Mount St Helens, Washington

In the winter of 1995 I had just moved to Beaveton, OR.  One of my first and most exciting trips was to
Mt. St. Helens in Washington State.  Mt St. Helens, located approximately 50 miles northeast of Portland is most known for its eruption on May 18th, 1980.  News of the blast, which occurred at approximately 8:32am PDT (11:32am to all the east coast folks), was fascinating to say the least to a 14 year old some 2,700 miles away.  In a time when the internet did not exist and news was slower to be gathered and reported this became something the nation and world watched for days, even weeks.

As news of the eruption faded I didn't think much of it, let alone ever dream I would actually visit the mountain.  One of the thrilling parts of my day when living in Vancouver, WA was the drive home from work.  As I would turn off of I-205 on a clear day I had a view of both Mt. St. Helens and Mt. Hood.  I was often told that the thrill of this view would diminish over time, it never did and still remains a prominent memory.  During my time in the Pacific Northwest I visited the area several times and though I have not yet hiked the mountain it is definitely on the list.

Today, Mt. St. Helens remains an active volcano in the Cascade Range with eruptions as recent as 2008.  My first trip in the winter of 1995 was educational.  There are several viewing points along the way and what started as a cloudy morning turned into an awe inspiring day.  The pictures that follow are some of my favorites, I hope you enjoy them.

circa 1995

Streams from the volcano feed into three different rivers around the mountain.

circa 1995

The skies cleared as we reached the main viewing point.  According to the Park Ranger working this day the "cloud" above the mountain is actually steam escaping from inside the crater.

circa 1995

Following a 5.1 magnitude earthquake the volcano erupted.  The blast was big enough it caused the mountain's elevation to decrease from 9,677 ft to 8,365 ft according to the USDA Forest Service.

circa 1995

Frozen Tundra.....

circa 1995

The blast is reported to have leveled everything in its path.  Trees and wildlife alike.  Awesome, yet mysteriously unnerving at the same time.  

circa 1995

Trying to imagine the power from within...

Over the years I made a habit of grabbing my camera and just driving in whatever direction the sun was shining.  The following pictures are from just such a day in the winter of 98/99.

circa 98

The elk and other wildlife return to the area.  

circa 1998

Maggie at 6 months.  A great friend who loved the snow.

circa 1998

Hey wait on me!  

As Maggie was running towards me in this photo she suddenly disappeared.  She had run directly over an air pocket covered in snow which collapsed under her weight.  I remember running to grab her trailing leash and grabbing the end before it went into the abyss.  I looked down to see Maggie hanging in mid air with a look of "what?" on her face.  I pulled her to the top and off she went, oblivious of how close a call she had just encountered.  She loved the snow.

circa 1998

Ever have that feeling you shouldn't be out here all alone....

I think Maggie was trying to tell me something.

circa 1998

Perhaps I should turn around and start heading back now......

circa 1998

Oops!  Maybe just a little too late on that let's head back idea...

Much like boating on the coast of Georgia it is important to pay attention to the weather around you.  As I mentioned earlier I usually started my trips by heading in whichever direction the sun was shining.  Problem is that when you turn around you may not see the sun.
as always,
bkd

"Worrying is like a rocking chair. It gives you something to do, but it doesn't get you anywhere."  Van Wilder

Pictures, before the journey began

If a face can launch a thousand ships, how many memories can a picture conjure up?

I have always enjoyed taking pictures.  Throughout most of high school and college the majority of my photos were of people.  Over the years I have had the ability to travel and expand my photo collection to include vast landscapes and wildlife as well.  The incredible thing is no matter the focus point of the picture there is a story behind it.  

Mt. Hood, Oregon (elevation 11,249ft) circa 1994

In 1994 I attended a wedding in Ashland, Oregon.  Little did I know at the time just how much this little ole wedding would impact my life.  I not only moved to Oregon a year later with hopes of experiencing the Pacific Northwest in all its glory, I married one of the bridesmaids more than ten years later.  But that is a different story all together. 

I flew out the week preceding the big day with the intent of sight seeing for a few days.  The plan was to fly from Atlanta to Portland and rent a car for the drive to Ashland by way of US 101 along the coast. I mapped out the trip with my first day being an exhausting series of layovers and a short drive to Lincoln City on the coast.  Over the next few days I would drive half the state along the coast to Florence before heading west to the main interstate. 

Above Devil's Churn, Oregon (circa 1994)

US 101 is a great drive, although it can be quite hazardous.  Traveling south the Coastal Mountain Range borders you on the left with steep black rock cliffs on the right.  Along the way you can find small beaches though far between until you reach Florence.  While I have not driven the lower half of US 101 south of Florence it is my understanding the beaches take on more prominence.

Florence, Oregon (circa 1994)

I ended my coastal trip two days early as there was a party to get to, and who am I to delay one of those.  I stopped at a little restaurant in Florence for dinner, took one last look at this sunset and headed west into the coastal mountain range.  That was an interesting drive in the dark.  At any rate I arrived to my final destination shortly after midnight.  Over the remainder of the week much beer and wine was consumed, many pictures taken and a large time was had by all.  

This last picture was taken from the balcony of the Bride & Groom's apartment.   The sun may have been setting on our day but the night was just beginning...

Ashland, Oregon (circa 1994)

as always,

bkd

and The Journey Continues...

So first I'll address my lack of writings.  In my original post I stated I would attempt to write/post once a week.  Well a great deal has happened and while I have not posted as I intended I have continued to write and perhaps that will aid me in the coming months.  Okay done.  Now on to more important and certainly more interesting topics.

It has been almost 12 years since I last lived in the Pacific Northwest.  Now in the year 2012 I find myself back in the Northwest for just over a month.  This time the move has been a little different.  This time I moved with my beautiful wife of almost 6 years, our two great dogs and yes, the darn cat Bo.  Twelve years ago this was a move just for me; no one else, just me.  It was a great move.  It offered me the world and I took it.  I learned more about the world than one can imagine and even a little about myself.  This move I suspect will be similar, though it has not been all about me, it has been about my family; so yes, maybe it is all about me.  Family, that is something I look forward to writing a great deal about...at a later time.

For now, to set some sort of expectation for the direction of future articles:

Over the last few months I came up with an idea for my writings which I thought was a great idea.  Toby, my wife, on the other hand mentioned that someone might have already come up with "that idea".  So I checked, and yes, SEVERAL people had come up with "that idea".  I found at least four or five with one quick online search.  Interestingly enough, all of them were blogs.  None of my online searches showed a "book" by this title.  So for those who perhaps know more about copy rights than I, you can educate me how to reserve this title for future use.

The concept/title......"the places I've been, the things I've seen, the people I've met".  Regardless, whether I someday publish a book or not, I like the concept and perhaps somewhere in these articles is a book worth reading, and therefore worth publishing.  Having recently been "published" in an article in Captain Miss Judy's fishing reports I no longer have to compete with my brother, who was published before he graduated from The University of Georgia..  Although Miss Judy has written of two of my fishing adventures, only one was written by me.  At any rate, I have finally been published.  Moving forward I will start with "the journey".  It served me well in 1995 and should serve well for now.

In the coming articles look for stories of days past accompanied with photos of those days and the memories they represent.  For now, a challenge, who can tell me what/where the two photos on the main page are?  I'll give you a hint, they are approximately 1,853 miles apart.  Not to mention they were taken, by me, some 8 or 9 years apart.  Good luck and I look forward to sharing some great adventures with you.

Have a great evening and a better tomorrow.......

as always,
bkd