Skamokawa News

STILL DRY. It is hard to believe we are still in a dry spell, though temperatures have thankfully cooled down to the mid and upper seventies, with a good breeze that beats those higher temps by a mile! It's very dry however and the burn ban is still in effect. Please continue to use extreme caution during this time because one spark and a little breeze can start a roaring, out-of-control fire in just minutes. The house you save may be your own.

SPECIAL DAYS. Those celebrating birthdays this coming week from July 18 through 24 are: Naomi Meyer, Brian O'Conner, John Buennagel, Luke Shmidtz, Bev Moonen, Randy Montgomery, Rick Benfit, Stuart Bosch, McKenna Longtain, Cameron Havens, Darlene Hoven, Eric Ferguson, Blaise Johnson, Larry Hendrickson, Ella Doiron, Lisa Hannah, Raedyn Grasseth, Theresa Libby, Steve L. Doumit, Skip Nortrup, Jacob Johnson, Tanner Bergseng, Ruth Doumit, Tera Stankey, Joel Gaillard, Jerry DeBriae Jr., DJ Wolcott, Robbie Seibert, Julie Pedersen, Frank Webb, Cody Olsen, Halle Grasseth, Ashely Hedges, Ellyse Brewster, Molly Jorgensen and "Big Art" Pedersen. Enjoy your special days! Belated birthday wishes go to Janelle Seaberg as her birthday was this past Sunday, hope you had a good one Janelle! Happy Anniversary wishes this week go out to Andrew Emlen and Audrey P., Rick and Janet Bryan, Felicitie and Bryan Rismoen, Mark and Patti Phillips, DJ and Jen Wolcott and Mr. and Mrs. Keith Rutledge.

THIS IS IT! Well, you can't say you didn't know that beginning Friday, July 19th, the Bald Eagle Days festivities are here. In Skamokawa, you'll have fun watching the mud wrestling event from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. down here at the fairgrounds and then the Alabama Tribute Band will be there at 8 p.m. to entertain you. Come to Skamokawa on Friday evening! On Saturday, Main Street in Cathlamet will be closed so that all the vendors can set up and the big parade will take place at noon, as well as a Magic Show, Fire Truck tours, a Waterball Fight and a Kids Zone, and the big blast to end the day. The fireworks show will be taking place at 10 p.m. Saturday. New this year, the Sons of Norway booth will be set up down on River Street by the Museum, where they will be selling their lefse and other goodies. So grab a Norwegian treat and a root beer float served by the Historical Society and support two great organizations in one spot.

NORSE HALL BINGO THIS SATURDAY. You can give yourself a little break from trudging around on all that cement in Cathlamet by going over to the Norse Hall on Puget Island and play some rousing games of Bingo, located at 444 SR 409. There will be cash prizes and lots of fun competition! If you happen to have a few canned goods at home, you can bring them over to the hall and drop them off in their food bank collection bin too! The doors to the lower floor, on the left of the building, open at 5:30 p.m. and games begin at 6 p.m. Have fun folks.

GREAT TIME. I certainly had an enjoyable time seeing my former classmate, Greg Lloyd this past Saturday, as the Lloyd and Ackerman families gathered together at the Elochoman for a big family bash. Besides being classmates, Greg and I were ole "slough rat" pals, something from our days of growing up along the North Welcome Slough on Puget Island. Those were the days… Thanks to Facebook we’ve kept in touch with each other, but it's been many years since we've met up in person; it was nice to give him a big hug and finally meet his wife, Cindy. She is a real sweetheart, she knits beautiful caps and donates them to various hospitals and to those in need. The couple recently celebrated their eighteenth wedding anniversary and were surprised during the family get-together with a lovely cake from Greg’s niece. Cheers! Greg also got to gab with some other old pals: former 67'er Keith Lawrence and David West, Danny and Terrie Eaton, and Gary and Vicki Bergseng. According to Greg, back in the day he and Gary worked on the ferry and were the youngest ever crew members, good memories. I also got to chat with Greg’s brother, Dan, whom I hadn't seen since back in the early seventies, that was fun too. I have to say, with all of Greg's family and friends dropping by, he definitely had a good time coming back home.

PEDERSEN/EVEREST. Speaking of family gatherings, I'm looking forward to my family members getting together on July 27 over at the Norse Hall from noon to 5 p.m. I get to celebrate my seventy-fifth "back home" on Puget Island, it will be a fun day! If you're related to me, I do hope you pop in for a bit, the Sechler family is serving lunch at 1p.m. and they hope to see you there. It's been awhile since we've gotten together, here's to lots of gabs and good times soon!

FOS/RLIC. Last week I mentioned the Creamery exhibit up in the River Life Interpretive Center at the 1894 Schoolhouse (Central School or Redmen Hall) here in Skamokawa at MP 29. I do hope you are able to get up there to see it before it closes at the end of next month. I didn't mention that they also have a raffle going on for a two hundred dollar "Till the Cows Come Home'' gift basket that you could enter to win. Tickets are two dollars each or you can get three tickets for five dollars and save a buck, check it out! The hall is open on Saturdays and Sundays starting at noon and closing at four. For more information? Call 360-795-3007.

TIME TO GET READY! With the Wahkiakum County Fair happening in less than a month away, it's definitely time to think about what you'll be entering into the fair this year and getting your projects made as entry deadlines for those things come prior to the fair. Depending on whether you're entering animals or other projects, you may only have three weeks left to get your entries ready to go. The fair is Aug. 15 through 17 this year so be sure to check the fair books to see what days and times you need to take your items/animals to the fairgrounds. If you have spare time on your hands and would like to help out in some way, I'm sure the organizers/workers at the fairgrounds would love to have you join them, you can call the at 360-795-3480 and leave your name and phone number and they will likely put you to work! If you are new to the area and have children, check out the section in the fair book about what they can enter and see if your kids would like to take part in the fair and raise a little extra cash; what a fun way to earn your own money! This goes for all you adults too, lots of ways to earn a few extra coins, and who doesn't like that? Here's to the fair.... make it great and participate.

ALL GREAT PLACES. We have a very diverse array of places to stay here in our little town and here is a quick list of those you can find online or possibly Facebook. Out in the East Valley, there's the Inn at Lucky Mudd. Lucky Mudd is a great place to stay and has a gorgeous wooded setting with a disc golf course, which attracts a great number of folks from casual players to big competitions and was the first course built in our area. The Middle Valley is home to Inn at Crippen Creek Farm and its charm comes in the form of a rustic setting and a farm-to-table menu. On the north side of the bridge in Skamokawa, a place we old-timers call Swedetown, sits Twin Gables B & B, near downtown and Vista Park. They offer delicious homemade food and great accommodations with a private dock that you can easily launch your kayak from or tie up your boat. Skamokawa Vista Park also has several options, they have full hookups and partial hookups, tent sites, and yurts that are close to the covered area and bathrooms. Who doesn't love that view of the mighty Columbia River as you play on the beach? It's truly spectacular. Now, if you're wanting to be right in downtown Skamokawa, the Skamokawa Resort has a hotel above the store and condos for rent next door. Once again, spectacular views from the condos and with each of them sleeping various amounts of people, there's one that's just right for you. We've got some wonderful places to stay and I hope you'll check them out, come and stay in Skamokawa!