When your grandson is born the day before, your own birthday sort of fades into the background. So Bill's big day on Thursday didn't get quite the fanfare and celebration of Ezra's arrival.
Not that we usually make a big deal about our own birthdays, but (I was reminded) a piece of cake might have been nice :-)
We did however make the effort to find a spot for birthday fishing.....nope. And not a subtle negative either. Instead of just no fish biting or some no fishing signs, every access we went to was closed with locked gates and several ways of saying no.
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| Today the only sign that matters is the No Trespassing one |
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| I love these feathery flowers. But they aren't fish. |
We find what looks to be a final opportunity to access open water on a rutted, dirt "road" that is really a private driveway. No signs to indicate this until it's too late. I thought it might have been too late all together as we came upon a battered shack surrounded by several old vehicles. Each one was packed, filled, jammed with full trash bags. With signs of recent activity I was sure there was a shot gun trained on the Jeep and I couldn't get turned around fast enough. Headed out the track much faster than I came in. Bill thought it was hysterical. He probably did it on purpose. Geeez, I sang you "happy birthday" this morning!
The fire danger, and the reduced fish population due to the warm water, means Washington is very serious about denying public access to many places. It's smart, we get it, the timing really sucks.
No cake, no fish. Sorry honey....
How about an island? Kinda cool, who else gets an island (visit) on their birthday. Only very special people. Sometimes I try too hard.....
En route we saw the small towns of Chimacum and Port Hadlock. Very different with open pastureland and lots of small farms. Known as the "bread basket of the Olympic Peninsula" it is a lovely little area.
Indian Island is home to the Naval Magazine, a facility for "munitions handling". The couple miles of tall fence with shiny razor wire really kill the island vibe, but the blue water of the bay is very pretty on the other side of the road. Look at that side.
A small land link connects Indian Island to Marrowstone Island, the home of Fort Flagler State Park. Like the other military-installation-turned-family-vacation-destination forts we've seen, Fort Flagler has large open parade grounds with several restored buildings. Here you can rent the Hospital Steward's house, the Waterway house, or one of several non-commissioned officers' quarters. You can also be a work-kamper - there were five FHU sites next to a couple of the larger buildings filled with motorhomes and 5ers set up for long stays.
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| Large vacation home. At a fort. |
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| With a sweet view |
There are two campgrounds - forest and beach. Both have at least some hookups with decent spacing. Both in beautiful locations.
Lots of families at the fort, none on the beach. Several folks fishing though.
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| At the water |
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| On the water |
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| In the water |
There are old buildings here as well. Located at the very northern tip of the island, the equipment looks like it was/is used for weather monitoring. There are also old residences.
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| A-Frame |
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| Cabin |
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| Cape Cod |
I imagine it gets brutal here during big storms, but on this calm and sunny day it seems like a perfect place to be "stationed".
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| No idea what these weird little things are. A few remaining pink flowers on the same bush...... |
What interests me about visiting these old forts is the access to history. The coastal military site was built to protect Puget Sound from invasion. Huge bunkers were built in the middle of the forest where ginormous mortars were installed. The guns are gone but the concrete structures remain. Looking at the location I wonder how they would have known what they were shooting at from the bottom of the forest.
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| Mortar pads at Battery Bankhead, Fort Flagler |
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| Rooms are identified for oil, tools, munitions |
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| potties |
Although the guns have been gone for decades, the thickness of the walls and size of doors and chain loops show how huge they were. Able to fire seven pound shells nine miles, it is an ugly history. But history nonetheless.
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| Can't imagine how heavy the whole chain would be |
Not only no fishing, but hanging out a fort which isn't your "thing".....enjoying your birthday sweetheart?
Let's go back to Port Townsend and have a nice lunch!
We haven't had pizza in months so that will be a great treat. Pizza is a pie. Pie is almost cake. Still trying here.
One would think that a place called Waterfront Pizza would be on the water. Well it is technically right on the port. There's water on the back side of the restaurant. You just can't see it.
But the smell of the pizza is so amazing that we grab a table overlooking the main street, and opt for people watching over water views. The pizza was delicious! The Arnold Palmer (half lemonade, half iced tea) was definitely different :-)
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| Lemonade with a tea back |
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| Gotta love a place with a unicorn head on the wall. An inflatable unicorn head. |
To round out Bill's perfect birthday we shopped the little stores on main street. Not all of them. He only went inside one. There was nice seating on the sidewalk. How bad could it be?
I got myself a shirt. Nothing for him.
He's probably checking dating sites on the internet.
Being a wonderful husband he suggests a raincheck on the cake.
It rains the whole next day.
Love you Baby, I promise next year's birthday will be all about you :-))))
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| Beautiful downtown Port Townsend |
