The Evergreen Sportsman’s Club near Littlerock

The Evergreen Sportsman’s Club bills itself as the west coast’s premiere shooting facility. While I can’t confirm that (come on, the entire west coast of the United States? Really?), it does boast 36 trap fields, hosts several 2 and 3-day shoots throughout the year, and has one of the nicest range masters you’ll ever come across. They also host the annual Washington State Championships and the PITA Grand Pacific Championships

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Some insight into the life of Thomas Frost

Last week, I began planning the first full episode of the Washington, Our Home, video series and I decided the creation and exploration of the Willamette Meridian would be a good first start. To begin with, as I asked in a previous blog post, I had to learn why in the world someone in the mid-1800’s would decide that a straight line north and south from Portland, Oregon, was even necessary.

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So much history, so little time

So I went to the Lacey public library last weekend because it’s free and Parker loves to visit. Usually, I supervise him playing in the children’s area or – more recently – help him with the computer learning games. Incidentally, I never imagined that a three-year-old could successfully operate a graphic user interface…but who knew? He already has the library’s high score on Clifford’s Day Out. Anyway, after my wife

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A subtle armed forces memorial in Tumwater

Boy, do a little research and it’s amazing what you might learn. Nearly every day, I drive past the Odd Fellows Memorial Park at the corner of Custer, North and Cleveland (Yelm Highway) in Tumwater. Most people know it as “The Pellegrino’s intersection” or the “Artistry in Flowers” corner, or “the one right by Baskin-Robbins, Safeway or Domino’s Pizza,” or – more appropriately for this blog post – “the one

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Ft. Eaton, and the Indian War of 1856

We’re leaving for Carmel, California, tomorow to spend Christmas with my inlaws. My job today, besides packing and cleaning house, was to drop the dog off at the boarding facility. Living in Lacey, we board her at Northwind Kennels, which is just a short drive southeast on the Yelm Highway from our house. On the way, I drove past a small, brown sign that read, “Historical Marker” with an arrow pointing

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Gone But Not Forgotten: Ocean Crest Restaurant in Moclips, Washington

Moclips has been a community for a long time.  It was only incorporated, though, in 1905 with the final nails being driven by the Northern Pacific Railroad.  It became a resort community and had local industries such as lumber mills and canneries.  Over the years Moclips suffered setbacks from fires and storms, finally sustaining about 600 people. Just south of the town of Moclips, Washington, along the rugged Pacific coast,

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Sea Lions vs. Surfers On The Washington Coast

Sea Lions vs. Surfers On The Washington Coast

Sitting Log at the North Jetty in Ocean Shores, Washington Linda and I try to walk on the beach every day. We tell ourselves that it is exercise, but really it’s just taking advantage of where we live (Ocean Shores, Washington). We have different beaches that we can go to, so we don’t see the same thing every day. What we have discovered is that you CAN go to the

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Illahee State Park: Right in the backyard

Last weekend, we took a trip into Kitsap County to see my Uncle Verne, who lives at the Department of Veterans Affairs veterans home in Retsil, outside Port Orchard. The facility was built in 1910 on a 31- acre bluff overlooking Puget Sound. According to the website, “Today the Veterans Home is a state-of-the-art, non-institutional facility providing a ‘Resident Centered Care’ concept that focuses resources around the individual resident. All primary services for a resident

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Dismal Nitch at Lewis and Clark National Park

Ok. I used to pride myself in knowing just about everything in the way of scenic travel in Washington State. Imagine my surprise when we were camping recently and I discovered there was a NEW national park in our state! Well, not just in our state, but portions of the Lewis and Clark National Park are in the southwest corner of Washington, at the mouth of the Columbia river. This

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