"a blustery day" redefined

here's the view- and understand that the picture doesn't do it justice- of the coast from North Head lighthouse in washington.

the trip to this particular lighthouse wasn't a challenge. a .25 mile walk uphill on a foggy day on a trail that hadn't seen rain in a few days. that was saturday.

today's trek was very different. today was the 150th anniversary of the Cape Disappointment lighthouse so they actually allowed civilians- not just the u.s. coast guard- to climb to the top of it and gaze upon the miles and miles of ocean.

seen here (and i would've taken a picture myself had i purchased a new lithium battery for my camera) is the Cape "D" lighthouse from the shore. it's a very stunning black and white striped thing.

but back to why it was such a gnarly trek. the gale force winds (we listened to the weather band in our friends' subaru) was like, 60 knots at 9 am. i'm not sure what that means to the commoner, but we were at the top of the cliff at noon and could lean right into the wind.

the same rain that forced us to do a mach3 break-camp at the campground below forced its way into the crevaces of our clothing (the plug for underarmor and mountain hardware comes later) as we stomped in wind, rain and mud .75 miles (i know cause it was posted, thusly) on a narrow trail up to the lighthouse. there we climbed 53 freaky, slippery metal stairs to the top and drilled the docent on duty for obscure facts like "what year did they transfer this light from kerosene to a fully automated lightbulb?" riveting.

on the way down we scoped out the coast guard station and sadly noted there were no seahawks to be seen.

things we have learned about camping in the pacific northwest:

• foul weather gear is not such a bad idea... however ridiculous it may look
• always keep the firewood in the car where it will be safe and dry
• when there is a large yellow flame on the coleman stove, know it will warp yr sissy teflon camping pans
• the log cabin model works better than the tee-pee campfire
• and towels soaked in white gas work best
• the mothers that have raised children of the 70's and 80's have within them a wellspring of camping common sense.. they themselves have spent their summers in a hot station wagon and a cold canvas tent... when they suggest you bring a butane lighter... you zip yr lip and bring one
• the same applies for when she says to bring a cast iron pan