June took me from the banks of the Columbia River, through the Snoqualmie Mountains, along the shores of the Olympic Peninsula, to a driveway in a Seattle suburb. The month known for “Busting Out All Over” in other areas of the country is known as “Junuary“ in the Pacific Northwest, but the rain was scarce and the sun was a plentiful surprise.

MARYHILL/GOLDENDALE

In early June, The Pacific Northwest Glampers held their annual vintage trailer rally in the Maryhill/Goldendale area of Washington, on the banks of the Columbia River, bordering Oregon. It was the perfect opportunity to commune with Oregon vintage trailer friends,

tour the Maryhill area,

visit with Annmarie and meet her favorite rancher, and hang out with my niece Michelle and her son Gage, who made the trip from Gresham, Oregon.

Where in Sam Hill is Maryhill?

Maryhill was founded by industrialist and Quaker Sam Hill, who built a beautiful mansion initially intended as a residence, but converted into a museum, opening in 1926.

A pacifist, Hill erected a monument to Klickitat County’s World War I dead – an exact replica of Stonehenge in England.

Given the arid climate, there are many wineries in the area; the Maryhill Winery wins consistent awards and is located in a beautiful setting, overlooking the river.

Annmarie first met her favorite rancher, Paulette at Lefever Holbrook Ranch, on the Internet years ago. She has been purchasing Paulette’s meat and produce ever since. When Annmarie learned I would be staying in Maryhill, she contacted Paulette for a tour – her first time at the ranch. We knew Paulette would show us around, but her generosity of time and spirit was such an unexpected and pleasant surprise.

With the help of her cattle dog, we herded sheep and cows,

paid a visit to the chickens and turkeys, and departed with fistfuls of mint and a cooler full of beef and lamb.

Passing unhurried, unadulterated time with my niece and her five-year-old son was such a pleasure. They came for a day, and spent the night in the rig.

Camping is tailor-made for little boys, and we enjoyed the campground, river, and orchards.

PORT TOWNSEND & THE OLYMPIC PENINSULA

It was a long day driving from the Columbia River Gorge to the Olympic Peninsula, but my site at Point Hudson Marina in Port Townsend made the grueling traffic worthwhile.

I love Port Townsend – always have. The town of about 9,000 in the northeast corner of the Olympic Peninsula is picturesque and politically progressive, with many amenities usually reserved for larger cities.

There are spas, live theater, movie houses, restaurants galore for all those tourists, and seemingly endless opportunities to get out in nature and/or on the water.

Since its inception Port Townsend has never had a large population, but the bustling downtown core of historic buildings is quite large; in the 1800’s citizens built a town for a railroad that never came.

PT is one of three Victorian Seaports in the United States, the other two being Galveston, Texas and Cape May, New Jersey.

The town’s time capsule appearance was the perfect setting for the Steampunk Festival, held while I was in town. There were several boating and nautical events happening as well, like a non-motorized watercraft race from Tacoma to PT, and a boat race to Alaska.

Deer roam freely about the town, making non-tasty plants and shrubs an ongoing obsession of the citizenry. Beautiful Chetzemoka Park is named for a 19th century leader of the local S’Klallam tribe. (Park photos: Kathy Zimmerman.)

You may recognize nearby Ft. Worden, decommissioned and now a state park; the Richard Gere movie “An Officer and a Gentleman” was filmed there.

Together with Fort Casey on Whidbey Island, and Fort Flagler on Marrowstone Island, all state parks now, the three forts made up the “Triangle of Fire” to thwart sea invasions for 55 years.

RV Traveling buddy Kathy just relocated to the area, and in between deliveries of furniture and appliances we explored her new home.

On a particularly fabulous day, we took the ferry from Port Townsend to Whidbey Island, driving first to the artist colony of Langley,

then to Coupeville, on Penn Cove.

You may have heard of Penn Cove, because they produce the most delicious mussels on the planet. We came home with far too many pounds, skipping the salad.

ROSLYN

It was hard for me to leave my little home by the sea, but the annual Father’s Day weekend Roslyn trailer rally was about to get underway. I first attended the rally in 2010, when I had FiFi, the Pink Poodle Trailer.</a Roslyn is hands down my favorite rally, and several friends were there, making it a fantastically fun weekend.

Roslyn (1886), elevation 2,222 feet, population 900, owes its existence to coal. There are monuments and remembrances all over town about its coal mining history.

The mines lured many foreign immigrants, the remains of whom are now perched on the hill above town in one of the most multicultural cemeteries you’ll ever see.

The cemetery complex covers 19 acres of woods and hills and consists of 26 separate cemeteries formed prior to the turn of the 20th century. Various ethnic groups were members of lodges, who interred their dead.

Long before the television show “Northern Exposure“ filmed in Roslyn, it was a town of quirky characters and beloved institutions. As always, we had burgers at the Brick,

breakfast at the Roslyn Café,

and perused the farmers’ market on Sunday.

(A few of the series sites remain, like Joel’s office, KBHR radio, and of course the Roslyn Café mural.)

BURIEN

I get by with a LOT of help from my friends. Toward the end of June I parked Nellie in the driveway at Kay’s house in Burien, about 20 minutes from downtown Seattle. How very lucky I am! More of that in the July installment; I am staying in Burien until July 16.

THE SUMMER OF PRIDE & PERFORMANCES

It’s funny how life unfolds. At a Mardi Gras parade in New Orleans in March, I met John & Julius, who live in Mount Vernon, Washington and work for Fred Meyer (a local grocery/department store chain, for those of you unfamiliar). They organize Fred Meyer‘s participation in local pride parades, and they invited me to join them for Seattle Pride.

The 1.6-mile walk from Fourth and James to the Seattle Center took about an hour and 15 minutes, and my face hurt from smiling so much.

Such an outpouring of love and acceptance and joy. I attended Seattle pride parades as a spectator many times, but I had to leave town and get on the road to actually march in one. Go figure.

The weather was beautiful for Pride, and we were really fortunate weather-wise for the entire month of June. It rarely dipped below 60 degrees or above 80. There is nothing else like Seattle in the summer. The metropolitan area is full of picturesque outdoor concert venues, and I am hitting quite a few. In June there was Frankie Valli at the Tulalip Amphitheater with Barbara,

and Lucinda Williams and Robert Plant at Marymoor Park in Redmond with Andrea and George.

Indoors, Rebecca’s birthday gift of tickets to “The Color Purple” at the Paramount Theater on June 30 kicked off the month of July known as “Tammypalooza” – my birthday month.

More on that in the next installment – I gotta go get ready for the 50th birthday bash tonight!

Up Next: Rain shadows, lavender, elks, and loggers. (Doen’t that sound sooo Pac NW?)