Text Box: Our Plan   We planned to be in the Seattle area on 7/26 and for our visit with the Watt family.  Above is a picture of Juanita & I .  We were to spend approximately 2 weeks before moving on to Sequim, WA on the Olympic Peninsula.  Bob & Juanita were in the midst of preparing to move into a condo in downtown Seattle by the end of August, which is a major undertaking for anyone.  We were concerned that our visit would disrupt their schedule but Juanita insisted that she had things under control.  We had a great visit with the whole family, not to mention  some great tours arranged by Bob, Juanita  & Rhonda. 

Text Box: In this picture,  Juanita and I are on the ferry between Bremerton and Seattle.  Great day for a ride on the ferry!

Text Box: Our Arrival   We arrived at Ft Lewis on 7/26 and, although we did not have a reservation, we were able to get a spot for a few days.  Since Juanita & Bob were busy, we took a drive down to the farm in Tenino to see Lisa and Mike and the kids.  We had been discussing  moving the RV down there, which would have worked out fine, except it was really too far to drive back and forth to Seattle.  It was good to see everyone again, especially Maile, who is the newest member of the family.  The farm was quite impressive and Lisa & Mike really like the country setting with great plans for developing a working organic farm.  Unfortunately the photographer was off this day and we don’t have any pictures to show!  The following day we took the short ferry ride followed by dinner with Bob & Juanita.   We visited the Capital in Olympia the same day we went to see Mike & Lisa and family.  This is a very attractive campus with a masonry dome that is the largest in the world at 287 feet.  All the original lighting  designs, inside and out, were created by  Louis Comfort Tiffany.  In the rotunda is the largest chandelier ever created by the artists of the Tiffany Studios in NY.  It hangs from a 101 foot chain.  See pictures below.     

Text Box: The Watts took the Smiths to the beautiful    Snoqualmie Falls located east of Seattle.  There is no shortage of beautiful water falls in WA state.    

Text Box: Touring

Text Box: Meet Some  Family Members!  

Text Box: Lisa (top)   Maile (bottom)   Lucas (right)   Visiting us in our Motorhome.

Text Box:     Aisha (right)     Friend (left)

Text Box:   Darias at left     Pictures on left and  above were taken at Rob & Rhonda’s home, when the family celebrated Darius’s Grandfather’s birthday.  Everyone had a great time!

Text Box: In between visits and tours,  Juanita and Bob took us over to see the condo they were moving into.  It is down town Seattle and is a good move in down sizing.  Juanita refers to it as ‘ another life passage’. Right is view from the building.

Text Box: Great Tours!!   As if being able to visit with family were not enough, Bob Watt and daughter-in-law, Rhonda went out of their way to arrange some great tours for us!   Bob arranged for a private Boeing factory tour in Everett, WA.  Juanita accompanied us.  Then all four of us attended a Mariner’s game at Safeco Field and were able to watch the dome open and, “Let the Sun Shine In”!  There are pictures on the front, of our visit to Snoqualmie Falls also with Bob & Juanita.   Seafare is a huge popular event in Seattle and we happened to be there when that was taking place.  Rhonda works as an organizer for this event and made it possible for us to sail on the VIP ship,  USS BUNKER HILL.  In addition, my Bob happened to mention to Juanita’s Bob how difficult it was to get to see any  submarines, even though we actually stayed on a submarine base in Georgia.   Well guess what?  We got to visit a active Trident submarine on a nearby base thanks to Bob, and what a great tour it was!  Needless to say the security checks were unbelievable going in!  We actually joined another special tour that was scheduled, but were given special treatment once in. 

Text Box: While at the Everett Boeing Plant, we got a glimpse of the number 2 Boeing 787 from a distance.  The plane in this picture is of the Dream Lifter, a special cargo plane used to carry in components produced in other countries and shipped here for assembly.

Text Box: To the right is a picture of Safeco Field Stadium in Seattle, with the roof open.  The picture was actually taken from the roof top of the building at Juanita & Bob’s new address.  We watched the Mariners play while there.  Fans really have a good time.

Text Box: Pictures to the left and bottom are of  our participation in the Seattle Seafare Celebration.  Rhonda went out of her way to obtain passage for us to ride on the VIP Ship, the USS Bunker Hill.  We were fed and sailed all day around Puget Sound aboard the ship along with 4 other Navy and Coast Guard vessels.  This was totally unexpected. 

Text Box:   Thanks again to the entire Watt Family for a great visit!!!  

Text Box: Olympic  Peninsula   On the 5th of August, Bob & I headed for the Olympic Peninsula, just west of Seattle.  This is another ‘MUST DO TRIP’, before leaving the North West.  We stayed in Sequim, WA at the Gilgal Oasis RV Park until 8/12.  What a change in pace and environment after traveling only 102  miles.  After the hustle and bustle of Seattle, we experienced quiet, serene countryside, with the fragrance of lavender in the air.  The weather was beautiful! Because of unusual conditions, they experience about half the rain that Seattle has during the course of the year.  Yes, I bought lots of lavender products since it is one of my favorite fragrances.       

Text Box: We drove out to the tip of Cape Flattery on the Makah Indian Reservation to view the most northwest point of the Continental US.  It is Tatoosh Island with a light house within view.  We were taken out by bus and then had a

Text Box: fairly long walk through the woods to the view point above.  The drive, the walk and the tour of the Indian Cultural Center were all very worth while.  We also visited Port Townsend, a quaint Victorian Seaport Town and artist community in the NE part of the Peninsula.  It was established in 1851 and was a major fishing and lumber town.  Many of the Victorian style buildings still exist.  We also took a day and rode the ferry to Victoria, Canada.  What a pretty city.  Flowers, flowers every where.  It was the first time I have ever seen a harbor with as many sea planes landing and taking off as boats coming in and out!!  Then, of course a visit to the Peninsula would not be complete without a tour of one of the rain forests.  We drove out to the Hoh Rain Forest which was quite different from what we were expecting.  These trees are from 200 to 1,000 years old  creating a canopy of growth.  We arrived on one of the rare dry days experienced here.  They get up to 240 inches of rain a year.  The Peninsula is large and there was more to see, but will have to wait for another time.

Text Box: On 8/12, we left for Harrisburg, OR to the Monaco Coach Service Center.  Although we had some work done, it unfortunately turned out to be a very irritating experience.  We won’t go into that here though.  On a more pleasant

Text Box: side, we met up with our dear friends, Henry and Ann from TN, who are now out on the road full time.  It is kind of funny, but we were with them last year close to the same time of year, only in NY.   It was really good to see them again.  They were parked at the Country Coach Service Center, where they had been hanging out off and on all Summer.  At this point they were having some custom wood work done by Davis Cabinets.  When we were finished at Harrisburg, we all moved to the Premier RV Resort in Eugene, OR on 8/23.  We stayed together until 9/07, even though it was only supposed to be for a few days, as it seemed no one wanted to leave.  We had a great visit and have no regrets about having to hustle along to Elephant Butte, NM to prepare for our Fall Rally.     Sorry for the delay of this Newsletter! It has been a hectic Summer and Fall!

Text Box: Smith Family Newsletter August 2007

Sisters!!