Local stuff, April 28

Gosh, a week has past since my last blog,  Don't know where the time goes especially when I haven't done much.  Most of the days have been filled with mundane stuff, but Joel and I have managed to get a walk in along the McKenzie River Canal most mornings...even with the the sloppy weather. Joel has spent most of his time helping Walter in the shop, so he hasn't tacked the various projects that need to be done on the Big House nor on the Little House.  We did meet with AM Solar earlier in the week to get some advice on how to reposition the inverters and batteries on the Big House so as to use and store the solar power more efficiently and Joel sought out a radiator shop that would be able to steam clean the radiator.  The radiator is badly due for a cleaning which should alleviate some of the overheating problems we incurred recently.

Saturday, was the annual kickoff breakfast for the  trout fishing season.  It was held at the volunteer fire department at Leaburg just a few miles down the road.  The pancake breakfast traditionally starts at 5:00 A.M. and lasts until 11:00 A.M..  No, we didn't show up at 5:00 A.M. The pancake breakfast  is a fund raiser for the fire department, but more importantly it is the time when all the locals get together to say hello after the winter and to discuss fishing, gardening, and travel plans for the summer etc.  We attended the breakfast  with Pam and Walt who of course knew everyone. Raffle tickets were sold, and I actually won a ladies fishing pole!

After breakfast we all headed up river  a few miles to the Wooden Drift Boat Show held at the Eagle Rock Lodge in Vida. Drift boats are the boat of choice on the McKenzie River and the dory style boats are designed for the McKenzie River and are also found on Rogue River in Oregon. The wooden drift boats are hand made and very popular due to their simple design.  They are very wide making them hard to capsize but at the same time difficult to maneuver with oars.  For more on the drift boat check out wikipedia at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McKenzie_River_dory.

 This drift boat (above) is still in the production process.  The interior and exterior still need paint.  Note the sign. The folks here are really serious about their boats!

 There were lots of different sizes of drift boats but all the same shape.  Walt and Joel enjoyed looking at the different types of wood and finishes that were used on the boats.

I was really fascinated with the "tractor jockey" bringing all the boats down to the river for display.  He made it look so simple.  It took less than a few minutes to back them into the perfect spot for display and unhook them.  I think it only took him about 20 minutes to move 10 or so boats.


After the wooden boat show we headed into Eugene to the Farmers Market.  I have never seen such a variety of beautiful produce.  I stopped at one stand to ask questions about the different greens.  I counted at least six that I had never seen or heard of before.  The clerk was more than eager to educate me on the different greens and how to cook them.  I purchased only a small amount because the refrigerator is full.  Beside the abundance of produce there were local crafts and musicians.  It's obvious a whole day could be spent taking in the Farmers Market.  Joel says it is pretty much the same venue every Saturday, so I'll get to return and explore more.  I was so enthralled I forgot to take any pictures.  Next time.

Sunday, Joel received a message via Facebook from our WIN friends Donna and Bob who were making their way north and had stopped in Springfield for a few days.  We headed into "town" had had a nice visit with them.  Bob showed Joel his solar panels that raise and lower with an actuator.  Hmm, another  future project?? We decided to meet again later for dinner along with Barbara another WIN friend who lives in the area.

Eugene has a wonderful paved bicycle path that runs along both sides of the Willamette River and meanders through parks and greenbelts.  Its about a 12 mile loop and level ("level "being an important operative word for Joel  LOL ), with beautiful views of the river along most of the trail.  The path is nice and wide in most places, so even though there were lots of families out enjoying the beautiful spring day, it didn't seem too crowded.

The picture below is the Willamette River as seen from one of the bicycle/pedestrian bridges along the path.  Note the drift boat drifting.  That water looks pretty high and rough to me.  I don't think I want to be out there on a kayak just yet.

We all met for dinner and visited more and then headed over to Bob and Donna's "house on wheels" parked at the Elks Club and we visited some more. Bob and Donna summer plans include spending time in British Columbia and Fairbanks Alaska. Both and Bob and Donna have been to Alaska before but this time they hope to see areas that neither one have seen before.

What a nice end to the week.  Nice to see old friends and catch up.