Care-A-Vanning Redux in Pagosa Springs

After thoroughly enjoying our first experience volunteering as Care-A-Vanners with Habitat for Humanity in Pagosa Springs, Colorado in June, we adjusted our schedule for the summer to return to the very same place for another two-week commitment. We knew that the experience could be very different because of the composition of a new volunteer group, … Read more

Weekend on the Central Oregon Coast

Our journey south from the Columbia River along US 101 took us through miles of rural scenery, filled with dairy farms and small fishing communities. In places where the road runs right along the coast, we could sometimes make out dramatic pillars of rock down topped by hardy evergreens just offshore. Unfortunately, persistent rain and … Read more

“Ocian in view! O! the joy.”

This November 7, 1805 journal entry from William Clark perfectly encapsulates his peculiar spelling and punctuation style, along with the very understandable relief of getting to the long-awaited destination: the Pacific Ocean. At the mouth of the Columbia River, just west of the town of Astoria, Oregon, the Lewis & Clark Expedition completed the journey … Read more