Did you know: Did you know that in the South Puget Sound
region - the area roughly north from Alki beach, south to Olympia - there
are more than forty city, county and state parks. Additionally, there
are nearly twenty beaches or stretches of tideland and over forty public
or commercial points where boats can be launched. All these are open to
public use and conveniently, right here in our own backyard. Saturday,
March 21 was the first day of spring and what a beautiful day it was.
It was the kind of day that makes living in the Northwest all worthwhile.
It's time to get out and about and a good place to start is Commencement
Park. The park is located at the West End of Schuster Parkway near Old
Town Tacoma. An outstanding point of interest and an unmistakable landmark,
is the huge sundial located atop a grassy knoll. The park offers a nice
view of Commencement Bay, and on days like Saturday, a magnificent view
of Mount Rainier. Here, there is something for the whole family; sandboxes
for the toddlers, hiking and biking trails for the energetic, a beach
for wading or swimming and rocks for exploring. And for the weary, there
are many benches for resting or just idling away time and soaking up the
excellent scenery. If you have never been to the park, take a look, you
are in for a pleasant surprise. And if you haven't been there for awhile,
you will still be pleasantly surprised. Take a look, and enjoy some of
the best of Washington. We have it all right here in our own backyard.
To view other Tacoma Parks, click here: Tacoma
Parks
Did you know: that we have one of the largest structures
in the world right here in Washington state - The Grand Coulee Dam. It
stands as tall as a 46 story building, stretches the length of a dozen
city blocks and has a spillway nearly twice as high as the Niagara Falls.
The dam was completed in 1941 and was originally intended to irrigate
the desert, but so much electricity was produced that it soon became a
magnet for the nation's aluminum industry. The north-face extension was
completed in 1975 and is something to see, especially during the light
show. There are self-guided tours of the dam, but the hours vary according
to the season. Take some time while in the area to appreciate the surrounding
landscape. Everything here is on a grand scale - the river and the valley
through which it flows are of immense scale. The river of which I speak
of course, is the mighty Columbia River, the second largest in the Nation.
More information on the Grand
Coulee Dam.
Did you know: There are over 172 San Juan Islands? Of course
that depends on what you consider an island. I suppose if all the rocks
and reefs were considered islands, there would be well over 700. The figure
of 172 includes all those named islands or groups of islands. Now you
wouldn't get an argument from me if you counted more than that - some
say over 200 hundred, but whatever the count, there is over 375 miles
of shoreline. That's almost as much saltwater shoreline as Washington
and Oregon combined - more than any other county in the United States.
August 2002
Did you know: that the 1980 Mount Saint Helens eruption
blasted 3000 feet off its top and leveled over four billion feet of usable
timber? That's enough timber to build 150,000 homes. Trees were stripped
of all limbs as far away as six miles. Trees further out where the blast
began to slow were toppled or broken in half. The explosion of rocks and
gases swept up to speeds of 670 mile per hour and reached temperatures
of up to 600 degrees Fahrenheit. The blast traveled as far as sixteen
miles north of the volcano and covered about 150 square miles. To find
out more about this catastrophic eruption, please follow links below.
Mount St. Helens
Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument
Many Faces of Mount St. Helens
USGS Eruption of Mount St. Helens
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