Jill's Journal: Isn’t this pretty? That’s the Battery Point Lighthouse, “built to guide lumber ships in and out of Crescent City Harbor as they carried lumber of ancient redwoods to build the city of San Francisco following the gold rush of 1849… The lighthouse is built on an isthmus and is only accessible during low tide. During high tide, the isthmus becomes an island…” (compliments of tourist literature). I think this is the prettiest lighthouse we’ve seen on the California coast. It was also one of the first ever built in California.
Our march northward continued yesterday and we settled in for the rest of the week near Crescent City, CA. We’re a mere 20 miles south of the Oregon border. This is tsunami land. The 1964 earthquake near Anchorage, Alaska caused a tsunami here that obliterated 30 city blocks of the small town, destroying 289 buildings, 1,000 vehicles, and 25 large fishing vessels, as well as taking 12 lives. More recently, major damage also occurred here in the harbor (structural damage plus the loss of 35 boats) from the residual tsunami effects of the March earthquake in Japan. It was the spot of the only U.S. fatality from those waves.
A half-mile offshore is Castle Rock, Crescent City’s own little emerald isle. It’s actually a National Wildlife Refuge, with 14 acres available to nesting seabirds (whose population on the rock was once counted at 150,000), sea lions, and seals.
Remember the “Happy Cows Come from California” commercials? This steer (am I right, Dad?) is a happy cow. Why?
Because this is his view.
Without a doubt, our Crescent City highlight has been seeing an old family friend of Rob’s. Deanna grew up in Lake Tahoe with Rob (her Mom taught him how to swim!) and was in his younger sister’s class. Through the wonders of Facebook, they’re back in touch and Deanna and her husband, Adam, and two little ones, Rowan and Tatum, just happened to be passing through Crescent City after the holiday weekend. We had a ball together! The kids played like they were long-lost buddies and the adults had a hard time tearing ourselves away after a few hours together. Deanna just happens to be a midwife (anyone who knows me well knows I think midwives practically walk on water) and just happens to be about ready to start homeschooling (very possibly using the same curriculum we do) and just happens to be a serious world traveler and just happens to be dreaming of a journey similar to ours (but in a boat!)…and well, let’s just say we hit it off! Love her! Adam is no slouch himself as a part-time boat builder and a part-time craft chocolate maker. Somehow I got no pictures of this delightful family, so I had to take a photo of one of Adam’s chocolate bars. This handcrafted, small-batch, ginger-infused chocolate is like a decadent, sinfully-rich dessert. WOW.
2 comments:
What fun to run into old friends! Tell your friend that if she blogs about her boat trip, I would totally read that too! LOL
I have to live vicariously through others!
p.s. We got the fence all ready for Bug last night. *so excited*
Deanna is not only a classmate of Wendi's but they grew up together. They have known each other from nursery school through high school, Deanna was one of my girl scouts. Deanna's mom Gail did teach Bobby to swim after his first teachers B.J. and Vicky, This was when he first met Pat Crane they were about two and a half to three years old at the time. The next year Gail started giving swimming lessons. When Wendi and Deannna were in first grade Gail decided to teach every child in Tahoe Lake Elementary school how to swim and did so until she retired. A class mate of Wendi and Deanna's drown the summer between kindergarten and first grade and Gail made it her mission that every child in Tahoe learn to swim. Bless her for saving our children. Deanna's Dad, Mario, was also the girls softball coach from junoir high through high school. Yes we have a long history with the Albo's. I am very proud of Deanna's accomplishments. She was always a character growing up and I hope remains one.
Andee
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