Summer snuck into Salem, OR hiding in overcast weather. When we returned to the Salem Elk’s Club from Boise, ID, the berries in the fields were still green…with just a hint of treasures to come..
And the the following night, I was able to pick this bowl of Nature’s beautiful offering—big, fat, juicy berries.
I left TONS of berries, mostly green, for others to harvest as the season continues. Not enough room to store jar of jam or frozen berries in the camper this year—but maybe next year, hope, hope!
We decided to stick around Salem for two weeks until Larry could do his August lab work. To fill our days, we concentrated on exploring towns all around Salem. We wandered west over to Dallas and Independence, east to Detroit Lake, Mt. Angel, and Silverton, north to McMinnville, and finally down to Albany and Corvallis last Sunday.
Our travels took us further than Oregon…..we “found” the Indiana/Illinois cornfield countryside, Amish-country neat white farm houses, and even hilly Vermont rural villages. We drove by quaint Napa Valley-style vineyards and wineries, visited a German Black Forest village to listen to the glockenspiel and rode a car ferry across the river…all around Salem. We went quite far afield--driving only a few miles.
We saw miles of wheat and rye farms in the Hwy 99 valley---billed as the “lawn seed capital of the US”…and enjoyed miles of colorful flowers.
Shades of the midwest countryside.
Blue skies over white farms nestled in green fields! Beautiful!
One treat was the day-trip to Mount Angel, OR, to see the Glockenspiel adorning the Glockenspiel Restaurant building. The scenes rotate while enchanting music is broadcast over a loud speaker.
The Mount Angel Glockenspiel plays at 11 am., 1 pm. and 3 pm. daily and is worth the wait! We were lucky, we didn’t have to wait at the Wheatland Ferry…we drove up as it was loading.
We crossed the mighty Willamette River in upscale class! I love the green algae lace decorating the cable. Did I mention we found some HUGE old-growth trees--transporting us back down to the Redwoods National Park in California?
All those trips lead us to our last tourist treat--the Evergreen Air and Space Museum in McMinnville, OR, home to Howard Hughes’s flying boat, the Spruce Goose. Visiting The Evergreen Museum is an excellent investment of one’s time—and money!
Those little plans on the floor—are full-sized restored airplanes!
Tucked up next to the Goose was the Texan Trainer, an advanced trainer designated at the Army’s AT-6 and the US Navy’s SNJ.
My dad owned an AT-6 bought after WWII. In the late 1940s, he flew with my brother up front and me sitting in my Mom’s lap in the back seat. Notice the size of the Spruce Goose’s floatation pad alongside the AT-6.
I enjoyed reading about this Ford Tri-Motor that has had a long and exciting history. Once even used for dropping fire-fighters into hot spots in Idaho, it’s been restored and renamed the City of McMinnville by Evergreen Aviation.
The passenger section--not for people with claustrophobia! I love the little lace curtains.
It carried the luggage in the wings. Notice the vintage luggage too.
We added the IMAX 3-D movie about the Hubble telescope on to our tickets—which was the highlight for me! After seeing the size of the Hubble mock-up and the shuttle bay at the Johnson Space Center this spring, it tied it all together—in live 3-D action for us. The photos from the Hubble were too beautiful for words! Go see this wonderful museum and movie when you can!
We did Larry’s lab tests this week and we are very happy with the results. Not only do we get to travel for another month, his kidney function test had improved a shade more. He isn’t cured nor recovering; the four-month trend has gone from sliding down the slippery slope to dialysis to clinging to the cliff….and maybe inching up a shade further. The test results normally go up and down, but this is the fourth test where we see improvement instead of sliding—a real reason for us to celebrate!! His continued adherence to the diet is reaping us rewards---more time to travel! Yippee!
On to Washington for August. We have lots to see and do in the Pacific Northwest, starting with Tacoma, WA. Until next week…….
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