All Posts in "Lifestyle, Home, Adventures"

A tour group at the Chehalis Railroad on July 10 L-R: David and DArlene Werner; Lee an Carl Vest; Shannon Walker, Audrey Stacy; Sharon and Dick Wolfe

Summer is such a wonderful time to play. We can take time out to enjoy a beach, ride a steam train, wander through the mountains or cruise on the lake.  We definitely live in God’s Country here in the Pacific Northwest.  There is so much variety in what we can do.

The Cannon Beach trip may not have had the most perfect weather, there is always that drizzle of the ocean, but we had a perfect setting.  We rented two houses, side by side, just off the boardwalk in Seaside.  One night we had a barbecue in our yard and the next we enjoyed the Elks as a guest of one of our group.  The Sand Castle competition was extremely interesting.  We walked back and forth down a long line of competitors watching the progress as castles and creatures developed image and personality.  It is absolutely amazing how these teams of artists work and build.  Teams were composed of “little ones” with their buckets and shovels to the professionals with scoops and trowels.  Only the showers of the day forced us off the beach and on our way to Tillicum for lunch and ice cream.

July also brought us a ride on the Chehalis Railroad, a 1917 steam train chugging through the countryside for 90 minutes; a drive through the mountains out of Darrington and into the Mount Baker foothills’ and a Klondike Show onboard the Queen of Seattle as she cruised around our spectacular lakes.  The Mystery Trip took us to the Key Peninsula with places like Lake Bay, Home and Key Center; the Dinner Date went to Ranch House BBQ for the “Best Rack in Town”.

August brings with it a trip around the Olympic Peninsula with overnights in Port Townsend and the ocean beach.  We will explore Forks and see if we can find a “vampire” and learn what our grandchildren see in all the “Twilight” movies, which have been filmed in that tiny town.  There is still time for you to make plans for an Alaska trip in September or join us in October as we drive down the Oregon/California coastline.

A nice group has developed for the October cruise with Princess out of New York, along the coast on New England into Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and down the St. Lawrence River to Quebec City.  We have found roommates for several participants and perhaps could find one for you if you are still interested in joining us.

The future holds great promise for an Eastern Caribbean cruise or even a trip through the Panama Canal in April.  Plans are being made for Elizabeth to escort a group to “Music City” and we are looking into a Disney cruise to Alaska in the summer  (bring the grandchildren and family).  There is even some talk about getting out of the winter and heading for Hawaii for a week or so.

For further information as to what might be going on, or to make reservations contact Linda Finch at 253 927 8207 or get added to her email list at linda.finch@gmail.com

Bonnie Dickson by — July 28, 2011 in Lifestyle, Home, Adventures

The June 2 tour on the Lake Union Ice Cream Cruise

Linda Finch
Traveling Cougars

Well, it took awhile but we finally found the sun while sightseeing on Lake Union. The “ice cream boat”, the MV Fremont Ave, was great fun and the sun came out to make our day. Our Captain gave an interesting and comical narrative as we cruised past the “Sleepless in Seattle” houseboat, under the University Bridge, close to Gasworks Park and back to our dock next to the Virginia V.

The Mystery Trip went out to the little town of Rainier to the Monarch Sculpture Park. This is truly a hidden jewel; 10 acres of natural beauty with over 125 works of art sprinkled in amongst the trees and bushes. We just might do this another time for a picnic and a slow walk.

In the middle of June we rented The House at River Run, in Winthrop, the heart of the Methow Valley. With 6 bedrooms, a large kitchen, spacious living room with gas heat stove and an indoor pool, we were more prepared to just stay in rather than explore. But, explore we did: fields of wildflowers, the North Cascade Highway, which recently opened but remained high with snow, Rocking Horse Bakery and oh so much more.

Next month I will tell you about the Cannon Beach trip and the International Sand Castle competition, which came right on the heels of the Winthrop trip.

In July we start off with a trip on the Chehalis Railroad. We’ll take a ride on a 1916 logging locomotive as it chugs through the Chehalis River Valley. Later on in the month, we’ll drive the Mountain Loop Highway through the Mt. Baker-Snoqualamie National Forest on 55 miles of back roads. We’ll end the month with a Lake Washington Cruise on board Queen of Seattle, the largest steam powered paddle wheeler wet of the Mississippi, including a “Live Klondike Cabaret Show”.
Remember, we are still taking reservations for the New England/Canada Princess cruise in October ‘11; Copper Canyon in Nov ’11; Panama up close and personal in February ‘12; Eastern Caribbean with Princess in early April ‘12’; Panama Canal with Celebrity for late April ’12.

Don’t have someone to travel with…. we always help find roommates. For reservations or further information contact Linda Finch at (253) 927-8207 or get on the email list at linda.finch@gmail.com.

srmedia by — July 5, 2011 in Lifestyle, Home, Adventures