48 hours after our prior Post finds us in the home of my high school classmate, WENDELL POOL, and his lovely wife, ERLENE, teetering on the pinnacle of a 1,070 foot peak looking something like an inverted Ice Cream Cone, overlooking the NOOKSACK RIVER VALLEY and CANADA's FRASER RIVER VALLEY.
Surrounded by glacier and snow topped mountains in all directions, a white shade has been pulled down, leaving a hazy impression of the hidden awe-inspiring beauty waiting just out of reach...just out of sight...
...result of smoke from raging forest fires... one waiting for SAM and ME to arrive in the burned-out METHOW VALLEY. Some roads are still closed...hope SAM and ME will be allowed to cross the CASCADE Mountains to reach the vast DESERT of Eastern Washington, which lie in wait some 5 to 6 days' walk .
DAN guided SPIA to her parking spot on the 6th floor of PORTLAND, Maine downtown Parking Garage, where SPIA will remain protected from the elements for the next six or more months while SAM and ME scurry round trip - coast to coast - with the objective to SAVE some $1,500.00 to repair SPIA's massive engine oil leak...
blogging all the way.
First leg of my trip to BELLINGHAM was a pleasant Hotel Shuttle Bus ride to PORTLAND Airport to board the first of three aircraft...next stop = DETROIT...next stop = SEATTLE...final stop was 11:53 PDT (midnight) in BELLINGHAM, Washington, where SAM awaited my arrival for our subsequent 6,400 mile walk...in less than 180 days..
Plan is to cross 3,300 miles in under 90 days - 180 days round trip, leaving unlimited time (not tallied in the 90 - day crossing) to visit friends along the way.
Our lovely Bus Driver kept one eye - most of the time - on my comfort as she guided her bus to the airport.
Seems she is ambidextrious, as she checked often while negotiating the afternoon PORTLAND traffic.
Arriving at DELTA Air waiting area within the Portland Terminal, this young lady checked on my continued comfort. Never have I experienced such personal attention from airline personnel. Thank you ever so much.
Rushing through the labyrinth of passages to find the waiting aircraft.
Arriving in DETROIT, large picture windows afford great views of the busy tarmac as I find my way to the DELTA flight waiting in Terminal A, Gate # 6.
DETROIT Airport, being laid out in a huge letter " H ". has as it's connecting walkway a passageway crossing UNDER the active runways. This underground Tunnel is equipped with fast moving walkways ... with lively piped in music to accompany the tempo of psychedelic overhead lighting leading to ...
...long steep fast moving escalators carrying thousands of passengers per hour to their waiting connecting aircraft...sometimes a mile or so distant from the Arrival Gate of the aircraft on which they reached DETROIT, Michigan International Airport.
Arriving at the top of the escalator, a one half mile long walkway stretches left and right lined with dozens of "Gates" for arriving and departing aircraft .
Thankfully, DETROIT has installed an overhead Railway System comprised of two "trains" traveling in opposite directions for the entire length of the walkway below. A dozen or so short escalators carry passengers up to the trains or back down to walkway level, making "walking" distance to any "Gate" a short 100 feet or so.
For those passengers who wish to get more exercise, the main walkway is equipped with twin fast moving walkways to rapidly cover the one quarter mile "legs" to the most distant Gates.
On board the Boeing 767 I flew, are a half dozen toilets. The wash basin of one toilet is imaged above.
I enjoy flowers.
BELLINGHAM is the culmination of expansion over 150 or so years of three separate towns. This brick-paved roadway is the FAIRHAVEN Main Street. FAIRHAVEN is the ART District of BELLINGHAM, where water, rail and land travel terminals are congregated for long distance travellers.
BELLINGHAM International Airport is some 5 miles distant adjacent to I-5 Freeway.
FAIRHAVEN Main Street looking in the opposite direction. BELLINGHAM Bay is in the far distance.
Please say HELLO to WENDELL POOL, parking in FAIRHAVEN for me to do some quick shopping before driving us to his magnificent Pinnacle Top home.
My first moment view from the gorgeous home of WENDELL and ERLENE overlooking the environs of BELLINGHAM, Washington.
The floor of land is 1,070 feet below the balcony which is near to straight down...much like standing on a vertical cliff overlooking the ocean.
The haze is SMOG...a combination of SEA FOG and SMOKE drifting West from the fierce forest fires burning in WASHINGTON and BRITISH COLUMBIA.
BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA is only 25 miles from the balcony and under normal clear sky,, downtown VANCOUVER, B.C., CANADA is easily visible from where I sit creating this blog.
A perpetual flyway of a dozen bird species visit the balcony affording a continuous bird spectacular from sunrise to sunset.
Yep, I like flowers...
Home in the tree tops.
A special treat.
BELLINGHAM is in a major earthquake Zone. Soil hereabouts is CLAY...more or less continuous to San Francisco. Subjected to severe vibration or shaking, the CLAY is subject to liquifaction, i.e., it turns to liquid. Sitting on top of a 1,070 foot high pinnacle, WENDELL's Home is in a potentially compromising position. If built on clay, it could slide off the mountain if the soil liquifies under it.
The image above is from a "test Bore", performed BEFORE construction of the home back in 1980. Turns out the "soil" under the home is solid rock. Not only that, the test bore sample pictured clearly shows the rock to be something much more than the expected "SANDSTONE" typical to the BELLINGHAM Region.
It is interlaced with BASALT...a dense strong rock. Must have been a hot day in BELLINGHAM for BASALT to join with SANDSTONE.
Thought a view from the chair I sit in while this Blog Update becomes real would help you visualize that which surrounds me.
Turning my head a bit to the right, I see that which you see.
* * * * * * * * * *
One or two more friends I hope to spend some time with before SAM and ME walk out of BELLINGHAM on US Route 20, beginning our Walk and Roll to NORTH CAROLINA Outer Banks ... and back to BELLINGHAM.
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