VitaTour 2006

Last Leg Home

Next day we head north to Seaside, OR. our last stop, before going home. As we go north we are a bit more inland and we hit farm country. A nice change from the switchbacks on the coast.

Before we get to Seaside we stopped the Tillamook Air Museum. It is a private museum featuring Navy and Marine Aircraft and memorabilia. The building is an old WW II blimp hanger on the site of the decommissioned (1948) Naval Air Station Tillamook.



Being an ex-Navy Airedale, I had a ball climbing around and inspecting these exhibits. The A-3 was the plane of my first squadron, the Hellcat was the same plane my Uncle Dick flew in WW II, the Mustang is my step son's fav, the Mitchell is one of my brother's favorite, the Corsair, because who hasn't heard of the Black Sheep squadron and the Helo trainer was Michelle's favorite. (She had to make one her fav to stop from being bored.)







M: I think helicopters are SOOOOOOOOOO cute!

Back on the road to the Tillamook Cheese plant, no big deal here, except to see the whey separated from milk curd as a byproduct in the cheese making process. The whey is then sold to companies like Champion to make their protein products. The milk curd is where the lactose remains and not in the whey, thus is why whey protein is mostly lactose free and safe for us to use. I will say that my cheese of choice is the mild cheddar they make here. Nummm.

SEASIDE, here we come.... This is a very special place for us. We have spent several vacations here as well as our honeymoon.

We pull into the campground and find there is no reservation on file. They are booked full, "sorry, no room at the inn". However I was amazed at the care and hospitality here at the Circle Creek RV Park. Even though there was no record of a reservation, they went out of their way to help us. They contacted the other campgrounds in the area looking for space or a misplaced reservation. One of the ladies drove to the other side of town to check one more place for us as they were not taking calls.

When all said and done, they spotted us in their field for the first night and gave us a cancelled reservation for the remainder of our stay. The park has become our home away from home when we come to Seaside in the future.

We enjoyed our favorite places, like the Ten Tiny Tees miniature golf course. We WON'T discuss the score. There was another carousel to ride, goodies to buy for our folks at home, walks on the beach (Barney had never seen one, or surf!) and prom (like a boardwalk), restaurants to enjoy and yes I even agreed to shop. (I had to pay back for the Air Museum, right?) I won't discuss that score, either.

We ran down to Canon Beach for a few hours and walked and shopped, enjoyed the beautiful flower displays:



and a cute little three wheeler electric car. It's called the Xebra Zap.





Cutest darn thing since those little European jobs back in the 60's. What were they called? Door in the front, tiny little wheels up there, too. Hey, could these be the commuter of the future?
: BMW Isetta

Well, back into Washington. We headed home with a stop in Longview at the best Sizzler Restaurant in the country. Every time we come through town we stop and enjoy their salad bar which is so wonderful. For a chain type establishment, the owner here takes the effort to make the menu a bit different and everything is perfect. This has been run by the same person since 1983 and he does a superb job, so if you are in the area, it is a great meal.

It was good to see our mountain again. As we say, 'it came out to greet us". Mt Rainier is spectacular and if you are fortunate to be in our area on a clear day, perhaps it will "come out" and welcome you as well.

The road trip portion of our adventure is over, for this year. Grad weekend is coming up next to cap off Vita Tour 2006. We want to thank everyone who came out to visit with us, for the well wishes and prayers for our safety. This trip has become very special to us and a tremendous encouragement.

I also want to thank Michelle for putting up with my short temper tantrums while setting up and breaking down the camp sites. For allowing me to cross the street, so to say, and share this great country and all the beautiful people we have met. You are truly a terrific mom to so many, and I am proud and love being your chauffeur down this road and at your side.

Thanks,
Don Curran

posted by Michelle & Don Curran @ 2:09 PM