Aircraft Overload and a Sucessful Kite Fly.

(Frank) Problems uploading photos. I'll try them seperately.

(Frank) The plan for the day was to get up at a normal time, 7 AM give or take an hour or so, and to be at the Evergreen Aviation Museum when they opened at 9 AM. Then we would see the Spruce Goose and do a quick blast through the rest of the displays and be on the road by noon. Ha, ha, ha, oh foolish me. Seven hours later we finally physically PULLED ourselves free and DRAGGED ourselves back to the rig and FORCED ourselves to get on the road to make a few miles. We made it as far as Idanha, about 50-60 miles from McMinnville, although it seems farther because we’re tired from the several miles we walked while in the museum.

Now we’re parked in the Mountain View RV Park under tall pine trees right next to a pretty little river. It’s a small park run by a nice couple. I swear I think the best, most comfortable, friendliest, most personable parks are the ones we don’t plan on and just find by accident. When I walked up to the Park Office there were three men and a lady sitting on the front porch. I had on my Air Force cap and immediately one of the guys said, “Air Force! Well we won’t hold that against you.” Then he shook my hand and said, “Navy”. Then the second guy stood up, offered me his hand and said, ”Marines”, then the third guy stood and said, “Army!” Just like that we had four of the five services represented. I asked the lady if she happened to be Coast Guard and she laughed and said “Nope, I’m with the Marine.” It turned out that she and her husband own the park and when I asked if she had a pull-through spot open she said, “Not really, but I’ll move my car and give you the one next to us here.” Later Cheryl said to me, “That hat of yours sure lets you meet some really nice folks!” And I have to agree. By itself it sets up an instant camaraderie between folks who otherwise would simply be strangers passing through life. Later I went over and kibitzed with the guys, and the Soldier and the Marine both agreed it was really nice of the Navy to take them to the fight and it sure was helpful of the Air Force to supply air cover before going back to their hot meals and comfortable beds. The Navy and the Air Force both agreed that yes, it truly was so.

OK, back to the museum. It’s HUGE! It’s magnificent! It’s actually two museums, the Aircraft Museum and the Space Flight Museum. It also has an IMAX theater and we saw the movie “Fighter Pilot”. It was filmed at my old base, Nellis AFB in Las Vegas, and just seeing the base, the aircraft, the pilots, and the ground crews in action actually and honestly brought tears to my eyes I missed it so much. I swear I should have stayed in the Air Force. But that’s the road not taken and I just gotta let it go. But after seeing that movie and all those airplanes, it’s hard!

Both museums are packed, just PACKED with old airplanes, new airplanes, rockets, space craft, and military and civilian hardware, to the point where sensory overload sets in and you just sort of become numb. That’s the point where you have to force yourself to leave or at least take an extended break.

One last point, the Spruce Goose (Howard Hughes HATED that name, he called it the “H4”) is in perfect condition and is beyond belief. It’s called the “Oh my God” plane because that’s the reaction of people who have never seen it. I’ll post a few photos of parts of the plane as it’s not possible to fit the whole thing in one photograph.

Tomorrow we head southeast to Bend, Oregon and then farther east to Burns and Burns Junction and pick up Rt. 95 into Nevada.

(Cheryl) “Wait just a dag-gone minit,” Frank! What about the bottle with the note inside? What about the kite? What about the RV park with the trash compactor and combination locks on the laundry and shower rooms in McMinnville Thursday night? Yeah, what about all that, you ask!

Well, here’s the story morning glory . . . we got up to a dreary cloudy morning on the coast, but we two intrepid old salts and one young pup staggered out to the beach with our kite and bottle as the thunderheads continued to build above the foamy brine. Alas, the landlubber Vodka bottle insisted on returning to us time after time, and we recalled Tom Hanks’ and Wilson’s efforts to paddle their homemade raft beyond the breakers in the movie, Cast Away. Failure landed on us like an Albatross.

But wait, you say, what about the kite?

‘Twas a stellar accomplishment! The instant I unrolled that sorry-looking, sodden and sand-covered parcel, it took flight! The wind caught our tethered sail, and away we went to the very end of the rolled up string! Sweet, sweet success – “Let’s go fly a kite up to the highest heights and send it soaring – Up to the atmosphere, up where the air is clear – Ohhhhh, let’s go fly a kite!” This new foil is a stunner in the sky, and when we take it in and roll it up, it fits inside a neat little pouch for storage in my truck where I’ve kept the old San Francisco Chinatown kite for 20 years! Now to keep a log of all the places where this one has flown starting with Long Beach, Washington - I know, I know, Frank and I are both obsessive-compulsive, but we DO so enjoy our obsessions!

Dauntless romantics that we are, we drove our Vodka bottle with note safely tucked inside over to the bridge leading from Washington into Oregon. On the approach to that amazing 3-mile long bridge into Astoria, we spotted a turn-out next to the fast moving Columbia River. Frank gave our “pirate flask” a fling and flung it way out into the current. We watched it bob along for a bit as it headed for the mouth of the Columbia River on the heels of Lewis and Clark! It was a breathtaking moment in the history of these great United States of America! You could almost hear the brass band playing in the background. Sweet success #2! Hooray! Now, I just wait for an email from the person who finds our treasure. Seriously, wouldn’t that be fun if someone did find it and take the time to let me know! Yes, I’ll always be a dreamer – life is more fun that way.

And that, our dear followers, is that!

Till later,
Howard Hughes (don’t I wish), Mary Poppins, and Peanut the Red Baron.