What is the quirkiest thing you can think of where you live?
I always love finding out new and interesting things about my area of the world. So I decided to go on a mission to hunt for what makes the Pacific Northwest unique. I searched Oregon, Washington State, and British Columbia for those shining examples of uniqueness that sparkle like a diamond in the imagination.
I looked for the interesting, the strange, the funky….basically anything that made me go “hmmmm!”
So here is what I came up with. Enjoy! And if you want to add anything to this list, please let me know, because this blog is a two-way street and I always LOVE to hear from my readers!
OREGON
What the Heck is Up with All That Beer ?!?
I’m from the Midwest, so I grew up with people who only drank Milwaukie’s Best or Bud Light. Pisswater, I say! Beer never, EVER appealed to me until I moved to Oregon. It is here that I learned about craft brewing, the many variations of hops, and what you could really do with beer to make it taste fantastic. Today I’m a solid IPA gal. But I digress…
At last count, Oregon alone has 152 breweries. The city of Portland has more microbreweries than any other city in the world. That’s a hell of a lot of beer. How can we drink all of that? Well, we don’t. We export much of it, all over the world and Oregon is known as one of the beer capitals. Sorry, Germany.
Here, llama llama…
If a quarter of the world’s llama population suddenly disappeared, well then you know Oregon probably fell into the ocean following the big earthquake we’re supposed to get any day now. Because YES, a full 25% of llamas the world over live in Oregon. You will find llama farms everywhere in the state, especially in the fertile Willamette Valley and along the coast. I hear tell there is even a handful of them in Portland!
Boring and Dull, meet Bland…
On the far outskirts of southeast Portland lies the small town of Boring, Oregon. It is on the road to Mount Hood. The town is not all that noteworthy on its own, and I’ve driven through it numerous times, only to get a snack on the way to Hood. But I was excited to learn about Boring’s sister cities of Dull, Ireland and Bland, Australia. My dear reader, that just charmed the pants off of me. We are truly a global village.
Do You Feel a Draft?
Every summer, usually in June, Oregonians let their freak flag fly, bicycle-style, by riding down the tepid streets of Portland au natural. Well, for the most part. Many people participate in the world-famous Naked Bike Ride completely naked, but just as many use this awesome event to paint their bodies in strategic places (if you are naked with body paint, are you REALLY naked?) or dress in all manner of funky costumes. The Naked Bike Ride’s statement is that of oil-free sustainability. What started out with 124 like-minded people in 2004, has grown to almost 9,000 riders in 2018 (at last count.) It’s worth it just to be a spectator.
Whatever Happened to Aunt Edna?
Probably the most dangerous lighthouse known to the West Coast is the Tillamook Light House. The lighthouse operated for 77 years before it was decommissioned in 1957. Nicknamed Terrible Tilly, today it remains the resting place of some 30 cremated people. This started in 1980 when it became a columbarium (a storage house for urns with cremated remains) dubbed “Eternity at Sea.” Then, in 1999, the Oregon Mortuary and Cemetery Board stripped away its license, citing improper urn storage and bad record-keeping. Yet the remains….remain.
WASHINGTON
Hollywood Does It Again
During World War II, Washington-state based Boeing was involved in the cover-up of a secret bomber-making factory, just south of Seattle. It needed to be hidden from any enemies, so a Hollywood set designed got to work and camouflaged the entire factory using a Hollywood set to create a fake neighborhood. This included fake, trees, fake houses, and fake sidewalks. Today, no remnants of this fake neighborhood could be found. It truly was a put up and tear down affair.
Watch Out for That Tree!
On Vashon Island in the gorgeous Puget Sound area of western Washington state is a very stubborn tree. So stubborn, in fact, that it insisted on growing around a bicycle. Legend has it that a young boy chained his bike to the tree in 1914, then had to leave for the war. While the boy was gone fighting for his country, the tree continued to grow, with the base getting larger, and eventually grew around the bike, enveloping it. Today the bike sits over seven feet above the ground.
I Fell Into a Burnin’ Ring Of Fire
The Cascade Mountain Range is a wonder unto itself. But when you take into account the fact that what makes up this range in Washington state include 10 volcanoes. A literal ring of fire. Five of these volcanoes are well known and a major component of the Cascade range: Mount Baker, Mount Rainier, Glacier Peak, Mount Adams, and Mount Saint Helens. It should be noted that Mt. Rainier is the highest peak in Washington, topping out at 14,410 feet above sea level.
Are We Currently in an Ice Age?
This question is certainly up for debate, as Washington state has 3,000 glaciers at present. In fact, all of the western states in the U.S. contain glaciers. Granted, they are smaller than what occurred during the last Ice Age some 18,000 years ago. However, given the fact that ice sheets in Greenland and the Antarctic are still intact despite warmer temperatures, some scientists believe that we are in an Ice Age right now. Washington is the most glaciated state in America. (Psst: British Columbia has over 15,000 glaciers!)
A Bird Befitting of the State
It makes sense that the only state named after a president should have the highest concentration of our national bird, the bald eagle. The San Juan Islands is probably my favorite spot in the entire Pacific Northwest, and apparently it is the bald eagle’s favorite spot, as well. In the San Juans you will find over 125 nesting pairs of the bald eagle – more than anywhere else in our great United States. Some of them are migratory, but many of them are here full-time, thanks to the abundance of fresh seafood in Puget Sound.
The Name Says It All
Did you know that Washington State beats California for the longest beach? Yep, it does! And do you know what it’s called? Take a guess. That’s right….it’s called Long Beach. How’s that for a literal interpretation? Long Beach in Washington is not a city like the California city of the same name. Long Beach in Washington is an actual beach. It is located on a peninsula in the southwestern part of the state and even beats out Virginia for the longest continuous beach. It is also the longest continuous beach in the U.S.
BRITISH COLUMBIA
Wild West
A full two-thirds of British Columbia’s land is comprised of forests, of which half has had little to no human contact. How refreshing! This means that British Columbia, especially the northern region, is very sparse when it comes to peopling. This is great for nature, great for trees, and great for the world in general. Not to get on my soapbox, but less peopling in the forested regions of the world means a healthier planet. It’s great to visit, but if you do, leave no trace. Okay, end of very mild rant.
Come Here for Your Honeymoon Instead
Why go to Niagara Falls just because everyone else goes there? Balderdash! Go to a REAL waterfall, in British Columbia. It is Delta Falls in gorgeous Strathcona Provincial Park. At 440 meters high, it is a full EIGHT times higher than Niagara Falls. Not only that, but the backdrop of forested mountains an snow-capped peaks are exquisite.
That’s a Lot of Wood
Whether you are a hockey fan or no, you got to be impressed with the ingenuity of the world’s largest hockey stick. Proudly displayed on a building in Duncan, on Vancouver Island. It was created for the Expo in 1986 (confirming my belief that the ’80s was truly the best decade in the 20th century.) At over 62 meters long, it is 40 times the size of the normal stick.
Oh, Those City Dwellers!
A full half of the population of B.C. reside in Vancouver. That’s actually a very good thing because that means fewer people in the northern regions, where the forests are more abundance and extremely sparsely populated (see Wild West above.) Vancouver is considered the ‘Hollywood’ of Canada. A dizzying array of movies and television shows are filmed here. Vancouver is also a very green city, with more urban park area than most any city in Canada.
You’re Literally Hanging by a Thread
High up in the air in Whistler, you may spot a bright red spot among the snowy trees. No, it’s not a UFO, it is an unsupported cable car! Running along the longest unsupported cable on the planet, it connects the two peaks of the Blackcomb Ski Resort, which incidentally is one of the best resorts on the continent for skiing and snowboarding.
