was an English sailing ship and ran aground during a storm in 1906. We then came up with the bright idea to drive on the beach with a lot of other cars and yes I was driving, should have let George, and got stuck. Thank goodness a young man came by and had tow rope and pulled us out. We will not try that again. Haha.


The day started with the Free Pancake Breakfast at the KOA camp.
The 4 mile bridge from Wa to OR over the Columbia River.

A nice Memorial in Astoria OR.

An ol Buoy at the center.

Columbia River Maritime Museum.

A rusty old anchor.

A BIG Anchor.

A life boat used on the Columbia River for rescue.

Pat checking on the buoy.

Interesting weather display.

I tied all of these knots.

this boat was capsized and only one seaman survived.

This is a reproduction of the seas the boat was in before the capsizing.

Old Ships Bell.

Old Whale Tarpoon.

Information.

More information.

Old diving gear.

An old navigation buoy.

Info.

Macrame lace. I made some of this for boats while I was in the Navy.

Tight passageway.

Info.

Pat checking out the eating area aboard ship, she spotted a "Turks Head" like I had made while I was in the Navy.

Nice sleeping quarters.

She caught me going up the ladder.

The wheel house.

The converted cable car or old street car.

They told us that this car was taken out of service in San Antonio, Texas in 1933, then shipped to Portland OR and then purchased by the people in Astoria OR to rebuild and put into service for this purpose.

A good place to eat, they told us.

It took over 4 years to referbish the old street car.

This reminded me of a street car that I had operated in Dallas Texas when I was just 13 or 14 years old. The operator would let me run it sometimes when he was not too busy. He was always there beside me.

This old Pub was used in a movie. "Kindergarten Cop".

Some of the original hardware on this car.

See the street in the background? It was told to us that this is the steepest in the USA. This is 8th Street in Astoria OR.

Notice the third story is missing. Well they said it got blown off during a storm that came through one year. A man has bought it and is restoring it. Quite an undertaking.

At the end of the line everyone has to stand up and switch the seats the other way for the return trip.

Two more seals in the basin.

Real seals in the harbor.
We had great "Fish & Chips" here for lunch today. Very good I may add.

An old house that is for sale.

On the corner of Franklin & 15th Street.

The Oregon Film Museum. This was the Old Clatsop County Jail and used in "The Goonies"

The Flavel House Museum.

This is the Flavel house built in 1855 for Captain George Flavel.

George working on the Hot Water Heater.

Just sit back and see if it works now.

Welcome to Fort Stevens.

The first two cannons we saw.

The remains of the barracks.

State Park Sign.

Did you remember this from your U.S. History Class????

Another old cannon.

Old Jeep at Ft. Stevens.

Some of the open pits.

One of the old cannons.

Stairs leading down in the pits.

One of the areas they stored ammunition.

Inside the storage area.

More of the inside. These walls are so thick that it was very cool inside.

Stairs leading up.

The underground bunker.

An old shipwreck The Peter Iredale.

The Beach at Ft. Stevens State Park.

We started to drive on th beach however we got the van buried in the sand and a man pulled us out.

Our first time to use our outside pit for cooking. It works.

We cooked the Buffalo meat that Dr. Browning gave us, he killed the Buffalo and had it processed and gave us a package.

Then I had to clean it up after we ate.